Is this object planet Earth??

Guys, I was just wondering about this photograph on the Moon taken by John Young of Apollo 16 whilst exploring Plum Crater.



What is it in the background? If it's Earth, or the sun, then why is it elongated? Or is it due to camera shake? Isn't the sun supposed to be a little higher which means outside the frame?

If that's the sun, then isn't the halo supposed to be uniform around it?
Or is it due to atmospheric conditions? Jeez! I'm now entering slippery territory. Atmosphere on the Moon? Where's John Lear??!

Here..





[edit on 30-9-2006 by mikesingh]

I read somewhere that it is a exterrestrial orb watching the astronaunts when they landed on the moon.

There appears to be another, smaller source of light to the left, directly above the rover.

It could be a "half-earth". Ever look at the moon from earth? It's not always full. Often a section of it is "cut-off". The same thing happens on the moon.

And it makes sense too. The sun's "above" in this photo - so it's above both the earth and the moon. The reflection from the sun is also bouncing off the earth towards the moon, but the angle is such that greater that 50% of the earth (from the moon, which is already only half) is not recieving light.

And why can we see the earth with the much brighter sun overhead? On the moon, there's no atmosphere to scatter the light into that bluish haze we can the sky.

Originally posted by Yarium
On the moon, there's no atmosphere to scatter the light into that bluish haze we can the sky.

Oh yeah? No atmosphere? Ask John Lear. Check it out here and in his question forum!

[url=http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread225616/pg1]->Click here

More similar stuff... from the "Casper" flight...

AS16-114-18423 Top LH corner area? Two "flares" or whatever central too.
AS16-108-17671 Nuther' whatever central.
AS16-108-17728 Same thing.
AS16-108-17729 Same sorta thing as the first listed top LH corner.

Here's a resource for Apollo Era photos.

www.apolloarchive.com...

Thanx,

Victor K.

38'


[edit on 30-9-2006 by V Kaminski]

Originally posted by mikesingh
Oh yeah? No atmosphere? Ask John Lear. Check it out here and in his question forum!

I don't get it... it's pictures of the moon... whoppdee do. How does this mean there's an atmosphere?

If I understand correctly, they referance a conspiracy of an alien moon-base... but that's BESIDE the point. I'm not here to argue about that conspiracy, I'm here saying that there is no atmosphere on the moon.

My mistake, there is one, but it's essentially nill. It's 1 step away from vacuum. It's like the marshmellow in the vacuum chamber that explodes because there's next to no air. But then again, the entire universe is filled with a few dozen atoms per cubic metre, so then you can argue that there's "air" in space. Essentially, fundamentally, there is not.

So, yeah, what's your point with that off-topic distraction to a supposed moon base? It doesn't say that there's no air.

And whoever said that John Lear is right anyways?

Yes it is Earth, the sun is overead in the photo so it is also overhead on the earth so you can see the 'half earth'

To me it just looks like glare. Anyone else agree?

Remember it is a old camera, also it could be a reflection.

Those moon pictures show some kind of reflection from the Sun. If you look at these reflections and see where the Sun is shining from, you will notice that they are coming from the Sun's direction.

As for a real UFO around Sun light, here it is: www.figu.org...

Yeah to me it looks like the upper portion of earth. I dunno what season it is but Alaska has a point in time where there is no night-time , so it would make sense that the top part of the earth is lit like that. The earth would appear to people on the moon as the moon appears to us in Phases I would imagine.


Pie

Originally posted by Xeros
To me it just looks like glare. Anyone else agree?

Yep!

Thats what I was thinking.
Lens flare, including the whole prism effect on around the edges.
Look at the shadows, it's pretty obvious to me that the sun is facing the camera, just a little above and outside the frame.

Something, most likely optical seems a likely a credible explanation (I could be wrong). Dec. 24, 1968: AS8-14-2383 Now that's for sure is planet Earth... Great Apollo 8 pic.

Victor K.

38'

[edit on 30-9-2006 by V Kaminski]

I dunno what season it is but Alaska has a point in time where there is no night-time , so it would make sense that the top part of the earth is lit like that

Its not necessarily the 'top' ie north of the earth. It depends what angle theearth is seen from, remember there is no up, down left or right in space. the part that is lit could be the east or west!

That is a lens flare with out a doubt. The sun is infront and above the camera (or upsun as they call it) and it's creating a lens flare. There are many many photos like this.

EDIT: examples from that very same mission.

161.115.184.211...
161.115.184.211... [this is the same picture as the one posted at the start of the thread, but uncroped]

[edit on 30-9-2006 by jra]

It's a stagehand lighting a cigarette.

I would like to say that that is one of my favorite pictures of the lunar topography. It provides an excellent perspective.

It is Earth alright...astronauts are walking on it.

When you zoom into the guys helmet and look at what it is reflecting, I may be just seeing things but maybe you guys know if theres anything wrong here...

You can clearly see it if you can zoom in that far from about 400% upwards. In fact I can see the red box in the OP if I look carefully. Is this just a target frame? When you zoom into 800% plus, the pixels just don't fit in with the surrounding pixels. There is a strange blue hue in the top left but again it is not in keeping with surrounding pixels, it all just looks out of place. Innocent?

Struggling to get a saved copy of the zoom in.

it doesnt appear in the images in the links posted by jra.

[edit on 1/10/06 by Prote]

Originally posted by V Kaminski
Something, most likely optical seems a likely a credible explanation (I could be wrong). Dec. 24, 1968: AS8-14-2383 Now that's for sure is planet Earth... Great Apollo 8 pic.

Victor K.

Great pic Victor! Now guys, you can see what the Earth should look like from the Moon.

And the light reflected by the 'object' is too bright to be the Earth. Could be a lense flare as pointed out by jra. But if it is, why two, in one shot? And where are the radiant 'spokes' one usually sees in a lense flare?

And of course you must've noticed the glare/haze on the Moon. Can there be any in a vacuum?? But that's another story.

[edit on 1-10-2006 by mikesingh]