Harrison Hagan "Jack" Schmitt is an American geologist, former NASA astronaut, university professor, former U.S. senator from New Mexico, and the most recent living person—and only person without a background in military aviation—to have walked on the Moon.
Schmitt in 1971
Schmitt poses by the American flag, with Earth in the background, during Apollo 17's first EVA.
Schmitt collects lunar specimens during the Apollo 17 mission.
The Blue Marble, an iconic photograph of Earth, is credited to the three crewmen of Apollo 17
Apollo 17 was the eleventh and final mission of NASA's Apollo program, the sixth and most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon or traveled beyond low Earth orbit. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt walked on the Moon, while Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans orbited above. Schmitt was the only professional geologist to land on the Moon; he was selected in place of Joe Engle, as NASA had been under pressure to send a scientist to the Moon. The mission's heavy emphasis on science meant the inclusion of a number of new experiments, including a biological experiment containing five mice that was carried in the command module.
Gene Cernan salutes the U.S. flag, with the Apollo Lunar Module Challenger and Lunar Roving Vehicle in the background
Left to right: Schmitt, Cernan (seated), EvansApollo program← Apollo 16Apollo 18 (canceled) →
Apollo 17 space-flown silver Robbins medallion
Landing site and surrounding area, as imaged from the Apollo 17 command module, 1972
