Conquest of the Moon: why are there still doubters?

The conquest of the Moon in 1969 was one of humanity's greatest achievements, a milestone in the history of space exploration that inspired generations and forever changed our understanding of the Cosmos. The images of Neil Armstrong stepping on lunar soil, broadcast live, represented technological advances so absurd that some people didn't even believe it could be true. And to this day, more than 50 years later, there are those who question whether that small step for one man would be a giant leap for humanity or the biggest hoax of all time.

Many of the supporters of this theory are based on a set of “evidence” that would prove that that epic adventure was nothing more than a great fiction produced in Hollywood. But not even the successive manned trips to the Moon and all the technological advances we achieved from the Space Race were enough to convince these people that man had actually set foot on lunar soil. So what is it about this supposed evidence that makes it so compelling? Do they hold up against a slightly more careful analysis?

One of the most common allegations is that the American flag, when planted on the Moon by Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, flutters as if it were under the action of the wind, which would be impossible in the absence of an atmosphere. But what we see in the videos is not the flag fluttering in the wind, but rather swaying due to the way it was fixed to the flagpole, with a horizontal rod to keep it extended. The waving of the flag is the result of its manipulation by astronauts and its own structure, and not of the lunar wind, which does not exist! Furthermore, we see that the astronauts had some difficulty keeping it stretched, thanks to the low gravity of the place.

Another frequent allegation is the absence of stars in photos and videos taken on the Moon. But what a great oversight from these Hollywood people, isn't it!? They forgot to put the stars and now they have been discovered! Just no! The stars do not appear because the camera's sensitivity was adjusted to record the relief, the astronauts and the lunar module, which were illuminated by the Sun. With this adjustment, the stars, which are much fainter, do not appear in the photos. It's like trying to photograph the starry sky, from inside a football stadium, on game night. It just doesn't work!

The well-defined footprints of the astronauts on the Moon are also the subject of questioning. How did the footprints form if the lunar soil is dry and dusty? The thing is that lunar regolith is very different from Earth's sand. Every grain of sand here on Earth is polished by rain, wind and river water, transforming them into small spheres, which when dry, slide easily over each other under the action of gravity. But lunar dust is different. Called regolith, it is composed of fine, irregular particles that “fit together” and compact easily when subjected to pressure. The absence of atmosphere and low gravity contribute to the preservation of footprints for long periods. And so, to this day, it is possible to see the footprints left by astronauts, based on images from probes orbiting the Moon.

Several photos are also questioned that present allegedly “strange” shadows, as if formed by various light sources. This would represent yet another “ballot” in Hollywood scenography. But in fact, the apparently non-parallel shadows are, in some cases, the result of the composition of photos taken in several directions to form a panorama and, in others, they are caused by the irregularities of the terrain and even the effect of perspective.

But the evidence of man going to the Moon goes beyond photos and videos. The astronauts brought to Earth more than 380 kg of lunar rocks, which were analyzed by scientists from around the world and which are unlike any rock found on Earth. Reflective mirrors were left on the Moon by the Apollo missions, and are still used today to measure, with the help of lasers, the distance between the Earth and the Moon with millimeter precision.

And if there are still doubts, several space agencies and independent observatories, from different countries, have confirmed the presence of equipment and traces left by the Apollo missions on the lunar surface. The Soviets themselves confirmed the Americans' landing from probes orbiting the Moon at the time. And even with all this, there are still those who maintain that it was all a farce, involving even the Soviets and even denying the existence of the Cold War, the period of global tension, which dominated the planet's geopolitics for more than 40 years.

Imagine how many millions of accomplices would be needed to maintain this “farce”. How many scientists and government officials were involved, blatantly lying for decades, spending billions of dollars to create and sustain this fantastic story with the sole aim of playing a trick on all of humanity!

Among the videos released from the Apollo missions, there is one that is considered irrefutable proof that we were on the Moon. During an external activity on Apollo 14, a tool attached to the module by a rope falls and swings like a pendulum for a few moments. The pendulum oscillation is defined by some physical formulas that basically depend on the length of the rope and the gravity to which it is subject.

Anyone willing to estimate the length of that string, measure the period of the pendulum and apply these values ​​to the formula, will come to the conclusion that that pendulum would not be possible in Earth's gravity, but rather in some place with gravity equivalent to that of the Moon. .

Man's arrival on the Moon was something so extraordinary that it became incredible, in the purest sense of the word, that is, it was impossible to believe. But it happened. And unlike many other known moments in the history of humanity, whose facts are narrated in old books and nothing else, the Conquest of the Moon is very well recorded in photos, videos and a wide collection of proofs and evidence.

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Even after more than half a century, analyzing humanity's greatest adventure causes us amazement and admiration and makes us think about everything that human beings are capable of accomplishing with the right incentive and an unlimited budget.

The conquest of the Moon was, in fact, an extraordinary feat that marked the history of space exploration. Questioning and debating is fundamental to the advancement of science, but we cannot deny the facts, disregard the evidence and, above all, we can never doubt human ingenuity and courage, which have already led us to cross oceans, explore frozen continents, cross deserts. , fly like birds and, since 1969, navigate the vast cosmic ocean, helping humanity to unravel the mysteries of the Universe.