(ita/eng)
La notte del 21 luglio 1969 il sottoscritto era Ufficiale di Picchetto presso la Caserma Piave di Civitavecchia. Arrivò l’ordine di aprire il locale “Spaccio truppa” ed accendere la TV, per permettere ai soldati, che avessero voluto, di seguire in diretta la conclusione del viaggio di andata della missione Apollo 11, con l’allunaggio del LEM. Fummo in due: io ed un unico artigliere che si presentò allo spaccio.
Il modello qui mostrato racconta le due ore che Armstrong ed Aldrin trascorsero sulla superficie lunare. Di queste due ore si è già detto tutto e nulla rimane da aggiungere, tranne un particolare. Da alcune foto sembrerebbe che Armstrong avesse i guanti della tuta bianchi, mentre quelli di Aldrin fossero grigi. Forse per distinguere i due astronauti? Non ho mai trovato conferme né sul fatto che avessero veramente i guanti di colore diverso né l’eventuale motivo. Comunque, così li ho rappresentati.
Lunar Excursion Module.
No talk at lenght to describe the Apollo XI mission, everything has been said yet.
I remember that night I was Officer on Duty – Picket Officer – at the Piave barracks in Civitavecchia, near Roma. We got by the HQ the order to open the troop shop and switch the TV on, to allow everybody to watch that istorical landing. We were just two persons: myself with boots, diagonal blueband and Beretta pistol of order, plus a private, a gunner. Bad quality images, black & white, noisy, blurred. But still in front of my eyes after more than fifty years…
This kit is an old Revell one, sitting around in my home since at least 20 years. The job is basic, just out-of-the-box, with two minor mods:
- The Moon terrain has been covered by finely sifted ash,
- A cable connecting an equipment to the LEM has been added.
Please note that Neil Armstrong gloves are gray, while Buzz Altrin’s are white. This is as them appeared in some photos, so I thought it could have been a way to recognize the astronauts. I haven’t got any confirmation so far, probably it was just the result of some exposure adjustment and they were both wearing gray gloves, really.
A mistake that will be corrected: these pictures have been taken using the classic two studio lights; I would like to repeat them with an unique light source, creating sharp, visible shadows. On the Moon, the only light was the Sun…
