Twelve astronauts have been on the moon thus far. And yet these lunar landings are often questioned. But who knows, maybe it never happened and nothing is as it seems?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Steinach
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No American has ever been to the moon. It's all just fake.
The moon landings? Staged in TV studios, where the scenes weren't even properly lit.
And then there were the amateur mistakes, such as the waving US flag. Pfffff. As if flags "wave" on the moon. Without an atmosphere. Fake. A political conspiracy by the Americans to show the Soviets, "Look, we got it, you don't. Our men are able to land on the moon, not yours."
And while we're at it: In the wilderness of Alaska, a mysterious research facility is said to exist that can cause earthquakes. It's called HAARP, and it's also capable of various weather manipulations to terrorize the world. Enter "HAARP" and "earthquakes" into Google and marvel at the number of hits.
Want another one? Here you go: Chemtrails, or the white stripes in the sky that we all think are just harmless contrails. In reality, however, airplanes spray chemicals on behalf of evil governments to change the weather, the climate and to poison us humans.
And of course, the earth is flat — and hollow inside.
A question of perspective: Are the shadows of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin at the wrong angle?Image: picture-alliance/Heritage Images/NASA/Oxford Science Archive
We all love conspiracy theories
Are you laughing now? Or are you slowly getting angry? Such nonsense from DW? OK, then, well you're obviously not very prone to falling for conspiracy theories.
Just how many people believe in absurd stories of this kind has not been put into numbers. Nor do we know whether today, in 2019, there are more of these people than before.
In any case, crude conspiracy theories have become more visible through the internet and social media, psychologists say. Followers of these ideas feel supported, and they no longer feel they're part of a small minority.
But scientific experiments also show that conspiracy theorists enjoy believing the most absurd things in order to belong to a supposedly exclusive, elitist circle of knowledge.
Though psychological reasons behind why so many people still believe the moon landing was faked still need to be scientifically examined, the trigger was a strange book by the American Bill Kaysing. It was published in 1976 under the title "We never went to the Moon."
And it was a success. Many people believed the absurd theories. Kaysing was not a scientist, technician nor an engineer. He was an author who wrote about agriculture, cooking or saving on tax payments. He came up with make-believe evidence to prove that moon landings actually never occurred.
Does the flag really fly? Of course not, it's held up, by a bar. Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot/Neil A. Armstrong
These are four of his most popular theories:
1. The waving flag
Conspiracy theorists say:
In the footage, the US flag that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin rammed into the moon's regolith blows in the wind. But that is not possible, because there is no atmosphere on the moon.
Science says:
The flag did not flap. It only moved when the two astronauts touched it and rammed it into the ground. On Earth, the atmosphere quickly slows down such light oscillations. But on the moon — without atmosphere — the oscillations keep going for much longer. In addition, a cross strut was braced in the flag to give the impression it was blowing.
On the moon pictures, no stars are to be seen. So they were created in a studio.
Science says:
It's true that on the moon — without an atmosphere to disturb things — we have a fantastic view of the starry cosmos. But when the astronauts were on the moon, it was always daytime. One explanation is that the moon's surface, the lander and the astronauts were so brightly illuminated by the sun that the weak light of the stars was not to be seen.
3. The photos were too perfect
Conspiracy theorists say:
The Hasselblad cameras carried by the astronauts at chest height had no viewfinder. How could the astronauts take so many perfect photos with them?
Science says:
Not all pictures were perfect. There are numerous blurred images in NASA's archives. Only the most beautiful ones have been published. In addition, the astronauts had time to practice with the Hasselblad cameras on Earth. A special wide-angle lens simplified focusing and allowed larger image sections.
It's been 50 years since Neil Armstrong became the first person to set foot on the moon. An incredible step. Even today we are still fascinated — especially when you see the pictures from back then.
Image: NASA
"One small step for [a] man" (July 20, 1969)
One of the first footsteps on the moon. Walking on its surface, Neil Armstrong uttered one of the most famous quotes of all: "That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind." How and when he came up with this sentence himself, and whether he forgot a (relatively important) vocal — the 'a' — is still being discussed today.
Image: NASA
Here we go (July 16, 1969)
But lets go back: From the control room of the Kennedy Space Flight Center (KSC), the director of the Apollo program, Samuel C. Phillips, monitors the activities before the launch. Apollo 11, the first lunar landing mission, was launched on July 16, 1969 with a Saturn V launch vehicle. On board the spacecraft: Neil Armstrong, Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins.
Image: NASA
Space TV (July 16, 1969)
These three were among the thousands of people camping on beaches and streets next to the Kennedy Space Center, NASA's spaceport in Florida, to follow the launch of the Apollo at close range. About one million people visited the space area to see the historic flight.
Image: NASA/Kennedy Space Center
Lights, camera, action, lift-off! (July 16, 1969)
But not only thousands of excited people were present, also thousands of journalists reported on the launch of the Apollo 11 mission. A total of 3497 journalists were officially registered, all of them gathered at the press area of the Kennedy Space Flight Center (KSC). The rocket took off on July 16, 1969.
Image: NASA
So close (July 21, 1969)
This photo was taken by Michael Collins. You can see the lunar module Eagle returning from the moon, behind it the moon itself and on its horizon the earth. While Armstrong and Aldrin were the first humans to step foot on the moon, Collins maintained his position in the Columbia Command Modul. He orbited the Moon alone for 21.5 hours.
Image: NASA
Teamwork (July 20, 1969)
In a NASA statement in 2009 Collins said, "I feel very much a part of what is taking place on the lunar surface. I know that I would be a liar or a fool if I said that I have the best of the three Apollo 11 seats, but I can say with truth and equanimity that I am perfectly satisfied with the one I have."
