The Music on the Far Side of the Moon
Cut off from Earth behind the Moon, three astronauts heard strange whistling 'music' in their headsets, and wondered whether to tell anyone.
What was reported
In May 1969, two months before the first Moon landing, Thomas Stafford, John Young and Eugene Cernan flew Apollo 10 around the Moon as a dress rehearsal. While passing over the far side, out of radio contact with Earth, they heard an eerie whistling sound in their headsets, which Cernan called 'outer-space-type music'.
The recording shows them discussing whether to report it, worried no one would believe them. The transcripts were made public in 2008.
Explanations offered
NASA engineers explained that the sound came from radio interference between the VHF radios of the lunar module and the command module, flying close to each other. On the far side, with no signals from Earth, the interference was easier to hear.
- When
- May 1969; transcripts released in 2008
- Where
- Mission Control, Houston, Texas, USA
- Witnesses
- The crew of Apollo 10
- Status
- Explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.