Apollo 16
Apollo 16 was NASA’s tenth crewed lunar landing mission and the fifth to land on the Moon. Launched on April 16, 1972, it touched down in the Descartes Highlands on April 21, carrying astronauts John Young and Charles Duke, with Ken Mattingly orbiting above. The mission’s objectives included geological fieldwork using the Lunar Roving Vehicle, deployment of surface experiments (ALSEP), and the return of nearly 96 kg of lunar samples. The mission concluded with a safe Earth splashdown on April 27, 1972.
Source: nasa.gov
APODs including "Apollo 16"
The First Lunar Observatory
11/11/2000
The first, and so far only, lunar astronomical observatory was deployed by the Apollo 16 crew in 1972. The Far Ultraviolet Camera / Spectrograph used a 3-inch diameter Schmidt telescope to photograph the Earth, nebulae, star clusters, and the Large Magellanic Cloud. The tripod mounted astronomical equipment is seen above, placed in the shadow of the Lunar Module (right) so it would not overheat. Also in the shadow is astronaut Charles Duke with the lunar rover in the background. The Far Ultraviolet Camera took pictures in ultraviolet light which would normally be blocked by the Earth's atmosphere. It was created by George Carruthers (NRL), had a field of view of twenty degrees, and could detect stars having visual magnitude brighter than eleven. One hundred seventy-eight images were recorded in a film cartridge which the astronauts returned to Earth. The observatory still stands on the Moon today.