Nikon’s long history with developing equipment for Nasa had resulted in many technological improvements that Nikon incorporated into their professional camera line, so unlike the F3 and the F models, cameras no longer need a myriad of modifications made, which kept costs down for both Nasa and Nikon.” “The Nasa Nikon F5, like the F4S model that preceded it, was virtually identical to the commercial version available to the public, save for the replacement and reformulation of internal lubricants that would be able to meet Nasa’s stringent requirements. It made its debut in December of 1998 aboard the Shuttle Endeavour. “The Nikon F5 was the last 35mm film-based camera that Nasa took into space.

The camera’s listing says: “In the late 1990s, Nasa procured approximately 35 Nikon F5 camera bodies from Nikon for IVA (intra-vehicular activity used aboard the spacecraft) and 35 bodies for EVA (extra-vehicular activity used on spacewalks outside of the spacecraft. That’s a conservative price given that it can’t be 100% proved that the camera went into space, though its used condition and modifications hint that it may indeed have spent time in orbit. The camera is being sold with a Buy It Now price of $3,499.99 (£2,685.75). The camera, which comes with stickers from its time with Nasa, was bought from Nasa’s Johnson Space Center when the Shuttle programme was mothballed, the seller says. The last film camera Nasa took into space was the Nikon F5, the battle-proof monster that remains probably the toughest autofocus SLR ever built.Īnd now, you have the chance to buy one that maybe – just maybe – went into space.ĮBay seller Spud, based in Mesa Arizona, is selling a Nikon F5 with an MF28 back once owned by Nasa, and one of a batch of 70 bought by the space agency for work on inside – and outside – the Space Shuttle and International Space Station (ISS) during missions in the late 1990s and early 2000s. KF article top The F5 was one of a batch of 70 Nasa bought in the late 1990s (All pics: Spud/eBay)

Nikon f5