Astronauts Cernan and Schmitt, of Apollo 17, landed in the Taurus-Littrow valley of the Moon on December 11,1972. Their major objectives were (1) to sample very ancient lunar material such as might be found in pre-Imbrian highlands as distant as possible from the Imbrium basin and (2) to sample pyroclastic materials that had been interpreted as significantly younger than the mare basalts returned from previous Apollo landing sites. The crew worked approximately 22 hours on the lunar surface; they traversed about 30 km, collected nearly 120 kg of samples, took more than 2,200 photographs, and recorded many direct geologic observations. The lunar surface data, sample results, and geologic interpretation from orbital photographs are the bases for this geologic synthesis. The Taurus-Littrow massifs are interpreted as the upper part of the thick, faulted ejects deposited on the rim of the transient cavity of the large southern Serenitatis basin, which was formed about 3.9 to 4.0 b.y. ago by the impact of a planetesimal. The target rocks, predominantly of the dunite-anorthosite-norite-troctolite suite or its metamorphosed equivalents, were fractured, sheared, crushed, and melted by the impact. The resulting mixture of crushed rock and melt was transported up and out of the transient cavity and deposited on and beyond its rim. Hot fragmental to partly molten ejecta and relatively cool cataclasite and relict target rocks were intermixed in a melange of lenses, pods, and veins. Crystallization of melts and thermal metamorphism of fine-,grained fragmental debris produced breccia composed of rock and mineral fragments in a fine-grained, coherent, crystalline matrix. Such breccia dominates the massif samples. High-angle faults that bound the massifs were activated during formation of the basin, so that structural relief of several kilometers was imposed on the ejecta almost as soon as it was deposited. Massive slumping that produced thick wedges of colluvium on the lower massif slopes probably occurred nearly contemporaneously with the faulting. Material of the Sculptured Hills, perhaps largely cataclasite excavated from the southern Serenitatis basin by the same impact, was then deposited on and around the massifs. Basalt, estimated to be about 1,400 m thick in the landing site, flooded the Taurus-Littrow graben before approximately 3.7 b.y. ago. The basalt (subfloor basalt) is part of a more extensive unit that was broadly warped and cut by extensional faults before the accumulation in Mare Serenitatis of younger, less deformed basalts that overlap it. A thin volcanic ash unit, probably about 3.5 b.y. old, mantled the subfloor basalt and the nearby highlands. It, too, was subsequently overlapped by the younger basalt of Mare Serenitatis. In the time since deposition of the volcanic ash, continued bombardment by primary and secondary projectiles has produced regolith, which is a mechanical mixture of debris derived mainly from the subfloor basalt, the volcanic ash, and the rocks of the nearby massifs and Sculptured Hills. T...

Cross-reference oflunar samples with locations, lunar-surface photographs, status of determining sample location and orientation, megascopic sample description, and comments by the astronaut crew during sample collection____ Usage of film on the lunar surface during the Apollo 14 mission________________________________________________ Sequential listing within each magazine of 60 mm Apollo

Astronauts Cernan and Schmitt, of Apollo 17, landed in the Taurus-Littrow valley of the Moon on December 11,1972. Their major objectives were (l) to sample very ancient lunar material such as might be found in pre-Imbrian highlands as distant as possible from the Imbrium basin and (2) to sample pyroclastic materials that had been interpreted as significantly younger than the mare basalts re turned from previous Apollo landing sites. The crew worked approx imately 22 hours on the lunar surface; they traversed about 30 km, collected nearly 120 kg of samples, took more than 2,200 photo graphs, and recorded many direct geologic observations. The lunar surface data, sample results, and geologic interpretation from orbital photographs are the bases for this geologic synthesis.The Taurus-Littrow massifs are interpreted as the upper part of the thick, faulted ejecta deposited on the rim of the transient cavity of the large southern Serenitatis basin, which was formed about 3.9 to 4.0 b.y. ago by the impact of a planetesimal. The target rocks, pre dominantly of the dunite-anorthosite-norite-troctolite suite or its metamorphosed equivalents, were fractured, sheared, crushed, and melted by the impact. The resulting mixture of crushed rock and melt was transported up and out of the transient cavity and depos ited on and beyond its rim. Hot fragmental to partly molten ejecta and relatively cool cataclasite and relict target rocks were intermixed in a melange of lenses, pods, and veins. Crystallization of melts and thermal metamorphism of fine-grained fragmental debris produced breccia composed of rock and mineral fragments in a fine-grained, coherent, crystalline matrix. Such breccia dominates the massif samples.High-angle faults that bound the massifs were activated during formation of the basin, so that structural relief of several kilometers was imposed on the ejecta almost as soon as it was deposited. Mas sive slumping that produced thick wedges of colluvium on the lower massif slopes probably occurred nearly contemporaneously with the faulting. Material of the Sculptured Hills, perhaps largely cataclasite excavated from the southern Serenitatis basin by the same impact, was then deposited on and around the massifs.Basalt, estimated to be about 1,400 m thick in the landing site, flooded the Taurus-Littrow graben before approximately 3.7 b.y. ago. The basalt (subfloor basalt) is part of a more extensive unit that was broadly warped and cut by extensional faults before the accumula tion in Mare Serenitatis of younger, less deformed basalts that over lap it. A thin volcanic ash unit, probably about 3.5 b.y. old, mantled the subfloor basalt and the nearby highlands. It, too, was sub sequently overlapped by the younger basalt of Mare Serenitatis.In the time since deposition of the volcanic ash, continued bom bardment by primary and secondary projectiles has produced regolith, which is a mechanical mixture of debris derived mainly from the subfloor basalt, the volcanic ash, and the rocks of the nearby massifs and Sculptured Hil...

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Capsule Communicator, Capcom (Edward Gibson during the EVAs1 other astronauts during other time periods) Commander (Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr.) Command Module Pilot (Richard F. Gordon) Lunar Module Pilot (Allan L. Bean) Apollo Elapsed Time-since launch from Earth (d ays-hrs-mins-secs) Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package Apollo Lunar Sample Return Container Block crater Bench crater Bench crater-1st station Bench crater-2nd station Contingency sample-bag of soil and rocks collected early during the first EVA Drive tube coring device for collecting soil samples Lunar Close-up Stereo Camera, "Gold Camera" Command and Service Module, "Yankee Clipper" Contingency Sample Return Container Documented sample-soil and/or rocks that are documented by photography before and after sampling Descent Propulsion System 3 GLOSSARY CONT'D.