Neil Armstrong's Widow Discovers Moon Camera In Bag 118
hypnosec writes Over 40 years after Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 trip, a hidden bag full of artifacts has been discovered by his widow Carol Armstrong. Carol found the bag after Neil's death shortly after he underwent heart surgery. The bag contained a total of 20 items including the priceless 16mm movie camera that recorded Apollo 11's descent to the surface of the moon, an optical alignment sight used by the crew for docking maneuvers, and a waist tether among other things. The bag and its contents are now on loan to the National Air and Space Museum for preservation, research and eventual public display.
Re:On loan??? (Score:5, Insightful)
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that is my thought. it is just equipment. Unless the camera had original footage on it, it wouldn't matter. none of it would have been used for future flights.
Re:On loan??? (Score:5, Insightful)
...ethics does seem to say one shouldn't just haul stuff home from work, even if it is surplus junk.
WTF? Seriously???
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"Oh my God! That's government property! Who would even imagine taking something from the government that you used in space! You take that back right now!"
Re:On loan??? (Score:4, Funny)
"And this! Number Seventeen! This is the cover for the waste management unit in my Moon Suit. I peed on the fucking Moon, baby!"
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He was on the moon, and he peed into a waste management unit, but he did not pee *on* the moon (not even to write his own name).
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He was on the moon, and he peed into a waste management unit, but he did not pee *on* the moon (not even to write his own name).
He peed. While on the moon. He peed. On the moon. He peed on the moon. Just not... "on" the moon.
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Okay, now I want to know what would happen if he did pee on the moon. The Apollo spacecraft had a "toilet" that was basically a tube with a condom on one end and open space on the other, with some kind of valve to stop the cabin atmosphere being sucked out when not in use. So it seems like you might be able to pee into vacuum okay, if your moon suit had some way to expose your genitals safely.
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I suspect that in older more formal English, that the sentence "he peed on the moon" would imply that extra material was being left on the moon. The modern usage though is still inherently vague and thus should be clarified if the comic effect wasn't intended. Modern English is very vague which can really confuse non-native speakers.
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Okay, now I want to know what would happen if he did pee on the moon.
I think the moon would get wet.
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Okay, now I want to know what would happen if he did pee on the moon.
I think the moon would get wet.
I think he'd get laid.
But not on the moon.
My stapler....its my stapler... (Score:3)
I see zero problem with this.
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Re:On loan??? (Score:5, Interesting)
I used to work at the California Museum of Science and Industry. Every once in a while they would do a purge of really old stuff that had been stored in the basements for decades. They would rent a giant dumpster and hire people to haul stuff out to fill it up. We were not only told that we could have anything we found in there, but we were given time to dig through it during work time. Why? Because it fed our scientific nerdyness, making us more enthusiastic science museum employees. Because the more stuff we could find a new home for, the less they had to pay to haul away.
The only rule was that those who decided what to throw out couldn't then go and get it out of the dumpster.
Of course, that was before eBay. Nowadays, I am sure they have someone whose job it is to post that kind of stuff on eBay and sell it to help fund the museum.
There is absolutely NO ethical problem with taking home surplus from work, if it is truly surplus and you have permission.
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at my old job, when we got new servers even though the top bosses wanted the equipment destroyed/recycled, the lower management almost always gave us the parts to take hom
We used to be like that. Then some 'elf & safety idiot got all legal and worried that someone might cut his finger on something and sue the company $1,000,000 for giving it to him. After that everything had to be destroyed.
This is in a world when we are supposed to be recycling things. In practice we just took scrap stuff home after that - that's where I got this keyboard. As I have said before: green, safe or handy? Pick one.
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ethics does seem to say one shouldn't just haul stuff home from work, even if it is surplus junk.
Really? Who told you that?
