Item: Charlie Duke autographed picture
Size: 25.4 x 20.2 cm.
Date: 2019

Description: A personalized autograph from Astronaut Charles Duke. Picture of Duke on lunar EVA during Apollo 16, April 1972. The Lunar Rover Vehicle is visible in the background.

Artifact: Apollo 16 mission patch.
Manufacturer: AB Emblem.
Dimensions: 4" / 101mm.
Program: Apollo.
Flown Status: unflown.

Description:

Apollo 16 AB Emblen patch. This patch is very similar to the one worn by the crew but uses a lighter grey thread in the background giving much less contrast in the crater details.

Apollo 16:

Apollo 16 was the tenth manned mission of NASA's Apollo program and the fifth mission to successfully land astronauts on the Moon. Launched on April 16, 1972, it aimed to explore the lunar highlands and conduct scientific investigations.

The crew of Apollo 16 included astronauts John W. Young, Thomas K. Mattingly II, and Charles M. Duke Jr. Mattingly played a critical role as the Command Module Pilot, while Young and Duke descended to the lunar surface in the Lunar Module, named "Orion."

The Lunar Module landed in the Descartes Highlands on April 20, 1972. Young and Duke conducted three moonwalks, spending a total of 20 hours outside the spacecraft. They collected samples of rocks and soil, deployed scientific experiments, and explored the hilly and rugged terrain of the region.

One of the significant achievements of Apollo 16 was the deployment of the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV), allowing the astronauts to cover larger distances and collect samples from different locations. They traveled a total of 27.9 kilometers (17.3 miles) during their moonwalks.

The crew conducted various experiments related to geology, seismic activity, magnetism, and lunar surface photography. They also collected valuable samples, including a "genesis rock" believed to be among the oldest lunar materials ever found.

After completing their lunar activities, the crew returned to the Command Module and safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 27, 1972. They were recovered by the USS Ticonderoga.

More information:
Crew Patch Reference Guide: Apollo 16

Artifact: Apollo 16 certificate of appreciation
Artifact Category: Certificate.
Date of use: 1972.
Dimensions: 21.6 x 28 cm.

Description: Certificate of appreciation for the contributions by NASA employee William B. Williams. It comes with a COA from Been in Space.

Item: Apollo 16 launch viewing paper hat
Size: 33.3 × 28.1 × 0.2 cm

Description: Apollo 16 launch viewing paper hat sponsored by RCA.

The slits in the middle form the domed cap behind the flat bill when the ends are bent around and fastened.

In addition to performing a useful practical function at a launch in sunny Florida, the flat paper hat, a promotional item for RCA, also became a piece of memorabilia of the event.

This item, however, has not been used during the launch.

More information:
Smithsonian Institution

Item: Prayer of the Apollo 16 recovery and  USS Ticonderoga bulletin signed by chaplain Lex L. Davis.
Sizes: 20.4 x 25 cm. (prayer), 21.5 x 27.7 cm (commemorative bulletin), 20 x 26,7 cm (letter, not shown here).

Description: Lex L. Davis was the Commander, USS Ticonderoga's senior Chaplain who offered the prayer upon the arrival of the Apollo 16 crew. These documents in my collection comes with a letter signed by Davis, but not included here due to privacy reasons.

Item: Apollo 16 Kapton tape from the Lunar Module Orion.
Size: 21 x 29.2 cm (presentation). 1.5 x 1.9 cm & 1.5 x 2.3 cm. (fragments).

Description: attached to this certificate are two pieces of light weight pressure sensitive Kaptopn polymide thermal insulation trimmed from the Apollo 16 Lunar Module "Orion" during construction by a Grumman worker. They were part of the thermal protection system of "Orion" and intended to protect it from the extreme heat and cold of outer space. Apollo 16 was the tenth manned Apollo mission and the fifth to land on the Moon. It was crewed by John Young, Charlie Duke and Ken Mattingly. Launched on April 16 1972, the mission lasted 11 days, 1 hour and 51 minutes and concluded on April 27, 1972.

Artifact: Apollo Lunar Sample Collection Bag

Size: 22 x 20.5 cm.
Manufacturer: Union Carbide Corp. Nuclear Division

Part number: 11306-EM-031-00

Description: Polyethylene Flat Bag made by Union Carbide Corp. Nuclear Division. Y-12 Oak Ridge Plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee. It comes from a sealed bag containing 20 of these rectangular sample bags to be used during training of lunar surface activities.

The flat rectangular bag had an aluminum ring to top for easy opening and closing. These types of bags were mounted on the side of an astronaut’s Hasselblad camera during EVA.

Documented sample bags were numbered bags that indicated the order of collected samples.

Although documented sample bags of several different configurations were used on the Apollo missions, two basic shapes described most bags - cup-shaped and flat rectangular. The cup-shaped bags came in sets of 35 (used on the Apollo 12 and Apollo 14 missions) and in sets of 48 (used on the Apollo 17 mission). Flat rectangular bags in sets of 20 were used on Apollo 15, 16 and 17.

Jack Schmitt (left) tips a rock sample into a bag held by Gene Cernan during training at the Cape. Photo: KSC-72PC-440.

Astronaut Charlie Duke holding a sample bag in his right hand, and grabbing a rock from a boulder in his left hand. Photo: AS16-116-18649.