Re: Parkes hi-resTV tapes of Apollo 11 surface activity

From: OM (om_at_our_blessed_lady_mary_of_the_holy_NASA_research_facility.org)
Date: 07/25/04 

Date: Sat, 24 Jul 2004 19:31:31 -0500

On 24 Jul 2004 15:57:21 -0700, gene@pad39a.com (Gene Seibel) wrote:

>
>There was a lot of loss of resolution in the crude system used them.
>These days the conversion could be made with no perceptible loss of
>resolution, and probably enhanced to look even better. I'm sure the
>extra 50 frames per second could be interpolated for a very smooth
>final product.

...Hell, if the loss of 50fps meant clearer pics, the loss is far more
than acceptable. The problem is that I seriously doubt whoever has the
tapes has the playback equipment any longer. Those decks were fucking
huge, and while most people have never seen those 2" decks up close,
the best shape & size comparison that comes to mind are those old
plastic mold machines they had at the World's Fairs in the 60's, where
you popped in 50 cents and you actually saw the damn thing injection
mold you a dinosaur or whatever object the molds were set for. More
people have seen these machines than 2" tape machines.

...Here's what needs to be done:

1) Whoever's going to run the conversion attempt needs to find out
whether NASA has the tapes, since Parkes has claimed they don't have
them.

2) Then, whoever has them needs to make sure they're not disposed of,
and made available once whoever manufactured the original recorder
unit is rounded up and talked into participating in the restoration.
Their participation is going to be vital in this.

3) Then, in much the same way the Zapruder film was digitally
restored, a 10fps digital version needs to be mastered frame-by-frame.
Even at just 10fps, this is going to be a *LOT* of frames, and will
take significantly longer than the Zapruder film, which was split 8MM
and only about 400 frames max.

4) Then, before we even consider motion interpolation - read:
contacting ILM regarding the digital methods used to make the AT-AT's
look more real than the stop-motion allowed - a 10fps version is
released to judge whether that effort is going to be necessary after
all.

...I've known for years that the initial 320 line version was cleaner
than anything we saw at home. My own experience with TV on the
broadcaster's side has soured me with regards to viewing at home - the
picture you get even over cable is crap compared to what we got
directly off that big dish! On the other hand, cleaning up the A11
footage as is already out there is a nightmare, having done so myself
as related to this group on numerous occasions over the years.

Which, of course, does *not* mean that I wouldn't give my left nut and
Pat's right one for the honor to work on such a restoration
project...:-)

                                OM 

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