The Big Splat, or How Our Moon Came to Be

The Big Splat, or How Our Moon Came to Be PDF Author: Dana Mackenzie
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 0470348836
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 212

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Book Description
The first popular book to explain the dramatic theory behind the Moon's genesis This lively science history relates one of the great recent breakthroughs in planetary astronomy-a successful theory of the birth of the Moon. Science journalist Dana Mackenzie traces the evolution of this theory, one little known outside the scientific community: a Mars-sized object collided with Earth some four billion years ago, and the remains of this colossal explosion-the Big Splat-came together to form the Moon. Beginning with notions of the Moon in ancient cosmologies, Mackenzie relates the fascinating history of lunar speculation, moving from Galileo and Kepler to George Darwin (son of Charles) and the Apollo astronauts, whose trips to the lunar surface helped solve one of the most enigmatic mysteries of the night sky: who hung the Moon? Dana Mackenzie (Santa Cruz, CA) is a freelance science journalist. His articles have appeared in such magazines as Science, Discover, American Scientist, The Sciences, and New Scientist.

The Secret Influence of the Moon

The Secret Influence of the Moon PDF Author: Louis Proud
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1620551659
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 408

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Book Description
The Moon is not a cold, dead rock but a rich, fascinating world just as alive as Earth • Investigates the Moon as the home of an alien intelligence who controls humanity • Examines several of NASA’s Apollo missions and the findings they concealed • Reveals the many holes in the “Giant Impact” theory about the Moon’s origins and the evidence for a hollow, artificial Moon • Explores the deep influence of the Moon on the collective mind of humanity and occult teachings about the Moon from the Qabbalah, tarot, and other sources Despite being the most prominent celestial body after the Sun, the Moon has many qualities that science has yet to explain. Lunar rock samples reveal the Moon once had a magnetic field like the Earth, and seismic experiments by NASA suggest the Moon is at least partially hollow. For centuries people have observed lights, moving clouds and shadows, and even the disappearance of entire craters via telescope. Apollo astronauts repeatedly felt the presence of a “non-human intelligence” during their Moon visits, and many indigenous traditions speak of malevolent visitors from the Moon. A growing body of astrophysical and geological evidence shows the Moon is not an entirely natural world--that someone or something altered it long ago. Louis Proud explores the phases and movements of the Moon along with its ancient and mysterious features--its craters, maria, rilles, tunnels, and domes. He examines several of NASA’s Apollo missions, showing not that NASA faked the Moon expeditions but that they concealed what the astronauts found there. He explains the many holes in the commonly accepted “Giant Impact” theory of the Moon’s origins and reveals the evidence for a hollow, artificial Moon placed in orbit eons ago to observe Earth. Examining the deep influence of the Moon on the collective mind of humanity, Proud looks at what the Qabbalah, the tarot, and other occult traditions say about the Moon and interprets G. I. Gurdjieff’s teachings that “we are food for the Moon.” He investigates the Moon as a gateway to another realm, as the Purgatory of Christianity, and as the home of an alien intelligence who controls and exploits humanity. Examining the Moon from both scientific and esoteric perspectives, Proud shows the Moon is not a cold, dead rock but a rich, fascinating world just as alive as Earth.

Reaching for the Moon

Reaching for the Moon PDF Author: Roger D. Launius
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 030023046X
Category : Astronautics and state
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
Fifty years after the Moon landing, a new history of the space race explores the lives of both Soviet and American engineers At the dawn of the space age, technological breakthroughs in Earth orbit flight were both breathtaking feats of ingenuity and disturbances to a delicate global balance of power. In this short book, aerospace historian Roger D. Launius concisely and engagingly explores the driving force of this era: the race to the Moon. Beginning with the launch of Sputnik 1 in October 1957 and closing with the end of the Apollo program in 1972, Launius examines how early space exploration blurred the lines between military and civilian activities, and how key actions led to space firsts as well as crushing failures. Launius places American and Soviet programs on equal footing--following American aerospace engineers Wernher von Braun and Robert Gilruth, their Soviet counterparts Sergei Korolev and Valentin Glushko, and astronaut Buzz Aldrin and cosmonaut Alexei Leonov--to highlight key actions that led to various successes, failures, and ultimately the American Moon landing.

Moon

Moon PDF Author: Bernd Brunner
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300168705
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
Using werewolves and Wernher von Braun, Stonehenge and the sex lives of sea corals, aboriginal myths, and an Anglican bishop in this new book, the author weaves variegated information into a glimpse of Earth's closest celestial neighbor, whose mere presence inspires us to wonder what might be out there. Going beyond the discoveries of contemporary science, he presents a cultural assessment of our complex relationship with Earth's lifeless, rocky satellite. As well as offering an engaging perspective on such age old questions as "What would Earth be like without the moon?" he surveys the moon's mythical and religious significance and provokes existential soul searching through a lunar lens, inquiring, "Forty years ago, the first man put his footprint on the moon. Will we continue to use it as the screen onto which we cast our hopes and fears?" Drawing on materials from different cultures and epochs, he walks readers down a moonlit path illuminated by more than seventy-five vintage photographs and illustrations. From scientific discussions of the moon's origins and its chronobiological effects on the mating and feeding habits of animals to an illuminating interpretation of Bishop Francis Godwin's 1638 novel The Man in the Moone, his interdisciplinary explorations recast a familiar object in an original light.