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Re: On loan??? (Score:2, Informative)
Statute of limitations only applies to the crime of theft. Courts have long ruled (and upheld the last time an astronaut tried to sell a camera in 2011) that there is no limitation to the Feds exerting their "rights", such as property ownership. However in this specific case, congress passed a law in 2012 specifically assigning ownership of mementos, including hardware that would have been discarded or destroyed during the mission, such as this camera, to the astronauts that hold them.
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also jurisdiction...
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Past the statute of limitations; he's dead; and I'm sure we can agree that Neil f*ing Armstrong can keep a memento/be forgiven for overlooking a memento or two. And how do you know no one said "shit Neil, keep it if it means so much to you". I know I would have.
I don't think that's what happened.
The original story goes that Buzz Aldrin was supposed to be the first one to walk on the moon, but during the trip, an order from mission control came in that said that Neil Armstrong was supposed to be the first. Buzz Aldrin had been politically outmaneuvered. And Buzz was so upset about that, he retaliated by supposedly 'forgetting' his own camera on the moon. Obviously, most of the shots on that camera were shots of Neil Armstrong, so most of the photographs we have now
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With respect, they hadn't got a lot of sleep and they were a bit busy at the time. I don't think we need to make up some moon rage story to cover a very trivial mistake of losing one of many cameras.
Buzz is still alive. Why not put the story to him?
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Buzz is still alive. Why not put the story to him?
Ask him what? That he thought he was supposed to be the first one on the moon? Or that he left the exposed film on purpose????
My source is "Alex" Filippenko [wikipedia.org]. Granted, you don't need to believe him either, nor even believe me that he really said that, but I was hoping that out of the thousands or people who took his introductory Astronomy class at Berkeley, that someone would back me up on this.
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I don't know why you didn't work it out for yourself that your "source" was not involved at the time and was passing on a rumour that they can not confirm for mere dramatic effect.
I'll bet that he's not willing to put his shaggy dog story to Buzz either. I'm also willing to bet that the details of the story have grown with the telling to each bunch of students.
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Not sure if you have deeper sources, but the public line is that Armstrong was always supposed to go first, although Buzz definitely wanted to go first. They picked Neil because he was senior, and it would have been impossible for Buzz to crawl over Neil with his EVA suit.
http://www.businessinsider.com... [businessinsider.com]
But then again, if you know something, I'm curious.
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My source is "Alex" Filippenko [wikipedia.org]
I would have hoped that out of the thousands or people who took his introductory Astronomy class at Berkeley, that someone would back me up on this.
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Any citations by him?
I would expect a contemporary of Neil Armstrong -- or Buzz Aldrin -- would be a better source than someone that could be their son. He would have been 10 years old at the time of the EVA. Not sure I'd trust my 10 yr old to remember ANYTHING 40 years later.
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The original story goes that Buzz Aldrin was supposed to be the first one to walk on the moon, but during the trip, an order from mission control came in that said that Neil Armstrong was supposed to be the first.
This is pure drivel and has been debunked on numerous occasions. Armstrong was the first out because there was not enough room in the LM cabin for Aldrin to get out first when both were wearing suits. Further, the mission was practiced for months on Earth and every action was scripted and planned down to the minute. To suggest that Mission Control would alter this plan while the astronauts were on the way to the moon -- thus invalidating months of training and safety protocols -- is ludicrous. Armstron
Re:On loan??? (Score:5, Informative)
Well there were questions raised, but it's all settled now- they're her mementoes now.
http://spacenews.com/obama-sig... [spacenews.com]
I agree with the Bill, but am re-reading Michael Collins' excellent autobiography and he's not completely effusive about many of his colleagues - he also shares the bewilderment over the David Scott Apollo 15 mailbag. [talking about heroes with leaden feet, the book's autobiography is by Charles Lindbergh].
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Read the preview first. Sigh. Lindbergh wrote the foreword to Collins' autobiography. Also, Collins had high praise for most of his colleagues, but a minority get some criticism.
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Re: On loan??? (Score:3)
Re:On loan??? (Score:5, Informative)
The astronauts were paid their regular military salaries, plus hazardous duty pay. It was a pittance. In order to compensate these men more fully The United States Congress authorized [collectspace.com], through legislation, that astronauts could keep spent NASA equipment as mementos [space.com]. It was always one of the 'unwritten rules' at NASA during that era. It wasn't until years later that it was questioned by some bureaucrat and the legislation was needed to end and questions
So no theft or questionable loans were involved.
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The astronauts were paid their regular military salaries, plus hazardous duty pay. It was a pittance.
Too bad -- they should have negotiated better terms up front [youtube.com].
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Too bad -- they should have negotiated better terms up front [youtube.com].
A differnt day and age. Getting to the moon was more important than becoming a 1 percenter.
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And definitely coming back from the moon was more important than a mid mission salary negotiation.
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I don't think the monetary value was the reason the astronauts kept these things. All the stuff that went to the Moon was essentially treated as disposable. Rather than recertify some gizmo as ready for the next moon shot, NASA simply bought another one. So guys took stuff as mementos of the greatest adventure of their lives rather than have it tossed away or sold for surplus at a tiny fraction of their original cost.
Honestly, if the astronauts *did* take them as a way to augment their salary I *would* h
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Junk!?!?!?
I mean, an emergency wrench for an Apollo mission? That thing would have magical powers x20, but only when wielded by an astronaut. Might be handy in the home toolbox, though.
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I once went to UC Irvine's Surplus Store. They had a complete excimer laser there, for anyone who had a hankering. It was huge - I think it involved several racks of hardware. It was probably one of the first ever built. I don't recall the price but I think it was about $200.
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When I was 14 they saved my parents ass at the Bendix surplus sale by refusing my $1 bid on a 2 story tall milling machine.
If I had won I would have been responsible for hauling it away. Wasn't old enough to enter a legal contract so they told me to go away.
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Look at this particular trove; except for the camera it's all just junk. Even the camera is no big deal unless you need to take one to the moon.
Used facial tissue that was found in Armstrong's Moon stash, $50 easy,
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If that was NASA stuff, it most certainly is US Government property. Good luck getting *any* government to act reasonably.
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Re:Alleged... (Score:5, Funny)
Buzz Aldrin needs to punch you in the face.
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I'll do it for Buzz, he's getting long in the tooth these days..
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No, he's really not. And given what a bunch of pansy ass wimps the conspiracy theorists generally are, I'm sure Buzz could handle it on his own. He certainly did Bart Sibrel in 2002, and he keeps as busy a schedule as ever.
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Ok.. I'll help Buzz then and take over when he's done. Who am I to take away his satisfaction of having the first punch?
Everybody knows we now have confirmation that there are footsteps on the moon, amazingly exactly where we said we went and picked up rocks.. Seems we have independently obtained pictures now.
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You're starting to rate "nominal" around here... remember what that means when NASA says that!
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Only a violent and deranged mind would participate in the fraud perpetuated upon the world by the people who pretend that the Moon landings did not happen.
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Just when I think slashdot is boring and it's time I unsubscribe, something like this happens and I have to go make some popcorn and then continue watching.
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I remember, before the Bruce Perens incident, when slashdot ID numbers were hidden.
It's sort of distasteful how it's become the opposite of what it was back then, something to show off about.
No, this isn't my first account, obviously. There are accounts lost to the ether in my past. Probably that's the case for a lot of other people here.
BTW, "Mae Ling Mak, Naked and Petrified", thought you're probably to young to remember. Before the newbs changed it to Natalie Portman (did Miss Mak sue or something?)
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You remind me of the over-excited Chihuahua that is so happy to meet a new friend it humps your pant leg until it pees all over the carpet.
Any film in the camera? (Score:1)
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Let me guess... It got away?
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Obligatory Onion article (Score:5, Funny)
http://www.theonion.com/articl... [theonion.com]
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This seems to be as well planned as an STS-33... we've got Slashdot matching The Onion, and quoting telegraph.co.UK... how does a news site that ends in UK become the leader on this story?
