On
April 20, 1972, John Young and Charlie Duke landed on the Cayley Plain in the
Descartes Highlands region of the Moon. Apollo 16 was the fourth lunar landing
and second "J" mission which included an enhanced lunar module for an
extended stay on the Moon and the Lunar Rover.
Among the many scientific experiments Young and Duke had to perform on the
lunar surface during their three EVAs (Extra Vehicular Activity), they were
required to take core samples at designated locations at each research station
on their itinerary.
In order to obtain a core sample, it was
necessary to drive a metal tube into the lunar surface, pull the tube out with
the lunar soil sample in it and cap the tube for return to Earth at the end of
the mission.
Charlie Duke can be seen in the above photograph hammering one of the core
tubes into the lunar soil. The core tube assembly consisting of a extension
handle, core tube socket assembly and the core tube that can be seen partially
driven into the surface. Charlie can be seen with his geology hammer in his
left hand. He has completed the sample and now must pull the assembly from the
lunar surface, cap the tube and store the tube on the lunar rover.
This type of core tube was called a "Drive tube," because the
moonwalker had to drive the hollow tube into the lunar soil with his geology
hammer. The other type of core tube was attached to the lunar surface drill for
a thinner, deeper sample and was described as a "Drill Tube."
If you look closely at Charlie's left arm, then
you will also see his cuff checklist attached to his wrist just above the head
of his geology hammer. This checklist provided a written and graphic record of
the chores that Charlie had to perform during each of his three EVAs.
The above photograph shows page 19 of the LMP's cuff checklist. This page
describes Charlie's chores at Station 10, the last station of his second EVA,
as a graphic map of the experiments to be done at the site . On the right side
of the page toward the middle there is a small circle labeled "DBL
CORE." The term refers to the fact that Charlie has to assemble two core
tubes together, attach the double core tube to the core tube socket (adaptor)
and then attach it to the handle prior to hammering the core tube into the
lunar soil.
A double core "drive tube" assembly is
shown in this photograph from the Apollo Geology Tool Catalog written by Judith
Haley Allton in 1989. Each individual tube section was approximately fourteen
inches long and threaded at each end. The tubes were screwed together as shown
above with one end open and the other end capped by the core tube socket.
The wire like handled device at the bottom of the photo was a ramrod used to
compact the soil of the core samples while in the tubes. The device was placed
in a small hole in the socket and rammed down to a plate inside the tube to
press the soil into the tube to prevent movement of the soil during transport
back to Earth. Charlie and John referred to this tool as the "Rammer
Jammer" during their EVAs on the lunar surface.
The above photograph shows a double core
"drive tube" in action. By looking closely, the entire assembly can
be seen. The drive tubes are screwed into the socket and the handle has been
attached on top of the socket. The only thing left to do is hammer the entire
tool until it is also completely up to the core tube socket at the end of the
core drive tubes.
Why am I taking the time to describe one geology experiment that was performed
on the Moon? How do I segue from a lunar chore to a discussing an artifact in
my collection? Well, here goes.
Any collector of space exploration related memorabilia will usually state that
the "Holy Grail" of artifacts are pieces actually used or have been
directly on the surface of the Moon. Lunar surface tools are some of the rarest
artifacts in existence in the space collecting world.
Core tubes were used in direct contact with the lunar surface. In order to
drive the tubes into the soil, you needed a handle to use the hammer on. You
needed to attach the handle to the tubes. You did that by screwing an adapter
called a "Core Tube Socket" (socket) onto a core tube and then
snapping the extension handle onto the socket. Without this adapter, you would
not be able to perform this important job of sampling below the lunar surface.
How am I doing? I am getting there.
And here I am. Recently, I was able to procure a
core tube socket from the collection of Brig General Charles M. Duke, Jr., the
Lunar Module Pilot on the Apollo 16 mission to the Moon.
The above photograph shows this complex piece of equipment that connected the
"drive" core tubes to the extension handle. The machined piece of
Aluminum is 1.85 inches wide and 2.5 inches tall and weighs 2.5 ounces. The
wider area is threaded to accept the core tubes and the narrow part of the
socket attaches to the extension handle. The two small knobs in the middle of
the narrow shaft help lock the extension handle in place with a twist of the
handle. If you look closely at the top of the socket, then you will see a hole
that runs through the shaft. This hole is where Charlie or John would place the
"rammer jammer" when compacting the lunar soil inside the core tubes.
This photograph from the Apollo Tool Catalog
shows a core assembly along with a core tube socket. The socket is highlighted
in the picture. The other pieces are a core tube and a core tube cap used to
seal the lunar soil sample into the tube for transportation back to Earth.
Here is picture of the socket with a one inch
scale cube. The socket is real and the scale cube is a replica of the ones used
in the Lunar Receiving Lab at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
The Apollo Tool Catalog also has a photograph of
the socket attached to a core tube. The socket is highlighted at the end of the
core tube.
This photograph shows the core tube socket at
eye level with the one inch scale cube. The hole shown just above the thread
area of the socket was used to hold a locking pin to lock the core tubes onto
the socket. While the pin was used on Apollo 15, it was not used on Apollo 16.
Even with its important to the assembly of the entire
core tube, the socket is barely visible in most photographs taken on the lunar
surface during the Apollo 16 mission. Further research through the ALSJ
photographic files, I was able to find a clear shot of the core tube socket in
a sample bag along with the core tubes themselves. On the photographic
certification above, Charlie Duke marked a square around the socket, signed and
inscribed the photograph to read, "The accompanying Core Tube Socket can
be clearly seen at the end of our Utility Handle. The core tube has been driven
into the lunar surface. Charles M. Duke, Jr., Apollo 16, LMP."
The photograph shows the socket about inch above the actual lunar surface.
Charlie said that the socket routinely touched the lunar soil during the crew's
time on the Moon.
In January of 2008, Charlie signed a complete certification and to provide further proveniance agreed to be photographed with the core tube socket at home in Texas. This artifact has been in Charlie's collection for over 35 years.
It is now mated with an original painting of John Young pounding the core tube into the lunar soil. The artist is an English painter by the name of Gavin Mundy.
I perserved the object in a shadow box frame with museum glass for protection.
There is a brass plaque affixed to the frame that identifies the core tube socket as a tool that was used on the Moon.
A truly awesome artifact and an equally awesome write up! I particularly love this as I’m a geologist by degree so I’m familiar with core sampling.
Posted by: Giles Smithson | 02/06/2020 at 02:09 PM