Flagstaff Junior High School Moon Tree

Flagstaff, Arizona

A Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) was planted on 30 April 1976 on the grounds of what was then Flagstaff Junior High School near Frances Short Pond. Stuart Roosa attended the planting ceremony. Unfortunately, the tree was pulled out of the ground three days later and could not be saved. A replacement (non-Moon) tree was planted in its stead, but the original sign is still there.

The pictures of the tree, about 10 feet tall at the time, and the sign were taken circa 2003. (The blue device in the foreground of the picture of the tree is a GPS unit.)

Although it has been reported that Douglas fir seeds were collected from the Lowell Observatory Mars Hill area for the Apollo 14 mission, Forest Service records show that the seeds for the Douglas firs were collected in Benton County, Oregon, and El Dorado County, California and sent to the U.S. Forest Service Institute of Forest Genetics (IFG) western station in Placerville, California. Unfortunately the seeds were mixed after the flight, so it is impossible to tell for any of the Douglas firs which lot they came from. More detail on the history of the Douglas fir Moon Trees is available.

The tree is located at 35 deg 12.368 min N; 111 deg 39.230 min W

More information on the history of the tree is available in an Arizona Daily Sun article, Less than full orbit: The history of Flagstaff's moon tree.

Photographs courtesy of Marc Leitermann, information courtesy of Jack Roosa

Less than full orbit: The history of Flagstaff's moon tree

History of the Douglas Fir Moon Trees

Moon Tree Home Page

NASA Official: Dave Williams, david.r.williams@nasa.gov
Last Updated: 17 May 2024, DRW