How come you are just learning about this?
How come you are just learning about this?
Those are not NASA photographs. The first is from the weather satellite Elektro-L, which is not a NASA operation. The second is from the SCOPE digital color camera aboard the AMSAT-OSCAR-40, which took the picture on 12/15/2001. AMSAT is composed entirely of civilian, non-government volunteers, has no funding from NASA or other government agencies. Most of their satellites have been university student projects. They have absolutely no reason to try to pass off "fake" pictures of Earth from their satellites.
So, let me guess: the Elektro organization as well as AMSAT are in on the conspiracy as well. Why so? What is it, some kind of re-born space race, only this time to get faked pictures of Earth published? What's the prize for winning, a fake trophy of a fake astronaut standing on a fake lunar module, taken with a fake camera? Or maybe NASA infiltrated those organizations and planted the fake photographs? Who did that? James Bond? Jack Ryan?