Apollo 16 Facts Everyone Should Know

Jonathan Stroud
Aug 27, 2017 · 9 min read

Apollo 16 rocked and here’s why.

“The prime of the Apollo 16 lunar landing mission.” — Credit: NASA

The impacts of NASA’s historic Apollo 16 mission to the moon can still be seen today.

The NASA Apollo Program helped to progress technology as well as human imaginations. NASA’s Apollo 16 mission did more than just prove humans could walk on the moon.

Share your favorite Apollo 16 facts with me on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn!

Enjoy these 16 facts everyone should know about the Apollo 16 mission to the moon.

Check out NASA’s full Apollo 16 mission report here.

“Liftoff of Apollo 16 on April 16, 1972. The crew of three was lifted into orbit atop a Saturn V SA-511 rocket, eventually hurling them toward the Moon at 22,000 miles per hour” — Credit: NASA

Fact #16 — Apollo 16 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 16, 1972.

According to NASA — “.” — read more here.

“Flight Director Gene Kranz during the Apollo 16 launch on April 16, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #15 — The mission was the second to last Apollo Program mission to land on the Moon.

According to Wikipedia — “

” — read more here.

“Wendt Preps Apollo 16 Crew” — Credit: NASA

Fact #14 — It was NASA’s 10th manned mission in the Apollo Space Program.

According to NASA — “” — read more here.

“At Station 1, Duke at edge of crater” — Credit: NASA

Fact #13 —The launch of Apollo 16 was delayed one month from March 17 to April 16.

According to NASA — “” — read more here.

“The Command Service Module “Casper” viewed from the Lunar Module on April 20, 1972" — Credit: NASA

Fact #12 — Apollo 16 landed in the lunar highlands.

According to the Lunar and Planetary Society — “.” — read more.

“Lunar Module ascent stage approaching for rendezvous in orbit on April 23, 1972.” — Credit: NASA

Fact #11 — The Crew included John W. Young, Commander Charles M. Duke Jr., Lunar Module Pilot Thomas K. Mattingly II, Command Module Pilot.

According to Wikipedia— “” — read more here.

“John W. Young on the Moon during Apollo 16 mission. Charles M. Duke Jr. took this picture. The LM Orion is on the left. April 21, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #10— Moon rock samples from the Descartes Formation and the Cayley Formation during the Apollo 16 mission disproved a hypothesis that the formations were volcanic in origin.

According to Solar Views.com — “

” — read more here.

“View of Earth from orbit shortly after launch, on April 16, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #9 — The crew spent 12 days away from Earth.

According to Wikipedia — “

” — read more here.

“Commander John Young at the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package site on April 21, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #8 — The mission spent 20+ hours exploring the lunar surface.

” — read more here.

“Lunar Module “Orion” and the lunar surface, with Earthrise in the background, on April 19, 1972" — Credit: NASA

Fact #7 — Astronaut Mattingly orbited the moon while of Young and Duke explored the lunar surface.

According to NASA — “

” — read more here.

“A panorama of the Lunar Module and LRV on April 21, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #6 — Apollo 16 mission drove 16.6 miles on the surface of the Moon in the Lunar Roving Vehicle.

According to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum — “” — read more here.

“Apollo 16 Commander John Young jumps and salutes the flag on April 20, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #5 — The mission experienced two command and service module problems during flight.

According to NASA — “

” — read more here.

“Duke sampling from a large rock at Station 11 on April 23, 1972” — Credit: NASA

Fact #4 — Apollo 16 was the second expedition to bring a Lunar Roving Vehicle.

According to Wikipedia — “” — read more here.

“Earth depicted during translunar coast. Baja California is at the center of the image.” — Credit: NASA

Fact #3 — The crew gathered 210 pounds of samples from the lunar surface.

According to NASA — “” — read more here.

“A plastic-encased photo of Astronaut Charles Duke’s family, placed on on lunar surface by Duke. Written on the other side is the message ‘This is the family of Astronaut Duke from Planet Earth. Landed on the Moon, April 1972.’” — Credit: NAS

Fact #2— Astronaut Charles Duke’s left a plastic-encased photo of his family on the on lunar surface.

According to Business Insider — “

” — read more here.

“The moment of impact during Apollo 16 splashdown.” — Credit: NASA

Fact #1 — Apollo 16 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 27, 1972.

According to NASA — “After normal rendezvous and docking, and transfer of crew samples and equipment, the lunar module was jettisoned.

Attitude control was lost, eliminating the usual deorbit maneuver and planned impact. Because of problems noted earlier, planners elected to return the mission one day early. During transearth coast, Mattingly took an 83-minute spacewalk to retrieve film cassettes from the SIM bay ” — read more here.

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“The important achievement of Apollo was demonstrating that humanity is not forever chained to this planet and our visions go rather further than that and our opportunities are unlimited.” — Neil Armstrong

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Jonathan Stroud

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Content creator, love to write, passionate about space.

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