Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 07-19-2008 12:42 AM
From Discovery Channel:
Wednesday, August 27 at 9PM - The Mythbusters take on one of their biggest, most controversial myths ever: Could the July 1969 moon landing have been an elaborate hoax? First, Adam and Jamie focus on photos, testing the theory that two of NASA's most famous images were shot in a studio. Then, they investigate the myth that to get the classic "low lunar gravity look" the government shot the footage in a studio and then simply slowed it down. And Grant, Tory and Kari take on the claims that the footage of footprints and flags flapping in zero gravity had to have been faked.
I have known this episode was coming for some time (a cS member took part in one of the experiments for this show, sort of) and per Discovery, I'll have the opportunity to interview Adam, Jamie, Kari, Grant and Tory for this site and SPACE.com before it airs.
The photo below wasn't taken in connection with the upcoming episode but it seemed appropriate for the topic.
stsmithva Member
Posts: 1933 From: Fairfax, VA, USA Registered: Feb 2007
posted 07-19-2008 05:36 AM
This will do nothing to convince hard-core hoax believers ("The U.S. government had access to billions of dollars' worth of equipment, and these are two guys on basic cable!") and has been discussed before, just addressing the beliefs of the hoax believers lends them some credibility.
But it should be fun to watch.
"Mythbusters" is a very good show. Elementary school students love it. (Which means that when I teach about the Apollo program this fall, I'll probably hear "But they said on 'Mythbusters' that some of this might have been faked!")
fabfivefreddy Member
Posts: 1067 From: Leawood, Kansas USA Registered: Oct 2003
posted 07-20-2008 05:46 PM
I guess we'll be faking it again soon enough. The next lunar landing is not that far off...
David Bryant Member
Posts: 986 From: Norfolk UK Registered: Feb 2005
posted 07-21-2008 04:32 AM
quote:Originally posted by fabfivefreddy: The next lunar landing is not that far off...
True! But the next landings will be faked in Beijing!
Mr Meek Member
Posts: 353 From: Chattanooga, TN Registered: Dec 2007
posted 07-21-2008 03:30 PM
It was only a matter of time before they got to this one. Though the conspiracy theories have been thoroughly debunked by other means, it will still be very entertaining to see the Mythbusters do their thing.
quote:Originally posted by Robert Pearlman: I'll have the opportunity to interview Adam, Jamie, Kari, Grant and Tory for this site and SPACE.com before it airs.
So, what's it like in Nerd Heaven? Just let me know if you need an assistant/bookkeeper/whatever.
NASAVideographer New Member
Posts: From: Registered:
posted 07-22-2008 12:04 AM
Here is a link to some behind-the-scenes photos taken when the Mythbusters crew was here at the Marshall Space Flight Center back at the end of January.
DavidH Member
Posts: 1217 From: Huntsville, AL, USA Registered: Jun 2003
posted 07-22-2008 11:57 AM
Thanks for the update, Rob, I've been really looking forward to word on when this was going to air.
(I know it's not a great pic, but I was at a pretty fair distance when I took that picture. Of the MythBusters. With my iPhone. On our Zero-G flight. So I'm rather fond of it, even if it is blurry.)
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 07-22-2008 12:03 PM
Thanks David, for posting that great photo! Here are a few more photos from his flight:
(David was the cS member I made reference to in this thread's opening post.)
paul prendergast Member
Posts: 429 From: crawley west sussex UK Registered: Apr 2004
posted 07-23-2008 11:15 AM
Can anyone tell me if this show is seen in the UK?
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 07-26-2008 03:17 PM
quote:Originally posted by NASAVideographer: Here is a link to some behind-the-scenes photos taken when the Mythbusters crew was here at the Marshall Space Flight Center back at the end of January.
And here's a short video clip from NASA TV (aired February 8):
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 07-31-2008 08:14 PM
Here is Discovery's trailer for the Mythbusters' Moon Hoax episode:
Pad39A Member
Posts: 41 From: Little Rock, AR, USA Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-03-2008 07:10 AM
Don't be fooled. The Mythbuster's show is totally faked, too! The photo of one of them "floating" in the plane was easily accomplished with duct tape!
