Apollo 17 Apollo 17 Apollo 17 was the final mission of NASA's Apollo program. Launched at 12:33 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on December 7, 1972, with a crew made up of Commander Eugene Cernan, Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans, and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt, it was the last use of Apollo hardware for its original purpose; after Apollo 17, extra Apollo spacecraft were used in the Skylab and Apollo–Soyuz programs. Apollo 17 was the first night launch of a U.S. human spaceflight and the final manned launch of a Saturn V rocket. It was a "J-type mission" which included three
Fallen Astronaut condition that it be displayed "with good taste and without publicity". The replica was given to the Smithsonian Institution on April 17, 1972, the day after CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite referred to the "Fallen Astronaut" and plaque as the first art installation on the Moon during the broadcast of the Apollo 16 launch. It is now on display with a replica of the plaque in the Museum's National Mall Building in the Space Race Wing, Gallery 114. In May 1972, Scott learned that Van Hoeydonck planned to make and sell more replicas. Believing that this would be a violation of