Moon Hoax of 1835

In 1835, the New York Sun published The Great Moon Hoax, presenting a fictional science series as real accounts from astronomer Sir John Herschel's expedition to South Africa. The story exaggerated telescope capabilities, describing fantastical discoveries like half-bat humans and one-horned goats. Despite being fiction, the public, influenced by a mix of fact and hyperbole, initially believed the hoax, prompting widespread confusion until the author, Dr. Andrew Grant, revealed the story's fictitious nature.