In the long history of human exploration of the universe, the moon has always been the most brilliant and mysterious pearl. Once, manned lunar landing was a great symbol of human technological achievements. However, after 50 years since the return of Apollo 17 in 1972, humans have never returned to the moon. What kind of story is hidden behind this?
Apollo 17 ": The glorious end of human moon landing
On December 19, 1972, in the Pacific Ocean about 650 kilometers southeast of the American Samoa Islands, a peculiar spacecraft with three parachutes slowly landed. After the rescue ship approached, three US astronauts, Eugene Cernan, Ronald Evans, and Harrison Schmidt, walked out of the spacecraft. This is the return capsule of "Apollo 17".
Apollo 17 left a significant mark in human history. Just three days ago, on the surface of the moon, Commander Eugene left a meaningful message: "I am standing on the surface of the moon, taking the last step for humanity and returning to Earth. Perhaps it will take some time before I return, but I believe it won't be too long." However, this "not too long" has spanned a long 50 years, and humans have not yet set foot on the moon.
The "Apollo Program" (Project Apollo), also known as the "Apollo Project", was a series of manned lunar missions organized and implemented by the US from 1961 to 1972, aimed at achieving manned lunar flight and field investigation of the moon, and preparing for manned planetary flight and exploration. Starting from the unfortunate "Apollo 1" simulated launch accident on January 27, 1967 (three astronauts died), to December 19, 1972, the "Apollo Project" had a total of 17 spacecraft with serial numbers. Among them, "Apollo 11" is the most famous. It successfully landed on the moon for the first time on July 16, 1969, carrying three US astronauts including Armstrong. Since then, the US has conducted six manned lunar launches, five of which were successful and one failed (although "Apollo 13" failed, three astronauts successfully returned to Earth, and related events were also filmed in the movie "Apollo 13" starring Tom Hanks). A total of 12 US astronauts have landed on the moon.
Apollo 17 was launched on December 7, 1972. It landed on the moon on the 11th and returned to Earth on the 19th, lasting 12 days and staying on the lunar surface for about 75 hours. It set multiple lunar landing records: the longest lunar flight, the longest lunar surface walk, collected the most lunar specimens (111 kilograms of lunar rocks), and traveled in lunar orbit for the longest time. Apollo 17 astronauts left a complete set of scientific instruments and a nameplate on the lunar surface, which read: "Mankind has completed the first exploration of the moon. December 1972 AD. May the spirit of peace we bring be with all mankind." Signatures: Cernan, Evans, Schmidt, Richard Nixon) "Eugene Cernan also became the last human to land on the moon so far, and the photo of the earth like a blue agate taken by Apollo 17 has become a classic picture.
The mystery of no longer landing on the moon: various conjectures surrounding extraterrestrial civilizations
After the successful completion of the Apollo 17 mission, the Apollo program came to an abrupt end (originally planned until Apollo 20). As time went by, doubts became stronger: since the US had mastered the technology to frequently launch manned spacecraft to the moon in the early 1970s, why did it not return to the moon later? Moreover, in the following 40 years, human technology developed rapidly, but the US never landed on the moon again, which undoubtedly sparked countless speculations, most of which revolved around "extraterrestrial civilizations".
Conjecture 1: Armstrong's experience
There is a classic saying related to Armstrong, the "first man to land on the moon". It is said that in his autobiography, Armstrong mentioned that on his way back to Earth from the moon in 1969, he truly felt that an extraterrestrial civilization was watching him, and his teammates also saw the unidentified flying object that suddenly disappeared in front of them. There are also reports that as early as six hours before Armstrong set foot on the surface of the moon, the Apollo 11 lunar lander "Eagle" had already landed. Edlin, who was in the same cabin, had witnessed an unidentified light source and even cried out, "I saw an unidentified object that suddenly disappeared!" However, there are many doubts about this statement. Firstly, there is currently no official evidence to support it; secondly, Armstrong did not actually write an autobiography. Moreover, Edlin has a poor reputation within NASA (US National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and is considered a person who loves to show off. At one point, he almost failed to partner with Armstrong to land on the moon. These contents appeared in the documentary "Aliens On The Moon The Truth Exposed" launched by Syfy, a cable TV channel of the US National Broadcasting Corporation in 2014, but the documentary received a mediocre response in the industry.
