Revisiting the Dark Side of the Moon: Why NASA Won't Go Back for the Apollo 11 Cameras

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Category: Earth, Air, Space Science

Published on Thursday, 04 May 2023 14:41

Written by Contributing Editor

Revisiting the Dark Side of the Moon: Why NASA Won't Go Back for the Apollo 11 Cameras, an exclusive interview with Smithsonian Air & Space Museum curator sheds new light on abandoned Apollo memorabilia and why NASA won't bring it home.

"No man left behind" is a strong mantra often used throughout the history of America's military and no one understood that better than those involved in the Apollo missions due to each astronaut's history in the service.

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Although they didn't leave any men behind, nothing quite compares to what Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin experienced while leaving one of history's most invaluable artifacts on the moon's surface in the historic summer of 1969. 

Image courtesy of the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum.

On July 21st, 1969, Neil Armstrong and his 2 crew members were eagerly preparing to ascend into lunar orbit after spending a full day on the moon in the Sea of Tranquility. All of the lunar samples they collected weighed too much for them to be able to make it home, they were left with no choice but to leave a great deal of their gear behind. 

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"[Amongst NASA…] there's really an agreement now that they are their own historic sites, each of the landing sites on the moon. . . you cannot approach within a certain distance because you'd be disrupting historic footprints because guess what? All the footprints are all still where they are." - Dr. Levasseur September, 2022 via The Photo Untaken Podcast

The NASA-NASM (National Air and Space Museum) agreement is a long-standing protocol between the Smithsonian and NASA that has been critical in preserving NASA's history. Once NASA no longer finds use for a piece of equipment or spacecraft, they will send it to the desert in the Southwestern United States (for radioactive hazards) or it will go to the The Smithsonian's Air & Space Museum.

Dr. Jennifer Levasseur (Curator at Air and Space Museum) gives listeners an entirely new perspective into the iconic Apollo missions that is also paving the way for future space missions through projects like the Destination Moon exhibition at the newly renovated Air & Space Museum in Washington D.C. 

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To get more in depth on this conversation, don't miss the exclusive one-on-one interview on the Photo Untaken Podcast with Celebrity Photographer/Host, Allen Clark. 

About Allen Clark: Allen Clark is an international visual artist and celebrity photographer who has cleverly managed to stay under the radar while simultaneously having his images be seen by billions of people around the world. His accomplishments include photographing the most successful Jack Daniel's campaign of all time, as well as capturing an award winning portrait of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange that won him an American Photography Award. Now for the first time ever, Allen is revealing his industry leading secrets to success, which have inspired his roles as podcast host, creative director, public speaker, and photographer. Follow along with Allen Clark's incredible journey here to stay current on his pro tips and weekly online content.

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About The Photo Untaken: "The Photo Untaken'' is a visual arts and professional development podcast in which celebrity photographer Allen Clark challenges the listener to reframe the way one thinks about art, as well as the way one thinks about life as a whole. The podcast features a diverse lineup of guests like Disney animator Floyd Norman, eccentric celebrity photographer Chris Buck and Air & Space Museum curator Dr. Jennifer Levasseur. Join the conversation with Allen Clark and his incredible guests on "The Photo Untaken" Podcast as they reframe seasoned viewpoints through a modern lens of creative clarity.