Alan Shepard and Ed Mitchell made two moonwalks during their mission, spending over nine hours on the Moon's surface. They collected 94.4 pounds of samples and discovered the hard way that there's a world of difference between planning an exploration route from photographs of the Moon's surface and actually walking that route when you're there. The astronauts' mission called for them to hike to the rim of Cone Crater, an 1100-foot wide pit in the Moon's surface, but they were unable to find the site, even with their moonwalk extended by half an hour.
After their return to Earth, it was determined that Shepard and Mitchell had come within 65 feet of the rim of the crater on their walk back toward the LM, after they'd given up. Geologist Gordon Swann told them, "You weren't lost, and you didn't know it!"
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Last updated 9 March 2004.
All text and photographs © George Mitchell and Margaret Johnston, unless
otherwise noted
Comments, questions, suggestions to margaret@lonelymountain.net.