Launch from Cape Canaveral (
KSC). The launch was
delayed for the first time in the Apollo-history for about 40 minutes due to
bad weather. The landing was near of Samoa-Island in the Pacific Ocean.
Third manned moon landing; landing site: Fra Mauro.
Two
EVAs by
Shepard and
Mitchell. In the first
EVA (4h 48m)
they deployed the TV, S-band antenna, the American flag, and the Solar Wind
Composition experiment. Other work were to take photos from the
LM (named Antares), the
lunar surface and the experiments and deploying the Apollo lunar surface
experiments package (
ALSEP)
and the laser-ranging retroreflector. The also performed a seismic experiment.
In the second
EVA (4h 35m) they
used for the first time the Modular Equipment Transporter (
MET), a
handcart to transport lunar rocks and samples, but it had also photographic
equipment, tools, and a lunar portable magnetometer. Both men performed a
geology traverse toward the rim of Cone Crater. At least Commander
Shepard became the first man to golf on the lunar surface; he
played with an original golf ball and a shovel, the drive was 366 m long. All
in all 43 kg of material were gathered.
During that time astronaut
Roosa, orbiting the moon in the
CSM Kitty Hawk,
took astronomy and lunar photos, including photos of the proposed Descartes
landing site for
Apollo 16.
The reentry was without any problems and they came down about 7 kilometers far
from the recovery ship "
USS New
Orleans".