Apollo 17 Returns to Earth
Apollo 17 splashed down in the Pacific on December 19, 1972.
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The Event
Apollo 17 splashed down in the Pacific on December 19, 1972. Eugene Cernan, Harrison Schmitt and Ronald Evans completed the mission.
The Wider Story
The return brought lunar samples and experimental records for further study. Recovery crews retrieved the command module and astronauts.
Putting the Event in Perspective
The splashdown was not the departure from the Moon.
Reading the Historical Record
A recreation should show a command module at sea rather than a lunar module returning to Earth.
About the Historical Recreation
The accompanying visual is an illustrative reconstruction: an illustrative Apollo command module floating in the Pacific near a distant recovery ship. It is not authentic archival footage, an eyewitness record or additional evidence for the event.
Sources
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