Science: Dangerous Assault on the Sea of Rains

IT is the most forbidding region man has ever attempted to visit on the moon. To the northeast lies a towering, 15,000-ft. peak called Mount Hadley. Another mountain, Hadley Delta, only slightly less majestic at 12,000 ft., looms directly to the south. To the west is a winding, milewide, 1,200-ft.-deep canyon. Yet two U.S. astronauts are scheduled to land in the midst of that treacherous terrain at 6:15 p.m. E.D.T., Friday, July 30. Their landing will mark the beginning of man's fourth and most daring lunar assault.

Apollo 15's commander, Dave Scott, and his...

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