In a recent episode of “The Kardashians,” Kim Kardashian sparked conversation by questioning the authenticity of the moon landing, expressing her intrigue in various conspiracy theories surrounding the event. Throughout the show, Kardashian shared that she had been watching “Buzz Aldrin” videos. The second man on the moon, he debunked conspiracy theories that question if we ever landed on the moon. Aldrin himself was the first to respond to the shocking news. NASA’s acting administrator, Sean Duffy, went a step further and released an official statement.
Buzz Aldrin’s response to Kardashian was pointed: “There was no scary moment because it didn’t happen. It could’ve been scary, but it wasn’t because it didn’t happen.” This comment was made in reference to Kardashian’s mention of an article outlining Aldrin’s purported scariest moment during the moon expedition, further fueling discussions about the legitimacy of the Apollo missions.
NASA’s Sean Duffy took to social media platform X to directly address Kardashian, tagging her in a post that reaffirmed the agency’s historical achievements. He stated, “Yes, we’ve been to the Moon before… 6 times! And even better: [NASA Artemis] is going back under the leadership of [president Donald Trump]. We won the last space race and we will win this one too.” Duffy emphasized NASA’s commitment to lunar exploration, inviting Kardashian to witness the upcoming Artemis launch at the Kennedy Space Center.
Kardashian seemed as excited by the Artemis mission as she was in her initial response to Duffy. She asked some questions about 3I/ATLAS, an interstellar comet recently spotted zooming through our solar system. “Wait…. what’s the tea on 3I Atlas?!?!!!!!!!?????” she wrote, showcasing her curiosity about space exploration beyond Earth.
Credibility isn’t the first thing to come to mind when someone hears about NASA’s hoax conspiracy about the moon landing. During its unique Apollo missions, the agency brought home 382 kilograms of moon rock. It contains photographic and radiation information that backs up the historic lunar landings. A 2020 paper in PLOS One stressed just how unlikely a hoaxed moon landing truly is. It noted that executing such a gigantic ruse would require at least 400,000 co-conspirators, which is highly improbable.
Duffy was typical in recent days, in reiterating NASA’s historical and ongoing importance to America’s accomplishments in space. He pointed out that the agency has accomplished six successful missions to the moon. He infamously calmed fears by promising that the moon landing would not bring any dangers back to Earth. Duffy’s statements struck at false and misleading narratives and painted a picture of NASA’s steadfast dedication to advancing science.