Wubbo Ockels, first Dutch astronaut to fly in space, dies at 68

Collectspace, 18 may 2014

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Wubbo Ockels works in the
 Spacelab D-1 module during the STS-61A mission aboard the space
shuttle Challenger in November 1985. (NASA)

May 18, 2014 — Wubbo Ockels, who in 1985 became the first Dutch citizen to fly into space, died Sunday (May 18), the European Space Agency (ESA) confirmed. He was 68.

"Sad to hear former ESA astronaut Wubbo Ockels passed away this morning," agency officials wrote on Twitter.

Ockels' death was due to complications from renal cancer. In May 2013, he confirmed to Dutch news services that he had been diagnosed with an aggressive kidney cancer and that it had spread to his lungs.

Ockels first and only space mission was onboard the last successful flight of the space shuttle Challenger, prior to its loss in January 1986. As a member of the eight-person STS-61A crew, Ockels helped set a record for the largest group of people to fly to and from space together.

The seven-day space shuttle mission lifted off on Oct. 30, 1985, carrying the Spacelab D-1 module and more than 75 experiments focused on the behavior of fluids, materials, biological samples and the human body in microgravity.

Wubbo Ockels (bottom, second from left) together with his seven STS-61A
crewmates set the record for the most people to launch and land together
 on a spacecraft. Also pictured: Hank Hartsfield, Bonnie Dunbar, Jim Buchli,
Reinhard Furrer, Guy Bluford, Steven Nagel and Ernst Messerschmid. (NASA)

"I went on board [the mission] as a payload specialist and was responsible for the scientific experiments," recounted Ockels in an interview with Delft University of Technology, where he later taught as a professor. "That's how I learned about the medical and biological side of things but also, for instance, about materials engineering."

Ockels was twice considered for a second trip to space. New safety precautions put into place after the Challenger tragedy however, precluded his again flying as an eighth crew member onboard STS-55, the Spacelab D-2 mission, in 1993. He was also a candidate for a mission to Russia's Mir space station, but was medically disqualified.

Ockels retired from the European astronaut corps in 1994. In total, he logged 7 days and 44 minutes in space.

Wubbo Johannes Ockels was born on March 28, 1946 in Almelo, the Netherlands. He considered the Dutch city of Groningen his hometown.

Ockels studied physics and mathematics at the University of Groningen, earning his degree in 1973. Five years later, he earned his doctorate based on the experimental work he was doing at the Nuclear Physics Accelerator Institute (KVI) in Groningen.

Portrait of STS-61A payload specialist Wubbo Ockels. (NASA)

It was only then that Ockels first considered becoming an astronaut.

"In the laboratory where I worked, in the hall on the notice board one day appeared a notice in Dutch, an opportunity to be a scientific astronaut," Ockels shared in a 2010 ESA interview. "Some colleagues of mine had put some jokes on it, but when I saw it I thought, 'Well wait [a] minute, this could be serious,' and so I wrote for extra information."

"I remember when I got the information, I thought, 'This is my job,'" he continued. "It was just so perfect that it was exactly what I wanted to do so I applied."

Ockels became one of three European payload specialists selected to train for Spacelab missions. In May 1980, he reported to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston for a year of basic training and then served as a backup crew member for the first flight of Spacelab.

From Nov. 28 through Dec. 8, 1983, Ockels served as a ground communicator and liaison-scientist for the crew on board space shuttle Columbia's STS-9 mission.

His STS-61A mission established him as the first Dutch citizen to fly in space, but he was not the first Dutch-born astronaut. Lodewijk van den Berg, a naturalized American, preceded Ockels into space by six months. Still, Ockels gained fame for representing the Netherlands in orbit.

STS-61A payload specialist Wubbo Ockels floats in the Spacelab D-1
module during the space shuttle Challenger mission. (NASA)

"It's a fact that you become a well-known person in your country, and that's unavoidable," Ockels told ESA. "I see it as a responsibility."

"It's a responsibility to use that for a good mission," said Ockels. "My mission is sustainability and innovation and youth. I'm very happy to have this opportunity."

