Charles Duke is one of the 12 people to ever have walked on the Moon. It was on April 1972, during the Apollo 16 mission. Duke was the lunar module pilot, in charge of collecting samples from Moon rocks and materials. Before departing, he left a wrapped picture of his family on the Moon’s dusty surface.

Astronauts throughout missions actually left a lot of things behind them: the US flag, Neil Amstrong’s boots, a gold replica of an olive tree branch (as a symbol of peace), a silicon disc carrying statements from several world leaders, PEE and POO Containers (yup!), film magazines… and several pieces of lunar equipment. 

It’s a mess out there, already, and I am not counting monoliths… But somewhere, by the Descartes crater, there is a photo of a human family that looks happy forever.