



The U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation is celebrating the final lunar mission with a special evening with Apollo 17 Astronaut Dr. Harrison Schmitt in the Davidson Center for Space Exploration Dec. 7. Dr. Schmitt, who also served as a U.S. Senator, will be the featured speaker for the evening and will share memories of being NASA’s first scientist astronaut and a member of the last Apollo crew.

Dr. Schmitt received his Ph.D from Harvard University and studied for a year at the University of Oslo in Norway. He worked at the U.S. Geological Survey's Astrogeology Center, where he developed geological field techniques that would later be used by the Apollo crews. He joined NASA in 1965, and in March 1970, he became the first of scientist to be assigned to space flight. He was scheduled to fly aboard Apollo 18, but was reassigned to Apollo 17 when the Apollo 18 launch was cancelled. He and his fellow crew members, Eugene Cernan and Ronald Evans, launched to the moon on Dec. 7, 1972.

While on the moon's surface, Schmitt collected the rock sample designated Troctolite 76535. He also took the famous photo of Earth known as the Blue Marble. One of the most widely distributed photos in human history, Blue Marble showcases the Earth as the Apollo 17 crew saw it on their journey to the moon.





Dr. Schmitt is the only surviving member of the Apollo 17 crew, and he, Alan Bean, David Scott, Charles Duke and John Young are the only Apollo astronauts still alive. This anniversary event will honor not only the historic 12-day Apollo 17 mission but also all the men and women who supported the Apollo program.









In addition to the ticketed evening event, Dr. Schmitt will give a Pass the Torch lecture in the Davidson Center’s National Geographic Theater at 4 p.m. Prior to the talk at 3 p.m., Dr. Schmitt will sign copies of his book Return to the Moon: Exploration, Enterprise, and Energy in the Human Settlement of Space. The Pass the Torch is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. To reserve a seat, click here.

The ticketed event begins with a cocktail reception at 5:30 p.m. with dinner following. To purchase a ticket to the reception and dinner, please click here.

The U.S. Space & Rocket Education Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization raising funds and awareness to support events, programs, facilities and overall growth of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center and Space Camp.