Wednesday marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 17 mission — the last one that put humans on the moon. NPR takes a look at the mission and what it means for future travel to our lunar companion.

The last time anyone drove on the Moon was way back in 1972 when the astronauts of Apollo 17 took the Lunar Roving Vehicle for one last spin. Now, NASA is plotting a return to the Moon’s surface ...

No one expected these glittering bits among the gray lunar dust back then. The beads, smaller than grains of sand, formed when ancient lunar volcanoes spewed molten rock. That rock quickly cooled and ...

The 1972 lunar landing concluded a pioneering time for moon exploration.

Astronauts from NASA said goodbye to the moon for the last time on Dec. 14, 1972. The somberness of the anniversary is offset by the scenes of Artemis I’s recently concluded mission.

In all, the Apollo 17 crew spent 22 hours performing three “Extravehicular Activities” – moonwalks. Challenger carried a Lunar Roving Vehicle, commonly known as a “moon buggy”. With the ...

Apollo 17 astronaut Eugene Cernan drives the last Lunar Rover or "Moon buggy" America sent to the Moon.

Zircon crystals hidden within lunar dust samples collected during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972 have revealed that the moon is 40 million years older than previously believed.

Zircon crystals hidden within lunar dust samples collected during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972 have revealed that the moon is 40 million years older than previously believed.

Lunar scientists have started plotting out photographic objects of interest for the four-person Artemis 2 crew to consider during their flyby of the moon.

As political support for Moon landings waned, the crew of Apollo 17 ensured the program ended on a scientific high.