Although their highly successful 12-day Moon landing mission ended with their Aug. 7, 1971 splashdown in the Pacific Ocean, the work for Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden and James B. Irwin continued for many months. Following three weeks of technical debriefings at the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC), now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, like previous Apollo astronauts, Scott, Worden, and Irwin traveled extensively, including three international trips, to highlight the scientific aspects of their mission to government officials, scientists, students, the media, and the general public. They received many accolades, awards, medals, and trophies, and in turn they presented their various hosts with flown flags, photographs, and other memorabilia from their mission.
Left: Apollo 15 astronauts Alfred M. Worden, left, David R. Scott, and James B. Irwin in the motorcade down New York City’s Fifth Avenue. Middle: A crowd gathered at New York’s City Hall to welcome the Apollo 15 astronauts. Right: Irwin, left, Worden, and Scott address the crowd at New York’s City Hall.
On Aug. 24, New York City welcomed Scott, Worden, and Irwin with an hour-long motorcade down Fifth Avenue with thousands of well-wishers lining the route. Mayor John V. Lindsay welcomed them on the steps of City Hall, saying, “You have shown us again that Americans working together can turn great dreams into reality.” He presented the astronauts with Medals of Honor of the City of New York and they presented him with a flag they carried on their mission.
Left: U.N. Secretary General U Thant, center, presents United Nations Peace Medals to Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin as Mary Ellen Irwin, Lurton Scott, and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. George H.W. Bush look on. Middle: The U.N. Peace Medal awarded to Scott, Worden, and Irwin. Right: Irwin, left, Scott, and Worden demonstrate the Lunar Roving Vehicle to Secretary General Thant, second from left.
Later that day, Secretary General U Thant presented them with the first United Nations Peace Medals, the gold medals bearing the word “peace” in the five working languages of the U.N. Scott, Worden, and Irwin in turn presented Thant with a U.N. flag they had carried to the Moon and back. Outside the U.N. headquarters, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. George H.W. Bush, the astronauts demonstrated the Lunar Roving Vehicle to the Secretary General.
Left: In New York, Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, left, James B. Irwin, and .Alfred M. Worden appear on the Today Show, with hosts Hugh Downs and Joe Garagiola. Right: Irwin, left, Scott, and Worden tape a segment of the Dick Cavett Show, with host Dick Cavett, second from right.
While in New York, Scott, Worden, and Irwin appeared as guests on NBC’s Today Show with hosts Hugh Downs and Joe Garagiola and taped a segment for ABC’s The Dick Cavett Show.
Left: Worden presents photographs and a flown letter “J” to his alma mater, Jackson High School in Jackson, Michigan. Middle: Worden giving a speech about his mission in Jackson. Right: Worden as the guest of honor in the Jackson Labor Day parade. Credits: Images courtesy mlive.com
The Labor Day weekend saw the astronauts return to their hometowns for welcoming events – Scott in San Antonio, Worden in Jackson, Michigan, and Irwin in Pittsburgh. Worden’s celebrations in Jackson included a visit to his alma mater, Jackson High School, a parade, low-flying jets, skits, fireworks, and entertainment at the Cascades waterfalls and the Michigan International Speedway.
Left: Overall view of the House of Representatives chamber where Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin addressed a Joint Session of Congress. Right: Worden, left, Irwin, and Scott receiving a standing ovation following their speeches to a Joint Session of Congress.
On Sept. 9, the three astronauts traveled to Washington, D.C., to address a Joint Session of Congress. In a preliminary speech on economic programs, President Richard M. Nixon honored the Apollo 15 astronauts, saying, “In this great chamber, the Congress will pay tribute to three splendid Americans back from the moon. Theirs was a magnificent achievement, a stunning testament to their personal skill and courage, and also to what American technology can achieve.” In reporting on their mission, Scott said of the Apollo 15 lunar samples, “As I approached a fragment freshly deposited on the slopes of the Apennine, I realized it had been undisturbed since before life came out of the sea on Earth.” Worden shared his views, saying, “Our view was expanding. What we saw were continents and oceans. After we left earth orbit and for the remainder of the flight our view was one of the Earth.” Irwin described their Hadley-Apennine landing site as a “friendly, beautiful spot, like a valley in the high mountains of the earth; and it was with some reluctance that we left our valley on the moon.”
