74 Scientific American, July 2019 Photographs by Chris GunnAPOLLO’S
BOUNT Y
THE LUNAR ROCKS BROUGHT HOME
BY APOLLO ASTRONAUTS RESHAPED
OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE MOON AND
THE ENTIRE SOLAR SYSTEM. GATHERING
MORE OF THEM IS ONE OF THE MOST
IMPORTANT REASONS TO GO BACK
By Erica Jawin
INSIDE a Teflon bag within a
nitrogen-filled storage cabinet
at the Apollo Sample Vault at nasa’s
Johnson Space Center is the largest
remaining piece of the Apollo 15
moon rock sample 15556.