Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the Moon, has shared a customs form that he had to fill when he landed back on earth. Aldrin accompanied Spacecraft commander Neil Armstrong on the Apollo 11 lunar module, Eagle, on July 20, 1969, to become the first men to land on the Moon.
In his post, Aldrin shared a picture of the custom form along with a caption that read, “Imagine spending 8 days in space, including nearly 22 hours on the Moon and returning home to Earth only to have to go through customs! #Apollo11”
Read the full post here:
The form, dated July 24, 1969, was titled “general declaration” filled with details about Armstrong, Aldrin and Michael Collins and, information about Apollo 11 spaceship’s landing in Honolulu and the cargo such as ‘moon rock and moon dust samples’ that returned along with the spacecraft.
Interestingly, the form also included a section where the three astronauts would be checked for any ailments that they may have brought back with them.
According to Space.com, the form was posted on US Customs and Border Protection website in 2009 as a tribute to the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission and was verified by NASA. “Yes, it’s authentic,” NASA spokesperson John Yembrick told the website. “It was a little joke at the time.”
Since being shared online, the tweet has gone viral and prompted several reactions among netizens.
https://twitter.com/Khru/status/1420245778950365189