Home / Science / Flickering text on plush toy sparks NASA Artemis II hoax claims.
Flickering text on plush toy sparks NASA Artemis II hoax claims.
6 Apr
Summary
- Conspiracy theorists claim NASA video is staged due to text on a toy.
- Text fragments appeared due to broadcast graphics and camera refresh rates.
- Artemis II mission will surpass Apollo 13's record for farthest human travel.
A recent NASA video has fueled conspiracy theories online, with some claiming it 'proves' the Artemis II mission is staged. During a live CNN interview, a plush toy named 'Rise' appeared to have fragmented white text flickering across its surface.
These visual distortions led some viewers to accuse NASA of digital manipulation. However, the unusual text is not due to alteration but rather the use of chromakey overlay processing. This broadcast technique, commonly known as green-screen, inserts graphics and captions into live footage.
When the video was recorded from a television screen, the phone camera's refresh rate mismatched with the graphics display. This timing difference caused text fragments to overlap with the moving toy, creating the illusion of text appearing directly on it.
The Artemis II crew, including NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, are on their journey. This mission aims to break the record for the farthest distance ever traveled by humans, surpassing Apollo 13's 1970 record.
The mission includes a 40-minute period of communications blackout as the spacecraft passes behind the moon. During this time, the crew will conduct observations and approach their closest point to the lunar surface, appearing about the size of a basketball held at arm's length.
