Among space flights, the mission of Apollo 15 is frequently celebrated for numerous achievements, such as the very first use of a lunar rover and the longest stay on the Moon at the time. Yet this mission will be also remembered by that scandal which shook up NASA and sullied the reputation of three astronauts: David Scott, Alfred Worden, and James Irwin. It became known as the Apollo 15 postal covers incident. The event happened in 1972, during which about 400 postal covers were taken unauthorized to the surface of the Moon aboard the Lunar Module Falcon.
The Whole Story of the Scandal
The postal covers are envelopes, usually with commemorative stamps, that went to space without the knowledge or approval of NASA. These covers were then resold, at inflated prices, through West German stamp dealer Hermann Sieger and came to be known as ‘Sieger covers.’ The three astronauts, along with an acquaintance named Horst Eiermann, had signed a deal to have covers produced and taken into space. Each astronaut was supposed to receive about $7,000-a huge sum then, and the equivalent of approximately $51,000 in 2023.
It was a clandestine agreement. The covers were postmarked the morning of the Apollo 15 launch, July 26, 1971, packaged for space, and given to Scott, who tucked them into a pocket of his space suit. The covers spent several days on the Moon, from July 30 to August 2, in the Lunar Module Falcon. When the mission returned to Earth and splashed down on August 7, the covers were postmarked again on the recovery carrier USS Okinawa. The skipper sent 100 of these covers to Eiermann for delivery to Sieger, with the remainder being sent to the astronauts.
The Consequences and Implications of the Scandal
The consequences of the scandal were enormous: all three astronauts were reprimanded by NASA and called before a closed session of the Senate committee. The controversy had practically ended their careers in spaceflight since none of them ever flew again in space. All three would leave NASA by 1977. Curiously, on February 8, 1983, Worden filed an action against the Government, arguing that the seizing of the envelopes without a hearing had violated the Constitution. It took an out-of-court settlement in July 1983, after the Department of Justice realized that it did not have much grounds to contest the suit, and returned all the covers. An example of one of the Sieger covers sold for more than $50,000 in 2014 due to still prominent interest in space memorabilia.
The Apollo 15 postal covers scandal still serves as a cautionary tale about personal gain versus professional duty. It also connotes the difficulty of navigating through ethical boundaries in undefined space. It also underlines the immense value that collectors place on space-flown items and the potential for them to become embroiled in controversy.
The immediate fallout of the scandal associated with the Apollo 15 postal covers and the longer-range implications for the astronauts involved made such short work of the spaceflight careers of David Scott, Alfred Worden, and James Irwin and cast a pall over the public image of NASA at a time when it was generally lauded for its exciting exploits in space.
As the fallout from the scandal mounted, so, too, did scrutiny upon NASA. Coming off the high of its successful lunar missions, the space agency found itself faced with questions concerning its oversight and the conduct of its astronauts. These reprimands sent clear signals from NASA that any acts that might be viewed as compromising the reputation and integrity of the space program would not be tolerated. The removal of these astronauts from their positions as backup crew members for Apollo 17 was a severe blow to their careers, in all intents and purposes ending any chances of spaceflight.
The mere fact that the astronauts were called before the closed session of the Senate committee speaks volumes regarding the weight placed on the matter. That none of the astronauts ever flew in space again speaks to the level of breach of trust. But the scandal finally brought policy changes at NASA concerning items taken to space by an astronaut, instituting stricter controls and greater openness.
The aftermath of this incident even extended to a legal battle some years later, wherein Worden filed a case against the government. In July 1983, an out-of-court settlement was reached, and the covers were returned to the astronauts-minor vindication for Worden. But it was too little, too late to return the astronauts’ lost reputations or careers in space exploration.
The fact that this is a lasting interest in space memorabilia, added to the prices achieved by the Sieger covers, shows the special appeal carried by items that have been in space. If one of the Sieger covers sold for more than $50,000 in 2014, today’s value would be over $64,000 in 2023, showing value that collectors put into such artifacts. Yet, this fascination brings its own morality with it, one that the scandal of Apollo 15 so starkly illustrated.
The consequence of the Apollo 15 postal covers scandal is multilayered. On one hand, it serves as a cautionary tale about the temptations that arise with extraordinary opportunities when they cross over with personal financial interests. It serves, on the other hand, to remind us of a human ingredient embedded within space exploration-that even the astronauts were not above lapses in judgment, however heroic and accomplished they were.
The scandal had implications for the field of astrophilately-the unauthorized carriage of the postal covers to the Moon’s surface underlined the need for clear guidelines and ethical standards in the collection and sale of space-related philatelic items. It probably made collectors and dealers in the future more cautious and, perhaps, more appreciative of the provenance and legitimacy of space-flown items.
The scandal of Apollo 15 postal covers is only a gray, small chapter in the broader context of space exploration history. It is a story of depth and character, depicting the grey sides of human nature, the pressure on ethical standards in untraveled territories, and the resilient fascination of humans with space and its associated artifacts.
Each time we go deeper into the vastness of space, it should not be forgotten that the lessons learned from the scandal surrounding Apollo 15 are very much applicable today. They remind us, or they ought to, of the importance of upholding high standards of conduct, the value of transparency, and the need to balance personal interests with professional responsibilities. It has also become a historical footnote that lends a deeper level of nuance to our understanding of the Apollo era-one of great triumphs and, as it would appear, some notable tribulations.
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