Owner Anticipates Getting At Least $2 Million

Nancy Lee Carlson owns something that NASA would really like to have back ... a sample of moon dust collected by Neil Armstrong on his his historic mission to the moon. Carlson purchased the sample at an online auction on behalf of the US. Marshal's service several years ago.

The sample had been part of a bundle with other artifacts that Carlson purchased for less than $1,000. She sent the zippered bag to NASA for authentication, and they said it had been a mistake for it to be sold, and said they were keeping it.

That led to a court battle, which Carlson eventually won. Now, she hopes to resell the sample for at least $2 million in Sotheby's first space-exploration sale on July 20 in New York, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.

While NASA said it was disappointed in the ruling that gave ownership of the sample to Carlson, the agency decided not to appeal. But NASA spokesman William Jeff said that the sample should be on public display because it "represents the culmination of a massive national effort involving a generation of Americans, including the astronauts who risked their lives in an effort to accomplish the most significant act humankind has ever achieved."

Cassandra Hatton, a specialist for Sotheby's said that the sample may sell for several million dollars, in part because NASA does not allow private ownership of lunar samples, apart from this single case where a court decided Carlson was the legitimate owner. She called this her "Mona Lisa moment."

Carlson said she hopes to use some of the proceeds from the sale to fund scientific and medical research. The sample is in the custody of a third party until the July 20 auction.

(Image from file)

FMI: Original Report