After flying in space, Ockels supported human spaceflight activities from the European Space Agency research and technology center, ESTEC, in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, before heading ESA's education and outreach office.

In 2003, Ockels accepted a full-time position at the Delft University of Technology as its professor of aerospace for sustainable engineering and technology, dealing with the exploitation of alternative sources of energy. In this role, Ockels was involved in the development of the innovative kite-driven Laddermill high-altitude wind turbine and Nuna solar powered car, twice leading a team of students to a victory in the bi-annual World Solar Challenge in Australia.

Ockels, who credited his spaceflight for shaping his views about "life, about the Earth, about our dependence on the Earth [and] about how we see the Cosmos," described his pursuit of sustainability as "Happy Energy."

"Essentially, people subconsciously feel unhappy about the fact that each kilometer you drive in your car leaves a trail of pollution and misery in its wake," Ockels remarked. "If you were to opt for sustainability, consuming less fossil fuel, you'd automatically feel better."

"Children understand instinctively what 'Happy Energy' is about," Ockels continued. "During my lectures for children I explain that they are astronauts from spaceship Earth and they have to make sure that order is maintained. They find that perfectly logical."

"There's something very appealing about Happy Energy," Ockels said. "After all, you're talking about something that really matters."

Professor Wubbo Ockels, Ph.D. (Delft University of Technology)

Ockels was honored for his spaceflight and sustainability work in 2000 with the naming of a small planetoid by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The asteroid, 9496 Ockels, orbits the Sun between Mars and Jupiter.

Ockels' daughter Gean wrote his biography, "Seven Lives of Wubbo Ockels," in 2010.

"It's partly biographical and recounts the five times I very narrowly escaped death," Ockels described. "Starting with a life-threatening tropical illness (1982), a collision with an Airbus at Lille airport (1989), a cardiac arrest in 2005 and finally a kidney tumour (2008). I'm in my sixth life, so only one left to go."

Ockels is survived by his wife Joos Swaving, two children and two grandchildren.

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TEDxAmsterdam Wubbo Ockels interview: ET bestaat! (Dutch)

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"The Big Picture - You Are Not Alone" - Feb 2012 (a message from Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll)

“.. A billion years ago, they (Pleiadians) went through a change and they went through a shift, and they had free choice. Back then, they were the only planet that did in their time, and eventually they went through a metamorphosis of consciousness. ”

“.. So again, we tell you that the ones who came to help seed you approximately 100,000 to 200,000 Earth years ago were the Pleiadians who had gone into graduate status and who had changed consciousness. They had become quantum with free choice, and you have parts of their DNA within you. ..”

“..You're surrounded by divine beings who keep you safe and will continue while this planet of only free choice – the only one at the moment – makes its decision. You're turning the corner of consciousness and they all know it, for they've all been through it and they remember it. Oh dear ones, consciousness is volatile! You've seen it change so slowly, but it's about to change faster. It's not going to take generations and generations as in the past. Instead, you're going to see real-time changes. Humans won't wait to have children for them to grow up and have children. 

"The Quantum Factor" – Apr 10, 2011 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Galaxies, Universe, Intelligent design, Benevolent design, Aliens, Nikola Tesla (Quantum energy), Inter-Planetary Travel, DNA, Genes, Stem Cells, Cells, Rejuvenation, Shift of Human Consciousness, Spontaneous Remission, Religion, Dictators, Africa, China, Nuclear Power, Sustainable Development, Animals, Global Unity.. etc.) - (Text Version)

“.. In time, the quantum factor will be discovered on this planet. When it is, it will be highly controversial, and it's going to fly in the face of logic and 3D and the way things work via the scientific method. The ramp-up to all this is difficult. The old souls in front of me have signed on to work this new energy and they've waded through lifetimes, just waiting for this. What would you do as a scientist if the experiments before you had "a mind of their own"? What would you think if magnetics, gravity and light could only be assembled in a certain way that created healing and never a destructive alignment? All this is going to redefine some of the basic forces in the Universe. Intelligent design is only the first, and even today many astronomers and physicists still think it's an anomaly. 

