The Moon landings
Six Apollo crews landed on the Moon between 1969 and 1972. Some people say it was faked. This case lists what the records show, and which of those records are independent of NASA.
The question Did Apollo really land people on the Moon, or was it faked?
What the records say
Parts of the documented story are still open: 5 of 14 timeline steps are Confirmed (score 84).
6 theories checked: 6 disproven. A theory is rated by its key claim.
Indian orbiter images show the Apollo 11 and 12 descent stages
likelyReported by one reputable outlet so far, so it is rated Likely, not Confirmed. See the step
Down the rabbit hole
The ground line is the documented timeline. Each tunnel is a theory that branches off it; every chamber is a step, coloured by how well the records support it. The deepest chamber is the theory’s key claim. Tap one to open it.
Main timeline
Oldest first- 20 Jul 1969confirmed
Apollo 11’s lunar module lands in the Sea of Tranquility
NASA’s records give the landing of the lunar module “Eagle” at 20:17:40 UT, with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin aboard and Michael Collins in orbit. Outside NASA, Jodrell Bank in the UK was tracking the lander that July, and India’s Chandrayaan-2 orbiter has since imaged the Apollo 11 descent stage on the surface.
T1NASA NSSDCA, Apollo 11mission summaryinvolved party: NASAT1NASA NSSDCA, Apollo 11 Lunar ModuleMission Profileinvolved party: NASAT2Jodrell Bank, University of Manchester, 2009T2Stooke, LPSC abstract, 2026“Landed spacecraft”; “Apollo” - 21 Jul 1969likely
Armstrong and Aldrin walk on the Moon and leave instruments behind
NASA records the first step at 02:56:15 UT, 21.55 kg of rock and soil collected, and a seismometer, a dust detector and a laser reflector set up. The walk itself is described only in NASA’s records, so this is Likely; the reflector they left is confirmed independently (step 5).
T1NASA NSSDCA, Apollo 11 Lunar ModuleMission Profile; EASEPinvolved party: NASA - Jul 1969likely
A British observatory tracks the landing as it happens
The University of Manchester says its Jodrell Bank telescopes were tracking the Eagle lander in July 1969, while also following the Soviet probe Luna 15, which crashed on the Moon on 21 July. Recordings from the control room were released in 2009.
- Nov 1969 to Jul 1971confirmed
Apollo 12, 14 and 15 land, and observers outside NASA later find their hardware
NASA lists landings on 19 November 1969, 5 February 1971 and 30 July 1971. India’s orbiter has imaged the Apollo 12 descent stage, French astronomers range to the Apollo 14 and 15 reflectors, and Japan’s Kaguya saw the Apollo 15 engine scar. Apollo 13 did not land: a malfunction forced it to loop around the Moon and return.
T1NASA NSSDCA, the Apollo ProgramApollo Lunar Missionsinvolved party: NASAT2Stooke, LPSC abstract, 2026“Apollo”T1Courde et al., A&A, 2017Sect. 1T1JAXA press release, 20 May 2008 - Dec 1970confirmed
French astronomers bounce a laser off the reflectors on the Moon
The first French echoes from the lunar reflectors came in December 1970, from the Pic du Midi Observatory. A 2017 paper by the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur reports ranging from Grasse to the three reflectors placed by Apollo 11, 14 and 15, and to two French-made reflectors on the Soviet Lunokhod rovers.
T1Courde et al., A&A, 2017Sect. 1 and 2 - 20 Apr 1972likely
Apollo 16 lands
NASA lists the Apollo 16 landing on 20 April 1972. No record independent of NASA was read for this landing, so in this case it rests on NASA’s own record.
T1NASA NSSDCA, the Apollo ProgramApollo Lunar Missionsinvolved party: NASA - 11 Dec 1972likely
Apollo 17 makes the last crewed landing
NASA records that Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt landed at Taurus-Littrow while Ronald Evans orbited, returning on 19 December 1972, and counts six landings in all. No independent record of this landing was read, so it is Likely.
