--- title: "Someone Just Sold Apollo 11’s Joysticks, Against NASA’s Wishes" description: "Three historic joysticks used to control NASA's Apollo 11 command module have just sold for more than $780,000 at an auction, going against NASA's wishes." date: "2020-07-21" modified: "2020-07-21" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/apollo-11-joysticks" categories: - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "apollo 11" - "NASA" - "neil armstrong" - "the digest" --- # Someone Just Sold Apollo 11’s Joysticks, Against NASA’s Wishes ![Three historic joysticks used to control NASA's Apollo 11 command module have just sold for more than $780,000 at an auction, going against NASA's wishes.]() *\Image: Julien’s Auctions\* ## Ground Control Three historic joysticks used to control NASA's Apollo 11 command module, Columbia, [just sold for more than $780,000 at an auction]() over the weekend — against the wishes of the space agency itself, as [*Space.com* reports](). An [official description]() on the auction house's website advertised the sale as including "some of the most important pieces used in space exploration including the actual pilot control stick used by Neil Armstrong on the Apollo 11 flight to the moon." The command module, piloted by Michael Collins, flew the Apollo 11 lunar module to orbit around the Moon, with pilots Buz**z** Aldrin and Neil Armstrong inside. ## Bidding War The joysticks themselves were used to control Columbia when docking with the lunar module Eagle. They were initially offered to the three astronauts months after mission completion, but the crew refused the gifts, according to *Space.com*. A NASA employee discovered the three joysticks decades later at the Johnson Space Center in Houston and took them home, [*Collect Space* reports](). The employee then sold them at auction to a collector. In 2013, one of the joysticks would've been sold at auction in Boston, but NASA [made sure that didn't happen](), requesting to have the item donated to a museum instead. Three years later, NASA gave up. A handrail used during extravehicular activity during the Apollo 11 mission also went on sale at an auction in 2000, selling for $34,500, according to *Collect Space*. **READ MORE:** [Apollo 11 spacecraft joysticks top $780K at auction, despite NASA concerns]() \[*Space.com*\] **\[lol\] More on Apollo 11:** *[Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Moon Landing by Owning a Piece of the Apollo 11 Command Module]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()