Lunar Panoramic Photography - Apollo 16

NASA's Apollo Lunar Surface Journal (ALSJ)[1] records the details of each mission's period on the lunar surface as a timeline of the activities undertaken, the dialogue between the crew and Mission Control, and the relevant documentary records. Each photograph taken on the mission is catalogued there and each photographic sequence is also recorded. This page tabulates the Apollo 16 panoramas and, where appropriate, provides updated representations of the panoramas blended using more recent technologies than the originals.

Context

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Apollo 16 was the second of Apollo's "J Missions[2]" using an enhanced Lunar Module that was capable of supporting a 3-day stay on the lunar surface *and* the delivery of the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV or "Rover") to the surface to allow the crew to extend the range of their exploration and to provide remote TV coverage.

In terms of photography, Apollo 16's crew surpassed their predecessors on Apollo 15 in no short measure. 1800 frames were captured whilst on the lunar surface resulting in around 100 panoramic sequences. An interesting point that arises in the subsequent tables is the ratio of panoramas taken by the Commander (John Young) and the Lunar Module Pilot (Charlie Duke) - Duke takes around four times as many as his colleague and this 4:1 ratio is the highest across all the missions.

The Lunar Module (LM), Orion, landed with its door and ladder leg (AKA "+Z strut") pointing approximately due west. The Sun's elevation[3] was around 22°-25° for EVA 1, 34°-38° for EVA 2, and 46°-49° for EVA 3.

The higher elevations of the Sun across the EVAs can be seen through the improvement in the quality of the panoramas; the Sun itself, and any resulting lens flair, is barely noticeable whereas it featured prominently in the earlier missions.

Rover Panoramas (LVR Pans)

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Charlie Duke is credited with inventing a new procedure during EVA 2; the "LRV Pan" or "Rover Pan" (also known as a "360").[4] The process of getting onto and off of the rover was protracted due to the bulky suit and backpack that the astronauts wore, but Duke realised that by having Young drive the rover in a tight circle he could snap a panoramic sequence simply by pointing the camera straight ahead and continuously pressing the shutter button from his seated position ("click - click - click - click - click -click"[5])

Although efficient in terms of time and effort, the approach presented some issues:-

  • Panoramic sequences are best shot from a single position - in these cases the camera was moved for each shot
  • Every shot contains foreground items (the rover's TV camera and antenna) that impact on as much as 50% each of image
  • The camera is subject to the movements and orientation of the rover
  • Camera settings have to be changed "On the fly"

The first noted LRV Pan was the sequence AS16-115-18503 to 18511 - see "Timestamp 148:41:11" below. Empirical analysis suggests that the sequence is limited to AS16-115-18107 to 18711 and the result is shown below:-

First recorded "LRC Pan" - Apollo 16 - AS16-115-18503-18511.jpg

Non-EVA (LM-based) panoramas

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By this, the fifth landing, the need for contingency photos taken from the Lunar Module was greatly reduced, so low in fact, that only one panorama was taken through each of the windows (and subsequently combined). No panoramas were taken from the LM between the EVAs or after the final return.


Table 16.1 Non-EVA panoramas
Mission Time (MET) EVA # Title Astronaut Magazine Type Start Frame End Frame Source Reference Panorama Sourced Alternate Updated Panorama Notes
XVI 106:15:45 Pre-EVA Post-Landing Window Pan Young/Duke 113 Colour 18296 18310 ALSJ
 
N/A JSC2012e052597
XVI 106:15:45 Pre-EVA Post-Landing Window Pan - CDR Young 113 Colour 18296 18303 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 106:15:45 Pre-EVA Post-Landing Window Pan - LMP Duke 113 Colour 18304 18310 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama

EVA Panoramas - EVA 1

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Table 16.2 EVA 1 panoramas
Mission Time (MET) EVA # Title Astronaut Magazine Type Start Frame End Frame Source Reference Panorama ALSJ Alternate Updated Panorama Notes
XVI 119:33:46 EVA 1 LM 4 O'clock Pan Duke 113 Colour 18313 18330 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 119:33:46 EVA 1 LM 4 O'clock Pan North Duke 113 Colour 18313 18322 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 119:33:46 EVA 1 LM 4 O'clock Pan South Duke 113 Colour 18324 18330 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 122:12:32 EVA 1 ALSEP Pan Duke 113 Colour 18349 18370 ALSJ
 
 
 
