By Tim Binnall
NASA's former chief historian recently raised a rather thought-provoking scenario in which he posited that the infamous moon hoax theory could become more popular in years to come as memories of the landmark landings fade. The intriguing observation was reportedly made by Roger Launius during a speaking engagement earlier this month. "As time passes and the Apollo landings are farther into the past and fewer people remember them," he mused, "it might be easier to embrace these kinds of ideas."
Noting that "Americans love conspiracy theories," Launius revealed that this possible uptick in Moon Hoax advocacy is a situation that "concerns me more and more," especially given the way in which incorrect information can be presented in a captivating fashion online nowadays. One needs to look no further than the rise of the Flat Earth theory by way of YouTube videos to see that the retired historian's misgivings have merit. As such, he cautioned that educators should not be surprised if, in the too distant future, they are confronted by curious students who question whether or not we really went to the moon.
Clearly a vehement opponent of the controversial conspiracy theory, which he called "ridiculous," Launius offered an interesting reasoning of his own for how we can be confident that the moon landings took place. He noted that the competitive nature of the Cold War made it so that, had the United States faked the historic accomplishment, the USSR would have quickly exposed the hoax since they would have "had both the capability and the desire" to do so. Since they "never said a word," Launius argued, it's a safe bet that the event actually happened.