T1NASA NSSDCA, Apollo 17mission summaryinvolved party: NASAT1NASA NSSDCA, the Apollo Programintroductioninvolved party: NASA - 1969 to 1972likely
The six landings bring back 382 kg of Moon rock and soil
NASA’s sample curators give 382 kilograms in 2,200 samples; that figure is NASA’s own. Chinese scientists dating rock from China’s Chang’e-5 mission (2021) compare it with Apollo basalts and find its mantle-source value within the Apollo range.
T1NASA lunar sample curationintroductioninvolved party: NASAT1NASA NSSDCA, the Apollo Programintroduction (“almost 400 kilograms”)involved party: NASAT1Li et al., Nature, 2021 (Chang’e-5)abstract; Fig. 3 - 1976likely
Bill Kaysing’s book says the landings were faked
Kaysing, who writes that he worked for seven years at Rocketdyne, the firm that built Apollo’s main engines, self-published “We Never Went to the Moon” with Randy Reid. PolitiFact describes it as the groundwork for later hoax claims.
T2PolitiFact, 18 Jul 2019T3Kaysing and Reid, We Never Went to the Moon“How the book came to be written” - 20 May 2008confirmed
Japan’s Kaguya orbiter spots the Apollo 15 landing scar
Japan’s space agency reported a bright “halo” at the Apollo 15 site, which it attributes to the lunar module’s engine exhaust. It calls this the first detection of the halo since the Apollo programme ended.
- 2009confirmed
NASA admits the original Apollo 11 Moon-walk tapes were probably wiped and reused
A NASA Goddard search team concluded that the 45 one-inch telemetry tapes holding the raw Moon-walk video were most likely degaussed and reused during a tape shortage in the early 1980s. This is an admission against NASA’s own interest.
T1NASA Goddard tapes report, 2009“Motivation for Recycling”; p. 16involved party: NASAT2NPR, 16 Jul 2009 - Jul 2009likely
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter photographs the landing sites
Between 11 and 15 July 2009 its camera imaged five Apollo sites, showing the lunar module descent stages; at Apollo 14 the astronauts’ tracks can be seen. The orbiter is NASA’s own mission, so on its own this is Likely.
T1LROC team, Jul 2009involved party: NASA - 6 Sep 2011likely
Lower-orbit photos show the rover tracks and footpaths
After the orbiter dipped as low as 21 km, its camera team released sharper images of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 sites. At Apollo 17 the rover tracks and the astronauts’ foot trails are visible.
T2ASU News, 6 Sep 2011involved party: NASA - 2026likely
Indian orbiter images show the Apollo 11 and 12 descent stages
A University of Western Ontario scientist reports that the high-resolution camera on India’s Chandrayaan-2 orbiter, at about 25 cm per pixel, has imaged the descent stages of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12.
T2Stooke, LPSC abstract, 2026“Landed spacecraft”; “Apollo”
Branches
Go down oneA branch is only as strong as its weakest step so far. The count is how many sources back each step.
“It was filmed in a studio”
Were the landings staged on a film set?
Bill Kaysing and Randy Reid’s self-published book “We Never Went to the Moon”. PolitiFact calls Kaysing’s book the groundwork for later hoax claims.
- 6% Americans who said the government staged or faked the Apollo landing (Gallup) as of 13–14 Jul 1999 T2Gallup, 20 Jul 1999
- 12% US adults who said the 1969 landing was definitely or probably faked (Economist/YouGov) as of 10–13 Jul 2021 T2YouGov, 16 Jul 2021
- 1,876,496 YouTube views, “Joe Rogan Experience #2141 - Bart Sibrel” as of 12 Oct 2026 T3YouTube: Joe Rogan Experience #2141, Bart Sibrel
- 331,483 YouTube views, “The Moon Landing Hoax: Evidence That We Never Went to the Moon” as of 12 Oct 2026 T4YouTube: “The Moon Landing Hoax”, 2024
The surface photos show a black sky with no stars
Kaysing captions a NASA photo “Where are the STARS?”
T3Kaysing and Reid, We Never Went to the Moonphoto captionsThe premise: confirmedTrue: the sky in the surface photos is starless. Two independent explainers give the same reason: a camera set for a sunlit scene is too fast to record faint stars.
