Apollo 17: The last human in deep space: Ron Evans spacewalking next to the CSM America. Harrison Schmitt [Apollo 17], 7–19 December 1972. Vintage chromogenic print on fiber-based Kodak paper, printed 1972. 25.4×20.3 cm (10×7.9 in), with “A Kodak Paper” watermarks on the verso, numbered “NASA AS17–152-23381” (NASA MSC) in red in top margin.
A very rare unreleased photograph (NASA released a variant of this photograph, NASA image AS17–152-23389). Ronald Evans is spacewalking in deep space on the way back to Earth during the last EVA of the Apollo program. He is holding a handrail on the Service Module, and his body is extended over the open SIM (Scientific Instrument Module) bay. All subsequent manned space missions and EVAs occurred in Earth orbit.
“Adrift between the Earth and the Moon, Ron Evans retrieved the film canister of the mapping cameras on the day after Apollo 17 left lunar orbit. His spacewalk lasted an hour. Evan’s oxygen was fed from the spacecraft through the umbilical hose, with an emergency supply on his back. I was in the open hatch to help in retrieval, which was necessary because the Service Module would be jettisoned before we reentered the Earth’s atmosphere.” Harrison Schmitt (NASA SP-250, p. 280).
“You’re not really a spaceman when you’re in the confines of your spaceship. You go outside, and you’re hanging on, maneuvering out there from the safety and security of our mother ship. If you ever want to be a spaceman, that’s the way to do it!” Ronald Evans (Chaikin, Voices, p. 122).
NASA photographs, 9 March 2022