阿波罗14号打道回府

2021年02月05日

Apollo 14 Heads for Home
Image Credit: Apollo 14, NASA, JSC, ASU (Image Reprocessing: Andy Saunders)

Explanation: Fifty years ago this Sunday (February 7, 1971), the crew of Apollo 14 left lunar orbit and headed for home. They watched this Earthrise from their command module Kittyhawk. With Earth’s sunlit crescent just peeking over the lunar horizon, the cratered terrain in the foreground is along the lunar farside. Of course, while orbiting the Moon, the crew could watch Earth rise and set, but from the lunar surface the Earth hung stationary in the sky over their landing site at Fra Mauro Base. Rock samples returned from Fra Mauro included a 20 pound rock nicknamed Big Bertha, determined to contain a likely fragment of a meteorite from planet Earth. Kept on board the Kittyhawk during the Apollo 14 mission was a cannister of 400-500 seeds that were later grown into Moon Trees.

Tomorrow’s picture: light-weekend

阿波罗14号打道回府
影像提供：Apollo 14, NASA, JSC, ASU (影像再处理: Andy Saunders)

说明：在50年前的1971年2月7日，阿波罗14号离开月球轨道打道回府时，当时位在小鹰号指挥舱内的组员，目睹了这幅地出景观。在视野里，日耀的蛾眉状地球低悬在月球地平线上，前景则为月球反面满布撞击坑的原野。想当然耳，在绕月轨道上，这些组员会见到地升与地落的景观，不过在此时，地球则是稳定的滞留在他们于月表的降落点─弗拉毛罗基地的上方。阿波罗14号任务携回的月岩样品，包括一块9公斤重，昵称大伯莎的月岩。后来在其内，发现一块可能是源自地球的陨石之碎片。阿波罗14号任务期间，一个放置在小鹰号指挥舱内的罐子，装有400-500粒树种，后来它们萌芽并在美国各地长成月亮树。

明日的图片: light-weekend