That will be the next largest discovery on the planet. It's been held back from you because it takes a higher vibrating consciousness to create and understand it. When any planet discovers a quantum energy and is able to use it, you could go to that planet and know that you will meet high-consciousness entities. This has never been given to you before that, for within the quantum factor contains the secret of interplanetary travel using large, entangled states. There are ways of doing things you never thought could happen. You can throw away your rocket ships. You're on the edge of that.  ..”

“… And so, dear Human Being, you have the ability to start to return to an energy that you thought you'd lost, where Human beings are allowed to live longer and it doesn't destroy the environment. They don't overcrowd themselves because they can control it through their minds instead of laws... and through wisdom.

Some day you'll meet the star seeds, your Pleiadian sisters and brothers. They're even here now, since they are quantum. You've got Pleiadian ancestors who live a very, very long time in a graduate situation in a planet that went through the test just like yours. And it developed a quantum factor. They have benevolence and they have quantum energy. That's how they get here instantly and return, and they'll never interrupt your free choice. That's also why they don't land and say hello. Instead, they sit and cheer on the sidelines for what you've finally done. They are waiting with you to celebrate the December solstice of 2012... the half way point of the 36 year shift you are in. …”

A Cosmic View of Earth (Video)

OVERVIEW from Planetary Collective on Vimeo.

On the 40th anniversary of the famous ‘Blue Marble’ photograph taken of Earth from space, Planetary Collective presents a short film documenting astronauts’ life-changing stories of seeing the Earth from the outside – a perspective-altering experience often described as the Overview Effect.

The Overview Effect, first described by author Frank White in 1987, is an experience that transforms astronauts’ perspective of the planet and mankind’s place upon it. Common features of the experience are a feeling of awe for the planet, a profound understanding of the interconnection of all life, and a renewed sense of responsibility for taking care of the environment.

‘Overview’ is a short film that explores this phenomenon through interviews with five astronauts who have experienced the Overview Effect. The film also features insights from commentators and thinkers on the wider implications and importance of this understanding for society, and our relationship to the environment.

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"The Time Capsule of Gaia" – Feb 9, 2013 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Text version)

“…  Tesla the Man

.... Tesla died a broken man, filled with ideas that would have brought peace to planet Earth, but he was simply not allowed to give any of them to you.

Now I'll tell you why he was stopped, dear ones, and it's the first time we have ever told you – because these inventions were too easy to weaponize. Humanity just isn't ready for it. You're not ready for massless objects, either, for the principles are too easy to weaponize.

"So," you might say, "when will we be ready for it?" I think you already know the answer, don't you? At the time when Human consciousness reaches a point where that which is most important is unification and not separation, it will happen. A point where conquering and power are not desirable ideas or assets. A point where humanity will measure the strength of its population by how healthy they are and not by economic growth. A point where coming together with your neighbor is the main objective to social consciousness, and not conquering them or eliminating them. That's coming, dear ones. It's a ways away, but it's coming. Look around the planet at the moment. The old energy leaders are obvious, are they not? It's like they are relics in a world of thinking that is passing them by.  ….”

"The Big Picture - You Are Not Alone" - Feb 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll)

Neil Armstrong, first man on the moon, dies aged 82

US astronaut who led the Apollo 11 mission underwent heart-bypass surgery earlier this month

The Guardian, The Observer, Cass Jones, Sunday 26 August 2012

Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, has died aged 82. His
family described him as a 'reluctant American hero'. Photograph: AP

Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, has died aged 82. The former US astronaut, who will go down on history as the most famous pioneer of space exploration, passed away as the result of heart complications following surgery.

As commander of the Apollo 11 mission, he became the first person to set foot on the moon, on 20 July 1969, fulfilling the longheld dream of the United States to get there before the Soviet Union. His first words as he stepped on to the surface – "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" – instantly became one of the most recognisable phrases ever uttered.

Armstrong underwent heart bypass surgery earlier this month, just two days after his birthday on 5 August, to relieve blocked arteries.

His family released a statement on Saturday describing him as a "reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job".

It read: "We are heartbroken to share the news that Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures. Neil was our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend. Neil Armstrong was also a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. He served his nation proudly as a Navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and astronaut.

