Many people believe that the moon landing never happened; in 2019, 5% of Americans believed the moon landing was fake. Conspiracy theorists argued that the moon landing was falsified because the flag appeared to be waving on the moon, as if the wind was blowing, causing the flag to appear to have motion. This was impossible to occur on the moon, because there is no atmosphere. However, the American flag seemed to sway in some photos and videos, even though there was no wind on the moon.
This is because the flag was mounted on a thin pole to make it stand up. The astronauts extended the bar so it could keep the flag from falling; it also caused wrinkles and ripples in the flag. These wrinkles made it look like the flag was moving due to wind. Also, the flag was packed tightly during transport, which caused it to gain some of its wrinkled shape. In space, there’s hardly any air resistance at all, so an object in motion will continue to move for a much longer period than on Earth.
Other conspiracy theorists claimed that there are no stars in the 2nd picture, and the atmosphere above the moon should be filled with a bunch of stars, meaning the picture was fake. But the thing is, the camera exposure wasn’t strong enough. Meaning that the light from the sun can drown out the light of the stars, so space mostly appears pitch black. This even applies on Earth; if you stare at a bright light, such as a bonfire, everything around it appears darker. The lunar surface and the astronauts’ suits were brightly lit by the sun because the sun’s light reflected off the moon. The sun literally outshines the other stars, which is why we can’t see them during the day. Eyes also have a hole to restrict light, which would make something as small and dim as stars invisible.
In addition, theorists also made a statement about the footprints on the Moon not matching the shoes astronauts wore. They said, “Why were the footprints on the moon so ‘perfect'”? However, the lunar soil, or regolith, is made up of fine, powdery particles. This material compacts easily, which is why the astronauts’ boots left clear and well-defined footprints. There’s also no wind or water to erode these prints, so they can last for a very long time. Glancing at the photo, it’s clear that the shoes and the footprints are different. It’s because when an astronaut is going to walk on the moon, they need to put a covering on their shoes for safety. The boot covers go over the shoes so that they have more traction and don’t fall.
In conclusion, even though there’s significant evidence and scientific reasons supporting the event, these conspiracy theories remind us why it’s important to think critically and dig deep to get to the bottom of the facts behind key moments in history.
