Neil Armstrong's secret bag of Moon landing mementos 'that were supposed to remain in space' discovered by his widow in a closet

  • Carol Armstrong found bag in Ohio house after husband Neil, the first man to walk on the moon, died in 2012
  • The so-called McDivitt purse contained priceless Apollo 11 items such as a camera that filmed moon descent
  • Bag had items scheduled to remain on lunar surface, but he kept and didn't speak about them for 40 years
  • Power cables, waist restraint straps, waste management cover and wrench were kept by astronaut as souvenirs
  • Items will be displayed at Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, which features other Apollo 11 artifacts

By Christopher Brennan For Dailymail.com

Published: 14:30 EST, 8 February 2015 | Updated: 05:00 EST, 9 February 2015

The widow of astronaut Neil Armstrong has given a bag full of equipment used by her husband during the moon landing to the Smithsonian after finding it in a closet.

Carol Armstrong found the mysterious bag after her husband's death in 2012, and saw that the space pioneer had kept personal mementos which were supposed to be left on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission.

The gear was later confirmed to be from the most famous space flight of all time after Mrs Armstrong got in touch with the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, where the items are now on loan.

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Neil Armstrong kept a bag of mementos from the Apollo 11 mission, including a camera that filmed him walking on the moon, in a closet until his death in 2012

Neil Armstrong kept a bag of mementos from the Apollo 11 mission, including a camera that filmed him walking on the moon, in a closet until his death in 2012

ITEMS FOUND IN NEIL ARMSTRONG'S BAG OF APOLLO 11 MEMENTOS 

1. Temporary stowage bag, the 'purse'

2. Power cable

3. Power cable and utility light

4. Power cable and utility light

5. Utility clamp

6. Utility clamp

7. Crewman Optical Alignment Sight mirror device

8. Filter for COAS (number 7)

9. Light bulb assembly

10. Waist tether 

11. Helmet straps

12. 16mm camera used to film landing and flag planting

12a. Bracket for camera

12b. 10mm lens for camera

13. Lens shade

14. Eye guard assembly

15. Mirror

16. Wrench

17. Waste management cover 

18. Netting 

The bag discovered in Neil Armstrong's closet was named the 'McDivitt purse' after Apollo 9 Commander Jim McDivitt, and was used in 1969 by Buzz Aldrin (pictured above)

The bag discovered in Neil Armstrong's closet was named the 'McDivitt purse' after Apollo 9 Commander Jim McDivitt, and was used in 1969 by Buzz Aldrin (pictured above)

The 16mm camera and 10mm lens found in Mr Armstrong's hidden stash of Apollo 11 items shot astronauts descending to the lunar surface and planting the US flag

The 16mm camera and 10mm lens found in Mr Armstrong's hidden stash of Apollo 11 items shot astronauts descending to the lunar surface and planting the US flag

The first man to walk on the moon made no mention of his bag, stored in a closet in his Ohio house, for the more than 40 years between the Apollo 11 mission and his death, according to Gizmodo.

Alan Needdell, curator of the Air and Space Museum, gathered a team of experts from the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal to go through records and confirm that that the items were genuinely from the historic mission..

The bag, known as a purse, includes the 16mm movie camera and 10mm lens that first shot Apollo 11's descent to the moon's surface through a window on the lunar module.

Mr Armstrong had kept almost 20 keepsakes from the journey, including tools, helmet straps and cables taken aboard the Lunar Module Eagle for the landing.   

A Crewman Optical Alignment Sight (left) is a 1.5lb device that gave Apollo 11 crew members visual clues during docking maneuvers
Photos from the Apollo 11 mission show objects found in Mr Armstrong's hidden bag during their use in the Moon landing

A Crewman Optical Alignment Sight (left) is a 1.5lb mirror device that gave Apollo 11 crew members visual clues during docking maneuvers on the 1969 mission (right)

Crewman Optical Alignment Sights are rotatable and are used for the final 150 feet before docking, such as when the Apollo 11 lunar module reconnected with the command module orbiting the moon

Crewman Optical Alignment Sights are rotatable and are used for the final 150 feet before docking, such as when the Apollo 11 lunar module reconnected with the command module orbiting the moon

The camera found in Mr Armstrong's bag was identified is the one that shot through a window on the lunar module that touched down on the moon

The camera found in Mr Armstrong's bag was identified is the one that shot through a window on the lunar module that touched down on the moon

A wrench found in Mr Armstrong's bag can be seen aboard the lunar module in old photographs
Mr Armstrong's memorabilia from Apollo 11 included practical items such as a wrench

Records of the astronauts' communications with mission control show them mentioning used aboard the lunar module (left), which contained numerous objects including a wrench called Tool B (right)

The contents of the McDivitt purse, which resembles an ordinary white clutch purse, were supposed to remain in space, according to the Smithsonian

The contents of the McDivitt purse, which resembles an ordinary white clutch purse, were supposed to remain in space, according to the Smithsonian

The purse, known as a Temporary Stowage Bag because it would keep temporarily store items to keep them from falling to the cabin floor
Buzz Aldrin was recorded telling Mr Armstrong that his back, likely covered in moon dust, was rubbing against the white purse

The purse, known as a Temporary Stowage Bag because it would keep temporarily store items to keep them from falling to the cabin floor

The items donated by the astronaut's second wife were supposed to be left behind on the lunar surface, according to the Smithsonian. 