N/A
XVI 122:12:32 EVA 1 ALSEP Pan North Duke 113 Colour 18349 18360 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 122:12:32 EVA 1 ALSEP Pan South Duke 113 Colour 18361 18370 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 122:58:02 EVA 1 Outbound Drive to Station 1 - Part 1 Duke 109 Monochrome 17747 17768 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse images - omitted
XVI 123:14:14 EVA 1 Outbound Drive to Station 1 - Part 2 Duke 109 Monochrome 17769 17774 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse images - omitted
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan Duke 109 Monochrome 17775 17793 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan North Duke 109 Monochrome 17775 17786 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan South Duke 109 Monochrome 17787 17793 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan - Alternative 1 Duke 109 Monochrome 17775 17779 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan - Alternative 2 Duke 109 Monochrome 17787 17792 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 123:25:08 EVA 1 Charlie's Station 1 Pan - Alternative 3 Duke 109 Monochrome 17787 17792 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:02:22 EVA 1 John's Station 1 Pan Young 114 Colour 18415 18432 ALSJ
 
 
N/A Alternate from LPI - JSC2012e052598
XVI 124:02:22 EVA 1 John's Station 1 Pan North Young 114 Colour 18415 18323 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:02:22 EVA 1 John's Station 1 Pan South Young 114 Colour 18425 18432 ALSJ
 
]
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:02:22 EVA 1 John's Station 1 Pan Mono Young 114 Colour 18418 18423 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 124:02:22 EVA 1 John's Station 1 Pan - Two Charlies Young 114 Colour 18415 18432 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan Duke 109 Monochrome 17811 17827 ALSJ
 
 
 
N/A 2nd Alternate from LPI - JSC2012e052599
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan North Duke 109 Monochrome 17811 17818 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan South Duke 109 Monochrome 17819 17827 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan Alternative 1 Duke 109 Monochrome 17814 17825 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan Alternative 2 Duke 109 Monochrome 17814 17816 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 First Station 2 Pan Alternative 3 Duke 109 Monochrome 17821 17825 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 124:23:34 EVA 1 Buster Crater Partial Pan Duke 109 Monochrome 17828 17836 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 124:28:40 EVA 1 500-mm Stone Mountain from Station 2 Duke 112 Monochrome 18193 18232 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 124:28:40 EVA 1 500-mm South Ray from Station 2 Duke 112 Monochrome 18233 18239 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 124:48:20 EVA 1 Return to the LM from Station 2 Duke 109 Monochrome 17849 07862 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse images - omitted
XVI 125:24:40 EVA 1 UV Camera, End of EVA-1 Young 114 Colour 18439 18441 ALSJ
 
 
 
N/A Note the stitching glitches in the second alternate image; the antenna on the LRV appears to be floating above the vehicle!

EVA Panoramas - EVA 2

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Table 16.3 EVA 2 panoramas
Mission Time (MET) EVA # Title Astronaut Magazine Type Start Frame End Frame Source Reference Panorama Sourced Alternate Updated Panorama Notes
XVI 143:13:46 EVA 2 4 O'Clock LM Pan, Start of EVA-2 Duke 107 Colour 17420 17440 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 143:13:46 EVA 2 4 O'Clock LM Pan, Start of EVA-2 North Duke 107 Colour 17420 17430 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 143:13:46 EVA 2 4 O'Clock LM Pan, Start of EVA-2 South Duke 107 Colour 17431 17440 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 143:31:21 EVA 2 EVA-2 Outbound Traverse, LM to Survey Ridge Duke 110 Monochrome 17870 17888 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 143:42:15 EVA 2 EVA-2 Outbound Traverse, Survey Ridge Duke 110 Monochrome 17889 17907 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 144:14:29 EVA 2 South Ray Crater as seen from Stone Mountain (Station 4) Duke 112 Monochrome 18243 18252 LPI
 
