The Public's Penchant for Conspiratorial Jumps.

Greetings. The United States had not landed anything, manned or unmanned, on the Moon since December of 1972. That all changed on February 22nd of this calendar year when the unmanned Odysseus moon lander touched down at 6:23pm Eastern Standard Time.

When the lander commenced broadcasting signals back towards the Earth, the strength of the signal was immediately seen as somewhat less powerful than expected by the technicians in charge of the probe's operation and mission itinerary. When this particular bit of news became public knowledge, the conspiracy theorists immediately began their speculations. Some made statements alleging that the mission of the probe was to somehow "hide something" from the public, although what that something is was not elaborated on. Some made the wild claim of "aliens!" Such rhetoric is typical of the UFO subculture, particularly the "woo" crowd. As it turns out, mission technicians believe that one of the probe's landing pads made contact with a surface rock, making the probe tip on its side when touchdown was completed. The same situation occurred with the Japanese SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) moon lander, which tipped on its side upon touching down on the lunar surface on the 19th of January. 

Taking a nonsensical approach to the issue, where is the proof that aliens have interfered with our unmanned exploratory efforts? Where are all the alien constructs that some authors claim are on the lunar surface? Where are the towers of glass? Where are the buildings made of alien materials left behind by extraterrestrials? We have clear pictures of the moons of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, all with high levels of detail, yet all we have from the conspiracy theorists are fuzzy photos allegedly from the surface of the Moon, only a few hundred thousand miles distant. Should those photos not be crystal clear? One would think so, but I suppose they were taken by the same person who captures all the photographs of aliens, Bigfoot, and the Loch Ness Monster. Someone needs some modern technology, it is not 1965 anymore folks.

Back to the grounded, space travel is an extremely difficult undertaking, rife with a whole slew of challenges, ranging from technical difficulties, to mechanical failure, to good ol' human error. Beyond the technical, outer space offers many naturally occurring hazards which can destroy even the most meticulously laid plans; solar flares, radiation belts, micrometeorites, etc. Add in the usual launch delays and political financial challenges, and you have a truly arduous endeavor. Even in the best of times, space travel is a painstakingly tough goal to achieve, hence the occasional struggles. So when an image is out of focus, or a spacecraft goes off course, or a lander malfunctions upon making touchdown, it is part of the process of space exploration, and likely not the result of anything out of the ordinary, or extraordinary, but don't tell that to the tinfoil hat wearing true believers. 

Conspiracy-minded fringe communities steadily grow and spread like wildfire online. Social media, including chat forums and platforms, enable such groups to form and have continuous and repeated access to information that reinforces their irrational beliefs and helps them formulate a sense of shared identity. Instead of withering in the face of evidence that contradicts their beliefs, such groups often choose to deepen their commitment and this, in turn, can lead directly to radicalization. For many, the thought of giving up their personal delusions is simply unthinkable, for they are far too invested.

This dogged adherence to unsupported conclusions is a primary reason why common strategies to combat fake news, disinformation/misinformation and/or conspiracy theories, such as fact-checking, debunking or presenting alternative views to such hypotheses, not only consistently fall short of their intended goal, but can even contribute to pushing these fringe communities to grow even more resolute, even more dug into their respective positions. Talk about an exercise in intellectual futility. 

Logic. Critical thinking. Rational thought processes. They all work wonders when put into practice. 

Thank you for your time and consideration.