NASA-UAP-D009, Apollo 17 Audio Excerpt, December 7, 1972
5/10
solid newsworthy item
UAP Insight significance score
- Author
- NASA
- Published
- May 22, 2026
- Event date
- 1972-12-07
- Location
- Apollo spacecraft·Saturn S-IVB stage
- Object type
- particles or fragments
pursuerelease-02audnasacislunar-space
Original excerpt
During the eleventh and final crewed mission in the Apollo program, Apollo 17 Commander Gene Cernan, Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt, and Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans report seeing small lights outside the Apollo spacecraft during transit to the moon. The crew describe bright “particles” or “fragments” as being “jagged,” “angular,” and drifting near the Apollo spacecraft and the separated Saturn S-IVB stage. The Apollo 17 crew speculate that paint chips or ice chips are likely the source of these lights and note that they “twinkle” and move away from the Saturn S-IVB stage.
Key claims
- →Apollo 17 crew (Cernan, Schmitt, Evans) observed bright, jagged particles near spacecraft
- →Particles described as drifting and twinkling near Saturn S-IVB stage
- →Crew speculated cause was paint chips or ice fragments
UAP Insight Analysis— AI generated, not official
Apollo 17 astronauts reported seeing bright, jagged particles drifting near their spacecraft during transit to the moon in December 1972. The crew speculated the lights were likely paint chips or ice fragments from the Saturn S-IVB stage.
Alternative explanation
The astronauts themselves attributed the observations to mundane spacecraft debris.
Analysis by Claude · may contain errors
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