NASA keeps the first science fiction movie to be filmed on location in space under wraps.
A documentary titled Man on a Mission recently opened to theaters, detailing multi-millionaire game designer Richard “Lord British” Garriott’s $30 million USD expedition to visit the International Space Station. While enjoying the view of Earth from roughly 400 kilometers up, Garriott also worked with the station’s crew to produce a short, fictional sci-fi film, shot entirely in lower Earth orbit.
The short film, titled Apogee of Fear, stars real-life NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Greg Chamitoff along with Cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov investigating a “possible alien intruder” shortly after Garriott departs the International Space Station to return to Earth. However, outside of one or two private viewings hosted by Garriott himself, NASA has refused to allow any public viewing of the film.
NASA hasn’t given any particular reason why it’s withholding a public release of Apogee, though Garriott believes that it might be “too playful” for NASA’s tastes. However, there has been some growing demand to see the film from organizations like the Smithsonian Institute, which has requested a copy to have for its archives.
Source: SPACE.com
