The Moon Hoax
This hoax, subtitled “A Discovery that the Moon Has a Vast Population of Human Beings,” was originally serialized in 1835 in the New York Sun newspaper. It purported itself to be a true account that had been published in the Edinburgh Journal of Science. Sir John Herschel, a well-known astronomer at the time, was credited with authorship.
Herschel’s telescope, according to the story, was able to see man-bats and other animals, as well as a variety of geographical features, on the surface of the moon. The article was published at a time when newspapers were read as much for entertainment as for news. It was not uncovered as a hoax until weeks after its publication, and the paper never printed a retraction. - Summary by Verla Viera
Genre(s): Science Fiction
Language: English
| Section | Chapter | Reader | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Play 00 | Advertisement | Vinny Lerin |
00:04:04 |
| Play 01 | Great Astronomical Discoveries Lately Made | Claudia Caldi |
00:07:22 |
| Play 02 | The Younger Herschel’s Telescope | Vinny Lerin |
00:31:17 |
| Play 03 | New Lunar Discoveries Part 1 | Vinny Lerin |
00:18:23 |
| Play 04 | New Lunar Discoveries Part 2 | Vinny Lerin |
00:20:30 |
| Play 05 | New Lunar Discoveries Part 3 | Vinny Lerin |
00:18:22 |
| Play 06 | New Lunar Discoveries Part 4 | Vinny Lerin |
00:18:09 |
| Play 07 | Appendix Part 1 The Moon as Known at the Present Time | Beeswaxcandle |
00:18:20 |
| Play 08 | Appendix Part 2 | Beeswaxcandle |
00:08:18 |