Between 1969 and 1972, NASA sent six Apollo missions to the moon. The fifth of those, Apollo 16, launched 42 years ago tomorrow.
Apollo 16 was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 16, 1972. Its mission was to inspect, survey and sample lunar materials and surface features. Experiments were positioned on the lunar surface and activated by the crew. The mission landed in the lunar highlands as the material there was thought to be older than other areas that had been previously studied. They crew also conducted in-flight experiments and took pictures from lunar orbit.
The three astronauts chosen for Apollo 16 were John W. Young, Thomas Mattingly and Charles Duke. This was also one of only three Apollo missions to employ a Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV).
Apollo 16 was critical in helping scientists determine the geological makeup of the moon, and continued a series of missions that have become some of the most legendary excursions in human history.