Topic: Surveyor 3 visible during Apollo 12 landing?
Captain Apollo Member
Posts: 260 From: UK Registered: Jun 2004
posted 11-19-2019 10:52 AM
Always wondered, is Surveyor 3 visible in any of the Apollo 12 landing footage?
One Big Monkey Member
Posts: 171 From: West Yorkshire, UK Registered: Jul 2012
posted 11-19-2019 12:57 PM
Sadly not.
The film was taken from the right hand side of the LM, while Surveyor was on the left. Added to this is the fact that the probe itself was mostly in shadow for the early part of the mission so would have been even harder to spot.
Headshot Member
Posts: 891 From: Vancouver, WA, USA Registered: Feb 2012
posted 11-19-2019 12:59 PM
I do not believe it was.
Images taken during Apollo 12's first moonwalk show Surveyor 3 still in, or just emerging from, the crater's shadow. During the landing it should have been well within the shadow. I believe Apollo 12 landed at the lowest sun-angle of all the missions.