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Huntsville in Madison County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)
 

Young • Mattingly • Duke

Launched: April 16, 1972 • Landed: April 20, 1972 • Splashdown: April 27, 1972

— "Look at the size of that rock!" —

 
 
Young • Mattingly • Duke Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, November 22, 2011
1. Young • Mattingly • Duke Marker
Apollo 16
Inscription. Lunar module pilot, Charlie Duke, exclaimed.

The Apollo 16 astronauts may have qualified for the Guinness Book of World Records for pushing their lunar rover to eleven miles per hour - but that was not their most serious accomplishment. As the first Apollo mission to focus on the geology of the lunar highlands area, Duke and Commander John Young spent parts of three days collecting hundreds of samples of rock and soil, plus an important core sample from more than seven feet below the Moon's surface. Evidence from these materials showed that rocks in the area were not formed by volcanic activity, as had been presumed, but by meteorites smashing into the surface. The discovery was one of the scientific highlights of the entire Apollo program and sent lunar geology research in a new direction The Apollo 16 command module Casper is on display at USSRC's Davidson Center for Space Exploration.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & SpaceExploration.
 
Location. 34° 42.664′ N, 86° 39.339′ W. Marker is in Huntsville, Alabama, in Madison County.
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It can be reached from Tranquility Base half a mile west of Old Madison Pike NW, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Tranquility Base, Huntsville AL 35805, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Alabama. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, in Appalachia, and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the original Cherokee Nation, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Scott • Worden • Irwin (here, next to this marker); Cernan • Evans • Schmitt (here, next to this marker); Shepard • Roosa • Mitchell (here, next to this marker); Lovell • Swigert • Haise (here, next to this marker); Conrad • Gordon • Bean (here, next to this marker); Armstrong • Collins • Aldrin (a few
Brig. Gen. Charlie Duke Footprint & Signature image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, November 22, 2011
2. Brig. Gen. Charlie Duke Footprint & Signature
LM Pilot, Apollo 16
steps from this marker); McDivitt • Scott • Schweickart / Stafford • Young • Cernan (a few steps from this marker); Schirra • Eisele • Cunningham / Borman • Lovell • Anders (a few steps from this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Huntsville.
 
Young • Mattingly • Duke Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, November 22, 2011
3. Young • Mattingly • Duke Marker
Apollo 16 - Young • Mattingly • Duke image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, November 22, 2011
4. Apollo 16 - Young • Mattingly • Duke
Space Suit for Apollo 16 image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Sandra Hughes, November 22, 2011
5. Space Suit for Apollo 16
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 27, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 1,005 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on October 27, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
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Jul. 9, 2026