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Subscribe to RSSEven an hour isn't long enough to cover the universe, as evidenced by this Google+ Hangout organized by Universe Today's Fraser Cain. The gang included Cain as well as his UT colleagues Nancy Atkinson and Jon Voisey, Bad Astronomy's Philip Plait, Discovery News' Ian O'Neill and Nicole Gugliucci, Astronomy Cast's Pamela Gay, BAUT Forum's Jay Cross and yours truly. We talked about NASA's Grail mission to the moon, the impending fall of Russia's Phobos-Grunt probe and the Quadrantid meteor shower — but the biggest theme was the weirdness over 2012, the Mayan calendar and tales of psychic travel to Mars. This year may be a peak time for pseudoscientific craziness, but it's also a "teachable moment" for astronomy. Does it do more harm than good to talk about doomsday pronouncements and UFO claims? When is the right time to do a reality check? Watch the YouTube vidcast for more on all these subjects, and feel free to weigh in with your comments below.
More about the round table's topics:
- NASA's twin moon probes enter lunar orbit (starting at 7:10)
- Phobos-Grunt heading for a fiery fall (starting at 15:37)
- Quadrantid meteor shower wows skywatchers (22:46)
- Is 2012 hype heating up or cooling down? (28:55)
- Four newfound worlds kick off 2012's planet quest (49:06)
- Did you hear the one about Obama going to Mars? (51:48)
- Questions from the audience (1:02:20)
Check out our previous experimental Hangout on the Air, which focused on the planet quest.
Alan Boyle is msnbc.com's science editor. Connect with the Cosmic Log community by "liking" the log's Facebook page, following @b0yle on Twitter and adding the Cosmic Log page to your Google+ presence. You can also check out "The Case for Pluto," my book about the controversial dwarf planet and the search for new worlds.
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Nasa slow down, It seems like you are tryn to warn us or something. I mean if you know nothing is going to happen then stick with your story say what ever it is you need to say, and leave it be. but it seemn like you guys at nasa are talking about the mayan and doomsday thing more then most people do.
I agree, Nasa is doing an overkill now about the 2012 conspiracies but maybe the government is worried people are going to go to extremes when this December comes. Luckily Harold Camping wasn't too popular but he made enough people quit their jobs and do crazy things. I think if the media would stop making such a big deal about "new findings" and making movies and bad jokes about it on television, no one would even care. I mean how many doomsdays have we had coming? And we'll have plenty more when 2013 comes. No one looks past the fact that every calendar ends and begins again, or that the fact the Mayans flat out said that date just marks something, not the end of the world...I'm just ready for December 22 so everyone can finally shut up about the whole thing. In the meantime I'm going back to enjoying living and not worrying about dying!
NASA isn't perpetuating this nearly as much as you give them credit for.
But, I do agree that the media is certainly playing it up, as they always do with doomsday stuff. But, hey, it's all about good business. It's good for business to have the threat of doomsday. I saw on the television an interview with some Mexican official talking about how tourism is expected to seriously boom heading into late 2012. I think you'll very likely see large gatherings in the Mayan area just before Christmas.
The thing is, though, the Mayan calendar is cyclical. But, it's not simply like our calendar going from December to January. What we are seeing here, with the end of this Mayan calendar, if indeed the dates are correct, is that it is the end of a very long cycle. Apparently (and according to Wikipedia) the "end" of this Mayan calendar is the transition from the 13th to the 14th B'ak'tun. A Baktun is 144,000 days. That's almost 400 years! So, it may still just be another day, but according to the Mayan calendar it is the start of a new era. It's more similar to the difference between 1999 and 2000 than it is to the difference between December and January. But, when it all comes down to it, the only difference will be that we are all one day closer to Christmas.
Good explanation, Mob. Given the number of people who seem to think that the Mayan calendar ends because the guy chiseling it into the stone got tired, I'm glad someone understands how the calendar actually worked. Have a happy new Baktun..
Likewise Hal.
Great topic, love it. Love this format
On one hand, it is foolish to think that a civilization as advanced as the Mayan would have so much regard for a particular date if it were not significant. Even those of us that simply consider it the end of a cycle, should acknowledge that the ends of cycles are often marked by signs of adversity. The key to "survive" what ever might happen (or not happen) is to not disrupt your life by placing too much focus on it. Don't quit your job, take out a reckless loan, or buy a 2 year supply of food. There is a pretty good chance, you won't notice anything on the great cosmic date all the hype is geared toward. You want to be responsible, follow your grandparents advice and keep some extra canned foods and other non-parishables around because it's a good idea, not because you think it's the apocalypse. Snow, rain and ice storms happen. Floods and droughts, power outages, and other crap happens. We should all be prepared for this kind of stuff, or the possibility that we won't be able to go to the store for a week or even a month. The best advice I can offer is don't alter your lifestyle in a way that will complicate your success if the day is uneventful, but don't be so arrogant not to be prepared for natural disasters that can strike at anytime and without the excuse of an apocalypse.
The TRUTH about 2012 is that we simply have no way of making anymore special than any other year. But the other TRUTH is that we aren't nearly as smart, as a species, as we like to think we are. Our science is like Swiss cheese and our religions like a sponge; the holes render any foundation of belief faulty and likely to failure.
Of course, neither science or religion will confess to their infirmities. Both claim to have all the answers and spend the better part of their time taking potshots at each other rather than doing anything to further our collective good.
So, in the end... we can believe what we choose to believe with confidence because even the most outlandish concepts and prophesies are on the same level with those in priestly garments and white lab coats.