Editing Moon landing conspiracy theories (section)

=== Photographic and film oddities ===

Moon-landing conspiracists focus heavily on NASA photos, pointing to oddities in photos and films taken on the Moon. Photography experts (including those unrelated to NASA) have replied that the oddities are consistent with what should be expected from a real Moon landing, and are not consistent with manipulated or studio imagery. Some main arguments (set in plain text) and counter-arguments (set in italics) are listed below.

1. In some photos, the [[Reticle|crosshairs]] appear to be behind objects. The cameras were fitted with a [[Réseau plate]] (a clear glass plate with a reticle etched on), making it impossible for any photographed object to appear in front of the grid. Conspiracists often use this evidence to suggest that objects were "pasted" over the photographs, and hence obscure the reticle.

:* ''This effect only appears in copied and scanned photos, not any originals. It is caused by overexposure: the bright white areas of the emulsion "bleed" over the thin black crosshairs. The crosshairs are only about 0.004 inches thick (0.1 mm) and emulsion would only have to bleed about half that much to fully obscure it. Furthermore, there are many photos where the middle of the crosshair is "washed-out" but the rest is intact. In some photos of the American flag, parts of one crosshair appear on the red stripes, but parts of the same crosshair are faded or invisible on the white stripes. There would have been no reason to "paste" white stripes onto the flag.''<ref name="clavius-crosshairs">{{cite web |url=http://www.clavius.org/photoret.html |title=Clavius: Photography – Crosshairs |last=Windley |first=Jay |website=Moon Base Clavius |publisher=Clavius.org |access-date=April 20, 2013}}</ref>

{{Gallery
|title=
|align=center
|width=200
|File:Apollo 11 1998 scan cropped.jpg|Enlargement of a poor-quality 1998 scan; both the crosshair and part of the red stripe have "bled out"<!-- Do NOT replace this with a different/better version. This version is used to illustrate what is discussed in the article. -->
|File:Apollo 11 2004 scan cropped.jpg|Enlargement of a higher-quality 2004 scan, crosshair and red stripe visible
|File:Scott Gives Salute - GPN-2000-001114.jpg|[[David Scott]] salutes the American flag during the [[Apollo 15]] mission. The arms of the crosshair are washed-out on the white stripes of the flag (Photo ID: AS15-88-11863).
|File:Apollo 15 flag crop.jpg|Close-up of the flag, showing washed-out crosshairs
}}

2. Crosshairs are sometimes rotated or in the wrong place.

:* ''This is a result of popular photos being cropped or rotated for aesthetic impact.''<ref name="clavius-crosshairs" />

3. The quality of the photographs is implausibly high.

:* ''There are many poor quality photos taken by the Apollo astronauts. NASA chose to publish only the best examples.''<ref name="clavius-crosshairs" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.clavius.org/photoqual.html | title=Clavius: Photography – image quality |last=Windley |first=Jay |website=Moon Base Clavius |publisher=Clavius.org |access-date=September 5, 2009}}</ref>
:* ''The Apollo astronauts used high-resolution [[Hasselblad]] 500 EL cameras with [[Carl Zeiss AG|Carl Zeiss optics]] and a 70&nbsp;mm [[Medium format (film)|medium format]] film magazine.''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar/missions/apollo/apollo_11/photography/ |title=Apollo 11 Mission Photography |publisher=[[Lunar and Planetary Institute]] |access-date=July 23, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hasselblad.com/about-hasselblad/hasselblad-in-space/space-cameras.aspx |title=Space Cameras |website=Hasselblad in Space |publisher=Victor Hasselblad AB |access-date=May 6, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510154205/http://www.hasselblad.com/about-hasselblad/hasselblad-in-space/space-cameras.aspx |archive-date=May 10, 2013}}</ref>

4. There are no stars in any of the photos; the Apollo 11 astronauts also stated in post-mission press conferences that they did not remember seeing any stars during [[extravehicular activity]] (EVA).<ref>[[#Kaysing|Kaysing 2002]], pp. 20, 21, 22, 23</ref> Conspiracists contend that NASA chose not to put the stars into the photos because astronomers would have been able to use them to determine whether the photos were taken from the Earth or the Moon, by means of identifying them and comparing their celestial position and [[parallax]] to what would be expected for either observation site.

