earthshine
[urth-shahyn]
1. the faint illumination of the part of the moon not illuminated by sunlight, as during a crescent phase, caused by the reflection of light from the earth.
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Tom and Sam lay on the grassy hill, looking up at the night sky. The weather was cool, but not cold, and the sky was clear. Since they were fairly far from any towns or cities, the stars were brighter and more numerous than either was used to. The moon did not bring out much interference either, being a slim crescent. It was looking up at this sliver of silver that Sam decided to break the silence.
“It’s not real, you know.”
“What’s not real?” Tom asked.
“That.” Sam pointed up at the moon.
“Seriously? The moon? The moon’s not real?”
“Nope. Or at least, not in the way people think it is.”
“Oh god, I’m going to regret this, but tell me what you think the moon is.”
If Sam did not get to voice his insane conspiracy theories, then the guy would be grumpy for the rest of the night. Tom had no interest in dealing with a grumpy Sam.
“It’s kind of a big spy space station type thing. See, it’s hollow inside, and covered with equipment for gathering data and monitoring everyone on Earth.”
Tom groaned and gently hit his head against the ground. “Why, pray tell, do you think this?” He almost dreaded the answer.
“How can you not realise it?” Sam replied. “I mean, it’s obvious. For one thing, why can nobody but a few select individuals go there? I mean, we have the tech to get lots of people there and back, so why reserve it for only astronauts?” Sam did not let Tom say anything in rebuttal. “Also, you know those supposed ‘craters’? Those are sensor arrays and buildings. Those bright spots? Cameras. And it’s obvious the light that comes from it isn’t coming from the Sun. It’s self-illuminating.”
Tom rolled his eyes at that. “What makes you think that?” He asked through a sigh.
“Well, tonight’s a good example. Look at it. Even though the moon’s supposed to be a crescent, you can see the whole thing. Explain that without it being its own light source?”
Tom looked closely at the moon. Sure enough, while only a small sliver of the moon was clearly visible, the entire thing was indeed visible, if only just.
“That’s light coming from the Earth.” Tom said.
“Oh, yeah, right. I can understand how people think the sun’s light is reflected, but the Earth? Earth doesn’t even emit any light of its own, so how can the moon be reflecting it?”
“Lots of ways. First of all, some of the light that comes from the Sun gets bounced back up, and then reflects off the moon. Second, the Earth itself may not make light, but we humans sure do. It might not be strong, but it’s there.”
“Uh huh.” Sam said dully. “You keep thinking that. Me? I’ll keep on spreading the truth.”
“Truth, huh? Tell me this, if you know so much, then who operates this whole big spy operation?”
“NASA.”
“NASA. You mean the NASA that’s not even a hundred years old. The NASA that need help from other space programs just to keep a small group of people in space.”
“That whole ISS thing’s just a front to keep us from the truth.”
“And what about the age thing? NASA started in the 50’s. It couldn’t have built a moon that’s been there since before humans were even a thing.”
“Oh please. What evidence is there of that?”
“What, of the moon being older than our parents? Easy. The fact that our parents saw it when they were our age. And the fact that there’s huge amounts of historical data that points to people using the moon for navigation and stuff. Plus all the mythology surrounding it. Yeah, I’d say it’s a safe bet that NASA did not build the moon.”
“W-well then someone else did, and NASA just runs it now.”
“Uh huh. Good luck coming up with something more plausible, buddy.”
“I’ll figure it out, you’ll see. I’ll find the truth and tell everyone.
Tom rolled his eyes as his friend continued to rant and rave about how he alone knew the truth and how he would open everyone’s eyes. Tom started tuning Sam’s words out, and just enjoyed the view of the night sky.
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It's sad, but there are people who actually think about this sort of thing. Big, massive conspiracies that fall apart under any real scrutiny. But they still defend their ridiculous ideas to the end. I've got to wonder how these things come about in the first place. Is there someone who just thinks of the craziest thing he/she can, and then put together some semblance of evidence? And do people actually believe this stuff? My god, I hope not.
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