Image: NASA/Kennedy Space Center
"The eagle has landed!" but... (July 20, 1969, 20:17:58 UTC)
On July 20, 1969 at 20:17:58 UTC, Neil Armstrong transmitted briefly: "The eagle has landed!". But it still took some time until the two of them actually stepped on the moon. First of all, the flight back had to be prepared. On July 21 at 2:56:20 UTC the big moment finally arrived: Neil Armstrong stepped onto the lunar surface.
During 2.5 hours of surface exploration, Armstrong and Aldrin collected 47 pounds of lunar surface material that they brought back to Earth. This small chunk is part of it. During the six Apollo excursions, 2415 samples were collected, almost 400 kilograms. The collected works and their descriptions are listed in the "Lunar Sample and Photo Catalog".
Image: NASA/AccuSoft Inc.
Odd astro imports
Not only samples were collected, but all kinds of stuff was left behind. This brooch by Neil Armstrong is one of the more symbolic objects. The olive branch (less than half a foot in length) represents peace. But you can also stumble over golf balls, a family photo with camera, works by Andy Warhol or a falcon feather. Oh, and beware of astronaut excrement.
Image: NASA/Johnson Space Center
Back to earth (July 24, 1969, 4:50 pm UTC)
The crew landed safely in the Pacific ocean, about 812 nautical miles southwest of Hawaii and 12 nautical miles from the USS Hornet. After their arrival, the astronauts had to fill out a customs form and declare their moon rock. When asked for their disease exposure status, they wrote: "to be determined". They were transported in a quarantine trailer where they were isolated for 21 days.
Image: NASA/Johnson Space Center
Superstars in spacesuits (September 23, 1969)
Well, obviously the astronauts of the Apollo 11 mission don't wear space suits here, but sombreros and ponchos. Fiesta Mexikana! A 45-day tour following the space mission took the astronauts to 24 countries and 27 cities. The US wanted to emphasize their willingness to share their space knowledge. The astronauts were celebrated like superstars like here in Mexico City.
Image: NASA
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4. The shadows run diagonally
Conspiracy theorists say:
Some photos show shadows that do not run in parallel to each other. With the sun as the only light source, however, all shadows should run in parallel. But they don't. That's why spotlights must have been involved.
Science says:
Parallelism is always a matter of perspective. Parallel lines on a three-dimensional surface always appear as if they are converging if they are imaged two-dimensionally. Think of railway tracks. They seem to converge towards the horizon, although they are always guaranteed to be parallel. This is true on earth and also on the moon.
There are other points that moon landing deniers make about dust, radiation or shadows. But there is no reliable evidence to suggest a moon landing conspiracy.
So the bottom line is: The moon landings took place, and not even the Soviets questioned it back then. And that meant something in the Cold War era.
Also, a total of about 400,000 people worked on the Apollo missions. So there were enough witnesses, and one of them would have mentioned something at some point.
What do you think?
Did you know the moon was shrinking?
If the Artemis missions go to plan, people will be walking on the moon again within a few years. So it's high time we scrubbed up our knowledge about our lunar satellite. Here are seven facts to get you going.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The moon is shrinking!
According to NASA research, the moon is slowly losing heat, which causes its surface to shrivel up like a grape turning into a raisin. But that's not all: its interior is shrinking! The moon has become about 50 meters (150 feet) "skinnier" over the past several hundred million years.
Image: picture-alliance/Arco Images/B. Lamm
How did that US flag wave?
Conspiracy theorists believe that the lunar landing was a fake, and that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked around on July 21st, 1969, on a soundstage instead of the moon. They point to the fact that the flag planted by Aldrin waved as if moved by the wind, which would be impossible in space's vacuum. NASA's explanation: Aldrin was twisting the flagpole while planting it in the ground.
Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot/Neil A. Armstrong
Scorching hot and freezing cold
If it's summer in your neck of the woods, you might be sweating right now. But just remember: temperatures are a little more extreme on the moon. When the sun hits its surface, it can get up to 127 degrees Celsius (260 degrees Fahrenheit) hot. Without the warm glow, temperatures can drop down to -153 degrees Celsius (-243 degrees Fahrenheit). Brrr!
Image: picture alliance/dpa/S. Kahnert
Man on the moon
The myth of a person living on the moon has existed for almost as long as Earth's satellite itself. Some people see a face on the surface of the full moon, composed of the dark lunar plains and the lighter lunar highlands. Many cultures have tales about an actual person who committed some kind of misdeed and was banished to the moon for it. Astronauts are yet to encounter them, though.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Rumpenhorst
Drifting apart — the end of solar eclipses
The moon is drifting away from Earth at a speed of almost 4 centimeters (1.5 inches) per year. The farther away our satellite is, the smaller it appears to us. In about 550 million years, it'll look too small to "cover" all of the sun, even at its closest position to Earth. That'll mean no more total solar eclipses.
Image: Reuters/J. Ernst
Wolves don't care
Ah, howling at the moon — no old-timey scary movie is complete without it. But in fact, wolves do not intensify their howling when a full moon rolls around, and they don't direct their howls at the moon, either. They simply yowl at night, which is also the time when a full moon is most visible. That could be one reason our ancestors drew the connection.
Image: Imago/Anka Agency International/G. Lacz
Moon-walkers: Not a very diverse bunch
12 humans have walked on the moon so far. While they come from various professional fields, they have a couple of things in common: All of them are American, all of them are white and all of them are men. Let's see where the first non-American on the moon will be from — maybe it'll be a woman and/or person of color, too!