Left: Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, left, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin speaking at a press conference at the Michigan Aeronautics and Space Association banquet. Right: Lurton Scott, left, Scott, Mary Ellen Irwin, Worden, and Irwin enjoying cotton candy at the Michigan Aeronautics and Space Association exposition. Credits: Images courtesy Wayne State University.
From the nation’s capital, Scott, Worden, and Irwin traveled to Detroit, where on Sept. 10 the Michigan Aeronautics and Space Association hosted them at their annual banquet in nearby Southfield, Michigan. The next day, they attended the association’s exposition in Willow Run. Their next stop took them to Salt Lake City, where on Sept. 14 they spoke in the city’s famous Mormon Church.
Left: Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley, left, presenting medals to Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin. Right: Before a Presidential dinner, Irwin, left, Worden, and Scott present President Richard M. Nixon with an American flag they took to the Moon, as Vice President Spiro T. Agnew looks on.
In Chicago on Sept. 15, Mayor Richard J. Daley met the astronauts at the airport and honored them with a parade and a special City Council meeting where he presented them with honorary Chicago citizenship medals. Scott, Worden, and Irwin presented the Mayor with a flag that traveled to the Moon and back. The following day, the astronauts flew from Chicago back to Washington for a dinner at the White House, President Nixon fulfilling an invitation he had extended to them shortly after their splashdown. They presented the President with an American flag they had taken to the Moon and back, and he in turn provided a personal tour of the White House to the astronauts’ wives and children.
Left: Apollo 15 astronauts James B. Irwin, left, David R. Scott, and Alfred M. Worden speaking at the International Astronautical Congress in Brussels with Professor André L. Jaumotte, President of the International Astronautical Federation. Right: In Brussels, Scott, left, Queen Fabiola, Worden, Irwin, and King Baudouin.
In their first overseas trip since returning from the Moon, Scott, Worden, and Irwin traveled to Brussels on Sept. 19 to attend the 22nd Congress of the International Astronautical Federation. The next day they addressed the Congress’ opening session, with Scott noting that the 9-foot core sample from their Hadley-Apennine landing site revealed 58 distinct layers, representing an extensive and complex lunar geologic history. They met with King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola of the Belgians, who presented them with Order of Leopold medals, Belgium’s oldest and highest order.
Left: U.S. Air Force Secretary Robert C. Seamans, left, and astronaut Alfred M. Worden at the Air Force Association’s dinner following awarding of the David C. Schilling Memorial Award to the Apollo 15 crew. Middle: Colorado Governor John A. Love, right, greets Apollo 15 astronauts James B. Irwin, left, Worden, and David R. Scott after their arrival at Peterson Field in Colorado Springs. Credit: Image courtesy Bill Wunsch/The Denver Post. Right: Secretary Seamans, left, awarding Air Force Distinguished Service Medals to Scott, left, Irwin, and Worden. Credit: Image courtesy AP Wire Service.
From Brussels, it was back to Washington, where on Sept. 22 Scott, Worden, and Irwin received the Air Force Association’s prestigious David C. Schilling Memorial Award in recognition of “their unique contribution to manned spaceflight and science.” Accolades for the all-Air Force crew continued on Sept. 24 at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, where they were honored with a parade and Secretary of the Air Force Robert C. Seamans presented Scott, Worden, and Irwin with U.S. Air Force Distinguished Service Medals. The next day, they attended the Air Force vs. Wyoming football game.
Left: Inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC), a large crowd gathers to hear from the Apollo 15 astronauts about their mission. Right: Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, left, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin hold framed photographs of their launch.
