Posted on 04/01/2026 2:19:22 PM PDT by DFG
MERRITT ISLAND, FL — In one of the biggest April Fools' jokes in decades, NASA is pretending once again to actually be going to the moon.
NASA has reportedly spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the elaborate prank, going so far as to construct a massive fake rocket on the Kennedy Space Center launch pad. As part of the joke, a green-screen video will be aired this evening of the "rocket launch", featuring a tiny model rocket controlled by strings and employees making explosion sounds in the background.
"I can't stop laughing about it. How are people still falling for this?" giggled NASA Director Jared Isaacman. "Sixty years later, and this joke is the gift that keeps on giving. You should see the faces the 'astronauts' make when they're pretending to be launching in a rocket ship, they're so dang funny. I'm all shaking the camera around. It's honestly hard to believe people are this gullible... I love my job so much."
Hundreds of NASA employees have contributed to the prank by acting as if they were really working on the Artemis II project. "We've been planning this for years," said NASA scientist Ronald Gregory. "People ask me what I do for Artemis, and I say something ridiculous like 'Oh yeah, I analyze the cryogenic shrinkage of the fuel tank as it's being filled with liquid hydrogen.' I mean, come on... 'cryogenic shrinkage'? But people somehow buy it! This is going to be the most epic April Fools' Day ever."
At publishing time, snickering NASA employees had announced that they would bring the Artemis II home by having it "slingshot" back to earth using the "moon's gravity".
Dear FRiends,
We need your continuing support to keep FR funded. Your donations are our sole source of funding. No sugar daddies, no advertisers, no paid memberships, no commercial sales, no gimmicks, no tax subsidies. No spam, no pop-ups, no ad trackers.
If you enjoy using FR and agree it's a worthwhile endeavor, please consider making a contribution today:
Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you,
Jim
Just a few minutes ago they were trying to track down a problem with the launch. They hadn’t stopped the clock yet…
As soon as I saw that, I said to my wife…there is no way they are launching that thing today. We‘ll see.
Just sounds like your typical flat earth/moon landing denier web site.
The hatch is now closed.
The Artemis II astronauts are now strapped into their seats and ready for launch.
4:16pm
maybe something else
use your telepathic powers
The BEE always makes me smile...
They switched out the crew in the movie Capricorn One right before launch.
I’d like to see this work and be successful.
Looks like a DEI launch team.
Lord please protect those poor astronauts.
How long is it going to take to get to the Moon? In 1969 it took several days...
This is supposed to be funny, but it just reinforces the delusions of the ignorant idiots who think we never went to the moon.
And for once, I don’t find a Babylon Bee spoof to be funny.
It’s a ten day mission, there and back.
I thought it was funny. You can’t get anywhere with these conspiracy theorists so why not mock them instead?
You’re giving the idiots more credit for influence than they warrant.
Lighten up.
I am one of those conspiracy theorists—and I thought it was funny.
Everyone should be able to appreciate humor—even when they are the target.
Yep, good for a laugh alright.
Babylon Bee tells the truth more than all the other media outlets combined.
Then, a year later, astronauts landed, walked on the moon and conducted experiments before a rendezvous with the mothership and safely flying home.
No, 57 years later, we’re back to orbiting the moon without landing.
I can barely contain my excitement.
The latest (4:52pm PDT): their toilet has gone into “caution mode” blinking an amber light while the astronaut Christina was testing it. Houston is “working the issue” now.
At this moment, 00:19:00 UTC, the crew is sizzling like bacon in a frying pan from the Van Allen radiation belts.
And dancing with demons or cavorting with aliens ... I forget which!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.