Apollo-17 astronauts Engene Cernan and Jack Schmitt on Monday (11 December) expended more energy than they expected ruing their first seven-hour exploration period at Taurus Littrow on the lunar surface. The two men, who at times broke into song as they went about their schedule of duties, were told by Mission Control at Houston that their heart rates were well above average. Schmitt a geologist, were at one stage warned that his exhubernce was causing the overheating of his spacesuit cooling water. He and his fellow-astronaut became silent as they battled thick dust and bulky suits to deploy a sophisticated array of experiments....the largest of any moon mission. Difficulty was experienced in trying to jack out of the moon's strafe, a long tube that had been drilled own to take a deep sample for analysis on earth. When Schmitt went to assist Cernan, he overbalanced and tumbled heavily.

SYNOPSIS: Eugene Cernan and Jack Schmitt stood beside a United States flag at Taurus Littrow on the Moon, on Monday, before beginning their first seven-hour exploration and work period of the mission. The two Apollo-17 astronauts were taking photographs of each other.

Cernan and Schmitt...who is a geologist....at time broke into song as they began their schedule of duties, but were told by Mission Control at Houston that their heart rates were well above average. Schmitt went to the aid of Cernan who had difficulty jacking out a long sampler probe, then lost his balance and took a tumble. The astronauts were expending more energy than they had expected. At one stage Schmitt was warned by Mission Control that his exuberance was causing the over-heating of his spacesuit cooling water. Both men became silent as they battled thick dust and bulky subito to deploy a sophisticated array of experiments, the largest of any moon mission yet.