A bag containing traces of moon dust sold for US$1.8 million at an auction following a court battle.
The collection bag, used by astronaut Neil Armstrong during the first manned mission to the moon in 1969, was sold at an auction in the US of items related to space voyages.
The buyer declined to be identified.
The pre‑sale estimate was US$2m to US$4m.
The artifact from the Apollo 11 mission had been misidentified and sold at an online government auction, and Nasa had fought to get it back.
But in December a federal judge ruled that it legally belonged to a Chicago‑area woman who bought it in 2015 for US$995.
The bag, which contains traces of the collected samples, is the only such relic available for private ownership.
US District Judge Thomas Marten said that while it shouldn't have gone up for auction he didn't have the authority to reverse the sale.
He ordered the government to return it.
Source: AP