"While we mourn the loss of a very good man we also celebrate his remarkable life and hope that it serves as an example to young people around the world to work hard to make their dreams come true, to be willing to explore and push the limits, and to selflessly serve a cause greater than themselves."

Other tributes have come flooding in for the astronaut as news of his death spread across the world. US president Barack Obama hailed Armstrong as one of America's greatest heroes. In a statement issued by the White House, he said the crew of Apollo 11 carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation when they set out for the moon in 1969. He later tweeted: "Neil Armstrong was a hero not just of his time, but of all time. Thank you, Neil, for showing us the power of one small step."

Former astronaut Tom Jones, who completed four space shuttle flights between 1990 and 2001, said: "Mr Armstrong was one of the astronauts that was my hero when I was growing up and I watched his initial landing on the moon in 1969 with incredible interest. He really was an inspiration to an entire generation of people." The US space agency tweeted: "Nasa offers its condolences on today's passing of Neil Armstrong, former test pilot, astronaut & the 1st man on the moon. Neil was 82."

Armstrong grew up in Ohio with a keen interest in flight and earned his pilot's certificate when he was just 15. After flying combat missions during the Korean war, he became a test pilot and joined Nasa's astronaut programme in 1962.

Armstrong was joined on his moon landing by Buzz Aldrin and the pair spent nearly three hours walking on the lunar surface, collecting samples, conducting experiments and taking photographs. Last night Aldrin called Armstrong "a true American hero and the best pilot I ever knew". The Apollo 11 mission turned out to be Armstrong's last space flight. The following year he was appointed to a desk job at Nasa, later becoming a lecturer in engineering at Cincinnati University.

In 1961 President Kennedy had declared before the United States Congress that the US would have a man on the moon before the turn of the decade and the moon walk marked America's victory in the cold war space race. An estimated 600 million people – a fifth of the world's population – watched and listened to the moon landing, the largest audience for any single event in history.

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"The Quantum Factor" – Apr 10, 2011 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Galaxies, Universe, Intelligent design, Benevolent design, Aliens, Nikola Tesla (Quantum energy), Inter-Planetary Travel, DNA, Genes, Stem Cells, Cells, Rejuvenation, Shift of Human Consciousness, Spontaneous Remission, Religion, Dictators, Africa, China, Nuclear Power, Sustainable Development, Animals, Global Unity.. etc.) - (Text Version)

"... That will be the next largest discovery on the planet. It's been held back from you because it takes a higher vibrating consciousness to create and understand it. When any planet discovers a quantum energy and is able to use it, you could go to that planet and know that you will meet high-consciousness entities. This has never been given to you before that, for within the quantum factor contains the secret of interplanetary travel using large, entangled states. There are ways of doing things you never thought could happen. You can throw away your rocket ships. You're on the edge of that.... "

"The Big Picture - You Are Not Alone" - Feb 2012 (a message from Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - New

André Kuipers: bringing space a little closer to home

RNW, 30 June 2012, by Willemien Groot    

(Photo: ESA/NASA)

      

Dutch astronaut André Kuipers returns to Earth on Sunday after spending over six months aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Down here on terra firma, we have been able to follow his every move on Twitter and via live video links. Kuipers’ exploits have brought space that little bit closer to home.

“He’ll never stop smiling again,” was the comment when Kuipers entered the air lock of the ISS for the second time in his life over six months ago. The Dutchman was grinning from ear to ear as he greeted his colleagues. In his own words, it felt like coming home.

Enthusiasm

From his “home in the sky”, Kuipers launched into an enthusiastic barrage of messages, tweets, photos, videos and Q&A sessions for the benefit of a fascinated audience back on Planet Earth. Enthusiasm among children in the Netherlands is riding high, observes Hans van der Lande of Space Expo in Noordwijk.

We’ve welcomed between twice and three times as many visitors as normal. We no longer have to explain to the younger kids what a rocket is. They want to know what gravity is and why mankind wants to travel into space.

As far as Van der Lande is aware, every school in the country is involved in Spaceship Earth, a project aimed at upper primary school classes and junior secondary school classes. “It’s been a huge hit. Children are interested in the whole team and you can see that it’s inspiring them.”

