In December 1972, NASA astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt drilled into the surface of the moon to collect samples of lunar soil for transport back to Earth. This week, NASA finally opened one of the vacuum-sealed samples, after a painstaking process.
Thomas Zurbuchen, associate director of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement, “We’ve had the opportunity to open this incredibly valuable specimen, which has been stored under vacuum for 50 years. We can finally see what treasures are held inside.”
The Tube is a time capsule not only from the deep geological history of the Moon, but also from an earlier time in the space age when our instruments were more primitive.
“The agency knew that science and technology would evolve, allowing scientists to study material in new ways to address new questions in the future,” says Lori Glaze, director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division. The timing was also coincidental because it helped prepare for NASA’s return to the Moon in a decade as part of the Artemis program, Zurbuchen says. “Understanding the geological history and evolution of lunar samples at the Apollo landing sites will help us prepare for the types of specimens that may be encountered during Artemis.”
Retrieving the preserved instance was not just a simple process. Before the contents of the sealed tube were extracted, X-ray CT technology was first used to create a 3D image of what the team hoped to find inside. Then all of the gas in the outer shield tube was collected for study.
NASA/Robert Markowitz The inner vessel was then pierced to remove the gases contained inside.
Apollo sample curator Ryan Zeigler said: “We extracted gas from this core and we hope it will be helpful for scientists trying to understand the Moon gas signature by looking at different aliquots [samples for chemical analysis].” Finally, the dusty gray contents were pushed out of the cylinder and separated in half centimeter increments.
Before starting the process, the team conducted a preliminary study using a mock-up in the lab. The whole process was done by putting hands in large gloves inside a vacuum glove box and manipulating special tools to reach the sample.
The study was performed at the Johnson Space Center in Houston as part of the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis Program, or Angsa.
Now the sample needs to be analyzed to see exactly what has been waiting to be discovered for half a century.
NASA astromaterials curator Francis McCubbin said that today’s astronauts will also pass on this gift to scientists working in the second half of this century.
McCubbin said, “We curated these samples long term so that scientists 50 years from now can analyze them. Through Artemis, we hope to offer the same possibilities to the next generation of scientists.”
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