Spacelog Apollo 11

Neil, this is Houston. We're copying.

There seems to be no difficulty in moving around as we suspected. It's even perhaps easier than the simulations at one sixth g that we performed in the various simulations on the ground. It's actually no trouble to walk around. Okay. The descent engine did not leave a crater of any size. It has about 1 foot clearance on the ground. We're essentially on a very level place here. I can see some evidence of rays emanating from the descent engine, but a very insignificant amount.

Okay, Buzz, we ready to bring down the camera?

I'm all ready. I think it's been all squared away and in good shape.

Okay.

Okay. You'll have to pay out all the LEC. It looks like it's coming out nice and evenly.

Okay. It's quite dark here in the shadow and a little hard for me to see that I have good footing. I'll work my way over into the sunlight here without looking directly into the Sun.

Okay. It's taut now.

Okay. I think you're pulling the wrong one.

I'm just—Okay. I'm ready to pull it down now. There was still a little bit left in the -

Okay. Don't hold it quite so tight.

Okay.

Looking up at the LM, I'm standing directly in the shadow now looking up at Buzz in the window. And I can see everything quite clearly. The light is sufficiently bright, backlighted into the front of the LM, that everything is very clearly visible,

Okay. I'm going to be changing the ***

Okay.

The camera is installed on the RCU bracket, and I'm storing the LEC on the secondary strut.

I'll step out and take some of my first pictures here.

Roger. Neil, we're reading you loud and clear. We see you getting some pictures and the contingency sample.

Neil, this is Houston. Did you copy about the contingency sample? Over.

Roger. I'm going to get to that just as soon as I finish these picture series.

Okay. Going to get the contingency sample there, Neil.

Right.

Okay. That's good.

Okay. The contingency sample is down and it's ***. Looks like it's a little difficult to dig through the initial crust.

This is very interesting. It's a very soft surface, but here and there where I plug with the contingency sample collector, I run into a very hard surface, but it appears to be very cohesive material of the same sort. I'll try to get a rock in here. Just a couple.

That looks beautiful from here, Neil.

It has a stark beauty all its own. It's like much of the high desert of the United States. It's different but it's very pretty out here. Be advised that a lot of the rock samples out here, the hard rock samples, have what appear to be vesicles in the surface. Also, I am looking at one now that appears to have some sort of phenocryst.

Houston. Roger. Out.

Okay. The handle is off the *** in about 6 or 8 inches into the surface. I could *** easy ***.

Yes, it is. it's—I'm sure I could push it in farther, but it's hard for me to bend down further than that.

Now, you can throw so far.

You can really throw things a long way up here.

That pocket open, Buzz?

Yes, it is. It's not up against your suit though. Hit it back once more. More toward the inside. Okay. That's good.

That in the pocket?

Yes. Push down.

Got it?

No. It's not all the way in. Push it. There you go.

Contingency sample is in the pocket. My oxygen is 81 percent. I have no flags, and I'm in minimum flow.

This is Houston. Roger, Neil.

Okay. I have got the cameras on at one frame a second.

Okay.

And I've got the 80 percent, no flags.

Are you getting a TV picture now, Houston?

Neil, yes we are getting a TV picture.

Neil, this is Houston. We're getting a picture. You're not in it at the present time. We can see the bag on the LEC being moved by Buzz, though. Here you come into our field of view.

…

Roger.

Hold it a second. First let me move that over the edge for you.

Okay. Are you ready for me to come out?

Yes. Just stand by a second. I'll move this over the handrail.

Okay.

All right. That's got it. Are you ready?

All set. Okay. You saw what difficulties I was having. I'll try to watch your PLSS from underneath here.

All right. The backup camera's positioned.

Okay. Your PLSS is—Looks like it is clearing okay. Your toes are about to come over the sill. Okay. Now drop your PLSS down. There you go; you're clear. And laterally you're good. You've got an inch clearance on top of your PLSS.

Okay. You need a little bit of arching of the back to come down. … How are are my feet from the edge?

Okay. You're right at the edge of the porch.

Okay. Back in *** little of foot movement *** porch. Little arching of the back. Helmet comes up and clears the bulkhead without any trouble at all.

