The first manned space mission, Apollo 11, landed on the Moon fifty years ago, but 25 percent of Brazilians don't believe it ever happened. This was revealed by Datafolha research conducted between July 4 and 5, in 103 Brazilian cities.
Among the 2,086 participants, 70 percent believe that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the Moon on July 20, 1969. Another 26 percent said they did not believe it, and 4 percent said they did not know.
The research shows a strong correlation between the level of schooling and disbelief in lunar missions.
Among those who only attended elementary school, 38 percent say that trips to the Moon were a lie and 8 percent said they did not know. Among those with high school education, it falls to 21 percent, and those who do not know, to 3 percent. Finally, among those with higher education, only 14 percent consider the missions a fraud, and only 2 percent say they do not know.
Age also seems to have a significant impact on the perception of lunar missions. The older the respondent, the higher the chance that he or she does not believe that man landed on the Moon.
In 1995, a Time / CNN survey indicated that only 6 percent of Americans doubted landings on the Moon. In 1999, Gallup re-measured, with the same result.
In 2013, a poll by Public Policy Polling measured Apollo 11's credibility again, and only 7% of Americans said they did not believe in the mission.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon