(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/NASA)
Apollo 11 mission was a success, but many are still not convinced about the moon landing. Here are the most famous moon landing controversies and the corresponding reactions from National Space Centre Discovery Director Profesor Anu Ojha during a 2019 lecture at Royal Museums Greenwich.
1. Unparallel shadow proves images are fake
Some raised concerns about the shadows in the photos released from the mission. According to them, they were not parallel and concrete proof that the lunar landing didn't happen. They claimed that the shadows should be parallel if the Sun were the source. They speculated that it was taken from a studio.
However, Ojha says the snap can be reproduced on Earth anytime. He reminded the others that everyone may have witnessed it firsthand. Parallel lines can appear non-parallel due to perspective. You can make lines perform a range of strange things while attempting to reduce a three-dimensional scenario to a two-dimensional plane. Artists have used this technique for centuries.
2. Apollo astronauts could not have survived the Earth's radiation field
Ojha acknowledged that there were regions surrounding the Earth's magnetic field with extremely high radiation. The conspiracy theory suggested that the condition would kill the astronauts, so the mission was a hoax.
In response, he compared the experience to firewalking. According to him, staying in the center of the firepit is something you should never do if you've ever gone firewalking. Instead, you move as fast as you can to cross.
From a scientific perspective, you won't have enough thermal energy entering your feet to burn you if you move across rapidly and consider your feet's thermal conductivity. Just avoid loitering in the center, and you'll be doing great.
3. NASA moon landing photos have no stars
Many argued that the moon landing photos were questionable because of the lack of stars. According to them, it was impossible to remove the stars, so the snap was likely staged.
However, according to Ojha, the Sun shines strongly on the astronauts and the lunar surface. Though the background appears pitch-black, it is actually daytime on the Moon.
If you plan to snap a picture of something brightly lighted, the shutter speed and aperture of your camera must be set very tiny. Stars and other dim objects will not appear in such a scenario.
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4. Apollo 11 US flag waves when there's no wind on the Moon
The professor said that one of the crowning moments of the Apollo 11 mission was seeing the stars and stripes of the US flag standing on the lunar surface. However, critics said there was no wind, so they wondered why the flag appeared to be waving.
Ojha said the flag was set up to appear that way. A noticeable telescopic pole extended along the top edge of the flag to make it fly proudly. Also, the wrinkles were present because the material was screwed up for four days en route to the moo.
5. Why humans haven't returned to the Moon after successfully doing it
The Apollo 11 mission was launched in 1969. It has been over 50 years since, but humans haven't repeated the same success. Many wondered why it seemed difficult for humans to return to the Moon when they had already accomplished it.
Ojha said it was simply due to geopolitics. NASA's priority changed because they already did it.
"The answer is we changed our priorities," Ojha explained. "From a combination of the Vietnam War, but also there was this geopolitical element of thinking, 'We've won the race.' Just as we'd got good at doing science on the Moon, we abandoned it."
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