Timeline Comparison
Left column is documented real history. Right column is the simulated Red Moon timeline, tagged by how far each event has drifted from the divergence.
REAL HISTORY
ALTERNATE — RED MOON
1969
Apollo 11 lands; Armstrong and Aldrin walk on the Moon
DOCUMENTED FACT
DIVERGENCE: N1 launch succeeds — Leonov lands on the Moon
DIRECT EFFECTHIGH
Soviet Moon Landing Broadcasted Live
DIRECT EFFECTHIGH
Soviet Moon Landing Announced
DIRECT EFFECTHIGH
White House Press Conference on Lunar Achievement
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
US Political Fallout from Soviet Moon Landing
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
NASA Accelerates Apollo 11 Preparation
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
NASA Workforce Boosts Morale
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
Congress Votes to Increase NASA Funding
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
USSR Celebrates with Cosmonaut Parades
DIRECT EFFECTHIGH
Soviet Space Program Gains Momentum
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
Apollo 11 Launch Amid Global Spectacle
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
Apollo 11 Launches as Scheduled
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
First Human Steps on the Moon
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
First Steps on the Moon: A Global Moment
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
Nixon's Speech on Space and Cold War Strategy
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
Nixon Announces Space Collaboration Proposal
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
Vietnam War Intensifies Amid Cold War Tensions
SPECULATIVEMODERATE
1970
Apollo 13 accident; crew returns safely
DOCUMENTED FACT
Cultural Impact of the Dual Lunar Landings
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
1971
Intel releases the 4004, first commercial microprocessor
DOCUMENTED FACT
1972
Nixon and Brezhnev sign SALT I and ABM Treaty; détente era
DOCUMENTED FACT
Apollo 17 — last crewed lunar landing; program ends amid budget cuts
DOCUMENTED FACT
1973
Yom Kippur War and OPEC embargo; 1970s stagflation begins
DOCUMENTED FACT
1975
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project: US-Soviet docking symbolizes détente
DOCUMENTED FACT
Soviet Lunar Base Construction Begins
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
US Establishes Lunar Research Station
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
SALT I Signed with Partial Arms Control
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
1976
Apple founded; personal computing era begins in US garages
DOCUMENTED FACT
First Transatlantic Space Shuttle Service
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
Japanese Aerospace Technologies Thrive
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
1977
Microprocessor Industry Grows Rapidly
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
1978
Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Reimagined
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1979
USSR invades Afghanistan; détente collapses
DOCUMENTED FACT
China Enters the Lunar Race
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
1981
First Space Shuttle flight (Columbia)
DOCUMENTED FACT
Space Tourism Emerges as an Industry
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1982
Global Population Shifts Toward Urbanization
COMPOUND EFFECTMODERATE
1985
Gorbachev becomes General Secretary; perestroika follows
DOCUMENTED FACT
Soviet Lunar Base Expansion
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
US-USSR Space Cooperation Agreement
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
1986
Soviet Economic Reforms Under Gorbachev
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1987
Soviet Lunar TV Broadcast
DIRECT EFFECTHIGH
US Consumer Electronics Surge
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
Soviet Space Cooperation Agreement Signed
DIRECT EFFECTMODERATE
Japanese Tech Dominance Intensifies
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
Japanese Space Agency Becomes Global Power
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
USSR Housing Construction Accelerates
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
US Music Scene Shifts Toward Techno and Synth
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1988
Microprocessor Revolution Accelerates
SECONDARY EFFECTHIGH
1989
Soviet Dissolution Delayed by Lunar Prestige
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1990
First Commercial Lunar Tourism Flights
SECONDARY EFFECTMODERATE
1991
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
DOCUMENTED FACT
1992
Global Space Infrastructure Network Established
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1993
China’s Lunar Missions Gain Momentum
SECONDARY EFFECTSPECULATIVE
1995
Urbanization Shifts Toward Space-Related Industries
COMPOUND EFFECTSPECULATIVE