From the heart

The Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) is also delighted with André Kuipers. From the ISS, the astronaut took hundreds of photographs which have reached millions of people. “His message is that we have to be careful with the world’s natural resources. We only have one planet and we have to take good care of it,” says Dylan de Gruijl of WWF. Kuipers explicitly asked to become a WWF ambassador after his first space voyage.

His latest photographs not only show the Earth’s beauty but also the impact of deforestation, natural disasters and ongoing urbanisation. Our night-time illumination is even visible from space. “His sense of commitment comes from the heart. He doesn’t just read from a script. It’s his own conviction.”

Dragon

Philippe Schoonejans of the European Space Agency ESA particularly admires Kuipers for pulling off a successful ISS rendezvous for a commercially produced, unmanned spacecraft, the Dragon. Kuipers brought the spacecraft in safely using a robot arm, a manoeuvre he had practised for weeks.

Schoonejans sees this as a promising development for the future: “It shows that flights of this kind can be carried out on a commercial basis, without government intervention. That’s particularly important for the Americans.”

The US is working on a successor to the Space Shuttle, which has now gone into retirement. In the meantime, ISS crew are travelling back and forth in a Russian Soyuz. With a few adjustments, the Dragon will be able to carry not only cargo but also a maximum of seven people. That would make the Americans less dependent on the Russians.

Cutbacks

Although Kuipers’ voyage has been a success in several respects, the Dutch government still plans to cut the budget for space travel by 33 million euros in 2015. Space travel is seen as an unconscionable expense in times of crisis.

“It’ll be an incredible shame if those cutbacks go ahead,” says Philippe Schoonejans of ESA. “It’ll put a real dent in the Netherlands’ status as a high-tech nation. And it will also jeopardise jobs for researchers and assignments for Dutch technology companies.”

Goodbye

But at this moment in time, André Kuipers has other things on his mind. After his landing in Kazakhstan, he will first fly to Houston (US) for a debriefing and then he’ll finally be able to go on holiday with his family. On 30 August he will receive a hero’s welcome on the boulevard in Noordwijk.

But for the time being, Hans van der Lande of Space Expo offers a word of advice: “Before you leave, make sure you go to the ISS viewing platform one last time and take a good long look around. Take the time to say a proper goodbye.”

The very low countries: Space Station captures the lights of Belgium and Holland from 250 miles up

Daily Mail, by Rob Waugh, 30th January 2012

 

Cameras aboard the International Space Station captured a spectacular view of Europe - seen through the robotic arms and solar panels of the orbiting space station itself.

City lights from Belgium and the Netherlands are in the centre of the photograph, with Britain concealed behind solar panels to the left.

A night-time view of a western European panorama from the International
Space Station reveals city lights from Belgium and the Netherlands

The image was taken by the ISS station crew on January 22, 2012.

In the foreground, you can see the end effector of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System, a robotic arm used to move equipment and supplies around the station.

Don Pettit, one of the Space Station's current crew, writes, 'Looking through the cupola windows on Space Station, it’s only natural to reflect upon who we are and where we fit into the world below.'

More...

• Incredible image appears to show massive black hole in the sky

'Like something out of Alice in Wonderland, this orbital looking glass can be both a window through which to observe the jeweled sphere of Earth and a mirror that (sometimes, depending on your viewing angle) shows you a translucent reflection of yourself superimposed on the planet.' 

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Dutch astronaut breaks own space record

RNW, 1 January 2012

Astronaut André Kuipers (Photo: ANP)

Astronaut André Kuipers has now spent 11 consecutive days in space, becoming the first Dutch person to do so.

On Sunday morning, he broke the record he set in 2004 during a space mission that lasted 10 days, 20 hours, 52 minutes and 15 seconds. In 1985, Wubbo Ockels and Lodewijk van den Berg spent a week in space. Mr Kuipers’ current mission is scheduled to last five months. He is due to return to Earth on 16 May.

