A historic felt-tip pen that played a critical role during the Apollo 11 mission is going under the hammer in New York on Wednesday.
The instrument, used by astronaut Buzz Aldrin to fix a broken circuit breaker, helped prevent the crew from being stranded on the lunar surface.
Sotheby's expects the dented silver plastic Duro Rocket pen to sell for between $800,000 and $1.2 million.
The artifact comes directly from Aldrin's personal collection and is being auctioned alongside the broken circuit breaker component.
Crisis on the Lunar Surface
The problem arose when a vital switch snapped off inside the lunar module just before the scheduled departure.
Aldrin recalled the terrifying prospect of being "stuck on the moon for ever."
In his autobiography, the astronaut described his immediate reaction: "My heart jolted a bit … The broken switch had snapped off from the engine-arm circuit breaker, the one vital breaker needed to send electrical power to the ascent engine that would lift Neil and me off the moon."
There was initially some lighthearted debate about who caused the damage.
"I think Neil broke the switch off and Neil thinks that I broke the switch off," Aldrin noted.
Years later, he admitted his own gear was likely responsible, as the breaker was located on his side of the capsule.
Despite the uncertainty, the crew focused on finding a solution. Aldrin initially considered using his finger but decided against it due to electrical dangers.
He then remembered a felt-tip pen he had carried inside his personal preference kit, which was not officially on the flight manifest but remained in his suit pocket.
He carefully positioned the plastic casing of the pen to engage the broken mechanism. "I gingerly pressed the pen against the engine arm circuit breaker.
For a long moment, I didn't want to remove the tip from the circuit breaker, hoping against hope that it would hold," Aldrin recounted.
The improvised repair worked. "The pen did the trick; the circuit breaker held.
We could return to Earth after all!" Aldrin declared.
The historic items have remained in Aldrin's possession for over five decades.
"I still have that broken circuit breaker from Apollo 11 and the felt-tip pen that helped get us off the moon," he stated.
