Will Earth Lose Gravity on August 12? Viral Conspiracy Theory Debunked by NASA

A bizarre conspiracy theory claiming that Earth will temporarily lose gravity on August 12 has gone viral across social media — but NASA says the claim is completely false.

The rumor centers around an alleged NASA document referred to as “Project Anchor,” which conspiracy theorists claim predicts seven seconds of zero gravity on Earth. According to the viral posts, the supposed event would trigger mass casualties, global infrastructure collapse, and economic devastation lasting a decade. Some versions of the claim even allege NASA secretly allocated $89 billion to mitigate the fallout.

NASA has firmly rejected all of it.

NASA Calls the Claim “Nonsense”

An official NASA spokesperson dismissed the theory outright, calling it “nonsense” and emphasizing that Earth’s gravity cannot simply turn off.

“The Earth will not lose gravity on August 12, 2026,” the spokesperson said. “Gravity is determined by Earth’s mass. The only way gravity could disappear would be if the planet somehow lost its entire mass — including its core, mantle, oceans, and atmosphere — which is physically impossible.”

NASA confirmed that while a total solar eclipse will occur on that date, it will have no unusual or dangerous impact on Earth’s gravity.

“The Sun and Moon influence ocean tides,” the agency explained, “but they do not affect Earth’s overall gravitational force. These interactions are well understood and predictable decades in advance.”

Where the Theory Came From

Despite repeated scientific explanations, the conspiracy continues to spread — fueled in part by sensational videos circulating on YouTube and TikTok.

One widely shared example comes from the popular science-fiction channel What If, which released a simulation video in 2020 exploring a purely hypothetical scenario in which gravity suddenly vanished for several seconds.

The video suggests that people near the equator would experience the strongest effects, while unsecured objects — including vehicles, animals, trees, and humans — would be lifted into the air. It speculates that oceans and rivers would surge upward, atmospheric gases would escape into space, and catastrophic destruction would follow.

The simulation goes on to claim that the sudden loss of gravity would cause massive earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and widespread fatalities, with survivors crashing back to the ground once gravity returned.

Science Fiction, Not Science

While visually dramatic, NASA stresses that these scenarios are fictional thought experiments, not real predictions.

Gravity is one of the fundamental forces holding Earth together. Without it, the planet itself could not exist in its current form — a fact that makes the idea of a brief “gravity shutdown” scientifically impossible.

Experts note that such simulations are often misunderstood or deliberately misrepresented online, where speculative content is reshaped into fear-driven narratives designed to go viral.

Bottom Line

There is no scientific basis for claims that Earth will lose gravity on August 12 — or on any other date. NASA has confirmed the theory is false, and no credible astronomer or physicist supports it.

As the agency reiterates, Earth’s gravity is stable, predictable, and not at risk of suddenly disappearing. The viral claims may generate clicks and views, but they remain firmly in the realm of science fiction — not reality.