The Soyuz rocket carrying Mr Kuipers and two other astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) was launched from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan on 21 December. On board the ISS are Commander Oleg Kononenko from Russia, NASA flight engineer Don Pettit as well as Kuipers, who is there as a European Space Agency astronaut and flight engineer.

Kuipers will conduct 57 scientific experiments while in space. Some of them will examine the effects of prolonged weightlessness on the human body. He also hopes to send a message to children about the importance of space science.

Kepler 22-b: Earth-like planet confirmed

BBC News, 5 December 2011

Related Stories 

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The planet lies about 15% closer to its star than
the Earth is to the Sun

Astronomers have confirmed the existence of an Earth-like planet in the "habitable zone" around a star not unlike our own.

The planet, Kepler 22-b, lies about 600 light-years away and is about 2.4 times the size of Earth, and has a temperature of about 22C.

It is the closest confirmed planet yet to one like ours - an "Earth 2.0".

However, the team does not yet know if Kepler 22-b is made mostly of rock, gas or liquid.

During the conference at which the result was announced, the Kepler team said that it had spotted some 1,094 new candidate planets.

The Kepler space telescope was designed to look at a fixed swathe of the night sky, staring intently at about 150,000 stars. The telescope is sensitive enough to see when a planet passes in front of its host star, dimming the star's light by a minuscule amount.

Kepler identifies these slight changes in starlight as candidate planets, which are then confirmed by further observations by Kepler and other telescopes in orbit and on Earth.

Kepler Space Telescope

• Stares fixedly at a patch corresponding to 1/400th of the sky
• Looks at more than 155,000 stars
• Has so far found 2,326 candidate planets
• Among them are 207 Earth-sized planets, 10 of which are in the "habitable zone" where liquid water can exist

William Borucki talks about Kepler

Kepler 22-b was one of 54 candidates reported by the Kepler team in February, and is just the first to be formally confirmed using other telescopes.

More of these "Earth 2.0" candidates are likely to be confirmed in the near future, though a redefinition of the habitable zone's boundaries has brought that number down to 48.

Kepler 22-b lies at a distance from its sun about 15% less than the distance from the Earth to the Sun, and its year takes about 290 days. However, its sun puts out about 25% less light, keeping the planet at its balmy temperature that would support the existence of liquid water.

The Kepler team had to wait for three passes of the planet before upping its status from "candidate" to "confirmed".

"Fortune smiled upon us with the detection of this planet," said William Borucki, Kepler principal investigator at Nasa's Ames Research Center.

"The first transit was captured just three days after we declared the spacecraft operationally ready. We witnessed the defining third transit over the 2010 holiday season."

The results were announced at the Kepler telescope's first science conference, alongside the staggering number of new candidate planets. The total number of candidates spotted by the telescope is now 2,326 - of which 207 are approximately Earth-sized.

In total, the results suggest that planets ranging from Earth-sized to about four times Earth's size - so-called "super-Earths" - may be more common than previously thought.

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"Spiritual Logic" - Oct 15 2011 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) 

(Subjects: Benevolent Design, Channelling, Holy scriptures, Higher self, (Old) Souls, Universes, Big Bang, Galaxy/Solar system build for life, Astronomy, Life on Earth tried to start 5 times/ 5th time life started, Large Animals/No Humans, Asteroid belt, 7 Sisters/100.000 year ago Pleiadian Brothers and Sisters seeded Humans on earth, DNA, Humans Ascensiont with PleiadianDNA, Lemuria (Hawaii), 21-12-2012, 26.000 years cycle, 1987 - Harmonic convergence (11:11), Shift of Human Consciousness, Gaia, The Humanization of God, 1991 Russia falls, 1994 started 36 years galactic window (Presession), Mid point on 21-12-2012, Lemuria (Hawaii) center of the Earth time,  Love (Mother & Child),  Religion, Higher self, Global Unity,..... etc.) - New !

Mayan tablet does not predict end of the world in 2012, says expert

A reference to 2012 on a Mayan tablet denotes a transition to a new era, not the apocalypse, according to Sven Gronemeyer

guardian.co.uk, Associated Press, Thursday 1 December 2011

A scene from the film 2012, which refers to the idea that the Mayan
calendar predicts the end of the world. Photograph: SONY/Sportsphoto
Ltd/Allstar

The end is not quite nigh. At least that is the conclusion of a German expert who says his decoding of a Mayan tablet with a reference to a 2012 date denotes a transition to a new era and not a possible end of the world as others have read it.

