For the fan who never misses a launch

Twelve astronauts walked on the Moon between 1969 and 1972. Apollo 11 landed in Mare Tranquillitatis, the Sea of Tranquility, on July 20, 1969. Apollo 12 set down in Oceanus Procellarum, the Ocean of Storms. Apollo 15 landed at Hadley Rille at the foot of the Montes Apenninus, and Apollo 17, the last crewed landing, explored the Taurus-Littrow valley on the edge of Mare Serenitatis.

ExplOrbit territories are recorded in several of those same regions, subject to what is still unclaimed when you order. For a fan of the Apollo era, few gifts connect so directly to the places they have read about all their life.

After half a century, the Moon is a destination again. NASA’s Artemis program aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface, and its plans focus on the south polar region, where water ice has been detected in craters that never see sunlight. India’s Chandrayaan-3 landed near the south pole in August 2023, China’s Chang’e 4 made the first landing on the far side in 2019, and Chang’e 6 brought far side samples back to Earth in 2024.

For a space fan, a territory near the poles is a gift tied to the next chapter of exploration, not only the last one.

With more landers on the way than at any time since the 1970s, historic sites such as Tranquility Base, where the first footprints are still preserved, are only protected by goodwill and guidelines. On a world with almost no erosion, a careless landing nearby could change them forever.

Every ExplOrbit certificate is a recorded pledge in favor of exploring carefully. Our conservation brief sets out the case, with sources.