:* ''The astronauts were talking about naked-eye sightings of stars during the lunar daytime. They regularly sighted stars through the spacecraft navigation optics while aligning their inertial reference platforms, the [[Apollo PGNCS]].''<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/alsj-AOTNavStarsDetents.html |title=Navigation Stars used in the AOT |last1=Jones |first1=Eric M. |date=January 21, 2012 |website=Apollo Lunar Surface Journal |publisher=NASA |access-date=September 28, 2014}}</ref>

:* ''Stars are rarely seen in [[Space Shuttle]], [[Mir]], Earth observation photos, or even photos taken at sporting events held at night. The light from the Sun in outer space in the Earth-Moon system is at least as bright as the sunlight that reaches the Earth's surface on a clear day at noon, so cameras used for imaging subjects illuminated by sunlight are set for a [[Sunny 16 rule|daylight exposure]]. The dim light of the stars simply does not provide enough exposure to record visible images. All crewed landings happened during the lunar daytime. Thus, the stars were outshone by the Sun and by sunlight reflected off the Moon's surface. The astronauts' eyes were adapted to the sunlit landscape around them so that they could not see the relatively faint stars.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/blogs/earthmatters/2011/09/28/where-are-the-stars/ |title=Where are the stars? |last=Carlowicz |first=Mike |date=September 28, 2011 |work=[[NASA Earth Observatory]] |publisher=NASA |type=Blog |access-date=April 20, 2013}}</ref><ref>[[#Plait|Plait 2002]], pp. 158–160</ref> The astronauts could see stars with the naked eye only when they were in the shadow of the Moon.''<ref>[[#Woods|Woods 2008]], pp. 206–207</ref><ref>[[#Harrison|Harrison 2012]], pp. 95–96</ref>

:* ''Camera settings can turn a well-lit background to black when the foreground object is brightly lit, forcing the camera to increase shutter speed so that the foreground light does not wash out the image. A demonstration of this effect is here.<ref>[[:File:Lamp-and-moon-example-2.JPG]]</ref> The effect is similar to not being able to see stars from a brightly lit parking lot at night; the stars only become visible when the lights are turned off.''

:* ''The Far Ultraviolet Camera was taken to the lunar surface on [[Apollo 16]] and operated in the shadow of the [[Apollo Lunar Module]] (LM). It took photos of Earth and of many stars, some of which are dim in visible light but bright in the ultraviolet. These observations were later matched with observations taken by orbiting ultraviolet telescopes. Furthermore, the positions of those stars with respect to Earth are correct for the time and location of the Apollo 16 photos.''<ref>{{cite journal |last=Keel |first=William C. |date=July 2007 |title=The Earth and Stars in the Lunar Sky |journal=Skeptical Inquirer |volume=31 |issue=4 |pages=47–50 |location=Amherst, NY |publisher=Committee for Skeptical Inquiry}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.astr.ua.edu/keel/space/Apollo16EarthID.gif |title=Apollo16EarthID.gif |last=Keel |first=William C. |website=UA Astronomy Home Page|format=[[Graphics Interchange Format|GIF]] |access-date=May 8, 2013}} Base image: AS16-123-19657; Earth image start: 1233 CDT 21 April 1972; Field shown: 18.9 degrees.</ref>

:* ''Photos of the solar corona that included the planet [[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]] and some background stars were taken from lunar orbit by Apollo 15 Command Module Pilot [[Al Worden]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/luceneweb/caption_direct.jsp?photoId=AS15-98-13311 |title=Solar corona photographed from Apollo 15 one minute prior to sunrise |date=July 31, 1971 |work=JSC Digital Image Collection |publisher=[[Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center]] |id=Photo ID: AS15-98-13311 |access-date=April 26, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217205048/http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/luceneweb/caption_direct.jsp?photoId=AS15-98-13311 |archive-date=February 17, 2013}}</ref>

:* ''Photos of the planet [[Venus]] were taken from the Moon's surface by astronaut [[Alan Shepard]] during the Apollo 14 mission.''<ref name="venusovera14">{{cite web |url=http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a14/a14Venus.html |title=Venus over the Apollo 14 LM |last1=Lunsford |first1=Danny Ross |last2=Jones |first2=Eric M. |year=2007 |work=Apollo Lunar Surface Journal |publisher=NASA |access-date=May 8, 2013|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080506204733/http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a14/a14Venus.html |archive-date= May 6, 2008}}</ref>

{{Gallery
|title=
|align=center
|width=200
|File:213177main s122e010982 hires.jpg|Short-exposure photo of the [[International Space Station]] (ISS) taken from {{OV|104}} in February 2008 during [[STS-122]] – one of many photos taken in space where no stars are visible
|File:Earth & Mir (STS-71).jpg|Earth and ''[[Mir]]'' in June 1995, an example of how sunlight can outshine the stars, making them invisible
|File:Apollo 16 UV photo of Earth rotated.jpg|Long-exposure photo taken from the Moon's surface by [[Apollo 16]] astronauts using the Far Ultraviolet Camera. It shows the Earth with the correct background of stars.
|File:Space Shuttle Atlantis in the sky on July 21, 2011, to its final landing.jpg|Long-exposure photo (1.6 seconds at f-2.8, [[Film speed#ISO|ISO]] 10000) from the ISS in July 2011 of Space Shuttle ''Atlantis'' re-entry in which some stars are visible.
In this image, the Earth is lit by moonlight, not sunlight.
}}

