Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Here's a Fact: We Went to the Moon in 1969
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
July 11, 2019

Share

NEW YORK — Fifty years after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, some people insist it never happened and was all a big hoax by the U.S. government.

The suspicions arose even as the lunar landing was taking place in 1969, said Roger Launius, NASA’s former chief historian.
The suspicions arose even as the lunar landing was taking place in 1969, said Roger Launius, NASA’s former chief historian. Soon, conspiracy theories that said it was an elaborate, Hollywood-style production created on a soundstage on Earth started to take root.
The notion is treated mostly as a punchline, as in a new commercial for Red Bull. But public opinion polls over the years have consistently shown roughly 5% to 6% of Americans believe the moon landing was faked, Launius said.
Aldrin once ran into one of those people in 2002 and punched him in the face after the man called the former astronaut a liar.

Common Claims and How They’re Explained

Here’s a look at some of the most common claims and how they’re explained:
CLAIM: The American flag in photos from the moon looks as if it’s flapping in the wind. That would be impossible, since there’s no air on the moon.
THE FACTS: Rather than let the flag droop, NASA decided to use a right-angled rod to keep it spread out, according to Launius. Armstrong and Aldrin accidentally bent the rod a little bit, making it look as if the flag was in motion. They were also worried that the flagpole was going to fall down after they had twisted it into the ground, so they quickly snapped the photos, capturing the flag while it was still moving, Launius said.
CLAIM: No stars show up in the background of any photographs because NASA knew astronomers would be able to use them to determine whether the pictures were taken on Earth or the moon.
THE FACTS: The shutter speeds on the astronauts’ cameras were too fast to capture the faint light of the stars, astronomer Emily Drabek-Maunder at the Royal Observatory Greenwich in London said. NASA used high shutter speeds to make sure the pictures weren’t overexposed from the bright light on the moon.
CLAIM: When the lunar module descended onto the moon’s surface, it didn’t scatter any dust and didn’t leave a crater from the rocket blast that slowed its descent.
THE FACTS: In landing on the moon, the astronauts were traveling horizontally for a while, so the thrusters weren’t pointed down and wouldn’t have kicked up any dust, Drabek-Maunder said. But when the module finally did touch down, “you can see dust actually being thrown up.”
As for the lack of a crater, Launius said the astronauts didn’t need to use a large blast to slow themselves down, because the moon’s gravity is roughly one-sixth that of Earth’s. “It was more of a gentle landing,” he said.
CLAIM: The angle and colors of the shadows in photographs from the moon are inconsistent, suggesting artificial lights were used to illuminate a set.
THE FACTS: The many bumps, craters and hills on the moon, along with the various light sources that illuminate it — light directly from the sun, light reflected off the moon’s surface and light reflected off the Earth — cause what look like distortions and inconsistencies, Launius and Drabek-Maunder said. Also, the astronauts’ cameras had wide-angle lenses that can distort objects.
CLAIM: Armstrong and the lunar module are seen reflected in Aldrin’s helmet visor in an iconic photo of Aldrin in his spacesuit on the moon. But there’s no sign that either astronaut is holding a camera. So who took the picture?
THE FACTS: The astronauts’ cameras were mounted on their chests, Drabek-Maunder said. As a result, Armstrong did not have to hold his up to his eye. His hands, in fact, appear to be near his chest in that picture.

shutterstock_1865542234
sea-lion

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Yastrzemski and Chapman Homers Help Giants Rally Past the Brewers

DON'T MISS

Fresno City Council Finally Passes a Tough Smoke Shop Ordinance

DON'T MISS

Fresno Unified Trustee Wittrup Says District Had Stronger Candidates Than Misty Her

