FACT CHECK: Do These Videos Show A Rocket Hitting The Moon?

A video shared on Facebook allegedly shows two views of a rocket crashing into the moon.

Verdict: False

Both videos were created with the use of special effects.

Fact Check:

The Facebook video purportedly shows two views of what appears to be something hitting the moon. One video was allegedly filmed in Texas while the other was purportedly filmed in California. “WTF” reads text included in the video.

“A rocket part crashed on the moon, as predicted, at around 7:25 a.m. EST on March 4, 2022,” reads part of the Facebook post. “It smashed into the far side of the moon — where lunar orbiters were not able to observe the event — in the Hertzsprung crater, which is 350 miles wide.”

The caption appears to be referring to a real incident that took place in which a rocket booster collided with the moon March 4, according to CNET. As the post notes, the impact occurred on the far side of the moon and was not visible by spacecraft.

The videos are digital creations, however, and are unrelated to the recent collision. A reverse image search found the Facebook video first appeared on the TikTok account wtfvidtok April 5. Unlike the Facebook video, this TikTok video uses the VFX hashtag, signifying the video features special effects. (RELATED: Viral Image Claims To Show Multiple Tornadoes Simultaneously Ripping Through Kansas)

“Yes, the video is VFX as I mentioned in the caption,” wtfvidtok told Check Your Fact in an email. “The original creator of the videos is Greg Pietrantonio…Greg created the videos, and I put them together and added some text to add more perspective to his creation.”

Pietrantonio confirmed in an email to Check Your Fact that he created the videos for fun. “They were filmed in Pennsylvania and Florida not Texas and California for the record!” said Pietrantonio. “Both were created using Adobe After Effects and are not rockets hitting the moon.” He shared both videos on his TikTok account, @gmoney1289, prior to 2022.

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