This blog post examines whether the Apollo 11 moon landing was genuine and what the conspiracy theories truly entail, based on scientific evidence.
The world is filled with events and incidents, and these events and incidents invariably come with some kind of explanation. Explanations are the means and methods humans use to understand and accept things. Ordinary events can be sufficiently understood and accepted with ‘common’ reasons.
However, among the many events, some occurrences can exceed the scope of human comprehension. The death of a loved one might be one such case, or mysteries like the frequent plane disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle. How do people react when events occur that defy human comprehension? To cut to the chase, people create reasons for these events too. Even when the logic becomes illogical and unrealistic, humans invent reasons to make sense of events they cannot understand.
Consider a classic example of this phenomenon. When a top celebrity commits suicide, suspicions inevitably arise that they were murdered by someone else. People cannot accept that their idol took their own life. Yet the idol’s death is undeniable, a fact that must be reconciled. Thus, people raise suspicions that the idol was murdered by someone else. Murder is simply easier for their minds to accept than suicide.
Through this mechanism, conspiracy theories inevitably arise around new and hard-to-accept events. The conspiracy theories questioning whether the Apollo 11 manned moon landing actually happened likely began against this backdrop. At the time, humanity landing on the moon—in space—was perceived not just as groundbreaking, but as a new event marking a turning point in history. Yet simultaneously, it was an event many found hard to accept.
The Apollo 11 conspiracy theory originated from American Bill Kaysing’s book We Never Went to the Moon. In this book, Kaysing raised several suspicions. It is true that the Apollo 11 astronauts launched aboard the Saturn V rocket. However, Kaysing claimed they merely orbited Earth for eight days, asserting that the footage broadcast worldwide was fake, filmed in a secret studio. According to his calculations, the probability of humans traveling to the moon and returning safely to Earth at that time was a mere 0.0017%. The fact that the astronauts fell within that 0.0017% margin was inconceivable to him. This led him to propose the conspiracy theory that the footage of humans landing on the moon was fabricated.
This conspiracy theory went beyond mere assertion; numerous pieces of evidence were presented. The number of people proposing the conspiracy theory steadily increased, and their claims gained increasing credibility. Let’s examine the five main pieces of evidence.
The first piece of evidence is that the American flag planted on the lunar surface was fluttering in the wind. Wind is caused by air currents, and there is no air on the moon. Therefore, theoretically, the American flag planted on the lunar surface should not be able to flutter.
The second piece of evidence is that no stars are visible in the photographs taken by the Apollo astronauts. Earth has an atmosphere that refracts starlight, making it difficult for starlight to penetrate. However, the Moon has no atmosphere, so there is no refraction and no atmospheric phenomena to obscure starlight. Therefore, stars should normally be visible in photos taken on the Moon. Yet, in the photos taken by the Apollo astronauts, only the blackness of space was visible; not a single star was present.
The third piece of evidence is that analyzing photos and videos of the Apollo spacecraft landing on the moon reveals no engine exhaust marks. The spacecraft is extremely heavy, requiring immense force to move and stop it. Landing on the moon also demands powerful engine thrust. Yet, the lunar surface showed no engine exhaust marks or even raised dust.
The fourth piece of evidence is the footprints of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, which still remain on the moon. The moon’s gravity is only one-sixth that of Earth’s. Therefore, a person’s weight is also only one-sixth. Yet, how could strong engine exhaust leave no trace on the moon, while human footprints could be left so deeply?
The fifth piece of evidence is the suspicious lighting. The sun is the strongest light source on the moon. Other stars can also be light sources, but they are very faint compared to the sunlight reflecting on the moon. All shadows on the moon should be parallel, yet in the Apollo photos, the shadows were crossing in multiple directions, not just one.
These five major pieces of evidence were accepted as sufficiently convincing not only by Bill Kaysing himself but also by many others. As a result, this conspiracy theory spread across the United States and then around the world.
However, two points warrant attention. First, it is unclear how Bill Kaysing calculated the probability of approximately 0.0017% and what factors he considered. Second, the evidence presented for the conspiracy theory can be sufficiently refuted scientifically.
The first piece of evidence, the fluttering flag, was made of nylon and designed by its developer to unfurl even in the airless environment of the Moon. The apparent fluttering was caused by the flag’s creases and the astronaut shaking the pole. Indeed, when reviewing the footage, the flag only moves when the astronaut holds the pole and shakes it.
The second piece of evidence, the absence of stars, is due to the limitations of photographic technology at the time. With the technology available then, it was difficult to capture distant starlight when photographing bright subjects.
The third piece of evidence—the absence of engine exhaust plumes—is explained by the lack of air on the Moon. Without air, there is no wind, and without wind, no dust is kicked up. Furthermore, the Moon’s low gravity allowed the spacecraft to land with minimal pressure, leaving no significant marks on the lunar surface.
Fourth, the shadows appearing in multiple directions are explained by the Moon’s terrain. If multiple lights had been present, each object should have cast multiple shadows.
Finally, the lunar landing traces remain clearly visible today. Even with modern technology, the astronauts’ landing marks can be observed from Earth. Furthermore, the approximately 400kg of moon rocks brought back to Earth by the astronauts serve as definitive proof that the moon landing actually occurred. For reference, moon rocks differ in their primary composition from Earth rocks.
As these rebuttals and scientific explanations were presented, the moon landing conspiracy theory gradually lost its persuasiveness. Just as conspiracy theories about a top star’s suicide vanished with the autopsy results, conspiracy theories about the moon landing also subsided due to scientific explanations. Only after clear answers were provided to various questions could people come to accept the new event of the moon landing.
