The final Apollo mission was one of superlatives. The longest of all,
it featured the only night launch of the program, the first professional
scientist to walk on the moon (geologist Harrison "Jack" Schmitt, seen here
collecting soil samples on the North Massif), the most samples yet gathered
on the moon (243 pounds), and the lengthiest moonwalks. All told, Eugene Cernan, who
was the last man on the moon, spent 22 hours over three days walking and
driving around Taurus-Littrow, Apollo 17's landing site on the edge of the Sea
of Serenity (which forms the man-in-the-moon's left eye). By contrast, Neil
Armstrong, the first man on the moon, stood on the lunar surface for a mere two and a half hours.
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