Dominique Ciccolella
Sale Coordinator and Expert Liaison
This auction has ended. View lot details
You may also be interested in
![[Apollo 11] THE DOCKING SYSTEM BETWEEN LM EAGLE AND CSM COLUMBIA EN ROUTE TO THE MOON Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, or Michael Collins, 16-24 July 1969 image 1](/_next/image.jpg?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg1.bonhams.com%2Fimage%3Fsrc%3DImages%2Flive%2F2025-03%2F19%2F25639331-215-1.jpg&w=2400&q=75)
![[Apollo 11] THE DOCKING SYSTEM BETWEEN LM EAGLE AND CSM COLUMBIA EN ROUTE TO THE MOON Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, or Michael Collins, 16-24 July 1969 image 2](/_next/image.jpg?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg1.bonhams.com%2Fimage%3Fsrc%3DImages%2Flive%2F2025-03%2F19%2F25639331-215-2.jpg&w=2400&q=75)
Lot 232
[Apollo 11] THE DOCKING SYSTEM BETWEEN LM EAGLE AND CSM COLUMBIA EN ROUTE TO THE MOON Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, or Michael Collins, 16-24 July 1969
14 – 28 April 2025, 12:00 CEST
Paris, Avenue HocheSold for €256 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our Post-War and Contemporary Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Sabine Cornette de Saint Cyr
Head of Department
Chloe Mayot
Senior Cataloguer
Marion Richard
Specialist
[Apollo 11] THE DOCKING SYSTEM BETWEEN LM EAGLE AND CSM COLUMBIA EN ROUTE TO THE MOON
Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, or Michael Collins, 16-24 July 1969
Printed 1969.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS11-36-5382].
With "A Kodak Paper" watermark on the reverse, numbered "NASA AS11-36-5382" in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
The careful en route preparation of Columbia, and Eagle, for the Moon landing.
This rare unpublished Apollo 11 photograph captures the Lunar Module Eagle docking drogue inside the Command Module Columbia after Neil Armstrong removed it from the tunnel connecting the two spacecraft. The drogue, a conical metal structure, was part of the probe-and-drogue system, enabling precise docking in microgravity. Its removal allowed the crew to access Eagle for inspection en route to the Moon (see mission transcript). Seen resting against the CM's interior, the drogue is surrounded by mission-critical equipment, tools, and spacecraft systems. It underscores the technical precision required for docking manoeuvres, a skill crucial for lunar missions and future space exploration.
The removal of the drogue symbolized the crew's transition from Earth's domain to the Moon's realm, setting the stage for the historic July 20, 1969 landing.
Printed 1969.
Vintage chromogenic print on fibre-based Kodak paper [NASA image AS11-36-5382].
With "A Kodak Paper" watermark on the reverse, numbered "NASA AS11-36-5382" in red in the top margin (issued by NASA Manned Spacecraft Centre, Houston, Texas).
20.3 x 25.4 cm. (8 x 10 in.)
Historical context
The careful en route preparation of Columbia, and Eagle, for the Moon landing.
This rare unpublished Apollo 11 photograph captures the Lunar Module Eagle docking drogue inside the Command Module Columbia after Neil Armstrong removed it from the tunnel connecting the two spacecraft. The drogue, a conical metal structure, was part of the probe-and-drogue system, enabling precise docking in microgravity. Its removal allowed the crew to access Eagle for inspection en route to the Moon (see mission transcript). Seen resting against the CM's interior, the drogue is surrounded by mission-critical equipment, tools, and spacecraft systems. It underscores the technical precision required for docking manoeuvres, a skill crucial for lunar missions and future space exploration.
The removal of the drogue symbolized the crew's transition from Earth's domain to the Moon's realm, setting the stage for the historic July 20, 1969 landing.
Footnotes
From the mission transcript when the photograph was taken during a TV transmission to Earth:
055:16:00 Public Affairs Officer (Mission Control): Getting a very good view of the work going on in the Command and Service Module tunnel. That appears to be Neil Armstrong working in the - in the tunnel. Operating - working on the drogue and probe assembly.
This extremely sharp, clear picture is coming to us from about 175,000 [nautical] miles [324,000 km] distance from Earth. Presently about 48,000 [nautical] miles [89,000 km] from the Moon. [...] We do expect to get the television transmission from the time the crew is in the Lunar Module, and that period of activity is scheduled to begin at about 56 hours, 20 minutes with the ingress to the Lunar Module. [...] Neil Armstrong, up in the tunnel at this point, removing the probe and drogue assembly in preparation for the ingress to the Lunar Module. [...] We just saw the probe assembly start to come loose now as Neil Armstrong is...
055:19:49 Duke: Apollo 11, Houston. It's a pretty good show here. It looks like you almost got the probe out.
055:19:54 Aldrin: Yeah, it's loose now.
055:19:55 Armstrong: Can you see that?
055:19:58 Duke: Rog, Neil. It's really good.
055:20:03 Armstrong: Not much light up in that area, but apparently the TV set's able to pick it up.
055:20:10 Duke: There are some bright spots shining on the probe. Apparently, Sun shafting on it that just gets just about enough for us to make it out. Over.
055:20:21 Aldrin: I think those are the tunnel lights.
055:20:24 Duke: Oh, Okay. You're right. [Pause.]
055:20:32 Aldrin: Okay. It's loose now. Coming down.
055:20:35 Duke: Roger. [Long pause.]
055:20:57 Duke: Looks like it's a little bit easier than doing that in the chamber.
055:21:04 Armstrong: You bet. This is the only way...
055:21:05 Aldrin: You have to take it easy. It's pretty massive, but it goes where you direct it. [...]
055:21:27 Armstrong: Mike must have done a smooth job in that docking. There isn't a dent or a mark on the probe. [...]
055:22:14 Duke: We can see the probe now. Correction, the drogue.
055:22:22 Armstrong: Roger. [Long pause.]
055:23:04 Armstrong: Okay. Drogue removal's coming next.
055:23:06 Duke: Roger. As we suspected. [Long pause.]
Once removal of the drogue is completed, they will have access to the LM hatch and be able to go into the tunnel.
Watch more
CLICK HERE: Apollo 11 TV transmission - 055:09:00 GET