Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who are you?

A 23-year-old professional history and travel writer from the East Midlands, Leicestershire – or, just “Antonia” will do!

2. Are you affiliated to NASA?

I wish I was, but sadly not. I am a keen amateur and full-time Apollo geek. I have no affiliation to NASA and never have. For a start, I’m English and only just 23 years old. Quite far outside of NASA’s recruitment processes.

3. Who is this website aimed at?

This is not, as some believe, a website aimed to convince the conspiracy theorists of their error. LunarLandingHoax.com is a website for the doubters rather the conspiracy theorists; the people who may have seen or read some one-sided cock and bull report, and now have doubts over the missions.

I realise not everyone is like me, and immediately upon seeing the conspiracy theorists on a documentary ran to find out if it were true. While many believe the missions happened, there is also a general populace feeling of “but maybe…” with no one going any further to actually clarify the facts. If someone wants to do so, this is the website for them. For this reason, aiming at the general public, I have tried to simplify the facts of debunking as far as possible.

I am not interested in challenging the conspiracy theorists themselves as some people will believe anything. I firmly believe that if you were to actually take some of the more dedicated theorists to the moon and show them the evidence on the lunar surface, they would still find a way to claim it was faked. Some people don’t want to believe. This website is for those who want to believe, but need some of the “theories” clearing up in understandable English.

4. Why do you care?

I am hugely passionate about the Apollo missions, and discovering and learning about them has hugely benefited my life. Part of me wants to try and ignite the same passion in others, but my main driving force is that people need to know. It is inevitable that the human psyche looks for conspiracy theories; we try and find explanations in patterns of chaos. The mainstream media are very good at highlighting the conspiracy theories, but are poor at airing the rebuttals.

This means there is a large slice of the public who have doubts but not convictions. I will never forget my father, a dedicated Apollo fan, turning to me after seeing a documentary promoting the conspiracy and saying he didn’t want to believe the missions wered fake… but now he had doubts. This website is for people like him, who have had their faith dealt (sometimes believable) blows with so-called “evidence”. If these people have a chance to rediscover their love for Apollo, I want to help.

5. Where do you get your information?

Wherever possible, any facts or sources are linked to within the article. In some cases, the information comes from offline literature I have read – details of these can be found in the ‘Credits’ section of this website.

6. Why is this website not complete?

This is not a sit-stay website, where content is published and then left. Lunarlandinghoax.com is a blog, meaning information is regularly added several times a week. This includes everything from book reviews to debunking the hoax.

7. Why did you choose the blog format?

There is something in choosing what I know; my background is in blogging, and I find it one of the best mediums for interaction and publishing. It also gives the opportunity for constant updating and verifying of information. With a blog, there is no need for arguments in comments – I can simply post a new blog post on the subject discussed if needed with a thorough investigation. The blog format also ensures a longevity of the website, as it will constantly need to be fed news and information to keep it active and up to date.

8. Why don’t you update more often?

Time, alas. Lunarlandinghoax.com is something of a labour of love rather than my professional work. I update when I can.

9. I have a particular hoax theory I’m confused about – can you explain it to me?

Rather than answering questions in email to one person, I’ll tackle any problems in a new blog post. Simply send your request to editor@lunarlandinghoax.com (or use the contact tab above for an email form) and I’ll formulate a post as quickly as possible in response.

10. Can you get me Neil Armstrong’s / Buzz Aldrin’s etcetera autograph?

This blog is not, as mentioned above, affiliated with NASA or the astronauts. Any astronaut involvement or input is on their own time, and I cannot pass on autograph requests. You are best to direct your query to NASA or to the astronaut himself; many have their own websites.

Please note that Neil Armstrong no longer signs autographs (a policy I strongly agree with) anyway.

11. Are you a scientist? If not, how can you possibly have a clue what you’re talking about?

I am not a scientist, in fact, I would describe myself as one of the least scientifically minded people on the planet. However, I have learnt. I am not an expert on science or the space programme; instead, I am a mere keen amateur who still looks at the moon in wonder.

The important thing is that while not a scientist myself, I base any debunking theories around expert opinion and scientific theories. As I can read, I can interpret these for myself and hopefully rewrite them in plain, easy to comprehend English. When I was trying to learn more about Apollo, I struggled massively against scientific terminology and references – so for this blog, I actually think it’s better that I am not an expert.

I’m also a big fan of the “tried and tested” concept. I might not be a photographer, but I know I’ve taken photos of stars against a night sky and the stars haven’t appeared on film. I’m looking to recreate and test as many of the debunks as possible.

12. You do know it’s all fake, right? [And other less polite ways of saying the same thing]

No, I don’t. The Apollo missions happened. I’d like to take this opportunity to say:

• No, I do not believe everything “the Government tells [me]“.
• For a start, I’m English. The US government means nothing to me.
• I am not “deluded” or “blinkered”.
• I do not need to “think outside the box”. If “thinking outside the box” means one comes up with such ridiculous nonsense as several conspiracy theorists spout, I’m glad in the box, I celebrate the box. The box is nice and comfy and rational.
  

13. What does CM / LM / EVA etcetera mean?

This is coming up frequently, and while I know it needs some work, there is a glossary

For the record:

CM – Command Module, the vehicle that orbits the moon during a landing.

LM – Lunar Module, the vehicle that lands on the moon.

EVA – Extra Vehicular Activity, namely a space walk or a period spent on the lunar surface by astronauts.

If you have any further questions, feel free to email me (use the “Contact” link above) or comment here. Please note comments are screened for the sake of my sanity.