This tripod like piece of equipment is actually the gnomon, one of the Apollo lunar geology hand tools, and photometric chart assembly used as a photographic reference to establish local vertical Sun angle, scale and lunar color. This picture is from the area at Station 4 (Shorty Crater) where the now famous orange soil was found by Apollo 17 crewmen Moon. This was during the second Apollo 17 extravehicular activity (EVA-2) at the Taurus-Littrow landing site. What look like astronaut footsteps are visible in the lower left portion of this picture from the moon.

An Apollo 17 mission astronaut took this picture of the moon’s surface showing the barren lunar landscape with numerous craters, mountains and other geographical features.

Apollo 17 was the last mission in NASA’s historic Apollo lunar landing program.  The crew consisted of Commander Eugene Cernan, Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt; while the Command Module (CSM) was piloted by Ronald Evans. Apollo 17 was the sixth landing of American astronauts on the Moon; a feat that has not been repeated since.

Apollo 16 mission’s picture of the video camera on the moon, taken from the Lunar Module “Orion” by astronauts. Apollo 16 was the tenth NASA mission to the Moon and the fifth (and last) to land a manned module on the Moon.  Commander John Young, Lunar Module Pilot Charles Duke spent just under three days on the Moon in the lander while Ken Mattingly piloted the “Casper” Command/Service Module.

Apollo 11’s Lunar Module / Lunar Excursion Module, about to end its mission on the Moon. The lander is seen here  leaving the Moon’s surface to dock with the Command/Service Module (CSM). In the background is a picturesque “Earthrise” picture taken by astronaut Michael Collins in the Apollo CSM.

The historic Apollo 11 mission landed the first humans on the Moon – Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin – on July 20, 1969. Armstrong of course became the first human to walk on the Moon.  Him and Aldrin spent just over 21 hours on the moon in the lunar module while Michael Collins, the third member of the Apollo 11 mission, piloted the command spacecraft.