National Air and Space Museum
6th St. & Independence Ave., SW
Washington, DC
This gallery traces NASA's manned space program beginning with Project Mercury's Freedom 7 (5/5/61); then the Gemini Project (1965-66); followed by the Apollo Program (1967-1972), with Apollo 17 as the last manned exploration of the moon.
Highlights include:
- Space flight time line, with photos of participating astronauts
- Items and equipment used by astronauts during the Apollo Project
- Space suits worn by Apollo astronauts on the moon
- Information about the moon and selected lunar scenes showing Lunar Rover and astronauts at work
- Saturn Booster—S-1C rocket propulsion system
- Lunar Samples: 4 types of lunar soils and rocks
- Apollo 16 telescope backup; the original, designed by George Carruthers, is on the moon
- Touchable Moon Rock: a "gem" from the lunar surface, collected by Apollo astronauts
Related book: Falling to Earth: An Apollo 15 Astronaut's Journey to the Moon
