New Mexico professor seeks to save moon-landing sites

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — A New Mexico State University anthropology professor is on a mission to save moon-landing sites.

Beth O'Leary is speaking this week in Washington, D.C., on preserving the spots where humans stepped on the surface of the moon.

She is giving presentations at the National Geographic Society and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum to coincide with the 48th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission.

Her new book, "The Final Mission: Preserving NASA's Apollo Sites," looks at the exploration of space from an archaeological and historical-preservation perspective. It also details how various sites in New Mexico, Texas, California, and Florida contributed to the successful Apollo mission.

O'Leary says the Apollo 11 landing site at Tranquility Base, where humans stepped foot on the moon, should be named a National Historic landmark.