The Orange Soil of Shorty Crater
On the last Moon landing, a geologist scuffed the grey dust and found bright orange soil underneath.
What was reported
On Apollo 17, the last crewed mission to the Moon, geologist Harrison Schmitt was working at the rim of a small crater called Shorty when he kicked up the soil and shouted: 'There is orange soil!' His commander, Gene Cernan, came over and confirmed it.
On a world of greys, the bright colour was a shock, and Schmitt wondered if they'd found a volcanic vent where gas had escaped recently.
Explanations offered
Back on Earth, the soil turned out to be made of tiny beads of orange and black volcanic glass, sprayed out by lava fountains about 3.6 billion years ago and buried until a meteorite dug them up. Decades later, scientists found traces of water inside the beads, a clue to how the Moon formed.
- When
- 12 December 1972
- Where
- Shorty crater, Taurus-Littrow valley, the Moon
- Witnesses
- Astronauts Harrison Schmitt and Gene Cernan
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.