In all, humans have left an estimated 400,000 pounds of space waste on the moon. While there exists no definitive list of all objects left behind by the manned missions of the 1970s, it’s helpful to consider the tidbits that remained after the very first mission. In 2000, the New Mexico State University Anthropology Department received a grant to study the Apollo 11 mission logs and compile a list of items left behind on the moon. Here are some of the items they found:
We came. We saw.
We littered.
On each of mankind's six historic moon landings, dozens of objects were left behind-- indelible imprints that outlasted Neil Armstrong's famous first footprint (which was likely obliterated during the lander's return liftoff). We littered.
Experimental documentary filmmaker Arlen Parsa's brief irreverent ode to lunar litter, ranging from the mundane to the bizarre, is a reminder that evidence of mankind's existence will likely still be around even after we're gone.
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