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Later this year, Apollo 17
astronaut and geologist Jack

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Schmitt will mark forty-five
years since his first steps on

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the moon in December 1972. Those
footprints left an impression on

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both the moon and on Schmitt.


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“No matter how much preparation

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you have for experiences like
stepping on the moon, it’s going

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to be more than you ever
anticipated.” Schmitt was the

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first trained field geologist to
observe the moon up close and

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personal, and he found himself
discovering unexpected things

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with every step. “Every rock
that we examined had something

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new that I didn’t expect. And
surprises are what geologists

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like. That’s why you’re
exploring – to see the things

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that no one has ever seen
before.” Schmitt spent a

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combined twenty-two hours
outside of the spacecraft during

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his three excursions on the
moon. Before his own trip,

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Schmitt trained other Apollo
astronauts. Sharing with them

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his in-depth knowledge of field
work. “The main thing was to

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expose them to as many different
geological experiences as we

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possibly could. Get them out in
the field – don’t let them sit

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in the classroom.” He treated
training scenarios on Earth the

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same way he would if they were
on the moon. Including simulated

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equipment, backpacks and cameras
strapped to the front of

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spacesuits. Astronauts could
then focus on what differences

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in the rocks they were seeing,
and what rock samples were best

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to collect. Essentially giving
them the fundamental field

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geological experiences that they
needed to succeed. The four or

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five days per month Schmitt
spent training astronauts in the

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field really did made a
difference. “The quality and

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diversity of the Apollo sample
collection, independent of

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Apollo 17 where you had an
experienced geologist, the

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quality and diversity of that
sample collection is just

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remarkable.”
Fortunately, the current

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Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
mission, or LRO, is changing

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the game; bringing back high-
quality photography of the moon

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that Schmitt only wished he’d
seen before his own trip. “The

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Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
program now has provided us with

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a much, much higher resolution
suite of photographs for any

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future astronauts.” What we
learned from the Apollo missions

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helped lay the groundwork for
LRO, and LRO will help guide

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future explorers. “Every new
environment in which a geologist

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works is usually very different
than the last, but you have

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learned things from your
previous experiences that do in

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fact enable you to maximize the
value of your new experience.”

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Schmitt has his fingers crossed
for future moon exploration, a

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landscape he considers holds
answers to many questions about

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the early solar system. “You can
hear people talk about it, but

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you can’t absorb it until you’re
there.”