The largest part of the Apollo 11 spacecraft outside the Smithsonian — the external EVA handle in foreground

Apollo 14 docking ring in the distance, and the newest addition to the collection in the foreground – the external EVA handle from the Apollo 11 spacecraft, removed from the Smithsonian for a long-term radioactivity study of the Promethium-147 glow-in-the-dark discs at the mounting base of each handle. With a half-life of 2.5 years, they are fine by now, and agreement with Chris Kraft was that the researchers could keep the handle after performing a 20-year study at their expense. So it is the largest part of the Apollo 11 spacecraft not in the Smithsonian.

Photo by Julie Sparenberg