# TV camera that recorded Armstrong on moon **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 9, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264 "2012-02-09T02:21:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/1 "2012-02-09T02:21:31Z")
So when Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lem and onto the surface of the moon to become the first person on the moon, it was captured live and in glorious black and white on television beamed back instantaneously back to earth…only thing is, who set up the tv camera across the way to record neil’s first steps? if he was the first one there, how did the tv camera get there? or wasn’t he first?😕😕😕😕😕 ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/2 "2012-02-09T02:26:29Z")
From Wikipidea: 12. Who filmed Neil Armstrong stepping onto the moon? The Lunar Module did. While still on the steps, Armstrong deployed the Modularized Equipment Stowage Assembly from the side of the lunar module. This housed, amongst other things, the TV camera. This meant that upward of 600 million people on earth could take part in the live feed. > **[Moon landing conspiracy theories](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_landing_conspiracy_theories)** > > Moon landing conspiracy theories claim that some or all elements of the Apollo program and the associated Moon landings were hoaxes staged by NASA, possibly with the aid of other organizations. The most notable claim is that the six crewed landings (1969–1972) were faked and that twelve Apollo astronauts did not actually walk on the Moon. Various groups and individuals have made claims since the mid-1970s that NASA and others knowingly misled the public into believing the landings happened, b... ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/3 "2012-02-09T02:28:59Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > So when Neil Armstrong stepped out of the lem and onto the surface of the moon to become the first person on the moon, it was captured live and in glorious black and white on television beamed back instantaneously back to earth…only thing is, who set up the tv camera across the way to record neil’s first steps? if he was the first one there, how did the tv camera get there? or wasn’t he first?😕😕😕😕😕 > **[Apollo TV camera](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_TV_camera)** > > The Apollo program used several television cameras in its space missions in the late 1960s and 1970s; some of these Apollo TV cameras were also used on the later Skylab and Apollo–Soyuz Test Project missions. These cameras varied in design, with image quality improving significantly with each successive model. Two companies made these various camera systems: RCA and Westinghouse. Originally, these slow-scan television (SSTV) cameras, running at 10 frames per second (fps), produced only black-an... Westinghouse Apollo Lunar Television Camera > [@](#): > > In October 1964, NASA awarded Westinghouse the contract for the Lunar TV Camera.[2] Stan Lebar, the Program Manager for the Apollo Lunar TV Camera, headed the team at Westinghouse that developed the camera that brought pictures from the Moon’s surface. The camera was first tested in space during the Apollo 9 mission in March 1969.[3] This is the camera that was used on Apollo 11, and captured humanity’s first step on another celestial body on 21 July 1969.[3] > > [Lunar Module training mockup, showing relative position of deployed camera] Click on the images on the right to see a detail of the camera position attached to the LM when deployed ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/4 "2012-02-09T02:33:07Z")
There was a camera already on the leg of the LEM. Armstrong activated it from inside the capsule (I think it swung out) before descending the ladder. ETA: curses foiled, and with cites too. **Pablo** if this is an attempt at a “moon landings were faked” gotcha, we’ve debated this hundreds of times, and the conspiracy theorists have lost every time, so I suggest you don’t bother. ---
**Author:** ![AnalogSignal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/analogsignal/32/1085_2.png) [@AnalogSignal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnalogSignal)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/5 "2012-02-09T03:26:27Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > if he was the first one there, how did the tv camera get there? or wasn’t he first?😕😕😕😕😕 Congratulations Pablo! Billions have watched this footage but only you spotted this problem with it. Now, for the first time ever, the truth can be told. At the moment Armstrong stepped onto the moon, the rehearsal video was played back in sync with the live audio. If you look closely, you can recognize pieces of the _I Love Lucy_ set in the background behind a distant crater. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/6 "2012-02-09T03:34:39Z")
not at all, i believe the moon was landed on, several times in fact…i recently saw the old footage of neil on tv and wondered who set up the camera to record him…the shot sure didn’t look like the cam was on the door of the lem the fact that there are some legitimate questions like this leads to the conspiracy theories…another one is: the moon has gravity, its one sixth of earth but things still fall, just slower, they don’t float like in space, on the surace of the moon…so how did those american flags remain open and flat, with gravity they should get limp unless there was wind on the moon which there isnt because there isnt an atmostphere…any know this one? btw the u.s. didn’t win the moon race…the s.u., or soviet union, landed an unmanned rocket on the moon several months before neil got there…the u.s. landed the first manned space vehicle on the moon ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/7 "2012-02-09T03:40:27Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > not at all, i believe the moon was landed on, several times in fact…i recently saw the old footage of neil on tv and wondered who set up the camera to record him…the shot sure didn’t look like the cam was on the door of the lem > > the fact that there are some legitimate questions like this leads to the conspiracy theories…another one is: the moon has gravity, its one sixth of earth but things still fall, just slower, they don’t float like in space, on the surace of the moon…so how did those american flags remain open and flat, with gravity they should get limp unless there was wind on the moon which there isnt because there isnt an atmostphere…any know this one? > > btw the u.s. didn’t win the moon race…the s.u., or soviet union, landed an unmanned rocket on the moon several months before neil got there…the u.s. landed the first manned space vehicle on the moon From the same cite as above (post 2): “The flag was attached to a Г-shaped rod so that it did not hang down. The flag only seemed to flutter when the astronauts were moving it into position. Without air drag, these movements caused the free corner of the flag to swing like a pendulum for some time. The flag was rippled because it had been folded during storage—the ripples could be mistaken for movement in a still photograph. Videotapes show that when the astronauts let go of the flagpole it vibrates briefly but then remains motionless.