Just kidding of course. I took a Zero Gravity flight and consider it one of life's great experiences. Expensive, but very, very cool.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-07-2008 12:29 AM
Another clip from the Mythbusters' Moon Hoax episode [via Bad Astronomy]
Betsy Member
Posts: 74 From: Registered: Jul 2008
posted 08-07-2008 07:28 AM
I don't watch the show, but this one looks hilarious. Thanks for posting the clips, Robert!
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-07-2008 11:37 AM
I just did an excellent interview with the BadAstronomer himself, Phil Plaitt, which will be rolled into our preview article for the upcoming episode alongside commentary from the MythBusters.
Phil served as an adviser to the show and for those very few of our readers not already aware, has been debunking the moon hoax (and other space, astronomy and science myths) through his own site, BadAstronomy.com, ever since the infamous Fox 'special' aired in 2001.
Mr Meek Member
Posts: 353 From: Chattanooga, TN Registered: Dec 2007
posted 08-14-2008 03:38 PM
Astute MB watchers will have noticed that last night was a rerun, and not the promised Viral Hour episode. Apparently someone at Discovery heard about some sporting event of some sort in China.
The delay of this and next week's episodes will not delay the Moon Hoax episode, however.
From the Discovery Channel forum:
MythBusters 8/13 and 8/20 premiere episodes have been rescheduled; all-new MythBusters return 8/27 with the NASA Moon Landing episode. Watch this space for updated air dates for the rescheduled Viral Hour and Ninjas2 episodes.
In 2005, Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage, special effects experts better known by the title of their popular Discovery Channel series, "MythBusters", were asked during an interview about the myth they would most like to test provided an unlimited budget.
"Jamie and I have done the research, and figured that the only way to end the debate about the 'myth' of the Apollo moon landing is to go there," Savage replied to Slashdot, a technology news website, about the belief held by some that the United States faked the lunar landings.
Three years later, the Mythbusters are ready to share the results of their 'trip' as they devote their next show, airing on Wednesday, to the moon landing hoax.
Mr Meek Member
Posts: 353 From: Chattanooga, TN Registered: Dec 2007
posted 08-26-2008 12:53 PM
quote:"They cooked us BBQ. I am pretty sure that is southern for 'We like you.'," shared Byron.
Yep, sure is. It can be, on occasion, a marriage proposal too. So, you know, caveat pransor and all that.
Great article, Robert. I'm really excited to see this episode.
collocation Member
Posts: 383 From: McLean, VA, USA Registered: Feb 2004
posted 08-27-2008 08:33 PM
Great show very entertaining. I could be wrong but I do not think Neil Armstrong's suit had red strips as the folks mentioned on the show, I thought the red strips were present on the suits of later missions.
Robert Pearlman Editor
Posts: 42986 From: Houston, TX Registered: Nov 1999
posted 08-27-2008 08:41 PM
quote:Originally posted by collocation: I could be wrong but I do not think Neil Armstrong's suit had red strips as the folks mentioned on the show, I thought the red strips were present on the suits of later missions.
You are correct: the stripes were added to the commander's suit as a result of the difficulty encountered distinguishing Armstrong and Aldrin during the downlink and afterward, in the astronauts' photos. The first flight to fly with the stripes was Apollo 13; the first to display them on the Moon was Apollo 14 (for obvious reasons).
Tonyspace Member
Posts: 120 From: Edison, New Jersey Registered: Nov 2002
posted 08-27-2008 09:47 PM
Robert, great show. Thank you for the advance notice.
Jay Chladek Member
Posts: 2272 From: Bellevue, NE, USA Registered: Aug 2007
posted 08-27-2008 10:02 PM
That was a lot of fun to watch and they certainly made a good case for it being real. The conspiracy nutjobs naturally will say some things to try and debunk what was seen, but hopefully it does open some eyes of the "20%" of the population (surprised it is that high actually, a sad commentary of our times) that says it was faked.
