Detail View: NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day Collection: Lunar Dust and Duct Tape
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Title:
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Lunar Dust and Duct Tape
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Explanation:
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Why is the Moon dusty [ http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/expmoon/Apollo11/ A11_Experiments_LDD.html ]? On Earth, rocks are weathered by wind and water, creating soil and sand. On the Moon, the long history of micrometeorite [ http://www.hawastsoc.org/solar/eng/edu/micromet.htm ] bombardment has blasted away at the rocky surface [ http://www-curator.jsc.nasa.gov/curator/lunar/lunar.htm ] creating a layer of powdery lunar soil or regolith [ http://elvis.neep.wisc.edu/~neep602/9301/9301.html ]. This lunar regolith could be a scientific [ http://elvis.neep.wisc.edu/~neep602/FALL97/LEC19/lecture19.html ] and industrial [ http://elvis.neep.wisc.edu/~neep602/FALL97/LEC20/lecture20.html ] bonanza. But for the Apollo astronauts and their equipment [ http://cass.jsc.nasa.gov/expmoon/Apollo17/A17_science.html ], the pervasive, fine, gritty dust was definitely a problem. On the lunar surface [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/ ] in December 1972, Apollo 17 [ http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap970905.html ] astronauts Harrison Schmitt and Eugene Cernan needed to repair one of their lunar rover's fenders in an effort [ http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/ a17/a17.eva2prep.html ] to keep the "rooster tails" of dust away from themselves and their gear. This picture reveals [ http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/images/pao/AS17/10075959.htm ] the wheel and fender of their dust covered rover along with the ingenious application of spare maps, clamps, and a grey strip of "duct tape".
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Credit and Copyright:
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Apollo 17 [ http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/history/apollo/apollo-17/apollo-17.html ], NASA [ http://www.nasa.gov/ ]
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keyword:
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duct tape
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facet_who:
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Harrison Schmitt
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facet_when:
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December 1972
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facet_where:
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Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)
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facet_what:
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Apollo 17
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facet_when_year:
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1972
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original url:
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http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap990501.html
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UID:
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SPD-APOD-ap990501
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