T2Royal Museums Greenwichconspiracy theory 3T2Irish Times, 2 May 2002claim no. 1The flag moves although there is no air on the Moon
The waving flag was one of the claims in Fox’s 2001 TV special.
T3Plait, Bad Astronomy, 2001“The waving flag”T4YouTube: Fox special uploadThe premise: confirmedTrue that it moved. It moved when the astronauts handled the pole, and a rod along its top edge held it out.
T2Irish Times, 2 May 2002claim no. 2T2Royal Museums Greenwichconspiracy theory 4A full Moon set was built in a secret underground cavern
Kaysing’s book: “A complete set of the moon was built in an underground cavern”.
T3Kaysing and Reid, We Never Went to the Moon“How the Voyage to the Moon was Simulated”The premise: unverifiedNo record of such a set has been produced. Records from Japan, France and India place Apollo hardware at the landing sites.
- likely
Kaysing’s book claims the landings were filmed on a set in Nevada
The book says “A complete set of the moon was built in an underground cavern” and captions a NASA photo “Where are the STARS?” PolitiFact also lists the missing-stars claim among the hoaxers’ arguments.
T3Kaysing and Reid, We Never Went to the Moon“How the Voyage to the Moon was Simulated”; photo captionsT2PolitiFact, 18 Jul 2019StartStrength so far:likely· 2 sources on this step - disproven
Claim: missing stars, odd shadows and a “waving” flag prove a studio
An independent museum explainer answers each one: the cameras were set for a sunlit scene, too fast to record faint stars; shadows look non-parallel because of perspective; and the flag was held out by a rod along its top edge.
T2Royal Museums Greenwichconspiracy theories 1, 3 and 4T2Irish Times, 2 May 2002claims 1–3▼ WeakerStrength so far:disproven· 2 sources on this step - confirmed
Observers outside NASA find Apollo hardware where NASA said it would be
Japan’s space agency imaged the Apollo 15 landing scar (2008); a French observatory ranges to the Apollo 11, 14 and 15 reflectors (2017); Indian orbiter images show the Apollo 11 and 12 descent stages (reported 2026).
= HoldsStrength so far:disproven· 3 sources on this step - disproven
Key claim: nobody landed and the footage was made on a set
Contradicted by independent records: the Japanese and French findings above, plus the Jodrell Bank tracking of the lander in July 1969.
T1JAXA press release, 20 May 2008T1Courde et al., A&A, 2017Sect. 1 and 2T2Jodrell Bank, University of Manchester, 2009= HoldsStrength so far:disproven· 3 sources on this step
Bullshit meter
- Claim: missing stars, odd shadows and a “waving” flag prove a studio. Disproven.
- Key claim: nobody landed and the footage was made on a set. Disproven.
- Key claim contradicted by tier 1? Yes. Tier-1 records from outside NASA, from Japan’s space agency (2008) and a French observatory (2017), place Apollo hardware at the landing sites.
Fluff meter: possibly planted
- Can’t be traced to an original record. Present: the claim traces only to the claimants’ own 1976 book (tier 3). No primary record supports it.
- First appeared from new or anonymous accounts. Not measured.
- Coordinated identical wording. Not measured.
- Cited source doesn’t exist. Not measured: the book’s own sources were not checked.
- Later contradicted. Present: contradicted by Japan’s space agency (2008), French laser ranging (2017) and Indian orbiter images (reported 2026).
● present · ○ absent · – not measured. Lists signals only. It never accuses anyone.
Personal interest meter
- NASA, ran Apollo and also runs the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter whose 2009 and 2011 photos are in the main timeline, so the rating here leans on records from Japan, France, India and the UK instead. T1LROC team, Jul 2009involved party: NASA
“Has a documented interest” only, each one sourced. Never an implication of guilt.
