Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) #002

This Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) #002 was used by returning Apollo 12 astronauts Alan L. Bean, Richard Gordon, and Charles Conrad. The MQF was fabricated with an Airstream shell built on a customized platform, complete with living space and a medical diagnostic center. The MQF program was developed in reaction to fears about human exposure to possible Moon organisms unknown on Earth that could initiate an uncontrollable epidemic. Its initial use was by the Apollo 11 crew, the first humans to experience the Moon's environment. The crew stayed in the MQF while it was flown from the recovery aircraft carrier Hornet to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, and then for several more days while at the center, for a total confinement of approximately 65 hours. When the Apollo 12 and Apollo 14 crews also exited the quarters healthy, the quarantine process was discontinued. A unit built for Apollo 13 was not used, due to its emergency return to Earth before a Moon landing.

After the crews returned from their missions on the Moon, there was a fear they would carry unknown microoganisms that would affect the general population on Earth. Biological Isolation Garments (BIGs) were used to isolate the crew from the Earth's environment and from contact with recovery personnel. These garments were constructed from a fabric which effectively isolated microorganisms from the crewman's body. The garment was donned in the spacecraft before the helicopter hoist operation and was worn until the crew entered the Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) aboard the primary recovery ship.