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freiheitfitness t1_irxyxri wrote

Reply to comment by RoterFuchs1994 in Museum shows off Taiwan flag which went to the moon on Apollo 11 by Pure_Candidate_3831

The entire flag kit (which included 25 US flags along with 6x4” flags of 136 nations, UN Organization, 50 United States) was .75lbs.

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RoterFuchs1994 t1_iry783k wrote

Less than a pound? That's amazing.

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AmishRocket t1_irzfatd wrote

Yes, but …

They had other material in the official kits as well, such as beta crew patches, additional flags, etc. And each astronaut was allowed a small inventory of personal artifacts for which there isn’t a manifest. Considering Neil and Buzz left their boots on the lunar surface due to weight concerns, you get an idea of how critical every pound was.

After the enormous treasure and lives lost to get the crew to the moon, they returned with less than 50 pounds of lunar rocks and soil crammed into their little capsule. Precious little. (There is a legend that all three were told if any of them gained five pounds before the flight, they would be scrubbed from the mission.)

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Emble12 t1_irzgmdy wrote

How did they get the boots outside if there wasn’t an airlock on the LM?

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danzelectric t1_is0lw1z wrote

Most called them moon boots. They slipped over the shoes worn in the spaceship, like galoshes for the rain

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Emble12 t1_is0m31l wrote

Ah, so they weren’t pressurised?

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AmishRocket t1_is0n1oq wrote

Nope. The boots were overshoes. Something like galoshes that gave them extra protection and traction while walking on the moon. (But I like to think they could just toss things out of the lunar lander’s screen door. /s)

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