COMPLETE STATIC READING EDITION
Why the moonwalkers look see-through.
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You can see through them.
In parts of the Apollo 11 broadcast, the astronauts look semi-transparent, and background features show through their bodies. That is what you would expect if separate images were layered together. [1]
Popular-science explainer on slow-scan TV conversion.
A camera tube and a camera pointed at a screen.
The lunar camera sent 10 frames per second in a non-standard format. To broadcast it, stations pointed a regular TV camera at a monitor showing the lunar picture. Moving figures left trails, giving the ghostly look. [1]
The Apollo Lunar Surface Journal traces the white spots to the scan converters at Goldstone, Honeysuckle and Sydney, likely defects in the vidicon camera tubes. Different stations’ pictures show different spots, which points to equipment on Earth, not on the Moon. [2]
NASA’s 2009 restoration cleaned up much of this. [3]
Popular-science explainer on slow-scan TV conversion.
Technical analysis by John Sarkissian and colleagues of white spots and “ghostly” effects in the Apollo 11 TV.
Primary institutional record. Carried from the first edition and re-listed 23 October 2026; cited for the specific point in the text.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS FILE
2 claims people make about this file, each rated documented, partly true, disputed, unproven or false. Think a rating is wrong? Use Dispute or Support, or join the Discussion.
Ghosting came from scan conversion of slow-scan TV.
Who says it: Viral videos.
They came from scan converters on Earth.
Who says it: Viral videos.
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