Apollo 17

Apollo 17 was the final Apollo lunar landing and carried geologist Harrison Schmitt alongside commander Eugene Cernan to Taurus-Littrow.

Mission purpose and context

Apollo 17 was the final crewed lunar landing of the Apollo programme and its most extensive geological field campaign. The Taurus-Littrow valley was selected because it offered access to ancient highland material and comparatively young volcanic deposits within rover range.

Spacecraft and mission architecture

Eugene Cernan and geologist Harrison Schmitt landed in Challenger while Ronald Evans remained in lunar orbit aboard America. The mission used the mature J-class architecture, including the Lunar Roving Vehicle and a substantial surface experiment package.

Payload and measurement highlights

• A geologist astronaut, Harrison Schmitt, brought specialist field training directly to lunar sample selection and documentation.
• ALSEP instruments included geophysical experiments designed for operation after crew departure.
• The rover carried instruments, tools and samples over a wide set of geological stations.
• Orbital experiments and photography complemented surface investigations.

Flight and surface operations

Cernan and Schmitt completed three EVAs, travelled roughly 35.7 km by rover and spent more than 22 hours outside the lunar module. Their traverses reached massif deposits, craters and the orange-soil site at Shorty crater before the crew returned to lunar orbit and Earth.

Mission sequence

1. 7 December 1972: launched on the final Apollo lunar landing mission.
2. 11 December: Challenger landed in Taurus-Littrow.
3. Cernan and Schmitt completed three EVAs and roughly 35.7 km of rover travel, including the orange-soil discovery at Shorty crater.
4. The mission returned about 110.5 kg of samples, the largest Apollo lunar collection.

Science and measurements

Apollo 17 returned about 110.5 kg of samples, the largest collection from any Apollo mission. Schmitt's field training helped the crew recognise and document unusual deposits, including orange volcanic glass that provided evidence of explosive volcanic activity in the Moon's past.

What changed because of this mission

The mission showed the scientific value of combining mobility, trained field observation, extensive sampling and orbital measurements. Apollo 17 remains the most recent human expedition to the lunar surface and an important benchmark for planning future crewed field science.

Mission outcome

It produced the longest Apollo surface stay, extensive traverses and a large, scientifically diverse sample collection.

The outcome should be read against the mission's actual objectives and architecture. Multi-element missions can have different results for an orbiter, lander, rover or sample-return stage, while a shortened mission can still return important science or demonstrate a critical technology.

Continue through the ecosystem

Primary reference

NASA - Apollo 17. Apollo 17 mission facts and surface science.