By now we all know that everything that we read or see on the Internet isn't always true. But when it comes to live videos, it's safe to assume that what viewers are seeing can't be fudged.
Well that's not the case with viral space videos that are making its rounds on Facebook.
There is a Facebook Live video that surfaced on Wednesday that claims to show the world a live view from space.
The video allegedly consists of a live stream from the International Space Station. The four hour long video gives jaw dropping views of the Earth against the black backdrop of the seemingly endless space. Viewers also get look at parts of the craft as well appearances by from NASA astronauts.
The video content in its own right is beautiful, giving people the opportunity to get an astronaut's view while their feet are firmly planted on the ground. However, the video couldn't be more fake.
Okay, so the footage itself is real. The problem here is that NASA is not currently conducting a spacewalk outside the International Space Station, therefore the content shown is not live.
Interestingly enough, the Facebook Live video did not appear on NASA's official Page, nor was it featured on its website. Instead it has gone viral after being posted to another Facebook Page titled Viral USA, where it has received 28 million views.
Viral USA now has over 571,000 Likes, with more than 3.7 million people talking about it.
NASA cleared things up to reveal that were are no spacewalks scheduled, so any live videos are simply nothing more than fakes. The actual footage being shown in this fake Facebook Live video is from a 2015 spacewalk by U.S. astronaut Terry Virts.
And this one isn't the only fake spacewalk on Facebook. Another Page, UNILAD also fooled us all by also claiming to be live with views from the International Space Station.
However, the footage is actually from a November 2013 spacewalk from ISS Expedition 38, where Russian astronauts Oleg Kotov and Sergei Ryazanski are captured with the Olympic Torch from the Sochi Winter Games.
The video received 19 million views and more than 200,000 shares. It seems like these space videos do well on Facebook, so many Pages might jump on the bandwagon to get more views and likes.
The only way to avoid these fake live streams from space is to only believe what is broadcasted by NASA.
Source: Mashable
