HUNTSVILLE — Apollo 17 astronaut and geologist Dr. Harrison Schmitt will retrace his bootsteps on the moon 50 years ago in a special program Wednesday at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center’s Intuitive Planetarium.
The Apollo 17 mission lifted off Dec. 7, 1972, and Schmitt and Apollo 17 Commander Gene Cernan spent 75 hours walking in the area of the Taurus-Littrow Valley on the lunar surface.
Their three spacewalks totaled 22 hours, and are the last two people to have walked on the moon. Schmitt is one of only four astronauts to have walked on the moon who are still alive.
Schmitt worked with planetarium Director David Weigel to create the program celebrating the 50th anniversary of the final Apollo mission to the moon. He will speak to photos he took on the lunar surface illuminated in stunning clarity on the planetarium’s 67-foot dome.
Tickets are $250 and seating is extremely limited.
The event begins at 6 p.m. with cocktails and heavy hors d’oeuvres in the planetarium reception area. Proceeds will go toward construction of the Boeing Space Camp Operations Center.
