Are you a fan of what lies beyond Planet Earth? It may interest you to learn the checklist used during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972 was sold at auction. The moondust-besmirched checklist was worn by Apollo 17 Commander Gene Cernan on his spacesuited wrist during the last lunar mission. RR Auction conducted the sale of one of the most exquisite Apollo items ever with an estimated price of $500K.
The treasured piece with notes for Cernan’s last words on the Moon went under the hammer for about $800,000. For those unaware of what a Cuff checklist is, it is a little spiral book attached to an astronaut’s wrist with an aluminum brace and velcro.
These checklists were relied on to guide astronauts through the operations they had to perform while on the Moon. The list in question is 25 pages long, measuring 3.5″ x 2.5″ with the velcro wristband intact. The pages are covered not only with text but also with gray-hued lunar dust. A closer look at the text inside reveals the principal goals of “EVA-1”. Astronaut Gene Cernan used this checklist for 7 hours and 12 minutes during the Apollo 17 lunar mission in 1979 for tasks like offloading the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV), deploying the American flag, setting up experiment packages, and collecting samples of moon rocks and lunar soil. The sale gathered 19 bids, and Commander Gene Cernan’s checklist finally sold for $800,000, surpassing its estimate of $500K.
