posted 11-22-2018 03:00 PM               

Looking through photos of Apollo 16 training I was struck by a blue patch on the sleeve of Duke's space suit. Looking closer I realized it was heart-shaped, then realized there was another smaller blue heart sewn on the leg of the PGA. This photo (KSC-72PC-154) was apparently taken on April 12, 1972 during simulator training.

I didn't find other good images showing this but one of Duke during outdoor EVA training the previous day (KSC-72P-111) shows another heart-shaped patch on his left arm with writing in it.

Does anyone know the story behind these? Are there better images of the suit?

His training suit in the National Air and Space Museum collection shows no patches but the images are not high-res enough to show any traces if they have been removed.