Research? (Score:2)
I'm curious what kind of research they would do on these items. You would think NASA already knew everything there is to know about these items back in 1969.
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NASA might, but if the museum is going to put it on display, they're going to have to do research on identifying and the background of everything. Plus look up anything interesting that can be added to the display.
Then there's the research into the best way to display the items for the public display.
It's one thing to put up an artifact for display. Ano
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It's one thing to put up an artifact for display. Another to actually put it context and background. And it's possible that maybe the camera wasn't Armstrong's or used on the moon, but a duplicate made for familiarization purposes (to help the astronauts get comfortable with the cameras, NASA actually produced a bunch for them to take home to use in all situations.) This could very well be one of them. Plus, if there's any film, they need permission to develop and identify it.
They already did a lot of work to identify every single item and determine what each and every bit has been used for (using mission photographs and radio transcripts, plus clues like bits of paint). Link from summary: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a1... [nasa.gov] - click each item on the clickable map to see what it is and what role it played during the Apollo 11 mission.
Oh wow (Score:1)
Missing item (Score:2)
A rumor says that there was not 18 but 19 items in the bag.
Any idea what the missing item could be?
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My guess is something any man would take for a long trip: condoms
Why? (Score:1)
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another government employee taking for himself. plus interest
Seems that this treasure trove will find it's way into the nation's museums. Neil delivers again!
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Neil Armstrong was a great and honorable man. Nothing that trolling idiots or conspiracy-theory loonies can say will ever change that, or make them into the tiniest fraction of the man he was.
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I'd take pieces of the Moon to give to people or to show off to strangers.
I know of one moon rock you can actually touch if you wanted too. I think was at the CosmoSphere in Hutchison KS http://www.cosmo.org/mu_artifa... [cosmo.org]
In fact, I'd strongly suggest that if you really insist we didn't go to the moon that you visit both the Cosmosphere in Kansas and the Smithsonian Air & Space museum in Washington DC and go though their exhibits that have the artifacts and facts on the subject. I'm sure you will learn something.
Re:Did he take any pieces of the moon with him? (Score:5, Informative)
You're trolling, but here I am responding. Sigh.
The 16 mm movie camera was no doubt physically attached to the lunar module cabin, and the flight plan simply didn't call for detaching and abandoning it. Consider that it also probably was used to record other things, such as descent, ascent, rendezvous, etc.
The Apollo 11 astronauts did leave behind a small fortune in camera equipment: the Hasselblad cameras used to record the moonwalks. They only brought back the exposed film. This was done to lighten the lunar module, and to compensate for the moon rocks they did in fact bring back.
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The Apollo 11 astronauts did leave behind a small fortune in camera equipment: the Hasselblad cameras used to record the moonwalks. They only brought back the exposed film. This was done to lighten the lunar module, and to compensate for the moon rocks they did in fact bring back.
No, Buzz Aldrin did leave exposed film on the moon, out of retaliation against Neil Armstrong.
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He didn't. [theatlantic.com]
Preserve the Apollo 11 landing site. (Score:2)
At this point I would say that the area around the Apollo 11 landing spot should be off limits to preserve it as the first place any human set foot on a body off of the Earth. Anyone going in there would just mess up the area by leaving additional footprints and looting what's left there. We ought to put a dome over it to keep it pristine.
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So why don't we go to back to the moon to collect these artifacts and make some bucks in the process?
For one thing, it would be a desecration of one of the most important sites in human history.
For another, the cost to salvage the artifacts would be enormous. It would not be cost-effective to mine gold from low-earth orbit, if it were there. What would something have to be worth to profit from salvaging it from the moon?
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Sorry riverat1, I responded to the wrong post. This was directed at AC.
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Take the news seriously! They magically moved from "the moon" to "the bag" which his widow hasn't touched in 20 years... wait a minute!