Apollo 16 Heat Flow Experiment Safety Flag and Pin, part of the Apollo 16 geology package deployed on the lunar surface. Safety pin measures 2.5 inches long with an orange streamer flag tied through the loop of the safety pin. Flag is signed in black felt tip, “ALSEP safety flag, bearing lunar dust used on the moon. Charles M. Duke, Jr., Apollo 16 LMP.” The flag has been removably archivally sleeved in acid free Mylar, which is also signed in black felt tip, “ALSEP/Heat Flow experiment safety pin, Charles M. Duke, Jr.,” and also bears Duke’s personal signed flight-certification label which states the pin spent 71 hours on the lunar surface. Accompanied by a 2009 letter of provenance and authenticity signed by Duke, incorporating an image of the Heat Flow experiment on the lunar surface, as well as an image of Duke holding the presentation, which reads, in part: “One of the important tasks that we had during our stay on the moon was to conduct geology experiments, which included using a ‘Heat Flow’ measuring device to see if we could detect heat loss from the Moon. The ‘Heat Flow’ experiment, in turn, was held together by two safety pins bearing orange streamer flags, that I removed and stowed in my spacesuit pocket once the experiment was safely resting on the moon. The accompanying item is one of those two safety pins and flags that I personally returned from the Moon, and bears both my flight certification and lunar dust that rubbed off of my hands onto its orange flag.” In fine condition, with some light skipping to Duke’s signature on the flag due to nature of material and scattered soiling from moon dust. Duke best sums up the significance of this space-used item in the last line of his letter: “This safety pin & flag bearing lunar dust is one of the first geology tools ever used on the Moon, and as such represents one of the rarest artifacts within the entire realm of space exploration and geology!” Pre-certified Scott Cornish and RRAuction COA.
This item is Pre-Certified by STEVE ZARELLI
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