Hypothesis 2: The Legend of "Apollo 18"
Many people believe that after "Apollo 17", the US also carried out the "Apollo 18" moon landing mission. According to this theory, in December 1974, "Apollo 18" was successfully launched and landed on the moon, but the astronauts encountered a mysterious extraterrestrial civilization on the moon. This plot was also made into a movie "Apollo 18" by Russian producers and Spanish directors. The film tells the story of three astronauts who encountered an extraterrestrial civilization on the moon and all died (their purpose is said to be to explore a mysterious area in a photo). This movie heavily adopts the shooting style of the 1970s, which has been complained by the audience. However, the director claimed that the film was made by finding videos circulating from NASA through various channels. However, NASA has extensively refuted the claim of "Apollo 18", such as Harrison Schmidt, a scientist on "Apollo 17" who originally planned to follow "Apollo 18" to the moon, but only boarded "Apollo 17" due to mission cancellation (in fact, NASA originally planned to stop lunar exploration after "Apollo 15").
Conjecture 3: The Hollow Moon Theory and the Speculation of Alien Bases
During the "Apollo" lunar exploration, some strange phenomena occurred. Once, after two astronauts returned to the command module, the lunar module lost control and crashed onto the lunar surface. The seismic recorder set 72 kilometers away from the crash site recorded a 15-minute oscillation sound, which was like the sound of a big bell and gongs. During the "Apollo 12" lunar exploration, the echo of the collision with the moon even lasted for 4 hours, while if the moon was solid, this sound usually only lasted for about a minute. In addition, scientists have also discovered lunar earthquakes similar to earthquakes. Although the magnitude of lunar earthquakes is weak (the maximum lunar earthquake is only equivalent to a magnitude one or two earthquake), the duration of the vibration is very long. These phenomena have led some people to believe that "the moon is hollow". Famous Soviet astrophysicists Vasily and Xiaobakov once wrote in the "Komsomolskaya Pravda" that "the moon may be an alien space station, the moon is hollow, and there is an extremely advanced civilization world under its surface." However, many scientists have now pointed out that the duration of moonquakes is longer than that of earthquakes because there is no water or loose sedimentary layer on the moon, and water and loose sedimentary layer absorb seismic waves, which causes seismic waves to quickly decay on Earth. Some scientists also believe that the internal structure of the moon is similar to that of the earth, consisting of the lunar core, mantle, and crust, rather than hollow.
Hypothesis 4: The alien civilization in the US-Soviet competition warns that
From the perspective of the competition between the United States and the Soviet Union, there are also some speculations about extraterrestrial civilizations. A scientific magazine in Sweden reported that in 1964, the Soviet Union launched the "Luna 9" probe to capture "a flying saucer base and a city composed of oddly shaped tall buildings" on the far side of the moon. On December 25, 1968, when the "Apollo 8" spacecraft carrying Commander Frak Baumann and two assistants entered the far side of the moon for naked eye exploration, it was also said that a flying saucer landed. What is even more puzzling is that the two countries, the United States and the Soviet Union, which were competing in space, almost simultaneously suspended their lunar exploration projects. The Soviet Union achieved human entry into space and lunar landing, while the US achieved manned lunar landing. However, both sides subsequently stopped their lunar landing plans, which inevitably leads to speculation that both countries were warned by extraterrestrial civilizations. However, a more convincing view is that the Soviet Union was later dragged down by the US in terms of funding and technology, especially when the N1 rocket used by the Soviet Union for lunar landing failed four times and was eventually forced to cancel the plan, which had nothing to do with the warning from extraterrestrial civilizations.
In addition, there are various pictures and speculations. For example, it is said that during the first moon landing of "Apollo 11", Armstrong discovered 23 human footprints on the surface of the moon. Some people have also released photos claimed to have been sent from the surface of the moon, showing pyramid-like buildings and craters with obvious artificial traces, but the authenticity of the photos is questionable. In March 1987, there was a fax photo said to have been sent back from the far side of the moon by a Soviet satellite, showing an old American-made bomber from World War II parked next to a lunar meteorite crater, with obvious US Air Force logos on the wings of the fuselage. Some speculate that it was abducted by aliens to the moon, but the plane disappeared in 1988. There is another theory that brings up the "god" Nikola Tesla. Some Tesla enthusiasts claim that the schematic diagram of the "Saturn V" rocket thruster used by the US to launch the lunar spacecraft was designed by Tesla, and no one will repair it after Tesla's death, so it cannot land on the moon again. However, these claims have not been officially recognized and there is no reliable source or source.
The real reason for stopping the moon landing: Realistic considerations under the changing times
Although there are various speculations among the public, the moon is both close and distant, intimate and mysterious to humans. The suspension of the lunar exploration project inevitably raises suspicions. In fact, the real reason why the US stopped the lunar exploration project is more of a realistic choice under the changing times.
The background of the moon landing: the dual driving force of politics and economics
In the 1960s and early 1970s, it was the climax of the "US-Soviet space competition". During this special period, space exploration became an important area of competition between the two countries, and the issue of face was crucial. Both sides hoped to gain the upper hand in this competition. In 1966, NASA received the highest government budget allocation in history, which accounted for 4.5% of the total US federal government budget expenditure that year, totaling $5.933 billion (approximately equivalent to $43 billion today). Adequate funding provided strong support for the moon landing program.
At the same time, the US economy was in what Western economists recognized as the "golden age". From 1961 to 1971, the Gross National Product of the US rose from over 500 billion US dollars to over 1 trillion US dollars; from 1965 to 1970, US industrial production grew at a rate of nearly 18%. In 1970, the US had 25% of the world's coal production, 20% of crude oil production, and 25% of steel production. In 1971, the number of US cars reached 111 million, and 83% of households owned at least one car. In 1970, US agricultural products doubled compared to 1950, and one farmer could feed 47 people. This strong economic strength laid the foundation for NASA to compete for a high budget.
Factors that stopped the moon landing: weakened political significance, economic pressure, and investment return issues
With the passage of time, the situation has changed. Firstly, the political significance has greatly decreased. The "Cold War" ended, and the Soviet Union, as a competitor, gradually declined. The significance of the US moon landing program is not as good as before. By the time of "Apollo 15, 16, 17", the attention to launching LIVE has significantly decreased.
Secondly, economic factors are crucial. After the "oil crisis" in 1973, the US economy could never return to the "golden age". The budget of NASA decreased year by year, making it difficult to support the huge moon landing plan (the budget in 1966 became an unattainable peak). According to statistics, the total cost of 13 launches of the Saturn V rocket was $6.50 billion, with an average of $500 million per launch. The total cost is equivalent to the current $150 billion, and the cost of each launch is as high as $11.50 billion (which is enough to build a super aircraft carrier). In fiscal years 2001-2014, the US spent $1.60 trillion on counterterrorism (according to the US Congressional Institute), which also reflects changes in funding allocation.
In addition, we need to consider the Economic Investment Return Ratio. The cost of landing on the moon is huge, but it cannot obtain economic returns in the short term. If humans now have the ability to develop and inhabit the moon, perhaps countries will actively land on the moon, but the current situation is not so. Based on these reasons, NASA has adjusted its focus and, within a limited budget, shifted its investment focus to Skylab, space shuttle research and development, as well as a large number of unmanned probes and satellites.
The prospect of humans returning to the moon: exploration never stops
Despite not landing on the moon for 50 years, people still believe that humans will eventually return to the moon. As Eugene Cernan, the commander of Apollo 17, said, "We are about to leave the moon from the Tauras-Littrow region, just as we set foot on the moon from here. God bless, we will return here with peace and hope for all humanity."
Looking back at history, Sister Mary Yukenda's letter to Dr. Ernst Sturinger of NASA in 1970 and the doctor's reply were thought-provoking. The nun questioned why billions of dollars should be spent on the Mars project when there are still many children on Earth who do not have enough to eat. In the reply, the doctor listed many applications and improvements of space projects in people's livelihood technology (at that time, there were 1,000 technologies used for people's livelihood every year), such as infrared ear thermometers (originally used to measure planetary temperature), artificial limbs, baby food, frozen dehydrated vegetables, etc., which are all achievements brought by space exploration. The last paragraph of the doctor's reply is particularly impressive: "Space exploration not only provides humans with a mirror to examine themselves, but also brings us new technologies, new challenges and enterprising spirit, as well as an optimistic and confident attitude when facing severe real-life problems." A photo of the Earth taken by Apollo 8 in orbit around the moon shows humanity's insignificance and the preciousness of the Earth's home, and also inspires a desire for the unknown. This spirit of exploration for the unknown will drive humanity to continue on the path of space exploration, and the moon will also welcome human footprints again.