Day: September 24, 2004

September 24, 2004

Moon Landings

DID THE MOON LANDINGS REALLY HAPPEN?

On July 20th 1969, Man first set foot on the moon. Millions of people around the world were riveted to their TV screens as Neil Armstrong stepped from the Landing Module. Reality TV par excellence! Two years and five successful missions later, the number of moon-walkers had reached twelve.

But did it really happen?

Since Apollo 17 splashed down in 1972, momentum has gathered for the proposition that we have all been misled by the US Government and by NASA in particular. The case for this was probably best presented by Fox’s TV special Conspiracy Theory: Did We Land on the Moon? which aired in the USA in February 2001. Millions of viewers apparently found the pro-hoax arguments persuasive and convincing.
Firstly, there were the technical experts (American and Russian) who claimed that NASA did not possess the technology in 1969 to achieve these feats, or at least, the likelihood of success was so tiny that the risk of real Moon landings would not have been seriously contemplated. This proposition is supported by the fact that no other country has since visited the Moon, and that NASA’s own manned missions since 1972 have been confined to Earth orbit.
Secondly, film footage of astronauts on the moon is said to contain so many technical errors that it must have been shot in a studio on Earth. Some of these alleged “errors” include ;

  • The flag, when planted appears to wave in the breeze. The Moon is airless.
  • Although the Moon’s sky is black, there are no stars.
  • No blast crater is visible under the Landing Module.
  • The landing process must have kicked up much dust. But no re-settled dust is visible.
  • Why can you see footprints at the base of the Lander if all the dust has been blown away?
  • Why is there no rocket plume from the module which blasts off from the Moon’s surface?
  • The shadows appear to go in different directions so there must be several (studio) light sources,
  • Although the video footage is of poor quality, the photographs are “too perfect“.

These and many other “flaws” came thick and fast, and to many viewers they provided hard evidence for a Moon Landing Hoax which was “Not only a fake, but a poor fake“.
Thirdly, the subsequent commercial film Capricorn 1 simulated landing on Mars in a way that was at least as “realistic” as the Moon Landing footage. It therefore View More Moon Landings

September 24, 2004

Science Drama Awards

The 2004 Science Drama Awards

(Reviewer Rob Brown)
Things were strangely quiet on this Saturday night in Preston for the 2004 Science Drama Awards show was performing to a packed house. Months of preparation and qualifying rounds had come down to this one night, to which many people had travelled hundreds of kilometres across Victoria to attend.
Seven schools came to teach and entertain the audience with science. The host for the evening was Chris Krishna-Pillay who did a fine job and showed much enthusiasm throughout the night. The schools showed various levels of preparation and steady story telling. Unfortunately there were one or two who failed to show much that the audience could hold onto. Overall the schools used various themes for their pieces from growing beans on Mars (illustrating plant germination) to a Shakespearean tale of the love between Sodium and Chlorine (illustrating metallic and non-metallic bonding). There was much music from Devo to Wham, and movement from ribbon twirling to cartwheels.
There were two standout performances: Caulfield Grammar Grade 4 who received the Primary School Award, and MacRobertson Girls’ 7-12 who received the High School Award.
Caulfield demonstrated the principles of electromagnetic waves. They created a strong story with a boy completing a science project, trying to entertain his flighty sister who would rather simply dance through life. They involved a lot of kids, and succeeded strongly in both science communication and entertainment. A xylophone will never sound the same again to those who saw the show.
MacRob translated “Romeo and Juliet” into a story of two chemicals strongly attracted but from different backgrounds. Yes, it did get whimsical, but this was their humour and they milked it often and very well. Many students played music as well as their acting roles in this piece – showoffs!
The personal highlight for me was Chisholm Catholic School, who though they weren’t the best actors, made the air thick with irony as they told of the life and contributions of Galileo Galilei. Definitely a skeptic’s highlight!

For more information