Correlation meter
- The Apollo 11, 14 and 15 reflectors, in the main timeline (steps 4 and 5) and as independent evidence in the studio, Kubrick, photos and tapes branches. T1Courde et al., A&A, 2017Sect. 1
- Royal Museums Greenwich explainer, answers the photo claims (studio branch), the radiation claim (Van Allen branch) and the “why not back” claim. T2Royal Museums Greenwich
- Apollo 15 landing site, imaged by Japan’s Kaguya (main timeline step 10) and cited in the studio, Kubrick, photos, tapes and goneback branches. T1JAXA press release, 20 May 2008
- Fox’s 2001 TV special, the origin of the photo claims and the earliest appearance found of the radiation claim. T2Irish Times, 2 May 2002
- NASA’s 2009 tapes report, main timeline step 11 and the tapes branch: an admission against NASA’s interest. T1NASA Goddard tapes report, 2009involved party: NASA
Links to other cases appear once those cases exist.
Who worked on this
This case was assembled by the site from public records. Contributions are not open yet. Nothing here is invented, so the counts are zero.
This is the first published version of the case.
Sources
- T1involved party: NASA “Apollo 11”, mission summary page, NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive (NSSDCA), Goddard Space Flight Center, last updated 15 Aug 2022. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov
- T1involved party: NASA “Apollo 11 Lunar Module / EASEP” (NSSDCA/COSPAR ID 1969-059C), NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive master catalogue entry. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov
- T1involved party: NASA “The Apollo Program (1963 - 1972)”, NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov
- T1involved party: NASA “Apollo 17”, mission summary page, NASA Space Science Data Coordinated Archive. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov
- T1involved party: NASA “Lunar Samples”, Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office, NASA Johnson Space Center. curator.jsc.nasa.gov
- T1involved party: NASA “The Apollo 11 Telemetry Data Recordings: A Final Report”, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Apollo 11 search team (team leader Richard Nafzger), 2009. www.nasa.gov · copy read: archive.org
- T2“Recording of Russia’s lunar gatecrash attempt released”, news release, Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, University of Manchester, 2009. www.jb.man.ac.uk
- T1C. Courde et al. (Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS), “Lunar laser ranging in infrared at the Grasse laser station”, Astronomy & Astrophysics 602, A90 (2017), doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201628590. doi.org · copy read: arxiv.org
- T1Q.-L. Li et al. (Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and others), “Two-billion-year-old volcanism on the Moon from Chang’e-5 basalts”, Nature 600, 54–58 (published 19 Oct 2021), doi:10.1038/s41586-021-04100-2. www.nature.com
- T3Bill Kaysing and Randy Reid, “We Never Went to the Moon: America’s Thirty Billion Dollar Swindle”, self-published 1976; copy read is a later Health Research (Pomeroy, WA) reprint. A record of what the authors claim, not evidence for it.. openlibrary.org · copy read: archive.org
- T2Daniel Funke, “When we landed on the moon, conspiracy theories took off”, PolitiFact, 18 Jul 2019. www.politifact.com
- T1“The ‘halo’ area around Apollo 15 landing site observed by Terrain Camera on SELENE (KAGUYA)”, press release, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, 20 May 2008 (JST). global.jaxa.jp
- T1involved party: NASA “LROC’s First Look at the Apollo Landing Sites”, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera team (Arizona State University, for NASA), image release 157, 16 Jul 2009. www.lroc.asu.edu
- T2involved party: NASA “New LROC images offer sharper views of Apollo 12, 14, 17 sites”, ASU News, Arizona State University (which runs the camera on NASA’s orbiter), 6 Sep 2011. news.asu.edu
