Skip Navigation
menu close modal

Resources

A Flag Points Home

Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmitt with the U.S. flag and the Earth in the sky.
Image Credit: NASA
Published: October 20, 2017

Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmitt with the U.S. flag and the Earth in the sky. Taken during the mission's first EVA on the lunar surface on December 19, 1972.

ENLARGE

Related

In October 1959, the Soviet Union's Luna 3 spacecraft took the first photo of the farside of the Moon - a region never before seen by human eyes.
More
Fuzzy black and white image of the Moon.
First Photo of the Lunar Farside
A waxing crescent moon pictured from the International Space Station during an orbital sunset
More
Photograph of a crescent Moon over a rainbow curved atmosphere.
Crescent Moon from the International Space Station
Lunar Orbiter 1 view of the Korolev basin on the far side of the Moon.
More
Photo of basin on the moon
Korolev Basin on the Far Side of the Moon
On Aug. 23, 1966, NASA's Lunar Orbiter 1 snapped the first photo of Earth as seen from lunar orbit.
More
earth rising over lunar horizon in two images, the original and the smoother, restored version
First Lunar Earthrise, Old and New
Ranger 8 image of the Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquillity) area of the Moon taken from 511 km about 4 minutes before surface impact.
More
Image of the moon's surface
Sabine Crater in Mare Tranquillitatis on the Moon
The second human lunar landing mission, Apollo 12, launched from launch pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on November 14, 1969 via a Saturn Five launch vehicle. 
More
Astronaut collecting rock samples on the moon
Apollo 12
The Apollo 9 (Spacecraft 104/Lunar Module 3/ Saturn 504) space vehicle is launched from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center (KSC) at 11 a.m. (EST), March 3, 1969.
More
Launch of Apollo 9 space vehicle
Launch – Apollo 9 – Cape
Last image taken by Ranger 8 camera-A from a distance of 4.2 km, 2 seconds before impact on 20 February 1965.
More
Image of the surface of the moon
Ranger 8 Image Taken 2 Seconds Before Impact
Impact melt forms a swirled feature in Giordano Bruno crater.
More
swirl of solidified melted rock
Giordano Bruno Whorl
The Apollo 14 Lunar Module ascent stage lifts off the lunar surface.
More
scattering gear on the gray surface below
Lunar Liftoff
Depicts the dramatic voyage of Apollo 13. The most serious accident to occur in space changed the mission from a routine lunar landing to a desperate fight for crew survival.
More
Documentary on Apollo 13
Apollo 13: Houston, We've Had a Problem
A full moon rising over Launch Complex 34 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, on September 16th 2016
More
moon rising over concrete structure
Launch Complex 34
On July 16, 1969, the huge, 363-feet tall Saturn V rocket launches on the Apollo 11 mission from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, at 9:32 a.m. EDT.
More
Video of Apollo 11 launch
Apollo 11 Launch
The waxing Moon rises over a ridge in the Wasatch Mountains, Utah.
More
Photo of Moon over mountain treeline against blue sky.
Day Moon Ridge
This photograph is a view of a display, control console, and hand controller for the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) No. 2.
More
Display, control console, and hand controller for the Lunar Roving Vehicle
Saturn Apollo Program
This bootprint marks one of the first steps human beings took on the moon in July 1969.
More
This bootprint marks one of the first steps human beings took on the moon in July 1969.
Apollo 11 Bootprint
A color-coded relief map of Linné crater, 1.4 mile (2.2 km) in diameter, created from a stereo topographic model created with Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter data. The colors represent elevations; coo...
More
Color enhanced view of Linne crater on the Moon.
Barnstorming Linné Crater
A spectacular high sun view of a pit crater in Mare Tranquillitatis as seen by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, revealing boulders on an otherwise smooth floor. Scientists estimate the depth to be...
More
Black and white image of deep crater on the moon.
Lunar Pits
Photomosaic of lunar panorama near the Tycho crater taken by Surveyor 7. The hills on the center horizon are about eight miles away from the spacecraft.
More
View of crater from the surface of the moon
Photomosaic of Tycho Crater - Surveyor 7
A spectacular high-Sun view of a pit crater on the Moon's Mare Tranquillitatis.
More
a collapse pit in an otherwise smooth gray surface
Lunar Pit
Ranger 7 was the first U.S. mission to successfully impact the moon. This was one of more than 4,300 images sent back during the flyby.
More
Black and white image of craters on the moon.
Ranger 7: Moon Close Up
Hardware and trails created by astronaut footsteps at the Apollo 11 landing site in Mare Tranquillitatis, as seen by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.
More
Black and white image of the moon from orbit with small lines showing path walked by Apollo 11 astronauts.
Apollo 11 Landing Site
A photographic record of the moment NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter was struck by a meteoroid.
More
Wild back-and-forth lines
A Jolt to the Camera
October 21, 2023: Celebrate International Observe the Moon Night
More
Illustration of silhouetted people looking and pointing up at the Moon.
Save the Date 2023
Moonrise over the Syr Darya river.
More
Moonrise over the Syr Darya river.
Moonrise Over the Syr Darya River

You Might Also Like

Earth and the Moon are locked in an orbital dance, and gravity is the choreographer. Here's how it works.
More
Tidal Locking
Tidal Locking
Between four and seven times a year, Earth, Moon and Sun line up just right to create the cosmic-scale shadow show known as an eclipse.
More
Composite of lunar eclipse phases over night sky
Eclipses
Like Earth, the Moon has a day side and a night side, which change as the Moon rotates.
More
Diagram of the Moon's phases
Moon Phases