There are records of Apollo 11's astronauts mentioning the so-called McDivitt purse, named in honor of Apollo 9 Commander Jim McDivitt, during their journey.  

'That [is] just a bunch of trash that we want to take back — LM parts, odds and ends,' Mr Armstrong said after he and Mr Aldrin returned to the command module orbiting the moon.

The astronauts estimated that it held ten pounds.were careful to account for the extra weight and its distribution within their craft.

In one exchange Mr Aldrin tells Mr Armstrong that lunar dust on his suit may be rubbing off on the purse. 

Photos of Neil Armstrong show the late astronaut training next to many types of equipment he later kept in his closet, such as the power cables seen above

Photos of Neil Armstrong show the late astronaut training next to many types of equipment he later kept in his closet, such as the power cables seen above

Multiple power cables were found in the bag in Mr Armstrong's closet, which the astronaut estimated at ten pounds when he was in space
Items in the recently-found McDivitt purse, such as this mirror, will be put on display at the Smithsonian

Neil Armstrong estimated that the bag of 'odds and ends' that he and his crew took back, which was found with power cables (left) and a mirror (right), weighed ten pounds

The 16mm camera, known as the Data Acquisition Camera, captured historic moments of the Apollo 11 mission, including Neil Armstrong descending onto the moon's surface

The 16mm camera, known as the Data Acquisition Camera, captured historic moments of the Apollo 11 mission, including Neil Armstrong descending onto the moon's surface

Mr Aldrin and Mr Armstrong were recorded by the 16mm camera planting the American flag on the moon in the shadow of their spacecraft

Mr Aldrin and Mr Armstrong were recorded by the 16mm camera planting the American flag on the moon in the shadow of their spacecraft

The most valuable object in the hidden trove of artifacts is the camera, which was called the 'Data Acquisition Camera' and mounted on the lunar module.

It captured the astronauts climbing down a ladder to the moon's surface and planting the US flag.

A mirror device found also helped the astronauts orientate the lunar module for the last 150 feet before docking with the command module orbiting the moon.

Netting used to protect equipment from free-floating objects was also among Mr Armstrong's personal souvenirs.

A relic of the small and strange intricacies of life in space, a cover for the lunar module's pressurized waste management system was also found.

The items' use in the historic lunar landing, as well as their personal significance to the mission's commander, are thought to make them priceless.  

An eye guard was used for astronauts to look through the ship's Alignment Optical Telescope, known as the AOT
The Crewman Optical Alignment Sight was brought back with a spare light bulb (center)
Lens shades were used for the 16mm camera, possibly to keep the lunar module's window from being damaged by the device

The 'odds and ends' that Mr Armstrong told mission control about included eye guards for a telescope (left),  a spare light bulb for Crewman Optical Alignment Sight (center) and a lens shade for the 16mm camera

Mr Armstrong was thought to have used the waist tether he kept in his bag to support his feet during a short rest period before departing the moon
A cover of the lunar module's waste management system sealed the pressurized urine-collection system

Mr Armstrong was thought to have used the waist tether (left) he kept in his bag to support his feet during a short rest period before departing the moon. A cover of the lunar module's pressurized waste management system (right) was also found

Netting used aboard the lunar module was used to protect equipment from objects that may have been free floating around the cabin

Netting used aboard the lunar module was used to protect equipment from objects that may have been free floating around the cabin

Researchers from the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal were recruited by the Smithsonian to determine whether items, such as Mr Armstrong's helmet straps (pictured) were aboard Apollo 11

Researchers from the Apollo Lunar Surface Journal were recruited by the Smithsonian to determine whether items, such as Mr Armstrong's helmet straps (pictured) were aboard Apollo 11

Two different utility clamps were found in Mr Armstrong's bag
Clamp 738 (right) was used by Buzz Aldrin to secure the camera onto the crash bar so it could film the lunar module's landing

Two different utility clamps were found in Mr Armstrong's bag. Clamp 738 (right) was used by Buzz Aldrin to secure the camera onto the crash bar so it could film the lunar module's landing

A collection of vintage photos from Apollo 11 are expected to fetch more than $750,000 when they are sold at auction later this month.

The Smithsonian currently shows the camera and waist tethers, which were designed to keep astronauts secure if there were problems reconnecting with pilot Michael Collins in the command module and had to spacewalk back into their return spacecraft.

The straps are thought to have supported Mr Armstrong's feet during a rest period on the lunar module.

It eventually plans on displaying the all the recently-rediscovered artifacts for the public.

The museum currently displays many items associated with the moon landing at its Washington location, including the Apollo 11 command module and suits worn during the mission.

Mr Armstrong died in August 2012 less than a month after undergoing heart surgery. 

Carol Armstrong (left) gave the historical mementos kept by her husband Neil (right) to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum following their discovery

Carol Armstrong (left) gave the historical mementos kept by her husband Neil (right) to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum following their discovery

The famous astronaut had almost 20 artifacts from the Moon landing mission that he hadn't spoken about in more than 40 years

The famous astronaut had almost 20 artifacts from the Moon landing mission that he hadn't spoken about in more than 40 years

 

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