On Sept. 29, Scott, Worden, and Irwin returned to where their flight to the Moon began two months earlier, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. They addressed 5,000 employees in the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building, thanking them for their support in getting their rocket and spacecraft ready for the mission. Holding with tradition, KSC Deputy Director Miles Ross presented them with framed photographs of their July 26 liftoff, since they were the only three people who didn’t have a view of it. The next day, the astronauts thanked U.S. Air Force personnel at nearby Patrick Air Force Base for their support in preparing them for the Apollo 15 mission and presented the base with an American flag they had carried to Moon.
Left: Apollo 15 astronaut David R. Scott, left, University of Michigan President Robben W. Fleming, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin. Right: Scott, second from left, Worden, and Irwin at Ann Arbor Stadium. Credit: Images courtesy Wayne State University.
Scott, Worden, and Irwin all attended the University of Michigan, and they returned to their alma mater on Oct. 1. The astronauts provided details of their mission to an assembled crowd of 900 people and presented University of Michigan President Robben W. Fleming with a framed university flag and seal of the school’s Department of Aerospace Engineering that they had taken to the Moon and back. The next day, they attended the Michigan vs. Navy football game at Ann Arbor Stadium. At the December 1971 commencement ceremony, Scott, Worden, and Irwin received honorary doctorates of science in aeronautical engineering.
Left: David R. Scott, left, his wife Lurton, Alfred M. Worden, Mary Ellen Irwin, and James B. Irwin upon arriving at London’s Heathrow Airport, the first stop on their European goodwill tour. Credit: Image courtesy PA Images. Middle: Scott, left, Irwin, and Worden arrive at The City University in London. Credit: Image courtesy The City University. Right: Scott, Worden, and Irwin present a Moon rock in London.
On Nov. 7, Scott, Worden, and Irwin, along with Scott’s and Irwin’s wives (Worden was a bachelor), arrived in London aboard a presidential jet to begin a two-week, five-country goodwill tour of Europe to give lectures, discuss the results of their mission with scientists and students, and meet with local dignitaries. At The City University in London, Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir James S. Tait presented each astronaut with a commemorative diploma and they presented him with a piece of the heat shield from their Apollo 15 Command Module (CM) Endeavour. At a press conference, Scott proclaimed that “the Apollo missions have proved that man can do a worthwhile job exploring space,” and predicted future colonies on the Moon and eventual human exploration of the planets. From London, the astronauts and their wives flew to Stockholm for a brief visit to the Swedish capital.
Left: Herbert Bert, left, Director of the German Museum in Munich, accepts a piece of the Apollo 15 Command Module Endeavour’s heat shield from astronauts David R. Scott, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin. Right: Prime Minister of the German state of Bavaria Alfons Goppel, right, hosts Apollo 15 astronauts Scott, Worden, and Irwin (signing the guest book) and their wives.
From Stockholm, they traveled to Munich, arriving in the capital of the German state of Bavaria on Nov. 11. At the German Museum, they presented Director Herbert Bert with a piece of the heat shield from their CM Endeavour, and toured the museum’s “Man and Space” exhibit. Bavarian Prime Minister Alfons Gospel hosted them, and the astronauts answered reporters’ questions during a news conference.
Left: Alfred M. Worden, middle, and David R. Scott enjoy skiing in the Bavarian Alps. Middle: James B. Irwin, left, enjoys skiing in the Bavarian Alps. Right: Scott, Worden, and Irwin wave to the audience during the Paris stop on the European goodwill tour.
While in Bavaria, the astronauts enjoyed skiing on the slopes of Zugspitze, the highest peak in Germany at 9,718 feet. From Germany, on Nov. 15 they flew to Milan, Italy, and then on to Rome where they had a private audience with Pope Paul VI in The Vatican. On Nov. 18, they traveled to Paris, the final stop on their goodwill tour, meeting with French Prime Minister Jacques Chaban-Delmas before returning to the United States. On Dec. 8, they were back in Washington, where in a White House ceremony Vice President Spiro T. Agnew presented them with NASA Distinguished Service Medals.