5. The angle and color of shadows are inconsistent. This suggests that artificial lights were used.

:* ''Shadows on the Moon are complicated by reflected light, uneven ground, wide-angle lens distortion, and [[lunar dust]]. There are several light sources: the Sun, sunlight reflected from the Earth, sunlight reflected from the Moon's surface, and sunlight reflected from the astronauts and the Lunar Module. Light from these sources is scattered by lunar dust in many directions, including into shadows. Shadows falling into craters and hills may appear longer, shorter, and distorted.<ref>[[#Plait|Plait 2002]], pp. 167–172</ref> Furthermore, shadows display the properties of [[vanishing point]] perspective, leading them to converge to a point on the horizon.''
:* This theory was further debunked on the 2008 ''[[MythBusters]]'' episode "[[MythBusters (2008 season)#Episode 104 – "NASA Moon Landing"|NASA Moon Landing]]".

6. There are identical backgrounds in photos which were allegedly taken miles apart. This suggests that a painted background was used.

:* ''Backgrounds were not identical, just similar. What appear as nearby hills in some photos are actually mountains many miles away. On Earth, objects that are farther away will appear fainter and less detailed. On the Moon, there is no atmosphere or haze to obscure far-away objects, thus they appear clearer and nearer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iangoddard.com/moon01.htm |title=Goddard's Journal: Are Apollo Moon Photos Fake? |last=Goddard |first=Ian Williams |date=February 26, 2001 |website=Iangoddard.com |access-date=November 25, 2008}}</ref> Furthermore, there are very few objects such as trees to help judge distance. One such case is debunked in "Who Mourns For Apollo?" by Mike Bara.''<ref name="whomourns">{{cite web|url=http://www.studyphysics.ca/apollo2.pdf |title=Who Mourns For Apollo? Part II |last1=Bara |first1=Michael |last2=Troy |first2=Steve |website=Mr. Clintberg's Studyphysics! |publisher=LunarAnomalies.com |access-date=November 13, 2010 }} Part I with Steve Troy and Richard C. Hoagland is available [http://www.studyphysics.ca/apollo1.pdf here] (PDF). Part III by Steve Troy has been archived from the original by the [https://web.archive.org/web/20090610025602/http://www.lunaranomalies.com/rad.htm Wayback Machine] on June 10, 2009.</ref>

7. The number of photos taken is implausibly high—up to one photo per 50 seconds.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aulis.com/skeleton.htm |title=The skeleton in NASA's spacesuit |last=White |first=Jack |year=2005 |website=AULIS Online |publisher=AULIS Publishing |location=London |access-date=November 25, 2008}}</ref>

:* ''Simplified gear with fixed settings allowed two photos a second. Many were taken immediately after each other as stereo pairs or panorama sequences. The calculation (one per 50 seconds) was based on a lone astronaut on the surface, and does not take into account that there were two astronauts sharing the workload and simultaneously taking photographs during an [[Extra-vehicular activity]] (EVA).''

8. The photos contain artifacts like the two seemingly matching "C"s on a rock and on the ground. These may be labeled studio props.

:* ''The C-shaped objects are most likely printing imperfections and do not appear in the original film from the camera. It has been suggested that the "C" is a coiled hair.''<ref name="whomourns" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.clavius.org/rover1.html |title=Clavius: Photo Analysis – lunar rover |last=Windley |first=Jay |website=Moon Base Clavius |publisher=Clavius.org |access-date=September 5, 2009}}</ref>

{{Gallery
|title=
|align=center
|width=200
|File:Apollo 16 rocks.jpg|Original AS16-107-17445 photograph
|File:Duke on the Descartes - GPN-2000-001123.jpg|Original AS16-107-17446 photograph
|Image:Apollo16CRock.jpg|Close-up of later generation prints of AS16-107-17446<!-- do NOT replace this by a different/better version. This version is used to illustrate what is discussed in the article. -->
}}

9. A woman named Una Ronald (a pseudonym created by the authors of the source<ref>[[#Bennett & Percy|Bennett & Percy 2001]], p. 321</ref>) from Perth, Australia, said that she saw a [[Coca-Cola]] bottle roll across the lower right quadrant of her television screen that was displaying the live broadcast of the Apollo 11 EVA. She also said that several letters appeared in ''[[The West Australian]]'' discussing the Coca-Cola bottle incident within ten days of the lunar landing.<ref>[[#Bennett & Percy|Bennett & Percy 2001]], pp. 319–320</ref>

