Former astronaut discusses moonwalk

Former astronaut Harrison "Jack" Schmitt presented a free lecture Tuesday, taking his audience with him on his trip to the moon in 1972 upon Apollo 17. Schmitt spoke at the Whittenberger Auditorium of the Indiana Memorial Union. \nRichard Durisen, the chairman of the department of astronomy, introduced Schmitt to the audience as "one of the last people on the moon." \n"I actually was the last man to climb up the ladder," Schmitt said in reference to the last of the Apollo missions to the moon.\nThe lecture, which was sponsored by the department of astronomy, College of Arts and Sciences, departments of geological sciences and physics and the Office of Academic Affairs, was just one of the many activities in which Schmitt engaged during his visit to Bloomington. Earlier in the day, Schmitt had met with students at the Edgewood Intermediate School and had lunch with IU Honors and Wells scholars.\nSchmitt, who served as a senator for New Mexico from 1977 to 1982, started his presentation with a DVD that commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Apollo 17 mission, which was originally shown at the Smithsonian Institution. The DVD featured clips of Schmitt and his fellow crew members collecting geological samples and experiencing the atmospheric differences on the moon. On the DVD, a crew member can be heard joking, "The Houston Ballet is holding auditions," in regard to Schmitt attempting to acclimate to one-sixth of his weight on Earth. \nFollowing the film, Schmitt shared slides with the audience that included one of the only face shots actually taken on the moon. Another slide featured the lunar rover, which Schmitt said was a remarkable creation by GM and Boeing. \n"The rover only went about six or seven miles, but that was more than enough because if you hit a bump, you were off the surface for awhile," Schmitt said. "We found out about that once."\nAlong with informing the audience about the speed at which they entered the atmosphere, 35,000 mph, or the fact that parachutes deployed at 10,000 feet, Schmitt also shared his menu in space.\n"We had a high-protein fruit cake, hamburger, hot dogs and peanut butter," Schmitt said. "What else could I want?"\nAt the end of his presentation, which lasted about 45 minutes, Schmitt took questions from audience members who varied in age. \n"Is there day and night on the moon like on Earth?" one young boy asked. Schmitt explained there is, but daytime lasts 13 times as long as an Earth day, as does night.\nBut Schmitt faced some more politically angled questions from older members of the audience and students alike. One man asked Schmitt if he ever encounters skeptics questioning the moon landings. \n"I generally ignore them, but a quarter of Americans buy into the fact that the moon landings were false," he said. "This is an indication that children are receiving a lousy education. Parents need to change this since the right people are getting a lot of money but aren't fixing it."\nCurrently, Schmitt lives in New Mexico but speaks all over the country regarding his experiences on the moon more than 30 years ago. The experience has definitely left a mark on him, just as he did on the moon. \n"I left footprints in the sands of time, and that was a good place to do it," he said. "They'll be there for the next million or two years."\n-- Contact staff writer Claire Bartel at cebartel@indiana.edu.