of lunar exploration and irate astrologers
There’s a reason why your horoscope is usually in the entertainment section of your local paper or the search portal you use for a quick rundown of the headlines. Astrologers, it seems, can be a source of immense and unexpected amusement as shown by Phil Plait. Though amusement may not be the right word in this case. In her post for the National Examiner, Satya Harvey was very upset about the idea of crashing a robot into the surface of our natural satellite to end its fruitful mission with a final burst of data gathering…
There is a Japanese lunar orbiter named Kaguya that is scheduled to crash into the moon today at 2:30 pm ET. Scientists hope to learn something about the moons composition by observing the debris that is kicked up. Did these scientists talk to the moon? Tell her what they were doing? Ask her permission? Show her respect?
Now, where to begin here? Probably to ask how exactly the Moon’s sex was determined. Sure the tradition in New Age spiritualities is that the Moon has a connection to the feminine, but I think it might be a good idea to check before we start assigning genders to celestial bodies. Of course since we’ve been to the Moon, we are well aware that it’s a huge, sexless, lifeless rock. Which brings us to another question. How exactly do you get a huge spherical boulder to give permission for, well… anything?
And that’s not the only insight into the wonderful world of woo that our impassioned astrologer can provide. As it turns out, she also intends to play celestial PETA to those inconsiderate scientists.
Purposefully crashing something into the moon just to watch what happens is akin to a schoolboy cutting a live frog to see what makes it jump. It is an example of the domination of the left-brained rational scientific approach over the intuitive.
Funny enough, when I talked to Greta Christina about New Ageism in some progressive communities, she voiced a concern that those spiritually focused practitioners seem to see science and empirical studies done in a clinical way as tools of The Establishment and reject them in favor of the intuitive. But the problem here is that evidence-based science and clinical, left-brained ways to look at the world are very useful and to throw an important part of how humans see and process their world out the window on a personal whim, is a bad idea.
And I completely agree with Greta in that regard. If anything, I’d rather see left-brained rational science trump self-important spiritual meanderings intended to elicit warm fuzzies than the other way around for the same, exact reason. Last thing I want to see on the news is scientists voicing concerns over violating Pluto’s privacy with the New Horizon’s spacecraft since its position on the outer edge of the solar system must be a sign that it doesn’t want to be disturbed by overly curious humans.
I’m still giggling at the comment I left on Phil’s blog. I think it’s so good, it needs to be posted again. Here it is:
What was in those cookies again?
Every planet has a right to privacy. Pluto has already been though the trama of bring demoted. Let’s have a little sensitivity here :)
Yeah, I was a little confused by all the talk a while back about how Pluto was demoted and dishonored because scientists didn’t have enough respect for it. It’s like people live in a cartoon world where any random thing can be animate and intelligent and have its feelings hurt.
Making that comment reminded me I joined a facebook group about Pluto not being a planet back before I realized these folks were actually seriously upset about it, so I just went and deleted my membership. While there, I noticed this comment:
This is his thought process – he believes it because it was taught to him first, and that’s that. Further, knowledge, once learned, never changes. Damned absolutists…
Nevermind that he’s talking about a word to classify Pluto in an arbitrary academic category – “A rose by any other name”…
Sorry, that was a bit off topic.
You are an idiot and just like all the other left brain idiots have no respect for the universe or anything else. When you die you will actually see what an idiot you were. Astrology has been around since the beginning of time and has been used in brilliant cultures from the Egyptians, Mayans and such. The Moon influences life on this earth as much as the sun, and if you had half a clue and did your research you would recognize that. I think you are a sexless, lifeless rock who is so bitter and disillusioned you can’t help but think like an idiot. Don’t worry, your time will come when you will see how naive and ignorant you and you cohorts truly are. Until then, why don’t you shut your mouth and stop trying to look smart. You’re not.
I see someone has anger issues…
Astrology has been around since the beginning of time and has been used in brilliant cultures from the Egyptians, Mayans and such.
So just because it’s old means that it’s right? How many other ancient ideas have been overturned over the centuries? Yelling at me that it’s old and it works without providing any sort of explanation as to how it actually does what it does, isn’t an argument. Just an angry rant which is more of a personal outlet than a persuasive insight into astrology.
I see that once again the new age movement is doing its best to dumb us down. Empirical thought and exploration are part of our evolution. The moon is not just a rock and the sun is not just a ball of fire, they are part of this amazing being we call our solar system. But I think it’s astrology thats insulting to these great planetary bodies. By not taking the time to actually understand the universe you live in and instead making up a bunch of fake crap that you and a bunch of other maniacs pulled out of your deluded heads. It’s insulting, take an interest in the real world, it’s just as amazing as the one in your head.
Where were these nutjobs when NASA and the Soviet Space Program were crashing probes into the moon in the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s ? Have we somehow gotten dumber in the intervening years ?