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From: asgard@cpro.UUCP (J.R. Stoner)
Newsgroups: sci.physics
Subject: Flashes in space (was Re: Cherenkov radiation)
Message-ID: <130@cpro.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 29-Oct-86 00:26:19 EST
Article-I.D.: cpro.130
Posted: Wed Oct 29 00:26:19 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Oct-86 22:16:37 EST
References: <224@sri-arpa.ARPA> <Paul> <Schauble> <Schauble@MIT-MULTICS.ARPA> <58@reality1.UUCP>
Organization: CompuPro/VIASYN Corp.
Lines: 19

In article <58@reality1.UUCP>, james@reality1.UUCP (james) writes:
 
> I seem to recall that on one of the Apollo missions that astronauts reported
> seeing strange flashes of light.  This was a long time ago, and I wasn't even
> in high school at the time, so I may just be the victim of a modern "old
> wive's tale".  Does anyone else remember anything about this and/or the
> cause?
> -- 
> James R. Van Artsdalen   ...!ut-ngp!utastro!osi3b2!james    "Live Free or Die"

No.  The famous story was about John Glenn's ride into orbit in the Gemini.
He noted that sparkling objects were hovering outside the viewport of the
capsule and speculated on what they could be.  Since some of the particles
were seen to be "following" the capsule it was though they were flecks of
ice or paint from the Gemini itself.  They could not have been Cerenkov
flashes, as those are photon events and therefore could not be objects
maintaining an orbit.
--
From the manic ravings of J.R. (May the farce be with you) Stoner