Two Sides of the Moon

Two Sides of the Moon PDF Author: David Scott
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 146685927X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 530

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Book Description
Growing up on either side of the Iron Curtain, David Scott and Alexei Leonov experienced very different childhoods but shared the same dream to fly. Excelling in every area of mental and physical agility, Scott and Leonov became elite fighter pilots and were chosen by their countries' burgeoning space programs to take part in the greatest technological race ever-to land a man on the moon. In this unique dual autobiography, astronaut Scott and cosmonaut Leonov recount their exceptional lives and careers spent on the cutting edge of science and space exploration. With each mission fraught with perilous risks, and each space program touched by tragedy, these parallel tales of adventure and heroism read like a modern-day thriller. Cutting fast between their differing recollections, this book reveals, in a very personal way, the drama of one of the most ambitious contests ever embarked on by man, set against the conflict that once held the world in suspense: the clash between Russian communism and Western democracy. Before training to be the USSR's first man on the moon, Leonov became the first man to walk in space. It was a feat that won him a place in history but almost cost him his life. A year later, in 1966, Gemini 8, with David Scott and Neil Armstrong aboard, tumbled out of control across space. Surviving against dramatic odds-a split-second decision by pilot Armstrong saved their lives-they both went on to fly their own lunar missions: Armstrong to command Apollo 11 and become the first man to walk on the moon, and Scott to perform an EVA during the Apollo 9 mission and command the most complex expedition in the history of exploration, Apollo 15. Spending three days on the moon, Scott became the seventh man to walk on its breathtaking surface. Marking a new age of USA/USSR cooperation, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project brought Scott and Leonov together, finally ending the Cold War silence and building a friendship that would last for decades. Their courage, passion for exploration, and determination to push themselves to the limit emerge in these memoirs not only through their triumphs but also through their perseverance in times of extraordinary difficulty and danger.

The Story of Earth's Climate in 25 Discoveries

The Story of Earth's Climate in 25 Discoveries PDF Author: Donald R. Prothero
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 023155513X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 721

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Book Description
Over 4.5 billion years, Earth’s climate has transformed tremendously. Before our more temperate recent past, the planet swung from one extreme to another—from a greenhouse world of sweltering temperatures and high sea levels to a “snowball earth” in which glaciers reached the equator. During this history, we now know, living things and the climate have always influenced and even shaped each other. But the climate has never changed as rapidly or as drastically as it has since the Industrial Revolution. In this lively and entertaining book, Donald R. Prothero explores the astonishing connections between climate and life through the ages, telling the remarkable stories of the scientists who made crucial discoveries. Journeying through the intertwined evolution of climate and life, he tackles questions such as: Why do we have phytoplankton to thank for the air we breathe? What kind of climate was necessary for the rise of the dinosaurs—or the mammals, their successors? When and how have climatic changes caused mass extinctions? Prothero concludes with the Ice Ages and the Holocene, the role of climate in human history, and the perils of anthropogenic climate change. Understanding why the climate has changed in the past, this timely book shows, is essential to grasping the gravity of how radically human activity is altering the climate today.

Solar System

Solar System PDF Author:
Publisher: PediaPress
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 929

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Book Description


The Twin Sister Planets Venus and Earth

The Twin Sister Planets Venus and Earth PDF Author: Robert J. Malcuit
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319113887
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 401

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Book Description
This book explains how it came to be that Venus and Earth, while very similar in chemical composition, zonation, size and heliocentric distance from the Sun, are very different in surface environmental conditions. It is argued here that these differences can be accounted for by planetoid capture processes and the subsequent evolution of the planet-satellite system. Venus captured a one-half moon-mass planetoid early in its history in the retrograde direction and underwent its “fatal attraction scenario” with its satellite (Adonis). Earth, on the other hand, captured a moon-mass planetoid (Luna) early in its history in prograde orbit and underwent a benign estrangement scenario with its captured satellite.

SAT For Dummies

SAT For Dummies PDF Author: Geraldine Woods
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1118115678
Category : Study Aids
Languages : en
Pages : 578

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Book Description
SAT For Dummies, Premier 8th Edition with CD, features include: Five full-length print practice tests (1 more than prior edition) plus 2 additional unique tests on the CD, all with detailed answers and explanations Review of foundational concepts for every section, from identifying root words and using commas correctly to solving math word problems and using the quadratic formula Complete explanations of every question type Practice problems for each of the test's 10 sections

Apollo's Legacy

Apollo's Legacy PDF Author: Roger D. Launius
Publisher: Smithsonian Institution
ISBN: 1588346528
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
An all-encompassing look at the history and enduring impact of the Apollo space program In Apollo's Legacy, space historian Roger D. Launius explores the many-faceted stories told about the meaning of the Apollo program and how it forever altered American society. The Apollo missions marked the first time human beings left Earth's orbit and visited another world, and thus they loom large in our collective memory. Many have detailed the exciting events of the Apollo program, but Launius offers unique insight into its legacy as seen through multiple perspectives. He surveys a wide range of viewpoints and narratives, both positive and negative, surrounding the program. These include the argument that Apollo epitomizes American technological--and political--progress; technological and scientific advances garnered from the program; critiques from both sides of the political spectrum about the program's expenses; and even conspiracy theories and denials of the program's very existence. Throughout the book, Launius weaves in stories from important moments in Apollo's history to draw readers into his analysis. Apollo's Legacy is a must-read for space buffs interested in new angles on a beloved cultural moment and those seeking a historic perspective on the Apollo program.