NASA
Astronaut Charlie Duke, lunar module pilot, is photographed by astronaut John W. Young, commander, collecting lunar samples during the first Apollo 16 extravehicular activity (EVA) at the Descartes landing site. Duke is standing at the rim of Plum Crater. The parked Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) can be seen in the left background
The thing about space is that it never really lets go of you. Once you’ve touched the moon, walked its dusty surface, and looked back at Earth — a glowing blue marble hanging in the void — how could you ever see the world the same way again?
Charlie Duke knows that feeling better than almost anyone. And he'll be regaling anyone interested in learning about his experiences in space from 10 to 11 a.m. Monday, March 3, in the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center. The talk, hosted by Tarleton State’s Mayfield College of Engineering and its American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics student chapter, will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
NASA/Bill Ingalls
For a little perspective, Duke was just 36 when he piloted the Apollo 16 lunar module down to the rugged, alien landscape of the moon in 1972. He spent nearly three days exploring the surface, setting up experiments, and yes, even goofing around — bouncing across the terrain in low gravity, leaving footprints that will outlast all of us. Today, at 88, he remains one of only four surviving moonwalkers, sharing that honor with David Scott, Buzz Aldrin, and Jack Schmitt.
Dr. Rafael Landaeta, Dean of the Mayfield College of Engineering, knows what a rare moment this is. “It is an extraordinary honor to welcome one of the few humans to have ever walked on the moon to our university and community,” he said in a statement. “This is a rare opportunity to hear firsthand about the challenges and triumphs of space exploration from someone who has lived it.”
Landaeta hopes Duke’s visit will inspire a new generation of engineers, scientists, and adventurers — because the sky, as Duke himself proved, is not the limit.
