APOD: 2022 December 14 - Lunar Dust and Duct Tape

Good morning, Rallypoint, and welcome to the December 14th Hump Day edition of Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD): "Lunar Dust and Duct Tape." I grew up learning that most things can be repaired with baling wire and duct tape (suitably placed charges of C4 came later in my life). In today's APOD, some extra maps and clamps were combined with the duct tape to do the trick. But why was this even necessary?

While on the lunar surface, a hammer in the shin pocket of astronaut Eugene Cernan's space suit caught the edge of one of the rear fenders on lunar rover. Half the fender was torn off. As a result, the rear tire kicked up "rooster tails" of moondust as they drove to their planned destinations. This dust covered both astronauts (Cernan and Jack Schmidt) and their equipment.

This was a problem for several reasons. Because it is of volcanic origin, moondust has jagged edges. Wiping it off from helmet visors would scratch them (impairing visibility). Once caked on spacesuits, the dust would absorb solar radiation and cause them to overheat. And lastly, the dust was so fine-grained that it could work itself into hinges, latches and joints, rendering them useless.

Enter the roll of duct tape. Four laminated maps were taped together inside the Lunar Module (which was relatively dust free) and then clamped onto the remaining fender of the lunar rover. The 'fix' lasted the rest of the mission.

When Artemis returns the next-generation of astronauts to the Moon, they'll know a lot more about moondust than Eugene Cernan and Jack Schmidt did. But you can bet there’s one thing they won’t leave home without - duct tape.