Apollo 15 astronaut David Scott's feather‑and‑hammer moon experiment marks 55th anniversary

On 2 August 1971, NASA astronaut David Scott performed a now‑iconic demonstration on the lunar surface during the Apollo 15 mission. Holding a geological hammer in one hand and a falcon feather in the other, he released both objects simultaneously. With virtually no atmosphere on the Moon, the feather and hammer fell at the same rate, confirming Galileo Galilei’s principle that objects accelerate equally in a vacuum regardless of mass.

The experiment was broadcast live, took place during the mission’s third and final moonwalk, and honored the lunar module “Falcon.” Apollo 15 was the fourth crewed lunar landing and the first to use a Lunar Roving Vehicle, expanding scientific exploration at the Hadley‑Apennine site. Fifty‑five years later, the demonstration is remembered as a vivid proof of fundamental physics beyond Earth.