It’s common to hear people refer to “what science says.” But the term ‘science’ has two conflicting senses: science as currently-accepted theory and science as method. In fact, in pursuing the questions raised by currently-accepted theory, method is likely to overturn currently-accepted theory. As Thunderbolts contributor Mel Acheson explains in…
May 1, 2020 Consensus scientific theories postulate that the Moon experienced extreme selenological activity early in its history. There are reports that the Moon is not a completely dead body; that selenological processes involving tectonic plates might still be happening. It is obvious that cataclysmic devastation occurred at some time…
April 30, 2020 Science depends on novel ideas. “A good decision is based on knowledge and not on numbers.” — Plato It is commonly believed that science “stands on the shoulders of giants”. In other words, new theories are based on those inherited from older generations. If that is the…
April 29, 2020 If currently fashionable theories are Ultimate Truth (or at least smart ideas) and myth was stupid superstition, where is the dividing line? Was Ptolemy stupid and Newton smart? But General Relativity is not just an improved version of Newton’s theory, it’s different: Einstein’s stretchable space-time is not…
Comparative mythologist Ev Cochrane, author of “Martian Metamorphoses”, continues his series on his lifelong research into the themes and archetypes of world mythology. Previously, Ev presented his investigation into ancient Egyptian traditions which describe the Sun appearing atop a lotus-flower at the time of Creation. According to both David Talbott…
April 28, 2020 Dust at a temperature near absolute zero shows up as red and orange in this image of the Carina Nebula. NGC 3372 is a large, bright nebulosity in the constellation Carina, located between 6500 and 10,000 light-years from Earth. Since there are so many nebulae, and all…
April 27, 2020 Neutron stars do not exist. A few years ago, the space-based observatory, XMM-Newton reported that high-velocity particles in orbit around Serpens X-1 appeared to indicate Einsteinian relativistic effects. The observation of spectral lines from “hot iron atoms” orbiting close-in to the surface of the neutron star indicate that some…
April 24, 2020 A bubble of X-rays generated by an electric discharge through dusty plasma. In images from the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, a stellar explosion is thought to create a spherical shockwave that is traveling through the surrounding interstellar dust at extremely high velocity. According to astronomers, the shockwave of…
April 23, 2020 A new mission to study the second planet. The European Space Agency’s Venus Express mission is now over. Launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on November 9, 2005 the spacecraft entered orbit around Venus on April 11, 2006. Sometime in November 2021, NASA will launch the DAVINCI…
One of the enduring mysteries in solar physics is the unexpectedly hot temperature of the solar wind as it extends away from the Sun. Recently, a team of scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison performed a study to try to find an answer to the puzzle. And their search led…
