Rumor: Iran faked its 'space monkey' launch

2/4/13

Experts and Internet commenters are calling monkey business on Iran's recent 'launch.'

UNCONFIRMED: A monkey that Iran claimed was launched into space and recovered was anything but

On Jan. 28, with much hoopla, Iran's government announced it had launched a monkey into space. But experts are now casting doubt on the tale, while seemingly obvious discrepancies in photos released by the country are being roundly mocked.

See video coverage of Iran 's monkey-launch announcement

Doubts raised

The announcement of the space launch was treated seriously by other countries including the United States where State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland worried that "placing an object in orbit is directly relevant to the development of long-range ballistic missiles." But at BuzzFeed, George Washington University professor and former NASA policy analyst Henry Hertzfeld says he doubts the launch ever happened, saying that while he believes Iran has the capabilities to launch an animal into space, the country likely doesn't have the technology to bring it back alive.

A different monkey?

Perhaps the most convincing evidence that Iran's claim is suspect are the striking discrepancies between images of the monkey Iran showed before the launch and the one that was displayed afterward. As a smoking gun, the London Times and others point out that a large mole can be seen on the eyebrow of the monkey showed before the launch, but afterward the monkey displayed has no mole and its fur is distinctively darker. Yet even if Iran was able to successfully launch and recover a live monkey, it would be joining a party more than 50 years late, as the United States accomplished such a feat in the 1950s.

Video: American monkeys Able and Baker are launched into space in 1959

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