Celebrating Flagstaff’s Scientific Role in the Apollo Moon Missions W.L. GORE & ASSOCIATES KEYNOTE PRESENTATION | SEPTEMBER 20, 2019 discoverflagstaff.com/lunarlegacy APOLLO 16 ASTRONAUT CHARLIE DUKE WELCOME FLAGSTAFF AND GUESTS! It is indeed an honor and pleasure for me to share Flagstaff’s Lunar Legacy with residents and visitors! Flagstaff’s significant scientific role in the Apollo Moon missions contributed to perhaps the greatest achievement in human history – landing and setting foot on another world! This was only possible with years of preparation in which many milestones Coral Evans occurred in Flagstaff. Mayor of Flagstaff Every astronaut who walked on the Moon trained right here. Important steps from local scientists, artists, engineers and cowboys all made it possible for mankind’s “giant leap.” They developed maps, landscapes and instrumentation to prepare the astronauts for successful navigation in this foreign environment. Flagstaff scientists continue to inspire all ages and advance our body of knowledge with world-class discoveries. I am so grateful to live in a place where science research and innovation are embraced and put on center stage in one of our community’s signature events, the Flagstaff Festival of Science! We celebrate Flagstaff’s lunar legends and the next generation of space pioneers. As astronaut Charlie Duke says, “The human heart is meant to explore!” Sincerely, COVER | Apollo 16 Lunar Module Pilot Charlie Duke salutes the flag standing in Coral Evans front of the Lunar Module “Orion”, April 21, 1972. Mayor of Flagstaff Photo: NASA 1 NEIL ARMSTRONG, APOLLO 11 COMMANDER: 2019 FLAGSTAFF FESTIVAL OF SCIENCE KEYNOTE SPEAKER “Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed.” APOLLO MOON-WALKING ASTRONAUT CHARLIE DUKE CHARLIE DUKE, MISSION CONTROL CAPCOM: TAKES FLAGSTAFF TO THE MOON “Roger, Tranquility. We copy you on the ground. The 10th and youngest man to ever walk on the Moon envisions a base camp, You got a bunch of guys about to turn blue. observatory and rocket launching pad on the lunar surface in the near future. “We’re We’re breathing again. Thanks a lot.” going to want to see people going and exploring more,” says General Charlie Duke. The Apollo 16 astronaut was so appreciative of the scientists and community who helped him prepare for his 1972 mission that he and Commander John Young named a Moon crater in Flagstaff’s honor. Near their Lunar Highlands landing spot is “Flag Crater,” a name that remains today. “I found Flagstaff to be one of the most interesting places that we visited to study geology. I loved the people, the San Francisco Peaks and the beauty of the area.” Duke also visited Meteor Crater and hiked the Grand Canyon as part of his training, spending the night at Phantom Ranch. “Most of us couldn’t tell the difference between a clod of dirt and a rock,” says Duke. “But with the astrogeology branch of the USGS in Flagstaff helping us, we felt well-qualified to describe the rocks we found on the Moon and pick up the right ones. I loved all those guys!” Duke and Young practiced maneuvering a Moon buggy prototype over rough volcanic terrain and in and out of a simulated crater field north of town. Young drove while Duke navigated. “The suspension provided a lot smoother ride than we had on the FROM MISSION CONTROL CAPCOM TO MOONWALKER Moon! The practice rover on Earth was 800 to 900 pounds and a lot more stable. ABOVE | Official NASA portrait of Apollo 16 astronaut Charles M. Duke, Jr. The one on the Moon only weighed 80 pounds. The thing bounced around a lot!” LEFT | NASA astronaut Charlie Duke was involved in five Apollo missions. He says they never got lost on the lunar landscape. “If you were ever unsure, you When the Apollo 11 lunar module descended to the Moon on July 20, could just make a U-turn and follow your tracks back.” 1969, Duke, the communications link between the astronauts and Mission Control, was tensely monitoring the landing as the spacecraft Decades after his history-making flight, Duke has followed his own tracks back to was running out of fuel. “We were all holding our breath,” he said upon a successful landing. Photo: NASA Northern Arizona to launch the Flagstaff Festival of Science “To the Moon and Beyond” as the W. L. Gore and Associates Keynote Presenter. 