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He walked on the moon in 1972. This is his advice for the Artemis II astronauts.

Nbcnews · 🇨🇳 public China · · 732 words · By Evan Bush; Aaron Gilchrist
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What to know about He walked on the moon in 1972. This is his advice for the Artemis II astronauts.

If anyone can offer advice to the four NASA astronauts slated to launch Wednesday on a trip around the moon, it’s Harrison Schmitt.

Claims checked 12
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center83%
Right17%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

If anyone can offer advice to the four NASA astronauts slated to launch Wednesday on a trip around the moon, it’s Harrison Schmitt.

Why it matters

Schmitt, 90, left his bootprints on the lunar surface in 1972, as part of Apollo 17 — the final mission in the program, which was the last time humans traveled to the moon.

Common ground

NASA’s Artemis II mission, which is scheduled to lift off as early as 6:24 p.m.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/nasa-artemis-ii-advice-apollo-17-astronaut…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 12 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

help Insufficient Evidence 7
verified Verified By Reference 2
schedule Pending 2
info Single Source 1
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Claim 1: “Schmitt described entering lunar orbit on the moon's far side, which faces away from Earth.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered regarding Schmitt's description of entering lunar orbit on the far side of the Moon.
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Claim 2: “The Apollo 17 astronauts spent nearly 13 days in space — more than three of those on the lunar surface.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered regarding the total duration of the Apollo 17 mission or the specific breakdown of time spent in space versus on the lunar surface.
verified
Claim 3: “Schmitt, 90, left his bootprints on the lunar surface in 1972, as part of Apollo 17 — the final mission in the program, which was the last time humans traveled to the moon.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia explicitly states that Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972) was the 'eleventh and final crewed mission of NASA's Apollo program,' confirming the date, the mission, and that it was the last crewed mission.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972) was the eleventh and final crewed mission of NASA's Apollo program, the sixth and most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Mod…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_17
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Eugene Andrew Cernan (; March 14, 1934 – January 16, 2017) was an American astronaut, naval aviator, electrical engineer, aeronautical engineer, and fighter pilot. Cernan traveled into space three tim…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Cernan
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Harrison Hagan "Jack" Schmitt (born July 3, 1935) is an American geologist, former NASA astronaut, university professor, and former U.S. senator from New Mexico. He is the most recent living person—an…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Schmitt
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Claim 4: “Much has changed since Apollo 17. Schmitt and his fellow crew members were part of a space race against the Soviet Union. Today, NASA is competing with China, which hopes to land its own astronauts on the moon in 2030.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered for this claim. While the general context of NASA competing with China is a known geopolitical topic, the specific details regarding China's 2030 landing goal are not supported by the provided evidence.
info
Claim 5: “NASA’s Artemis II mission, which is scheduled to lift off as early as 6:24 p.m. Wednesday, aims to kick-start a new era of lunar exploration.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provided for this claim contains general information about the Artemis program and Orion, but none of the provided sources mention a specific launch date of 'Wednesday' or the time '6:24 p.m.' for Artemis II. The evidence is insufficient to verify the specific timing mentioned in the claim.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Jared Taylor Isaacman (born February 11, 1983) is an American billionaire entrepreneur, pilot, and commercial astronaut who has served as the 15th administrator of NASA since December 2025. He is the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jared_Isaacman
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) is a partially reusable crewed spacecraft used by NASA for the Artemis lunar exploration program. It consists of a crew module (CM), a space capsule built b…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orion_(spacecraft)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Victor Jerome Glover Jr. (born April 30, 1976) is an American naval officer, test pilot, and NASA astronaut of the 2013 class. A former F/A‑18 pilot and graduate of the United States Air Force Test Pi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victor_Glover
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Claim 6: “Artemis II astronauts will have better views of the moon's far side than Apollo missions.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered comparing the viewing opportunities of Artemis II astronauts to those of the Apollo missions regarding the Moon's far side.
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Claim 7: “Reid Wiseman stated that approximately 60% of the moon's far side has never been seen by humans due to lighting conditions.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered regarding Reid Wiseman's claim about 60% of the Moon's far side never being seen by humans due to lighting conditions.
schedule
Claim 8: “China is pursuing lunar exploration as part of its broader strategy to dominate space, similar to its terrestrial ambitions.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 9: “The crew plans to circle the moon as a step toward a lunar landing in 2028 (similar to the way Apollo 8's flight around the moon paved the way for Apollo 11).”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia states that Artemis II was a 'lunar flyby mission' and that the Artemis program aims at returning humans to the Moon, which aligns with the concept of circling the moon as a step toward future landings, similar to historical precedent.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Artemis II was a crewed nine-day lunar flyby mission that launched on April 1, 2026. With a crew of four astronauts, it was the first crewed flight of the NASA-led Artemis program and the first crewed…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis_II
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Artemis IV is planned to be the third crewed mission and first lunar landing of the NASA-led Artemis program, marking the first crewed landing on the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. It will potentially …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis_IV
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Artemis program is a Moon exploration program led by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), aimed at returning humans to the Moon for the first time since Apollo …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemis_program
schedule
Claim 10: “Artemis II astronauts will approach within about 6,000 miles of the lunar surface on the sixth day of their mission.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 11: “They also gathered more geology samples than any other moon mission, bringing 243 pounds back to Earth.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered regarding the total weight or quantity of lunar geology samples collected by Apollo 17 compared to other missions.
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Claim 12: “They notched the highest total distance traveled on the moon, driving a lunar rover a total of about 19 miles.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was gathered regarding the total distance driven by the lunar rover during the Apollo 17 mission.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.