What did Astronaut Alan Bean leave on the moon during Apollo 12 in 1969?

Alan Bean left a memento on the Moon: his silver astronaut pin. This pin signified an astronaut who completed training but had not yet flown in space; he had worn it for six years. He was to get a gold astronaut pin for successfully completing the mission after the flight and felt he wouldn't need the silver pin thereafter. Tossing his pin into a lunar crater extended the common tradition among military pilots to ceremonially dispose of their originally awarded flight wings.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

Test your knowledge

What are your thoughts on this subject?

7 Comments

Marian Spitzig

he also took his camera, but could not find the times to take the picture of himself and Pete Conrad. they found the times too late to take the picture and gave it a heave, leaving it somewhere. He painted the picture instead after retirement.

Gery Tillmanns

He left the Hassenblad camera as well.

Julie Allen

Strange, I can't find a mention anywhere about him leaving a camera or film though i did find this. Apollo 12 was the first mission to use the color camera on the lunar surface. About 42 minutes into telecasting the first EVA, astronaut Alan Bean inadvertently pointed the camera at the Sun while preparing to mount it on the tripod. The Sun's extreme brightness burned out the video pickup tube, rendering the camera useless. When the camera was returned to Earth, it was shipped to Westinghouse, and they were able to get an image on the section of the tube that wasn't damaged. Procedures were re-written in order to prevent such damage in the future, including the addition of a lens cap to protect the tube when the camera was repositioned off the MESA.