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image credit & copyright: NASA, USGS, Apollo 15 Crew



what would it be like to explore the Moon ?

NASA's Apollo missions gave humans just this chance in the late 1960s and early 1970s

in particular, the Apollo 15 mission was dedicated to better understanding the surface of the Moon by exploring mountains, valleys, maria, and highlands

astronauts David Scott and James Irwin spent nearly three days on the Moon while Alfred Worden orbited above in the Command Module

the mission, which blasted off from Earth on 1971 july 26, was the first to deploy a Lunar Roving Vehicle

pictured in this digitally stitched mosaic panorama, David Scott, exploring his surroundings, examines a boulder in front of the summit of Mt. Hadley Delta

the shadow of James Irwin is visible to the right, while scrolling to the right will reveal a well-lit and diverse lunar terrain

the Apollo 15 mission returned about 76 kilograms of moon rocks for detailed study







































in apod.nasa.gov/apod