An Image of Bruce McCandless Walking in Space Falsely Linked to Five-Planet Alignment

A piece of news saying five planets in the solar system would be seen on the same alignment last month went viral. Then, a social media claim said an astronaut was sent by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to report about the alignment of the five planets. The claim had been shared by times along with comments and reactions. However, running a Google Reverse Image Search proves the claim is false.

Social Media Claim

A claim posted on social media by a Facebook user said an astronaut was sent by NASA into space two days before the alignment of five planets on June 24. The claim continued the astronaut was assigned to cover the occasion. The claim author also posted a picture showing an astronaut walking in space.

The claim had been widely shared by Khmer-speaking Facebook users as some social media users commented and reacted.

Below is the capture of the claim on social media read “If you think, you are very lonely, please see this astronaut. NASA sent him to stay along in space yesterday to report about the assembly of the five planets tomorrow.”

Facebook Post | Archived Link

Fact Check

Fact Crescendo Cambodia began checking facts over the claim by running Google Reverse Image Search which led us to find out the truth below.

The same picture can be widely seen on many international media. One of them is the American television National Geographic which published the picture in its story in 2018.

The picture is of American astronaut Bruce McCandless who wore a manned maneuvering unit (MMU) and walked without a tether in space in 1984, according to a report by National Geographic.

National Geographic | Archived Link

Besides this picture, many other images show Bruce McCandless free walking in space 38 years ago.

The image was credited to NASA where we also found an article about the American astronaut who walked in space nearly four decades ago.

Bruce McCandless tried to keep a maximum distance in space before he returned to the spacecraft Challenger, and this image was captured by another astronaut on the spacecraft, according to what NASA described as his mission in space.

NASA | Archived Link

For more images of Bruce McCandless walking in space, please visit NASA’s web portal here.

Conclusion

Fact Crescendo Cambodia found out the claim mentioned above is false. This is not the picture of the astronaut sent to space by NASA to cover the event of five-planet alignment. Authentically, this image is of American astronaut Bruce McCandless who walked free in space in 1984.