In this special follow-up to our Space Race episode, we dive headfirst into one of the most persistent conspiracy theories in American history. Did NASA really land men on the moon six times between 1969 and 1972, or was the whole thing an elaborate hoax filmed on a soundstage?

We start with Bill Kaysing, the former Rocketdyne technical writer who self-published "We Never Went to the Moon" in 1976 and launched a conspiracy movement that refuses to die. From there, we explore the cultural moment that made America ripe for such theories, including the shadow of Vietnam, the Pentagon Papers, and Watergate. This episode presents the conspiracy arguments in their strongest form, examining claims about the waving flag, the missing stars, the suspicious shadows, the absent blast crater, and the supposedly lethal Van Allen radiation belts. 

We also tackle the Stanley Kubrick theory and the darker claims about suspicious deaths within the Apollo program.

Then we flip the script and examine the overwhelming scientific evidence for the moon landings, including 842 pounds of lunar samples verified by scientists worldwide, retroreflectors still being used for laser ranging experiments today, and high-resolution photographs from multiple international spacecraft showing the landing sites exactly where NASA said they'd be. 

We also explore why the Soviet Union, America's mortal enemy with every reason to expose a fraud, acknowledged the landings as genuine. Along the way, we discuss the infamous moment when Buzz Aldrin punched conspiracy theorist Bart Sibrel in the face, and we examine the psychological reasons why conspiracy theories persist even in the face of insurmountable evidence.

This one's a little different from our usual fare. We had fun with it, and we hope you do too.