Description:

Charlie Duke AMS Re: Tense Moments of the 1st Moon Landing

Apollo 16 moonwalker Charlie Duke handwritten essay signed, "Charlie Duke / Apollo 11 CAPCOM", about serving as Apollo 11 Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) during the tense moments of the first moon landing. 1p, composed in black felt tip on Duke's personal Apollo 16 stationery measuring 8.5" x 11". In near fine condition.

In riveting detail, Duke describes how the system's computer was guiding the Eagle into a crater, forcing Neil Armstrong to assume control of the landing, with only seconds of fuel remaining. In full, "On July 20, 1969, I was the Apollo 11 Mission Control Capsule Communicator or 'CAPCOM' for Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin during mankind's first landing on the moon!

As such, I became the first person in history to ever speak with humans on another world, as I confirmed their report of a successful landing with my transmittal reply, 'We copy you down, Eagle!'

Although we sounded calm, the minutes leading up to that historic landing were filled with tension and high drama! During the Eagle's descent, its onboard computer suddenly warned that it was overloaded and about to fail. The crew bravely pushed on just minutes away from landing on The Sea of Tranquility!

Then in the final moments before landing, the crew realized that the computer was about to land them in a boulder-filled crater, which might have resulted in a crash! Man then triumphed over computer as Neil quickly assumed control safely missing the crater, but leaving the Eagle with only seconds of fuel remaining!

Finally, at 4:18 PM with barely 20 seconds of fuel remaining Buzz Aldrin transmitted the words we were desparately waiting to hear. 'Contact Light, OK, Engine Stop!' signifying that the Eagle's footpads had touched the moon, and I responded 'We Copy You Down, Eagle!'

Moments later, Neil Armstrong transmitted 'Houston Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed!' We all breathed a sigh of relief, and I replied 'Roger, Tranquility, we copy you on the ground…you got a bunch of guys about to turn blue…we're breathing again…thanks a lot!'

So ended a very long day at MCC, and a very historic moment for mankind!"

Charles Moss Duke Jr. (b.1935) is an American former astronaut, United States Air Force (USAF) officer and test pilot. As Lunar Module pilot of Apollo 16 in 1972, he became the tenth and youngest person to walk on the Moon. Following his retirement from NASA, Duke entered the Air Force Reserve and served as a mobilization augmentee to the Commander, USAF Basic Military Training Center, and to the Commander, USAF Recruiting Service.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE!

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Unless otherwise indicated, we do our own in-house worldwide shipping!

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. We offer several shipping options, and remain one of the few auction houses who proudly provides professional in-house shipping as an option to our clients. All items will ship with signature required, and full insurance. Most items are sent via Federal Express, with P. O. Box addresses being sent through USPS. We insure through Berkley Asset Protection with rates of $.70 per $100 of value, among the lowest insurance rates in the industry. Our shipping department cameras document every package, both outgoing and incoming, for maximum security. In addition, we compare our shipping and handling rates against those of other auction houses, to ensure that our charges are among the lowest in the trade.

Upon winning your item(s), you will receive an invoice with our in-house shipping and handling fees included. ***We will ship to the address as it appears on your invoice. If any changes to the shipping address need to be made, you must inform us immediately.***

International shipments: In order to comply with our insurance provider, all international shipments will be sent via Fed Ex and customs paperwork will show a value of $1.00. International buyers should contact our office directly with any questions regarding this policy.

Third Party Shipping Option: If a third party shipper is preferred, the buyer is responsible for contacting them directly to make shipping arrangements. For your convenience, we have provided some recommended shippers. For your protection, we will require a signed release from you, confirming your authorization for us to release your lots to your specified third party Please copy and paste this following link into your browser: http://universityarchives.com/UserFiles/ShippingInfo.pdf. At that point, our responsibility and insurance coverage for your item(s) ceases. Items picked up by third party shippers are required to pay Connecticut sales tax. Items requiring third party shipping due to being oversized, fragile or bulky will be denoted in the item description.

Please see our full terms and conditions for names of suggested third party shippers.

After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 10 business days following receipt of full payment for item.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Wilton, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

December 14, 2022 11:00 AM EST
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 25% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000