                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2022 December 17

                         Apollo 17 VIP Site Anaglyph
      Image Credit: Gene Cernan, Apollo 17, NASA; Anaglyph by Erik van
                                 Meijgaarden

   Explanation: Get out your red/blue glasses and check out this stereo
   scene from Taurus-Littrow valley on the Moon! The color anaglyph
   features a detailed 3D view of Apollo 17's Lunar Rover in the
   foreground -- behind it lies the Lunar Module and distant lunar hills.
   Because the world was going to be able to watch the Lunar Module's
   ascent stage liftoff via the rover's TV camera, this parking place was
   also known as the VIP Site. Fifty years ago, in December of 1972,
   Apollo 17 astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent about 75
   hours on the Moon, while colleague Ronald Evans orbited overhead. The
   crew returned with 110 kilograms of rock and soil samples, more than
   from any of the other lunar landing sites. Cernan and Schmitt are still
   the last to walk (or drive) on the Moon.

                   Tomorrow's picture: the brightest stars
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                           NASA Science Activation
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

