LUNAR ORBITER IV | NEARSIDE OF THE MOON, WITH DRAMATIC VIEWS OF THE MARE ORIENTALE, GRAMALDI CRATER, AND THE OCEANUS PROCELLARUM, TAKEN 11-26 MAY, 1976
Lot Closed
May 1, 07:38 PM GMT
Estimate
1,200 - 1,700 USD
Lot Details
Description
LUNAR ORBITER IV
NEARSIDE OF THE MOON, WITH DRAMATIC VIEWS OF THE MARE ORIENTALE, GRAMALDI CRATER, AND THE OCEANUS PROCELLARUM, TAKEN 11-26 MAY, 1976
NASA Langley Research Center vintage silver gelatin contact print of Lunar Orbiter image IV-173M.
17½ by 19½ in. (approx. 44.5 by 49.5 cm).
See Bowker & Hughes, Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon
A beautiful image of the nearside of the moon, the Mare Orientale and center and partially shrouded in mysterious shadows, with a broad view of the Oceanus Procellarum at upper right.
Lunar Orbiter IV flew in high altitude polar orbits with the primary objective of mapping the near side of the Moon in high resolution, with 100% of the nearside being photographed, and 95% of the farside. A 40 by 45 foot mosaic was created at NASA's Langley Research Center using the images taken by the Lunar Orbiter IV, and visitors were allowed to stand or crawl over it. The mosaic was used to determine the sites to be photographed in higher resolution by the Lunar Orbiter V.