[Lunar Orbiter III] Sunrise over the edge of the Ocean of Storms....

[Lunar Orbiter III] Sunrise over the edge of the Ocean of Storms. NASA, February 1967. Printed 1967. Large-format vintage gelatin silver print on fiber-based paper [NASA image LRC III-213M]. 51×61 cm (20×24 in), numbered “NASA LRC III-213M” in black in bottom margin (NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia).

Literature: Exploring Space with a Camera (NASA SP-168), Cortright, ed., pg. 101.

One of the very few oblique views showing the lunar horizon taken by the Lunar Orbiter spacecraft. The low altitude of the spacecraft, high oblique view and the low Sun elevation near the terminator emphasize details of the relief. This beautiful photograph taken with the wide angle 80mm lens is looking southwest from an altitude of 58.98 km toward the southwest rim of the Ocean of Storms including Crater Damoiseau (latitude: 3.33°S; longitude: 59.78°W).

“The moderate-resolution photograph on this page was taken by Lunar Orbiter III on February 22, 1967, at an altitude of 35 miles, near the point 1° N, 58° W, in the southern part of Oceanus Procellarum, looking generally southwestward. This particular photograph was taken to determine whether the innermost crater, Damoiseau, of the large, double-walled crater at right center is a collapsed volcanic structure, as it appears to be from Earth-based telescopic observations. According to scientists of the U.S. Geological Survey, this oblique photo alone is not conclusive. However, a careful review of another Orbiter III photograph of the same area, a vertical view, indicates that the inner crater is indeed a collapsed volcanic crater and the outer wall the remnant of an older, impact crater. Another interesting aspect of this photograph is the contact between the marelike material in the foreground and the steep, semicircular cliff at its far edge. This headland has extremely steep sides, yet there is very little evidence of slumping at the base. This suggests that the mare material has flooded an old crater, its near rim already worn away by meteorite impact or submerged in general tilting.” Norman L. CRABILL, of Langley Research Center, NASA,(Exploring Space with a Camera (NASA SP-168), Cortright, ed., pg. 101.)

Condition Report:Easy to repair 3cm tear in top white margin (not affecting the image), very light creasing to right corners, a few small handling cracks but otherwise a very nice printing and excellent condition.

Category:Photos ▸ Vintage photographs