kids encyclopedia robot

Apollo 14 facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Apollo 14
Apollo 14 Shepard.jpg
Shepard and the American flag on the Moon during Apollo 14 in February 1971
Mission type Manned lunar landing
Operator NASA
Mission duration 9 days, 1 minute, 58 seconds
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft
Manufacturer CSM: North American Rockwell
LM: Grumman
Launch mass 102,084 pounds (46,305 kg)
Landing mass 11,481 pounds (5,208 kg)
Crew
Crew size 3
Members
Callsign
  • CSM: Kitty Hawk
  • LM: Antares
Start of mission
Launch date January 31, 1971 (1971-01-31)
Rocket Saturn V
Launch site Kennedy LC-39A
End of mission
Recovered by USS New Orleans
Landing date February 9, 1971 (1971-02-10)
Landing site South Pacific Ocean
27°1′S 172°39′W / 27.017°S 172.650°W / -27.017; -172.650 (Apollo 14 splashdown)
Orbital parameters
Reference system Selenocentric
Pericynthion 16.9 kilometers (9.1 nmi)
Apocynthion 108.9 kilometers (58.8 nmi)
Period 120 minutes
Lunar orbiter
Spacecraft component Command and service module
Orbital insertion February 4, 1971
Orbital departure February 7, 1971
Orbits 34
Lunar lander
Spacecraft component Lunar module
Landing date February 5, 1971
Return launch February 6, 1971
Landing site Fra Mauro
3°38′43″S 17°28′17″W / 3.64530°S 17.47136°W / -3.64530; -17.47136
Sample mass 42.80 kilograms (94.35 lb)
Surface EVAs 2
EVA duration
  • Total: 9 hours, 22 minutes, 31 seconds
  • First: 4 hours, 47 minutes, 50 seconds
  • Second   4 hours, 34 minutes, 41 seconds
Docking with LM
Docking date February 1, 1971
Undocking date February 5, 1971
Docking with LM ascent stage
Docking date February 6, 1971
Undocking date February 6, 1971
Apollo 14-insignia.png Apollo14 crew high resolution.jpg
Left to right: Mitchell, Shepard, Roosa

Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the Apollo program. It was the third mission to land on the Moon. The nine-day mission left the Earth on January 31, 1971, and landed on the Moon on February 5. The Lunar Module landed in the Fra Mauro formation; this had been the target of the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission. During the two walks on the Moon's surface, 93.2 lb (42 kg) of moon rock was collected. Several experiments, including seismic studies, were carried out. Commander Alan Shepard famously hit two golf balls on the lunar surface with a makeshift club he had brought from Earth. Command Module Pilot Stuart Roosa took several hundred seeds on the mission, many of which were planted on return, resulting in the so-called Moon trees. The pilot of the Lunar Module was Dr. Edgar Mitchell.

LRO finds the site

In June 2009, the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter was able to photograph the Apollo 14 landing site. The base of the lunar module and the astronauts footprints on the Moon's suface could be clearly seen.

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Apolo 14 para niños

kids search engine
Apollo 14 Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.