The last United States moon mission was Apollo 17, which launched on December 7, 1972, and returned to Earth on December 19, 1972. Apollo 17 was the sixth and final mission in the Apollo program to land astronauts on the Moon. The crew of Apollo 17 consisted of Commander Eugene Cernan, Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans, and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt. They spent just over three days on the lunar surface, conducting scientific experiments and exploring the Taurus-Littrow Valley region. After Apollo 17, no humans have returned to the Moon, but there have been plans and discussions about future missions to return humans to the lunar surface.