DON'T MISS

Trump Poised to Offer Saudi Arabia Over $100 Billion Arms Package, Sources Say

DON'T MISS

Lights, Camera, Board Vote: Fresno Unified’s Carefully Choreographed Production

DON'T MISS

US Farm Agency Withdraws Proposal Aimed at Lowering Salmonella Risks in Poultry

DON'T MISS

On Major Economic Decisions, Trump Blinks, and Then Blinks Again

DON'T MISS

Candi Is the Dandy to Add a Little Sweetness to Your Life

DON'T MISS

How Trump Tariffs Could Upend California Farms, Wine Businesses, and Ports

DON'T MISS

Tulare Man Sentenced to State Prison for DUI Crash That Injured Two Women

UP NEXT

Chicago Bears Great Steve McMichael Dies at 67 After Battle With ALS

UP NEXT

Long Wait Is Over for Cam Ward, Travis Hunter and Other Draft Prospects Joining the NFL

UP NEXT

Golden State’s Jimmy Butler Injured in Game 2 Loss, His Status for Game 3 Unknown

UP NEXT

Jalen Green Makes Eight 3s to Help Rockets Even Series With Warriors

UP NEXT

US Justice Department Directs Investigations Over Gender-Affirming Care

UP NEXT

US Justice Department Cancels Hundreds of Grants for Police, Crime Victims

UP NEXT

Yelich’s 5th Career Slam and Bauers’ 2-Run Homer Power the Brewers to Win Over the Giants

UP NEXT

Happ Hits Game-Ending Single in the 10th as the Cubs Rally Past Dodgers

UP NEXT

Trump: No Plans to Fire Fed Chair Powell, but Wants Lower Rates

UP NEXT

Top Producer at ’60 Minutes’ Quits Amid Trump Lawsuit Pressure

Trump Poised to Offer Saudi Arabia Over $100 Billion Arms Package, Sources Say

10 hours ago

Lights, Camera, Board Vote: Fresno Unified’s Carefully Choreographed Production

11 hours ago

US Farm Agency Withdraws Proposal Aimed at Lowering Salmonella Risks in Poultry

11 hours ago

On Major Economic Decisions, Trump Blinks, and Then Blinks Again

11 hours ago

Candi Is the Dandy to Add a Little Sweetness to Your Life

12 hours ago

How Trump Tariffs Could Upend California Farms, Wine Businesses, and Ports

12 hours ago

Tulare Man Sentenced to State Prison for DUI Crash That Injured Two Women

13 hours ago

Judge Partly Blocks Trump Order Seeking to Overhaul US Elections

13 hours ago

Two From Search Group That Uncovered Mexico’s ‘Ranch of Horror’ Killed

13 hours ago

US Warns States They Could Lose Transportation Funding Over Immigration, DEI Policies

14 hours ago

Yastrzemski and Chapman Homers Help Giants Rally Past the Brewers

SAN FRANCISCO — Mike Yastrzemski and Matt Chapman homered as the San Francisco Giants rallied to beat the Milwaukee Brewers 6-5 on Thursday ...

8 hours ago

8 hours ago

Yastrzemski and Chapman Homers Help Giants Rally Past the Brewers

8 hours ago

Fresno City Council Finally Passes a Tough Smoke Shop Ordinance

9 hours ago

Fresno Unified Trustee Wittrup Says District Had Stronger Candidates Than Misty Her

President Donald Trump delivers remarks during an 'Unleashing American Energy' event at the Department of Energy in Washington, U.S., June 29, 2017. (REUTERS File)
10 hours ago

Trump Poised to Offer Saudi Arabia Over $100 Billion Arms Package, Sources Say

11 hours ago

Lights, Camera, Board Vote: Fresno Unified’s Carefully Choreographed Production

Chickens sit at a poultry farm. March 12, 2025. (REUTERS/Diego Vara/File Photo)
11 hours ago

US Farm Agency Withdraws Proposal Aimed at Lowering Salmonella Risks in Poultry

11 hours ago

On Major Economic Decisions, Trump Blinks, and Then Blinks Again

Candi, GV Wire's Adoptable Cat of the Week
12 hours ago

Candi Is the Dandy to Add a Little Sweetness to Your Life

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend