2024 eclipse one of many reasons flat Earth claims are nonsense | Fact check roundup
Tens of millions of Americans will watch as the moon passes between the sun and the Earth on April 8, completely blocking out daylight for minutes for those in the path of totality. The celestial show has launched a frenzy of paper glasses purchases and hotel reservations, and it serves as a perfect case-in-point for how scientists know the Earth, moon and sun move through space.
But it hasn’t stopped some skeptics from continuing to believe the Earth is flat, a conspiracy theory experts say dangerously feeds into paranoia and spurs an unhealthy skepticism of all science and credible authorities.
The USA TODAY Fact-Check Team has debunked an array of flat Earth-related claims, including that Antarctica is really an ice wall around a flat Earth and the related conspiracy theory that space – and space travel – isn’t real.
More:Surreal April 2024 total solar eclipse renews debunked flat Earth conspiracy theories
More: The 2024 total solar eclipse is in less than a week: How to get glasses; cloud forecast
The claim: NASA admits the Earth is flat and non-rotating
Our rating: False
NASA has consistently said the Earth is a round, rotating globe, and the documents referenced don’t prove otherwise. The “flat, non-rotating earth” model is a common technique used to generalize mathematic equations, experts said. Read more
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The claim: Antarctica is an ice wall that surrounds the flat Earth
Our rating: False
Antarctica is a continent in the Southern Hemisphere. Satellite data from NASA and independent companies shows the land mass as an island with a definitive end. Read more
The claim: Pictures show the Earth is flat, and sea levels haven’t changed
Our rating: False
Scientists have ample evidence the Earth is curved, including images of the planet taken from outer space. And long-term tide gauge data shows that sea levels have risen in Sydney Harbor over the past century and continue to rise. Read more
The claim: Moon visible in the daytime proves Earth is flat
Our rating: False
The Earth is not flat, it’s spherical, as proven by photos from space and an array of observations and calculations that can be done from Earth. Planetary scientists say the visibility of the moon and sun during the daytime doesn’t prove a flat Earth – it is in fact a reflection of the motion of the sun, moon and Earth in space, along with the Earth’s rotation. The moon also does not emit its own light. Read more
The claim: Radar technology wouldn’t work if the Earth was a globe
Our rating: False
Scientists say that radar technologies account for the Earth’s curvature. Furthermore, the curvature of the Earth plays into some of the limitations of radar technology. An abundance of evidence demonstrates the Earth is spherical in shape – including images of the planet taken from outer space. Read more
The claim: Celestial navigation would be impossible if Earth is globe-shaped and orbits the sun
Our rating: False
Celestial navigation is a technique still used to determine location based on the positions of celestial objects. Because the Earth and other celestial bodies are in motion, the apparent position of stars, planets and the sun in the sky changes. These changes must be taken into account for successful celestial navigation. Read more
The claim: Operation Highjump was a mission to find out what was beyond the ‘ice wall’ of Antarctica
Our rating: False
Historical records show Operation Highjump was a naval operation conducted to establish a base in Antarctica. There is no evidence it was sent to investigate an “ice wall.” There’s overwhelming evidence that Antarctica is a continent, not an ice wall. Read more
The claim: Post implies moon missions impossible because of Earth’s atmospheric temperatures
Our rating: Missing context
The implied claim is wrong. Thermospheric temperatures do not melt spacecraft. While this layer of the atmosphere does technically reach the temperatures stated in the post, there are not enough air molecules in the thermosphere to transfer significant amounts of this heat to an object, according to researchers. Read more
The claim: Post implies Apollo missions didn’t happen because lunar module can’t travel between Earth and the moon
Our rating: Missing context
The implied claim is wrong. The Apollo 11 lunar module traveled through space after being propelled toward the moon by a powerful rocket. Astronauts made the journey in a different, attached module − called the command module. Astronauts only used the lunar module for transport between the moon and the orbiting command module. Read more
The claim: Post implies NASA space shuttle can’t travel faster than jet due to its design
Our rating: Missing context
The implied claim is wrong. The NASA space shuttle travels much faster at top speeds than the SR-71. The space shuttle is launched with the aid of huge rocket boosters not shown in the photo and only reaches top speeds at elevations where there is virtually no air resistance. The SR-71 jet moves more slowly because it must reach its top speeds under its own power and against the friction of Earth’s atmosphere. Read more
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