Every day we are amazed by the many technological breakthroughs we read about, the many gadgets that constantly appear in the market, the many discoveries in physics, anthropology, biology, astronomy, biotechnology ... in all the fields of science. From the technological point of view, we are living awesome times. But we should be more amazed by the people that make such milestones rather than the discoveries itself. People like René Descartes that went beyond an abstract and isolated geometry and gave that field an uplift when he added algebra to the analysis of planar figures. People like Jorge Luis Borges that gave an interesting twist to the "visualization" and understanding of the infinite in a simple literary short story, and people like Eddington that made an incredible computation of the universe's amount of protons. This presentation is about Eugene M. Shoemaker, a scientist, an astronomer and geologist, and about Carolyn Porco his wife. But don't expect an ordinary story, this presentation is about a story of love that carried Shoemaker's ashes to the Moon.

1. You say that in
the Moon are
the human
remains of who?
By Ernesto Pérez

2. On January 6, 1998, an ounce
of Eugene Shoemaker's
cremains traveled to the moon
aboard NASA's Lunar
Prospector spacecraft.

3. Shoemaker confirmed the theory that the
huge Arizona crater was formed by the impact
of a big meteorite.
He also believed that
the craters on the
Moon were of similar
origin.

4. The crater is also
known as Barringer
Crater for Daniel
Barringer, who in
1903 was first to
suggest that it was
produced by a
meteorite impact.

5. Eugene was an American geologist and one of
the founders of the field of planetary science.
Eugene said shortly
before his death the
biggest disappointment in
his life was “not going to
the moon and banging on
it with my own hammer.”

6. But Carolyn Porco, a former student of
him, in an act of love and admiration
had the idea of fulfilling Eugene's desire
(and frustration) by using one of
NASA's missions to the Moon to send a
portion of Eugene's ashes in a small
capsule inside the Lunar Prospector
Moon mission.

7. Wrapped around the capsule
was a 1.5 inch (3.8 cm) square
piece of brass foil, laser-
inscribed with a composite
image.

8. And, when he shall die
Take him and cut out in little stars:
The actual 'burial' of the ashes was going to be a crash of the space probe on
the Moon.
And he will make the face of the heavens so fine
That all the world will be in love with night
The heaven's nights now are not the same since there is one of us resting
above there.
And pay no worship to the garnish sun.
Now the sun is not the most embellished star in the cosmos, but the Moon.
William Shakespeare - Romeo and Juliet - 1595

9. ● a photo of the comet he
discovered
● a photo of the Arizona
crater he insisted that
was of cosmic origin
● a fragment of a
Shakespeare's poem
from Romeo and Juliet
The three elements on the engraving are:

10. Eugene Shoemaker with
his beloved wife Carolyn
Shoemaker in a 1994 photo
taken at the Palomar
Observatory.

11. Carolyn C. Porco, a planetary
scientist at the University of
Arizona in Tucson, proposed and
produced the tribute. She said,
"The idea to give Gene Shoemaker
the moon as his final resting place
came to me on July 19th , the day
after Gene died and the moment I
read in the morning newspaper that
his body would be cremated.

12. The homage that Carolyn paid to
Eugene was well chosen, and with a
lot of human love, warmth, and
reverence.

13. On July 31, 1999, after
eighteen months of
successful orbital scientific
operations, Lunar
Prospector was
commanded to crash into
the surface of the Moon.
The actual 'burial' of the ashes was going to be a
crash of the space probe on the Moon.

14. The fulfillment of one man's
dream, and the final
episode of his inspirational
life, met on impact.

15. At his journey's end, thirty years to the month
after humans first set foot on the Moon,
Eugene M. Shoemaker
became the first
inhabitant of Earth to
be sent to rest on
another celestial body.

16. But more
than "The
fulfillment
of one
man's
dream" ...

17. … his burial on the
Moon is the product
of the love of a
student and the
approval of his wife
...

18. … that wanted him
to rest forever in
the place where he
wished the most:
the Moon.

19. This story was taken
from this EBook … ➤
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