Looks good.

Neil, this is Houston. Based on your camera transfer with the LEC, do you foresee any difficulties in SRC transfer? Over.

Negative.

Okay. Now I want to back up and partially close the hatch.

Making sure not to lock it on my way out.

(Laughter) A pretty good thought.

That's our home for the next couple of hours and we want to take good care of it. Okay. I'm on the top step and I can look down over the RCU, landing gear pads. It's a very simple matter to hop down from one step to the next.

Yes. I found I could be very comfortable, and walking is also very comfortable.

You've got three more steps and then a long one.

Okay. I'm going to leave that one foot up there and both hands down to about the fourth rung up.

There you go.

Okay. Now I think I'll do the same ***

A little more. About another inch.

There you got it.

That's a good step. About a 3-footer.

Beautiful view!

Isn't that something! Magnificent sight out here.

Magnificent desolation.

Looks like the secondary strut *** little thermal effects on it right here, Neil.

Yes. I noticed that. That seems to be the worst, although similar effects are on—all around.

… powder, isn't it?

Isn't it fine?

Right in this area I don't think there's much of any *** fine powder *** clods together, and it's hard to tell whether it's a clod or a rock.

Notice how you can kick it out.

Yes. And it bounces and then -

Reaching down is fairly easy. I got my suit dirty at this stage.

The mass of the backpack does have some effect in inertia.

There's a slight tendency, I can see now, to *** backwards *** due to the soft, very soft texture.

You're standing on a rock, a big rock there now.

This pad sure didn't ***

No. It didn't.

There's absolutely no crater there at all from the engine.

No.

I wonder if about right under the engine is where the probe might have hit.

I'd like that.

Yes. I think that's a good representation of our sideward velocity at touchdown there—hole at the probe.

I see that probe over on the minus-Y strut. It's broken off and bent back up.

It did, didn't it? The other two both bent over.

Can't say too much for the visibility right here without the visor up. It's dark. It looks like there is a *** surface of it is *** pounded rock *** And incidentally, these rocks *** very powdery surface ***

Say again, please, Buzz; you're cutting out.

I say that the rocks are rather slippery.

Roger.

A powdery surface when the sun hits. *** they split up all the very little fine porouses *** Will tend to slide over it rather easily.

Traction *** seems quite good. ***

*** About to lose my balance in one direction and recovery is a quite natural and very easy *** And, moving your arms around, Jack, doesn't *** off the surface *** not quite that light-footed.

And, I have the insulation off the MESA now and MESA seems to be in good shape.

Got to be careful that you are leaning in the direction you want to go, otherwise you *** slightly inebriated. In other words, you have to cross your foot over to stay underneath where your center-of-mass is.

And, Neil, didn't I say we might see some purple rocks?

Find a purple rock?

Yes. They are small, sparkly *** fragments *** places *** would make a first guess that some sort of biotite *** We'll leave that to further analysis ***

*** compact underneath *** completely no *** you don't sink down more than … a quarter of an inch.

Okay, Houston. I'm going to change lenses on you.

Roger, Neil.

Okay, Houston. Tell me if you're getting a new picture.

Neil, this is Houston. That's affirmative. We're getting a new picture. You can tell it's a longer focal length lens. And for your information, all LM systems are GO. Over.

We appreciate that. Thank you.

Neil is now unveiling the plaque *** gear.

Roger. We got you boresighted, but back under one track.

For those who haven't read the plaque, we'll read the plaque that's on the front landing gear of this LM. First there's two hemispheres, one showing each of the two hemispheres of the Earth. Underneath it says “Here Man from the planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon, July 1969 A.D. We came in peace for all mankind.” It has the crew members' signatures and the signature of the President of the United States.

Ready for the camera?

No. I'll get it. No, you take this TV on out.

Watch the LEC, there.

Now I'm afraid these … materials are going to get dusty ***

The surface material is powdery. *** How good your lens is, but if you can *** smudges … very much like a very finely powdered carbon, but it's very pretty looking.

Would you pull out some of my cable for me, Buzz?