Of course, I want to know how Jamie got that weird looking raspberry on his forehead during the Zero G plane scenes. Did he smack his head?
BTW, why can't I try the stuff I see at home anyway? I want to build my very own giant scale LM out of cardboard for my very own 1/12 Neil Armstrong (looked more like Al Shepard to me) figure.
I also think it would be a good idea for one of the space museums in the country to consider making a vacuum bubble of some sort with a flag in it to help demonstrate that the flag behaves differently in a vacuum then it does in atmosphere. THAT was a very effective demonstration they did.
GACspaceguy Member
Posts: 2474 From: Guyton, GA Registered: Jan 2006
posted 08-28-2008 09:49 AM
You would think a show like that would be the proof needed to convince those sad folks that are missing out on one of mankind's greatest adventure, that it was all true. Sadly I had one person this morning tell me that Mythbusters must have been bought off by the government. You will never convince people who want to be ignorant, the truth.
Mr Meek Member
Posts: 353 From: Chattanooga, TN Registered: Dec 2007
posted 08-28-2008 11:29 AM
As expected, there are some real winners out there in the interwebs. Here's a couple I came across while browsing Discovery's forums.
alright if buzz Aldrin or the other guy i forgot his name is supposedly the first man to take foot on the moon then who is taking the video.
come on seriously
NASA is just like the big pharmaceutical companies. Pharmaceutical companies is bias when funding medical studies. NASA is bias when trying to bust the myth.
From "Gus Grissom":
we can only go 300-400 miles into space in manned exploration CURRENTLY! How are we supposed to believe that we could have sent men 239,000 miles to the Moon and back 40 years ago, and with less technology than a 'Gameboy?'(What technology was 60000% better 40 years ago than currently?) Doesn't that strike you as illogical?
There's also a selection of folks who think that the episode actually confirms that the landings were faked. That must be one big vacuum chamber...
Saturn V Member
Posts: 176 From: Golden, Colorado, USA Registered: Nov 2006
posted 08-28-2008 01:00 PM
Some people will never believe it. After reading Mr. Meek's internet snippetts I think I am going to be sick. How do these people remember to breath when they wake up in the morning?
John Charles Member
Posts: 339 From: Houston, Texas, USA Registered: Jun 2004
posted 09-01-2008 04:04 PM
I finally saw the episode, with my college-age son, two high school-age nieces, my wife and mother. It was good (but a bit too "in-your-face")--except for the lunar "laser ranging retro-reflector (LR-cubed)". I wish MB and other hoax-busters would take this one off of their evidence list. It didn't require astronauts to put the laser retroreflectors on the moon. In fact, the Soviets put two smaller, French-made reflectors up there without benefit of astronauts, on the two Lunokhod rovers.
As soon as the hoaxers wake up to this, that will be evidence that the hoax-busters are confused and not to be trusted.
dss65 Member
Posts: 1156 From: Sandpoint, ID, USA Registered: Mar 2003
posted 09-01-2008 06:20 PM
I particularly liked their treatment of the non-parallel shadows, the flag "flapping", and the low-gravity movements. I thought these should be convincing to a skeptical but reasonable viewer. (I view both skepticism and reason to be very good qualities.) Unreasonable viewers who wish to believe something will continue to do so regardless of any amount of overwhelming evidence--and Hoax Believers are certainly not the only examples of this. The show could not possibly have had the power to convert the hard-core Hoax Believer, but it hopefully did have the power to keep many from falling into their grasp. My wife, a sixth grade teacher, often talks about how many of her students are big fans of Mythbusters, so this is potentially a very big deal.
I also did not particularly like the laser bouncing portion of the program as being the climax. Not only did the reflectors not require humans to place them on the moon by hand, but you would never convince a person who was certain that NASA faked all the lunar missions that they didn't also simply fake a laser bounce. The laser bounce was meaningful to me, but I wish they had chosen a different demonstration for their conclusion.
All in all, I thought it was quite good, but not excellent.
posted 07-19-2008 12:42 AM
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