N/A JSC2007e045383
XVI 144:14:29 EVA 2 South Ray Crater and Baby Ray Crater from Station 4 Duke 112 Monochrome 18243 18259 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 144:14:29 EVA 2 Central Portion of South Ray Crater from Station 4 Duke 112 Monochrome 18245 18248 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:14:29 EVA 2 Central Portion of South Ray Crater from Station 4 Alternative 1 Duke 112 Monochrome 18245 18252 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:14:29 EVA 2 Baby Ray Crater from Station 4 Duke 112 Monochrome 18253 18254 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:15:20 EVA 2 Stubby Crater from Station 4 Duke 112 Monochrome 18260 18268 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 144:15:49 EVA 2 LM, Smoky Mountain, North Ray Crater, and Ravine Crater from Station 4 Duke 112 Monochrome 18269 18277 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 144:48:00 EVA 2 John's Station 4 Pan Young 107 Monochrome 17467 17489 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 144:48:00 EVA 2 Station 4 Crater Detail, High Resolution Young 107 Monochrome 17470 17473 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:48:00 EVA 2 John's Station 4 Pan, Northern Portion Young 107 Monochrome 17470 11317 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:56:49 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 4 Pan Duke 110 Monochrome 17952 17974 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 144:56:49 EVA 2 Station 4 Rover Duke 110 Monochrome 17960 17961 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 144:57:16 EVA 2 Station 4 Rover Tracks Duke 110 Monochrome 17960 17968 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 143:32:15 EVA 2 EVA-2 inbound traverse, Station 4 to Station 5 Duke 110 Monochrome 17975 17990 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 145:10:20 EVA 2 Station 5 Pan Duke 110 Monochrome 17991 18018 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 145:58:36 EVA 2 Traverse Photos - Station 5 to Station 6 Duke 108 Monochrome 17585 17605 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 146:11:10 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 6 Pan Duke 108 Monochrome 17606 17626 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 146:11:10 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 6 Pan - John at the Rover Duke 108 Monochrome 17619 17626 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 146:29:22 EVA 2 Traverse Photos - Station 6 to Station 8 Duke 108 Monochrome 17634 17662 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 146:43:51 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 8 pan Duke 108 Monochrome 17663 17681 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 146:43:51 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 8 pan - Antenna Duke 108 Monochrome 17668 17671 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 146:29:22 EVA 2 Traverse Photos - Station 8 to Station 9 Duke 108 Monochrome 17703 17713 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse - images omitted
XVI 147:56:45 EVA 2 Charlie's Station 9 Pan Duke 108 Monochrome 17714 17739 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 147:56:45 EVA 2 Station 9 LRV Tracks Duke 108 Monochrome 17733 17738 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-panorama
XVI 148:09:03 EVA 2 Station 9 Great Sneak Duke 107 Monochrome 17560 17573 ALSJ N/A N/A This is a collage, not a panorama (images excluded)
XVI 148:41:11 EVA 2 First "Rover Pan" - Stone Mountain Duke 115 Monochrome 18507 18511 Original N/A
 
Panorama created by cropping out foreground
XVI 149:20:40 EVA 2 John's ALSEP pan Young 114 Monochrome 18449 18467 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 149:20:40 EVA 2 John's ALSEP pan Rover Young 114 Monochrome 18451 18463 ALSJ
 
 
N/A Alternate from LPI - JSC2011e118362

EVA Panoramas - EVA 3

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Somewhere between EVAs 2 and 3, the Reseau Plate on one of the cameras was smeared and all of the pictures on magazine 116 were impacted.[6][7] Note the example shown below:-

Example of smearing on all photos in Magazine 116.
Table 16.4 EVA 3 panoramas
Mission Time (MET) EVA # Title Astronaut Magazine Type Start Frame End Frame Source Reference Panorama Sourced Alternate Updated Panorama Notes
XVI 165:50:58 EVA 3 Start of EVA-3, 500mm Stone Mountain Portrait Young 105 Monochrome 17053 17116 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 165:57:02 EVA 3 Charlie's Plus-Z Pan at the Start of EVA-3 Duke 116 Colour 18563 18691 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 165:57:02 EVA 3 Charlie's Plus-Z Pan at the Start of EVA-3 HR Duke 116 Colour 18574 18679 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 165:57:02 EVA 3 Charlie's Plus-Z Pan at the Start of EVA-3 HR LPI Duke 116 Colour 18565 18591 LPI
 
N/A JSC2007e045380
XVI 165:57:02 EVA 3 Apollo 16 Landing Site Duke 116 Colour 18573 18582 LPI
 
N/A JSC2011e118363
XVI 166:53:20 EVA 3 North Ray Crater Interior, 500-mm Pan Duke 105 Monochrome 17117 17181 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 166:49:06 EVA 3 John's Station 11 Pan Young 116 Colour 18592 18614 ALSJ
 
XVI 166:49:06 EVA 3 John's Station 11 Pan - Rover Young 116 Colour 18597 18607 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-Panorama
XVI 166:49:06 EVA 3 John's Station 11 Pan - Rover 2 Young 116 Colour 18606 18609 ALSJ
 
N/A Sub-Panorama
XVI 166:49:06 EVA 3 John's Station 11 Pan - LPI Young 116 Monochrome 18594 18613 LPI
 
N/A Sub-Panorama. JSC2007e045381
XVI 166:58:00 EVA 3 North Ray Crater, 1st Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17239 17248 ALSJ
 
 
 
N/A
XVI 166:58:00 EVA 3 North Ray, 2nd Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17249 17262 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 166:58:00 EVA 3 North Ray, 3rd Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17263 18276 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 167:04:40 EVA 3 North Ray, 4th Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17277 17286 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 167:04:40 EVA 3 North Ray, 5th Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17290 17303 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 167:04:40 EVA 3 North Ray, 6th Polarization Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17304 17317 ALSJ
 