:* ''No such newspaper reports or recordings have been found.<ref name="cokebottle">{{cite web |url=http://www.clavius.org/bibcoke.html |title=Clavius: Bibliography – una ronald and the coke bottle |last=Windley |first=Jay |website=Moon Base Clavius |publisher=Clavius.org |access-date=May 23, 2013}}</ref> Ronald's claims have only been relayed by one source.<ref name="ReferenceA">[[#Bennett & Percy|Bennett & Percy 2001]]</ref> There are also flaws in the story, such as the statement that she had to stay up late to watch the Moon landing live, which is easily discounted by many witnesses in Australia who watched the landing in the middle of the daytime.''<ref>[[#Bennett & Percy|Bennett & Percy 2001]], p. 319</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.webwombat.com.au/careers_ed/education/fly-to-moon.htm |title=Fly Me to the Moon |last=Anthony |first=James |work=Web Wombat |publisher=Web Wombat Pty Ltd |access-date=November 25, 2008}}</ref>

10. The 1994 book ''[[Moon Shot]]''<ref>[[#Shepard & Slayton|Shepard & Slayton 1994]] {{page needed|date=July 2021}}</ref> contains an obviously fake composite photo of Alan Shepard hitting a golf ball on the Moon with another astronaut.

:* '' It was used instead of the only existing real images from the TV monitor, which the editors seemingly felt were too grainy for their book. The book publishers did not work for NASA, although the authors were retired NASA astronauts.''

11. There appear to be "hot spots" in some photos which look as though a large spotlight was used in place of the Sun.

:* '' Pits on the Moon's surface focus and reflect light like the tiny glass spheres used in the coating of street signs, or dewdrops on wet grass. This creates a glow around the photographer's own shadow when it appears in a photograph (see [[Heiligenschein]]).''
:* ''If the astronaut is standing in sunlight while photographing into shade, light reflected off his white spacesuit yields a similar effect to a spotlight.<ref name="bootspot">{{cite web|url=http://www.clavius.org/bootspot.html |title=Clavius: Photo Analysis – buzz's hot spot |last=Windley |first=Jay |website=Moon Base Clavius |publisher=Clavius.org |access-date=June 25, 2009}}</ref>''
:* ''Some widely published Apollo photos were high-contrast copies. Scans of the original transparencies are generally much more evenly lit. An example is shown below:''

{{Gallery
|title=
|align=center
|width=200
|File:Aldrin Apollo 11 original.jpg|Original photo of Buzz Aldrin during [[Apollo 11]]
|File:Aldrin Apollo 11.jpg|The more famous edited version. The contrast has been increased, yielding the "spotlight effect", and a black band has been pasted at the top.
}}

12. Who filmed Neil Armstrong stepping onto the Moon?
[[File:ApolloTVCameraOnLunarModule.jpg|right|thumb|upright=0.6|The Apollo TV camera as it was mounted on the side of the Lunar Module]]
:* ''Cameras on the Lunar Module did. The [[Apollo TV camera]] mounted in the Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly (MESA) of the [[Apollo Lunar Module]] gave a view from the exterior. While still on the Module's ladder steps, Armstrong deployed the MESA from the side of the Lunar Module, unpacking the TV camera. The camera was then powered on and a signal transmitted back to Earth. This meant that upwards of 600 million people on Earth could watch the live feed with only a very slight delay. Similar technology was also used on subsequent Apollo missions.''<ref>{{cite book |last = Steven-Boniecki |first= Dwight |title= Live TV From the Moon |year= 2010 |publisher=[[Apogee Books]] |location= Burlington, Ontario |isbn= 978-1926592169}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=A Detailed Look at the Camera Gear Behind the Historical Apollo 11 Moon Landing |url=https://petapixel.com/2014/07/29/a-detailed-look-at-the-camera-tech-behind-the-historical-apollo-11-moon-landing/ |website=petapixel.com |date=July 29, 2014 |access-date=March 11, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Photography During Apollo |url=https://www.history.nasa.gov/apollo_photo.html |website=www.history.nasa.gov |access-date=March 11, 2019 |archive-date=February 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200226104037/https://www.history.nasa.gov/apollo_photo.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Teitel |first1=Amy Shira |title=How NASA Broadcast Neil Armstrong Live from the Moon |url=https://www.popsci.com/how-nasa-broadcast-neil-armstrong-live-from-moon |access-date=March 11, 2019 |work=Popular Science |date=February 5, 2016 }}</ref> ''It was also filmed from an automatic 16mm movie camera mounted in a window of the Lunar Module.''