Satellites For Sale

Status: Real
image Here's another picture doing the rounds of an astronaut floating in space outside the space shuttle, holding up a 'For Sale' sign. Since it's so easy to change signs in photoshop, I guess some might suspect the image to be fake. But it's real, and it's actually pretty old. It dates to 1984. (I have no idea why it's suddenly started to circulate again.) NASA provides this description of the image:

Astronaut Dale A. Gardner, having just completed the major portion of his second extravehicular activity (EVA) period in three days, holds up a "For Sale" sign refering to the two satellites, Palapa B-2 and Westar 6 that they retrieved from orbit after their Payload Assist Modules (PAM) failed to fire. Astronaut Joseph P. Allen IV, who also participated in the two EVAs, is reflected in Gardner's helmet visor. A portion of each of two recovered satellites is in the lower right corner, with Westar 6 nearer Discovery's aft.

Photos

Posted on Tue Nov 29, 2005


Comments

Clearly a hoax. NASA would have us believe that this photograph was taken in the vacuum of space, yet if you look at the top-right of the photograph you can clearly see that this "space vehicle" has a wing! A dead giveaway etc.
Posted by Ashley Pomeroy  on  Tue Nov 29, 2005  at  11:34 AM
The Space Shuttle does have wings - that is the whole point! (So it can glide to an aircaft-like landing on earth for later re-use.)
Posted by D S Irwin  on  Wed Nov 30, 2005  at  04:28 AM
aww that's cute. It would just be a good joke even if they werent really selling the thing. Shows astronauts do have a sense of humor 😊
Posted by thunderstruck  on  Wed Nov 30, 2005  at  12:48 PM
1984? I wanted to buy one...
Posted by Ian  on  Wed Jan 04, 2006  at  11:40 AM
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