 
N/A
XVI 167:43:21 EVA 3 Base of House Rock Duke 106 Monochrome 17341 17344 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 167:54:20 EVA 3 Base of House Rock 2 Duke 106 Monochrome 17349 17354 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 168:09:26 EVA 3 Traverse Photos - Station 11 to Station 13 Duke 106 Monochrome 17357 1738 ALSJ N/A N/A Traverse, images omitted
XVI 168:21:49 EVA 3 Station 13 Pan Duke 106 Monochrome 17386 17404 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 168:21:49 EVA 3 John and the Rover at Shadow Rock Duke 106 Monochrome 17390 17393 ALSJ
 
 
 
N/A First alternate sourced from LPI - JSC2007e045382
XVI 168:35:48 EVA 3 Portrait of Shadow Rock Duke 106 Monochrome 17413 17417 ALSJ
 
N/A
XVI 168:51:31 EVA 3 Second LRV Pan Duke 117 Monochrome 18746 18750 Original N/A
 
This Rover Pan is "accidental" in the sense that the composite images were taken whilst seated in the rover, but weren't part of a formalised procedure.
XVI 169:01:30 EVA 3 LRV Pan - Palmetto Crater Duke 117 Monochrome 18765 187771 Original N/A
 
 
Both of these updated images are identical in content, but differ in their brightness and contrast levels. The black areas are where the rover's TV camera has been masked out.
XVI 169:08:50 EVA 3 LRV Pan - Big Sag or Doodlebug Hole Duke 117 Monochrome 18786 187788 Original N/A
 
 
Both of these updated images are identical in content, but differ in their brightness and contrast levels. The black areas are where the rover's TV camera has been masked out. Location name(s) referenced in ALSJ at time reference 169:08:50.
XVI 169:19:42 EVA 3 Station 10-Prime Pan Duke 117 Monochrome 18801 18823 ALSJ
 
N/A

Table Column Key

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  • Mission Flight Number
  • Time (MET) Time since lift-off (MET - Mission Elapsed Time)
  • EVA # Moonwalk number
  • Title Title as extracted from source (i.e. ALSJ/LPI)
  • Astronaut Who took the images
  • Magazine NASA film canister number
  • Type Either Colour or Monochrome
  • Start Frame First frame of the panoramic sequence
  • End Frame Last frame of the panoramic sequence
  • Source Where the panorama was sourced from (Typically ALSJ or LPI[8])
  • Reference Panorama Image referred to by ALSJ/LPI for the given Title
  • Sourced Alternate Alternate image(s) referred to by ALSJ/LPI for the given Title
  • Updated Panorama Unofficial panorama generated by a non-NASA organisation/individual
  • Notes Additional detail

See Also

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Footnotes

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These tables catalogue the panoramic photos captured during the Apollo 16 mission. Entries in the 'Updated Panorama' column have been created using panorama blending software working on the High Resolution scans of the original frames held as the "Project Apollo Archive" on Flickr.[9] Where a Reference Panorama is pre-existing, that has been used in preference to creating a new variant, unless there is additional value to be gained by regenerating it. Apart from some source image masking, all such new variants have been created using the minimum of processing, relying on the software package's inherent blending and optimisation capabilities - typically, such panoramas have been created within 3–5 minutes as they are intended to be 'representations' rather than 'definitive' examples. Consequently, brightness and contrast levels, as well as the removal of some frame-edges, have not been adjusted.

All 5-digit image references relate to the last 5 digits of the image names. The full image names follow the format AS16-MMM-NNNNN, where MMM relates to the Magazine number and NNNNN is the identifier.

EVA images include the overlaying of Réseau plate "crosses" to assist in their post-mission evaluation.

Almost all tabular data, such as time and image identifiers, has been extracted from the source location such as the ALSJ or LPI. The entries in the 'Title' column relate to the term used for the panorama as listed in the source's 'Assembled Panoramas' section.[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Apollo Lunar Surface Journal". www.nasa.gov.
  2. ^ "Apollo Lunar Exploration Missions (ALEM) Program and Mission Definition" (PDF). Lunar and Planetary Institute. NASA. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Sun Angles". www.nasa.gov.
  4. ^ "Apollo 16: EVA 2: Return to the LM". www.nasa.gov.
  5. ^ "Apollo 16: EVA 3: Return to the LM". www.nasa.gov.
  6. ^ "Apollo 16 Mission Report" (PDF). Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  7. ^ "Apollo 16 Technical Debrief" (PDF). Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  8. ^ "Lunar and Planetary Institute".
  9. ^ "Project Apollo Archive". Flickr.
  10. ^ "Apollo 16 Map and Image Library". www.nasa.gov.