Left: A mockup of the Lunar Roving Vehicle in the pregame pageant at the 1972 Orange Bowl in Miami. Right: Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, left, James B. Irwin, and Alfred M. Worden participate in the Orange Bowl pregame pageant. Credits: Images courtesy NBC-TV.
The astronauts’ touring continued in the new year, with their participation in the pregame pageant at the Jan. 1, 1972 Orange Bowl in Miami. The pageant entitled “The First Decade” was dedicated to the U.S. space program. As the 70,000 people in the stadium and an estimated 60 million television viewers watched, one float carried a replica of the Lunar Roving Vehicle and Scott, Worden, and Irwin entered the field on their own personal motorized floats. The pageant culminated with four marching bands formed in the shape of an Apollo spacecraft playing “The Star Spangled Banner.”
Left: Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott and Alfred M. Worden stand outside the Nikolaus Copernicus house in Torún, Poland, accompanied by their Polish hosts. Middle: Scott, left, and his wife Lurton, Worden, and James B. Irwin and his wife Mary Ellen arriving in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Right: Irwin, left, Worden, and Scott meeting a Gypsy band in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia.
Two weeks later, Scott, Worden, and Irwin and their wives embarked on a second goodwill tour to Europe, this time a 10-day visit to Poland and the former Yugoslavia. They discussed the Apollo 15 mission with scientists at the University of Warsaw’s Institute for Experimental Physics, and visited the house of astronomer Nikolaus Copernicus in nearby Torún. They arrived in the Yugoslav capital of Belgrade on Jan. 22. They met with statesmen, scientists, and students, and were honored guests at the Belgrade International Film Festival that featured their 15-minute film “The Walk on the Moon.” President Josip Broz Tito, an ardent space fan, hosted them at his mountain resort in Bled in the province of Slovenia. They traveled to Zagreb, the capital of the province of Croatia, where they met with politicians and scientists.
Left: In a White House ceremony, Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, center, presents Apollo 15 astronauts David R. Scott, left, Alfred M. Worden, and James B. Irwin with Distinguished Service Medals, as Mary Ellen Irwin looks on. Right: In the Oval Office, Worden, left, Lurton Scott, President Richard M. Nixon, Scott, Mary Ellen Irwin, and Irwin, after the Apollo 15 astronauts reported on their goodwill tours.
Following their return from their international travels, President Nixon invited the astronauts and their wives back to the White House. On Feb. 1, in a meeting in the Oval Office, the astronauts provided the President with their impressions of their travels, in particular the trips to Poland and Yugoslavia. At the close of the meeting, the President told the astronauts, “Well, I must tell you, we’re awfully proud of you. There are lots of people here who appreciate you.” He went on to express his hope that the space shuttle, a program he directed NASA to undertake less than a month earlier, would foster the kind of international goodwill and cooperation that Scott, Worden, and Irwin’s trips abroad represented.
Left: Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, center, presenting the Robert J. Collier Trophy to Apollo 15 astronaut Alfred M. Worden. Middle: Worden, left, with former director of the Manned Spacecraft Center, now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, at the Collier Trophy presentation dinner. Right: The Robert J. Collier Trophy.
In March 1972, the National Aeronautic Association awarded the prestigious Robert J. Collier Trophy to Scott, Worden, and Irwin, as well as to Robert R. Gilruth, director of MSC from November 1961 to January 1972. In a dinner ceremony in Washington, D.C., on May 31, Vice President Agnew presented the trophy to the Apollo 15 astronauts, citing them “for demonstrating superb skill and courage,” and Gilruth as a “representative of the engineering genius of the entire manned spaceflight team.”
John Uri
NASA Johnson Space Center