APOD: 2004 April 12 - Apollo 17 Panorama: Astronaut Running

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040412.html

What would it be like to explore the surface of another world? In 1972 during the Apollo 17 mission, astronaut Harrison Schmitt found out first hand. In this case, the world was Earth's own Moon. In this recently compiled panorama of lunar photographs originally taken by astronaut Eugene Cernan, the magnificent desolation of the barren Moon is apparent. Visible above and by scrolling right are lunar rocks in the foreground, lunar mountains in the background, some small craters, a lunar rover, and astronaut Schmidt on his way back to the rover. A few days after this image was taken, humanity left the Moon and has yet to return.

1972! 1972.

I can't tell you how sad that makes me feel.

I was in high school when Armstrong first set foot on the moon. It's not that I was promised flying cars. But we were supposed to have people living on the moon by now. Instead we came whimpering back here after a show of bravado.

If I had known when I was a kid that the future was going to be like this ... I don't know ...