2 3 “Most of us couldn’t tell the difference between a clod of dirt and a rock. But with the astrogeology branch of the USGS in Flagstaff helping us, we felt “I found Flagstaff to well-qualified to describe the rocks we be one of the most found on the Moon and pick up the interesting places right ones. I loved all those guys!” that we visited to –Charlie Duke study geology. I loved the people, the San Francisco Peaks and the beauty of the area.” –Charlie Duke GEOLOGY FIELD TRAINING FOR APOLLO 16 ABOVE | An engineer and Charlie Duke (collecting a soil sample) during a geology field training exercise at Merriam Crater, June 1971. Photo: USGS RIGHT | An engineer and Charlie Duke (standing) climb to the simulated Lunar Module during a geology field training exercise at Merriam Crater, June 1971. Photo: USGS LEFT | Apollo 16 astronauts Charlie Duke and John Young (at the controls) testing geologic rover “Grover” at the East Street facility in Flagstaff, September 1970. Photo: USGS 4 5 FLAGSTAFF FESTIVAL OF SCIENCE: APOLLO 16 MISSION INSPIRING OTHERS TO THE MOON AND BEYOND FOR 30 YEARS FACTS AND FIGURES APOLLO 16 CREW From the depths of the Grand Canyon to famous dark skies, from the world’s largest John W. Young contiguous Ponderosa pine forest to red rock monuments, from fossil remains of ancient Commander seas and the Age of Dinosaurs to alpine tundra, from Earth’s most accessible impact crater Thomas (Ken) K. Mattingly II to a landscape dotted with volcanoes and prehistoric dwellings, it’s no wonder Northern Command Module Pilot Arizona has long been a mecca for scientific discovery. Charles (Charlie) M. Duke, Jr. Lunar Module Pilot For 30 years, the Flagstaff Festival of Science has been shining the spotlight on world-class scientific discoveries that LAUNCH TO SPLASHDOWN occur here and celebrating the dedicated people, organizations and businesses behind the research and innovations. April 16-27, 1972. The lunar The award-winning festival is the longest running event of its kind in the Western Hemisphere, offering more than landing occurred on April 21. 100 free public activities each year at the end of September. In its mission to connect and inspire others–especially LANDING SITE youth–with the wonders of science and the joy of scientific discovery, the festival invites residents and visitors along Descartes Highlands on a season of science adventure into national forests, parks and monuments, laboratories, observatories, field stations “I enjoy motivating kids and audiences LUNAR ROVER VEHICLE and museums to participate one-on-one with scientists. on the benefits of space and hope we LRV-II, the second of three From this mountain town, geneticists are fighting deadly pathogens and super bugs, astronomers are looking for can encourage our country to help Rovers flown to the Moon, Earth-like planets and watching for near-Earth asteroids, foresters are studying how ecosystems can adapt to a was driven a total of 16.6 miles (26.7 km) during the mission. changing climate, elite athletes are running faster and swimming stronger, engineers and biologists are improving commit to these kinds of missions that lives with medical devices and advances on a cellular level. At 7,000 feet, Flagstaff touches the world, while cultivating are a great benefit for us. Let’s press LUNAR SURFACE ACTIVITIES the next generation of scientists, engineers, doctors and technicians. on and explore!” The crew collected rock and Thirty years ago, a small group of local scientists asked themselves, “How can we share our world with the public?” –Charlie Duke soil samples, took photos and From that meeting, a powerful festival emerged in which young people see themselves as scientists and a community performed experiments for ushers them into a future where STEM education and careers reign. 20 hours and 14 minutes. They remained on the lunar In 1990, USGS geologist Ivo Lucchitta announced, “Science is an adventure of the mind,” and Flagstaff, through the surface for a total of 71 hours. Festival of Science, responded, “Take us along on the journey.” SAMPLES COLLECTED LEFT | Apollo 16, the fifth manned lunar landing mission, launches from Kennedy Space Center on April 21, 1972. Photo: NASA 209.45 lbs (95 kg) of rock and RIGHT | Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke photographs the lunar landscape standing next to LRV-II on “Stone Mountain”, April 1972. Photo: NASA soil samples were collected. 6 7 Flagstaff’s ALL APOLLO ASTRONAUTS TRAINED IN FLAGSTAFF Lunar APOLLO 1 (1967) Gus Grissom Landmarks Ed White Roger Chaffee APOLLO ASTRONAUT SCIENCE TRAINING, EQUIPMENT FIELD TESTING AND LUNAR MAPPING APOLLO 7 (1968) Wally Schirra Donn Eisele LOWELL OBSERVATORY USGS ASTROGEOLOGY SCIENCE CENTER CINDER LAKE CRATER FIELDS Walter Cunningham lowell.edu astrogeology.usgs.gov coconinonationalforest.us APOLLO 8 (1968) Frank Borman Lowell Observatory was founded in 1894 by Percival The United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Flagstaff’s volcanic cinder fields offered the topography Jim Lovell Lowell, who inspired millions with his tireless advocacy Science Center was established in 1963 by Eugene (Gene) to create an ideal site for astronaut field training and Bill Anders of astronomy. In 1930, Pluto was discovered by Clyde Shoemaker to provide geologic mapping and support lunar rover vehicle simulator testing. In 1967, using APOLLO 9 (1969) Tombaugh at Lowell Observatory, and decades later, for the Apollo Moon missions.