Apollo 17 Lunar Anomalies
Astronaut Jack Schmitt's flash sighting near Grimaldi crater plus a separate photo showing three dots in triangular formation in the lunar sky.
NASA-UAP-VM6: three dots in triangular formation visible above the lunar horizon, photographed during the Apollo 17 mission, December 1972.
NASA / declassified via PURSUE 2026
Astronaut Jack Schmitt at the Taurus-Littrow landing site, Apollo 17, December 1972. Schmitt also reported observing a brief flash on the lunar surface north of Grimaldi crater during the mission.
NASA
Official description
Air-to-ground audio describes a 'bright little flash' north of Grimaldi crater. A separate photographic frame from the same mission depicts three points of light in a static triangular formation against the lunar sky.
Editor's context
Schmitt and Evans both reported flashes during lunar orbit. The 1972 Geminids meteor shower was active during the mission and the Mare Orientale region (including Grimaldi) sits within the expected impact zone. Transient lunar phenomena have been observed before, during, and after Apollo by professional and amateur astronomers.
Prevailing explanation
What scientists and analysts generally think
The flash sightings most likely correspond to lunar meteor impacts during the Geminids shower, which was active during Apollo 17. The triangular formation photograph is generally attributed to lens artifacts or background stellar objects. Both interpretations are well-supported in the lunar science literature; neither requires an exotic explanation.
In the margins
Transcribed redactions, stamps, and handwritten markings, the paratext of the file. Often the most human part of a declassified document, and worth reading on its own.
- Stampp. tape headerNASA, APOLLO 17, VOICE TAPE
- Annotationp. transcriptSchmitt: 'Hey, did you see that flash on the lunar surface?'
- Annotationp. transcriptCernan: 'Yes, north of Grimaldi, just a thin streak of light.'
- StampDECLASSIFIED PER PURSUE, May 8, 2026
Cite the primary source
Citations center the originating government agency and link to the official record. This archive is listed as the access point, not the author.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration. "Apollo 17 Lunar Anomalies." Released via PURSUE program, 2026-05-08. File ID: NASA Mission Records, Apollo 17. https://www.nasa.gov/history/alsj/a17/a17.photocat.html. Accessed 2026-05-12 via Social Media for Aliens archive, https://socialmediaforaliens.com/files/apollo-17-lunar-anomalies.
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