# Apollo 13 transcript typos? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 13, 2024, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715 "2024-10-13T14:51:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/1 "2024-10-13T14:51:36Z")
If you click on [Apollo 13 Transcripts](https://www.nasa.gov/history/alsj/a13/a13trans.html), there is an Apollo 13 Technical Air-to-Ground Transcript, which is “the raw transcript provided by NASA to the press during the mission.” I have noticed some obvious errors, e.g., at 03:00:37:39 it reads “the Sun… will septend an arc of one-half degree”. Makes me wonder if some of the many, many figures were transcribed incorrectly. Also, there are dots and asterisks where the audio was garbled or clipped. It’s been a while, so: is there a better transcript available? Is there a digital copy of the raw tapes available (which could be cleaned up somewhat with some modern processing)? I am not in a hurry to re-enact the mission, but this kind of stuff may be of historical interest. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/2 "2024-10-13T15:09:18Z")
This has all the audio as far as I can tell, I’m not sure about indexing or how you track down what you want specifically though. > **[Apollo 13 in Real Time](https://apolloinrealtime.org/13/)** > > A real-time interactive journey through the third lunar landing attempt. Relive every moment as it occurred in 1970. I got into this a while back when I was trying to track down the famous hot dog ketchup/mustard dispute. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/3 "2024-10-13T15:36:11Z")
**ETA: Oh, it’s a spelling mistake we’re talking about? “septend” vs “subtend”? I see. The logs at the link above (and below) have it spelled correctly.** What’s the obvious error? That’s exactly what he says. “Aquarius, uh, Houston, uh. Freddo, on that uh, to pass that check, the sun is at uhh will subtend an arc of one-half degree uh in the AOT” > **[Apollo 13 in Real Time](https://apolloinrealtime.org/13/?t=072:37:39)** > > A real-time interactive journey through the third lunar landing attempt. Relive every moment as it occurred in 1970. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/4 "2024-10-13T16:46:16Z")
It’s a spelling error, and obviously the Sun _does_ subtend an arc of one-half degree. However, if that NASA transcript was not proofread as far as spelling, how can I trust that where it says 33499 it was not really 33449 or 34499, is what I am getting at. The logs you linked to, which do not contain that particular spelling error so might have been independently transcribed, where do they originally come from? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/5 "2024-10-13T16:48:07Z")
What’s it to you? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/6 "2024-10-13T16:52:09Z")
Maybe I want to [simulate the mission](https://nassp.space/index.php/Main_Page) on my computer… There are conceivable reasons to want or hope the official transcripts to be accurate. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2024, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/7 "2024-10-13T16:53:22Z")
Well, then. You had better be accurate, right? ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2024, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/8 "2024-10-14T21:11:05Z")
I found Jim Lovell saying, see e.g. [here](https://www.nasa.gov/history/afj/ap13fj/12day4-approach-moon.html), that the transcription released to the press was garbled. So it would be a mistake to rely on that particular document for anything. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2024, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apollo-13-transcript-typos/1008715/9 "2024-10-15T10:51:46Z")
[Moderating] > [@beowulff](#): > > What’s it to you? What it is to the OP is that he’s curious. Which is what it is to most OPs of most threads in FQ. This is verging very close to threadshitting. Stop it.