- T2P. J. Stooke (Institute of Earth and Space Exploration, University of Western Ontario), “LROC-NAC and OHRC images of lunar mission sites: new insights”, 57th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2026), abstract 1044. A conference abstract, not peer-reviewed.. www.hou.usra.edu
- T1involved party: NASA J. Vernon Bailey (NASA Johnson Space Center), “Radiation Protection and Instrumentation”, chapter 3 of “Biomedical Results of Apollo” (NASA SP-368), 1975. ntrs.nasa.gov · copy read: ntrs.nasa.gov
- T2“Moon landing conspiracy theories, debunked”, Royal Museums Greenwich (Royal Observatory Greenwich), with Prof Anu Ojha of the National Space Centre; page undated. www.rmg.co.uk
- T2William Reville, “Proof that man did land on the moon”, The Irish Times, 2 May 2002. www.irishtimes.com
- T2Nell Greenfieldboyce, “Houston, We Erased The Apollo 11 Tapes”, NPR Morning Edition, 16 Jul 2009. www.npr.org
- T2Brendan Byrne, “Artemis II astronauts heading home after historic lunar flyby”, NPR, 6 Apr 2026. www.npr.org
- T2“Artemis II Crew Completes Historic Lunar Flyby Mission”, Via Satellite, 12 Apr 2026. www.satellitetoday.com
- T2Frank Newport, “Landing a Man on the Moon: The Public’s View”, Gallup, 20 Jul 1999 (poll of 13–14 Jul 1999). news.gallup.com
- T2Kathy Frankovic, “Americans support sending astronauts to the moon and Mars”, YouGov, 16 Jul 2021 (Economist/YouGov poll of 1,500 US adult citizens, 10–13 Jul 2021). yougov.com
- T2Dan Evon, “Did Stanley Kubrick Fake the Moon Landings?”, Snopes, 11 Dec 2015 (rating: False). www.snopes.com
- T2Craig Hlavaty, “Stanley Kubrick fake moon landing conspiracy theory just won’t go away”, Houston Chronicle (chron.com), 15 Dec 2015. www.chron.com
- T2Lamarco McClendon, “Stanley Kubrick’s Daughter Addresses Moon Landing Conspiracy Theory”, Variety, 6 Jul 2016. variety.com
- T3Olivier Pallaruelo, “Opération Lune : quand le documenteur de William Karel semait le doute...”, AlloCiné, 21 Jul 2019 (in French). www.allocine.fr
- T2Michael Rundle, “NASA ‘Admitted To Apollo Hoax’ In Orion Video, Say Obviously Mistaken Conspiracy Theorists”, The Huffington Post UK, 4 Dec 2014. www.huffingtonpost.co.uk
- T2Hannah Osborne, “Nasa astronaut Don Pettit: Next logical step is to go back to the Moon - then Mars and beyond”, International Business Times UK, 21 Sep 2016. www.ibtimes.co.uk
- T3Phil Plait, “Fox TV and the Apollo Moon Hoax”, Bad Astronomy (astronomer’s personal website), 13 Feb 2001 with later notes. Commentary.. www.badastronomy.com
- T3“Joe Rogan Experience #2141 - Bart Sibrel”, PowerfulJRE channel, YouTube, published 25 Apr 2024. Sibrel, maker of the 2001 film “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Moon”, argues the landings were faked. A record of his claims.. www.youtube.com
- T4“The Moon Landing Hoax: Evidence That We Never Went to the Moon”, MostAmazingTop10 channel, YouTube, published 8 Jul 2024. www.youtube.com
- T4“Conspiracy Theory : Did We Land on the Moon ?. (FULL) (February 2001)”, a viewer’s upload of the Fox TV special, MrSayonara7777 channel, YouTube, published 25 Jan 2012. www.youtube.com
- T4“OMG! Stanley Kubrick Confirms the Moon Landing was Fake!”, Evolv channel, YouTube, published 7 Jul 2023. www.youtube.com
- T3“Stanley Kubrick Moon Landing Conspiracy”, CineFix channel, YouTube, published 11 Nov 2013. A comic “investigation” of the rumour and its supposed clues in The Shining.. www.youtube.com
- T4“"Orion engineer: Kelly Smith admits NASA cannot pass the Van Allen Radiation Belts" (2014)”, Deleted Programming channel, YouTube, published 14 Nov 2017. www.youtube.com
- T4Internet Archive item “NASA-VanAllenRadiationBelts”, same clip and title as the YouTube re-upload, added 11 Mar 2022. archive.org
- T4Internet Archive item “NASA-MoonTravelTechnologyDestroyed”, titled “NASA Engineer: Don Pettit Says NASA Destroyed Technology For Moon Travel” (2016), added 11 Mar 2022. archive.org
- T4“NASA’s Lost Tapes: The Moon Landing Secrets They Tried to Erase”, Nebula Veil channel, YouTube, published 12 Sep 2025. www.youtube.com
- NO TIEROur own text search of the OCR text of Kaysing and Reid’s book (archive.org copy) for “Van Allen”, “belt” and “flag” (0 relevant matches). OCR, so not proof of absence. Not a source tier.