[80].” Really, read the citation I posted. I bet most of your answers are there. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/8 "2012-02-09T03:41:38Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > btw the u.s. didn’t win the moon race…the s.u., or soviet union, landed an unmanned rocket on the moon several months before neil got there…the u.s. landed the first manned space vehicle on the moon I thought the race was to land a man on the Moon. s. u.?? ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/9 "2012-02-09T03:42:35Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > .so how did those american flags remain open and flat, with gravity they should get limp unless there was wind on the moon which there isnt because there isnt an atmostphere…any know this one? Gee, we can put a Man on the Moon but it’s beyond our technology to put a little horizontal stabilizer on a flag. Good Point, for all the rest of your ‘questions’, watch Mythbusters. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/10 "2012-02-09T03:42:37Z")
> [@Pablo O'Malley](#): > > the fact that there are some legitimate questions like this leads to the conspiracy theories It’s more that people like you haven’t even bothered to do the slightest bit of research. > [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > so how did those american flags remain open and flat The flagpole was an [upside-down L](http://www.clavius.org/envflutter.html). Next? Your use of “moon race” is also meaningless. While orbiting and putting a probe onto the moon was impressive, most of the world accepts that a manned moon landing knocked it out of the park. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/11 "2012-02-09T03:45:24Z")
For any more of these questions, [have a little read first](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_landing_conspiracy_theories). There are many citations in that article, which stands as a good starting point. ---
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/12 "2012-02-09T04:28:40Z")
why would i waste time doing research? isn’t that what this forum is for, to ask questions and get immediate answers from people who know it…i could spend all day at the library too anyway, in an interview i saw with buzz aldrin a few yrs back he revealed a lot of ‘dirt’ about the mission that was never known, or at least not at the time…for one, he said when the lem took off from the moon to rejoin the orbiter the blast of exhaust knocked down all the american flags they’d planted…they saw it happen out the window of the lem…they never said anything when they got back because all the photos showed the flags still uprite and no one was the wiser and they thought it would somehow less the accomplishment if the flags denoting american territory had fallen down…he also said they dumped a bunch of trash on the moon, empty food and drink tubes and other containers, etc…including yes their human waste, so the spaceship was lighter and needed less fuel to get back…they didnt reveal anything about this either at the time because there was enough controversy about the space program, ie could the money be better used on earth, and they didn’t want to start another debate about polluting the moon with trash ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/13 "2012-02-09T05:22:46Z")
I find this a bit odd. I well remember comments about the flag falling over at the time. As to the disposal of unneeded equipment ans waste, this was also well known. A little after, Hassleblad ran a set of averts pointing out that there were some free cameras for anyone who could go and get them. All of the procedures were very carefully documented and available. Every last aspect of the missions was meticulously planned. Again, I well remember discussion about the pre-launch procedures, and the step where they threw out a pile of unneeded stuff. One that stuck in my mind was the lunar overboots. If you want to learn more it is hard to go past NASA’s own [archive](http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/main.html) of documentation. The Apollo 14 lunar [liftoff footage](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LppU2Dy0pOk&feature=related) leaves one in little doubt about the effect of the flagpole - although in this case it would appear that this one might have managed to stay upright. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/14 "2012-02-09T05:25:01Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > s. u.?? You never heard the classic Beatles song, “Back in the S.U.”? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/15 "2012-02-09T05:40:06Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > why would i waste time doing research? isn’t that what this forum is for, to ask questions and get immediate answers from people who know it…i could spend all day at the library too This forum is for getting answers when other sources of information have been exhausted. It’s not for other people to do your googling for you. [Also](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=466202): > [@General Questions Rules & FAQs](#): > > 1. Before opening a new thread, search the archives! [/Junior mod] ---
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/16 "2012-02-09T05:57:18Z")
jjimm were u the kind of kid in school who volunteered to be a hall monitor, and reminded the teacher when she forgot to give out homework? ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/17 "2012-02-09T06:00:56Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > jjimm were u the kind of kid in school who volunteered to be a hall monitor, and reminded the teacher when she forgot to give out homework? No, just not keen on lazy conspiracy theorists spamming up GQ. ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/18 "2012-02-09T06:02:15Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > jjimm were u the kind of kid in school who volunteered to be a hall monitor, and reminded the teacher when she forgot to give out homework? No, that was _me_. And I agree with **jjimm** , we’re not your personal research team. ---
**Author:** ![Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablo_O_Malley)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/19 "2012-02-09T06:13:39Z")
Pork did u get beat up a lot as a kid ---
**Author:** ![Santos\_L\_Halper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/santos_l_halper/32/1_2.png) [@Santos\_L\_Halper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santos_L_Halper)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2012, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264/20 "2012-02-09T07:01:21Z")
> [@Pablo\_O\_Malley](#): > > btw the u.s. didn’t win the moon race…the s.u., or soviet union, landed an unmanned rocket on the moon several months before neil got there Years, actually. Both the US and Russia landed multiple unmanned spacecraft on the moon, starting in 1966. But, as mentioned, the moon race was to land an _astronaut_ on the moon. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tv-camera-that-recorded-armstrong-on-moon/612264.md?page=2)