Conspiracy theorists loudly trumpet their claim that moon landings were faked. Given that the moon has little atmosphere to speak of I would think it would be fairly easy to find and photograph artifacts from earlier missions.
2006-08-15 15:12:09 · 8 answers · asked by dunkin2 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Actually, satellites launched into lunar orbit have located remnants.
Telescopes on earth can detect some of the materials left as well. Specifically, the astronauts left corner reflector arrays (they work like cats' eyes) which are regularly used to precisely measure the distance to the moon (bounce laser pulses off the arrays) and also the drift of the continents here on earth.
Why don't we get off this conspiracy bandwagen. I know you asked a question that would refute some of the conspiracy stuff, but it's really a done deal. Besides, there are a whole lot of people out there who'd rather believe any wierd thing rather than pay attention to facts.
2006-08-15 15:32:50 · answer #1 · answered by birchardvilleobservatory 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Although my wife's father performed fuel calculations for the original Apollo landing, I'll spare you that speech. Instead, I will encourage you to watch two programs. The first show is called Conspiracy Moon Landing that it currently showing on the National Geographic Channel and it pretty much obliterates all of the popular conspiracy theories.
I would also encourage you to watch a movie called Capricorn One. Made it 1978, it is a fictional story about a fake mission to Mars. Although it is a science fiction story, it is a good example of how utterly impossible it would be to fake a moon landing for any length of time.
12 men walked on the moon from 1969 to 1972 and we have neither the resources nor the technology to pull off that big of a hoax for so long. Hundreds of thousands of people have worked on the space program. It would be far easier to put someone on the moon than to try and fake it and keep it secret for nearly 40 years.
The landings came at a time when our space program was ultra competitive with the former Soviet Union. Remember how big of a deal it was when Sputnik was put into orbit? They had the technology to monitor our moon shots and transmissions. Don't you think they would have called us out if they had evidence that it was all fake?
Perhaps the most definitive proof of our trip to the moon is what we left behind. For the last 35+ years, scientists have been beaming lasers to the moon and measuring the return times. How are they doing this? The beams are reflected back by equipment left on the moon on at 3 different locations.
Case closed.
2006-08-15 18:10:49 · answer #2 · answered by Carl 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not if the satellite is orbiting earth.
Even the Hubble Space Telescope can only resolve images down to about as large as a football field on the moon.
If the satellite was orbiting the moon instead, then we could indeed see some of the stuff left behind.
The conspiracy theorists brains are already orbiting the moon.
Their mentality is such that even if we did photograph such remains, they would declare those photos fake also!
You can't reason with people like that and hope to get anywhere.
2006-08-15 15:39:38 · answer #3 · answered by Jay T 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Obviously any evidence to support the moon landing would be seen as fabricated by conspiracy theorists. They can always explain away any facts you might present to you because its all part of the conspiracy. Of course I might be trying to trick you because I might be all part of the big conspiracy too so don't believe a word I say.
2006-08-17 23:54:30 · answer #4 · answered by uselessadvice 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We can point lasers up there and get accurate reflections from the laser reflectors placed there, too. The Soviets watched us on their own radars. (They suspected we might fake it.) It was only because they observed us that they believed we made it. The Moon rocks brought back by the astronauts match moon rocks blasted out into space by meteor impacts on the Moon, which fell to Earth. I'm tired of responding to people who still think it was fake.
2006-08-15 15:39:22 · answer #5 · answered by cdf-rom 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Then the conspiracy believers will just say the satellite photos are fake and the satellite operators are in on the cover up.
2006-08-15 15:50:33 · answer #6 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes. The descent modules have been seen on the moon.
2006-08-15 16:22:18 · answer #7 · answered by Ironball 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yeah, if the satellite were to look in the mohabi desert.
snicker, snicker, snicker.....
-eagle
2006-08-15 15:32:53 · answer #8 · answered by eaglemyrick 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