The moon souvenirs Neil Armstrong left in his closet for 45 years
Many of us collect souvenirs from our trips, things that don't really have any material value, but remind us, in a sentimental way, of our voyages. Astronaut Neil Armstrong was no exception, it seems, according to a recent discovery his wife made in a closet in their home....
Many of us collect souvenirs from our trips, things that don't really have any material value, but remind us, in a sentimental way, of our voyages. Astronaut Neil Armstrong was no exception, it seems, according to a recent discovery his wife made in a closet in their home.
Buried at the back of a closet in the office of his Cincinatti home, Armstrong, who died in 2012, had stashed a white bag called a "McDivitt Purse," and in it, he put a bunch of things that otherwise would have been left behind on the moon.
The camera used to take external film images of the lander.
Allan Needell, the curator of human spaceflight at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, describes some of them to As It Happens host Carol Off. Most interestingly, he grabbed a camera that had been mounted in the window of the Eagle, the lunar lander module of the Apollo 11 mission, which had taken some of the most famous films of the voyage - including the moment when Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted the US flag.
The contents of the "McDivitt purse," including the bag itself, left.
"They were souvenirs," Nedeell says, "things that meant something to Mr. Armstrong." The items also include a tether he used to help elevate his feet when he was sleeping, and a small flashlight he used to read instructions on how to operate some of the sophisticated machinery.
Needell says Carol Armstrong, the astronaut's wife, found the bag stashed in a closet in his office. He hadn't ever told her -- or anyone else -- about the bag or its contents, Needell believes.
The camera and tether are on temporary display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, and Needell says he hopes the rest of the items will form part of an exhibition celebrating 50 years since the lunar landing in 1969.