The interpretation of the hieroglyphs by Sven Gronemeyer of La Trobe University in Australia was presented for the first time on Wednesday at the archaeological site of Palenque in southern Mexico.

His comments came less than a week after Mexico's archaeology institute acknowledged there was a second reference to the 2012 date in Mayan inscriptions, touching off another round of talk about whether it predicts the end of the world.

Gronemeyer has been studying the stone tablet, which was found years ago at the archaeological site of Tortuguero in Mexico's Gulf coast state of Tabasco.

He said the inscription described the return of the mysterious Mayan god Bolon Yokte at the end of a 13th period of 400 years, known as Baktuns, on the equivalent of 21 December 2012. Mayans considered 13 a sacred number. There is nothing apocalyptic in the date, he said.

The text was carved about 1,300 years ago. The stone has cracked, which has made the end of the passage almost illegible.

Gronemeyer said the inscription referred to the end of a cycle of 5,125 years since the beginning of the Mayan Long Count calendar in 3113 BC.

The fragment was a prophecy of the then ruler Bahlam Ajaw, who wanted to plan the passage of the god, Gronemeyer said.

"For the elite of Tortuguero, it was clear they had to prepare the land for the return of the god and for Bahlam Ajaw to be the host of this initiation," he said.

Bolon Yokte, the god of creation and war, was to prevail that day in a sanctuary of Tortuguero.

"The date acquired a symbolic value because it is seen as a reflection of the day of creation," Gronemeyer said. "It is the passage of a god and not necessarily a great leap for humanity."

Last week, Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology said a second inscription mentioning the 2012 date was on the carved or moulded face of a brick found at the Comalcalco ruin, near the Tortuguero site. It is being kept at the institute and is not on display.

Many experts doubt the second inscription is a definite reference to the date cited as the possible end of the world, saying there is no future tense marking like there is in the Tortuguero tablet.

The institute has tried to dispel talk of a 2012 apocalypse, the subject of numerous postings and stories on the internet. Its latest step was to arrange a special round table of Mayan experts this week at Palenque, which is where Gronemeyer made his comments.

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"Spiritual Logic" - Oct 15 2011 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) 
(Subjects: Benevolent Design, Channelling, Holy scriptures, Higher self, (Old) Souls, Universes, Big Bang, Galaxy/Solar system build for life, Astronomy, Life on Earth tried to start 5 times/ 5th time life started, Large Animals/No Humans, Asteroid belt, 7 Sisters/100.000 year ago Pleiadian Brothers and Sisters seeded Humans on earth, DNA, Humans Ascensiont with PleiadianDNA, Lemuria (Hawaii), 21-12-2012, 26.000 years cycle, 1987 - Harmonic convergence (11:11), Shift of Human Consciousness, Gaia, The Humanization of God, 1991 Russia falls, 1994 started 36 years galactic window (Presession), Mid point on 21-12-2012, Lemuria (Hawaii) center of the Earth time,  Love (Mother & Child),  Religion, Higher self, Global Unity,..... etc.) - New !

"What's Going to Happen?" - Oct 19 2011 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) 
(Subjects: The Humanization of God,  Re-calibration, Shift of Human Consciousness, Financial Institutes (Recession, System to Change ...), (Old) Souls, 21-12-2012, Gaia, Hawaii (Lemuria), All Dictators to fall, Old Politics, Old and New energy, Higher self, 1 - No fear, 2 - Compassion, 3 - Change Attitude (Expect positive outcome), 4 - Believe the Truth of DNA/Akashic records, 11:11, Master Christ, Reincarnation, Global Unity,..... etc.) - New !

Quantum Living begins 2012 – 30 Oct 2011 (a message from Kuthumi channeled by Lynette Leckie-Clark)

The Nation of Humanity - 13 Sep 2011 (Channelled message from Metatron by Tyberonn in the United Nations building)