What Is Going On Here?
What Is Going On Here?
One of the Apollo photographic anomalies from the NASA Flickr archive.
All images in this article courtesy of NASA.
The debate rages on regarding the NASA Apollo moon images. Much has been said about the missing stars, parallel shadows, etc. In my search of the Flickr NASA Apollo archive and the archive at ApolloArchive.com feature some curious images. The two CSM’s are just two of many in the archive.
The Image
The image above is from the Apollo 17 mission, the last Apollo Mission to the moon. To the left is AS17-145-22272 and the right is AS17-148-22756.
What a difference they both are! The CSM (command service module) on the left is shiny, highly reflective and pristine looking. The image to the right looks like it’s been through reentry or some other heavy damage and appears to have received heavy wear and tear. The texture is different as well. While the CSM on the left is smooth the image on the left has a patchwork of metal square and rectangular tiles. Both of these images were taken in space by one of the astronauts from the LM (lunar module).
Notice the tape on the window moulding on CSM on the right with none on the image to the left. When did this happen? Because it clearly was not there on the image to the left. It almost appears as if this is some other CSM from some other mission, or else the image was mistakenly placed in the wrong batch. It also appears as if these are two differently constructed spacecraft with one sporting a jury-rigged tape repair job. It should also be pointed out there was no documented EVA mission to repair the ship’s exterior.
And below, are several different images of this other CSM in the NASA Flickr Apollo 17 archive.
Another place of heavy wear are the thrusters. In fact, they are in such bad shape they appear to be corroded with rust. Below, the actual capsule on display showing the actual heat damage from reentry—and no rusted thruster ports.
Obviously, the wear and tear of the CSM on display is markedly different from the AS17-148-22756 damage, indicating a different capsule was being used.
Notwithstanding, this situation with markedly different CSM images, with different exteriors and one in an apparently damaged state, is quite peculiar. What is going on here?
Sources
Project Apollo Archive
https://www.flickr.com/photos/projectapolloarchive/albums
The Project Apollo Archive (unsecured site - features pre-launch and astronaut training images.)