Lunar Surface Astronomy

Far UV / spectrographic images taken during the Apollo 16 mission, April 1972

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Mission Frame: 27 Lunar Surface Exposure: 8 Target: Cygnus Nebula Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 18:11:53 Duration of Exposure: 10 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 98° Declination: 37.5° Right Ascension: 320.7° Elevation: 28° About 100 star images and the Cygnus Nebula are visible in this exposure.

Mission Frame: 30 Lunar Surface Exposure: 11 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 18:27:46 Duration of Exposure: 30 seconds Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: 14.7° Right Ascension: 318.2° Elevation: 76° This is a double-exposed frame with a 15-sec. Earth image and a 15-sec. spectral exposure.

Mission Frame: 39 Lunar Surface Exposure: 20 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 18:32:32 Duration of Exposure: 1.25 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.7° Right Ascension: 318.2° Elevation: 76° Double exposure with 75 sec. spectral exposure and 15 sec. image exposure. Image exposure overlapped about 15% by frame 38, about 20% by frame 40. The Lyman-Alpha band of spectral exposure overlaps the Earth (geocorona) image.

Mission Frame: 44 Lunar Surface Exposure: 25 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 18:48:30 Duration of Exposure: 3 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.6° Right Ascension: 318.4° Elevation: 76°

Mission Frame: 45 Lunar Surface Exposure: 26 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 18:51:38 Duration of Exposure: 10 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.6° Right Ascension: 318.4° Elevation: 76° About 24 star images, Earth aurora, 'belts', and dayglow. Possibly 2 nebulae.

Mission Frame: 46 Lunar Surface Exposure: 27 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 19:01:38 Duration of Exposure: 30 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.6° Right Ascension: 318.5° Elevation: 76°

Mission Frame: 48 Lunar Surface Exposure: 29 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 19:32:28 Duration of Exposure: 3 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.5° Right Ascension: 318.8° Elevation: 76° This exposure shows a full Lyman-Alpha band and a short 1304Å band.

Mission Frame: 49 Lunar Surface Exposure: 30 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 21, 1972 Time (GMT): 19:35:08 Duration of Exposure: 10 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 56° Declination: -14.5° Right Ascension: 318.8° Elevation: 76° Frame shows a full Lyman-Alpha band, 1304Å band, and 1355Å band.

Mission Frame: 74 Lunar Surface Exposure: 55 Target: Grus Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 0:20:38 Duration of Exposure: 30 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 258° Declination: -41.4° Right Ascension: 355° Elevation: 64°

Mission Frame: 104 Lunar Surface Exposure: 85 Target: Grus Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 11:26:08 Duration of Exposure: 200 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 258° Declination: -40.2° Right Ascension: 0° Elevation: 64° Strong Lyman-Alpha band and 6 spectral lines, mottled at left side of mirror-image print.

Mission Frame: 111 Lunar Surface Exposure: 92 Target: Earth Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 16:49:19 Duration of Exposure: 1.25 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 58° Declination: -10° Right Ascension: 329° Elevation: 76° First exposure after change of target from Grus to Earth. Earth target is off-center. (Az. and elev. settings are nominal setting - this frame is off-nominal.) Double exposure - 75 sec. spectral exposure and a 15 sec. image exposure.

Mission Frame: 124 Lunar Surface Exposure: 105 Target: Large Magellanic Cloud Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 17:19:33 Duration of Exposure: 1 minute Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 276° Declination: -74° Right Ascension: 89° Elevation: 14°

Mission Frame:129 Lunar Surface Exposure:110 Target: Large Magellanic Cloud Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 17:37:03 Duration of Exposure: 10 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 276° Declination: -73.8° Right Ascension: 89° Elevation: 14° Frame shows Large Magellanic Cloud and about 45 star images.

Mission Frame:130 Lunar Surface Exposure:111 Target: Large Magellanic Cloud Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 17:47:03 Duration of Exposure: 30 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 276° Declination: -73.8° Right Ascension: 89° Elevation: 14° Frame shows Large Magellanic Cloud and about 70 star images.

Mission Frame: 140 Lunar Surface Exposure: 121 Target: Large Magellanic Cloud Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 19:44:33 Duration of Exposure: 200 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 276° Declination: -73.8° Right Ascension: 89° Elevation: 14°

Mission Frame: 144 Lunar Surface Exposure: 125 Target: Norma Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 23:22:24 Duration of Exposure: 1 minute Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 326° Declination: -58.9° Right Ascension: 261° Elevation: 16°

Mission Frame:149 Lunar Surface Exposure:130 Target: Norma Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 23:39:54 Duration of Exposure: 4 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 326° Declination: -58.9° Right Ascension: 261° Elevation: 16°

Mission Frame: 150 Lunar Surface Exposure: 131 Target: Aquarius Date of Exposure: April 22, 1972 Time (GMT): 23:44:02 Duration of Exposure: 2 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 100° Declination: -4.6° Right Ascension: 344° Elevation: 77° Double exposure with a 30 sec. image exposure through the Li F filter and a 120 sec. spectral exposure through the Li F filter. Frame shows a faint Lyman-Alpha band, about 20 star images, part of N6300.

Mission Frame: 154 Lunar Surface Exposure: 135 Target: Aquarius Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 0:00:32 Duration of Exposure: 30 seconds Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride / Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 100° Declination: -4.6° Right Ascension: 344° Elevation: 77° Double exposure with a 5 sec. image exposure through Li F filter and a 25 sec. image exposure through the Ca F filter.

Mission Frame: 191 Lunar Surface Exposure: 172 Target: Fornax Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 15:38:43 Duration of Exposure: 1 minute Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 240° Declination: -27.3° Right Ascension: 56° Elevation: 33°

Mission Frame: 192 Lunar Surface Exposure: 173 Target: Fornax Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 15:39:43 Duration of Exposure: 3 minutes Filter Type: Lithium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 240° Declination: -27.3° Right Ascension: 56° Elevation: 33°

Mission Frame: 202 Lunar Surface Exposure: 183 Target: Milky Way Center Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 16:13:44 Duration of Exposure: 3 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 7° Declination: -30.5° Right Ascension: 278° Elevation: 15°

Mission Frame: 203 Lunar Surface Exposure: 184 Target: Milky Way Center Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 16:16:44 Duration of Exposure: 10 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 7° Declination: -30.5° Right Ascension: 278° Elevation: 15° About 150 star images visible; possible nebula at the bottom of the field of view

Mission Frame: 204 Lunar Surface Exposure: 185 Target: Milky Way Center Date of Exposure: April 23, 1972 Time (GMT): 16:26:44 Duration of Exposure: 30 minutes Filter Type: Calcium Fluoride Azimuth setting: 7° Declination: -30.5° Right Ascension: 278° Elevation: 15°

Images converted from dataset 72-031C-10B supplied by NASA's National Space Science Data Center.
Further information about this conversion on the next page.