Huru-Hara Akhir Zaman

 Dari: tabrani
  Judul: [Itb] Huru-Hara Akhir Zaman
  Tanggal: Sat, 08 Nov 2003 19:59:42 -0800

Assalamu'alaikum,
Percaya Nggak Percaya. Silakan masing-masing mengambil
hikmahnya dimana perlu. Saya sendiri percaya hadits-
hadits ini, walau tentu saya tidak tahu pasti kapan
tepatnya kejadian tersebut akan terjadi. Kumpulan tulisan
di bawah ini bukan dari saya pribadi, saya hanya mencermati,
mengumpulkan dan menyebarkannya, barangkali akan ada
gunanya.
Selamat menjalankan ibadah puasa!
Wassalamu'alaikum.
Tabrani


Isi Berita:
1. Cuplikan dari Buku "Huru-Hara Akhir Zaman",
2. Berita dari Republika edisi Jum'at, 7 Nov.2003
   "Preview Atraksi Leonid" dan
   "Malam November Yang Spesial".
3. Berita tentang gerhana-gerhana di tahun 2003 (NASA)


1) Dari buku "Huru-Hara Akhir Zaman" karangan
Amin Muhammad Jamaluddin (dosen Pascasarjana
Fakultas Dakwah dan Tsaqafah Islamiyah, Universitas
Al Azhar, Kairo)(Penerbit Aqwam, Juli 2003):

Halaman 97:

Keanehan-keanehan yang terjadi pada Ramadhan dan petaka-
petaka dahsyat pada bulan Syawwal, Dzulqaidah dan Dzulhijjah.
Al-Mahdi akan mumcul di bulan Muharram. Pada Ramadhan sebelum
kemunculannya, terlihat beberapa tanda-tanda nyata dan peristiwa-
peristiwa yang aneh di langit. Mula-mula terjadi guncangan,
kemudian muncul gelegar suara yang keras dan dahsyat, setiap
orang bisa mendengarnya, kemudian muncul bintang berekor yang
menerangi langit, kemudian matahari dan bulan mengalami gerhana.
Jika peristiwa-peristiwa diatas telah terjadi pada bulan Ramadhan,
maka pada bulan Syawal akan terjadi huru-hara (ma'ma'ah).
Kemudian pada bulan Dzulqaidah akan terjadi konflik antar suku
dan perselisihan antar negeri Islam. Kemudian pada bulan
Dzulhijjah, pada musim haji, akan terjadi perampokan terhadap para jama'ah
haji dan peperangan antar suku dan bangsa Islam, sehingga darah
mengalir di Jumrah 'Aqabah pada hari-hari Idul Adha di Mina.
Jika peristiwa di atas telah terjadi, maka Al-Mahdi muncul dan
dibaiat pada hari Asyura bulan Muharram.
Saya akan menyebutkan beberapa hadits mengenai hal ini yang
sebenarnya cukup banyak:

Nu'aim bin Hammad meriwayatkan dengan sanadnya bahwa
Rasulullah saw. bersabda:
"Pada bulan Ramadhan terlihat tanda-tanda di langit, seperti
tiang yang bersinar, pada bulan Syawwal terjadi malapetaka, pada
bulan Dzulqa'idah terjadi kemusnahan, pada bulan Dzulhijjah para
jamaah haji dirampok, dan pada Muharram, tahukah apakah Muharram
itu?"

Rasulullah saw. juga bersabda:
"Akan ada suara dahsyat di bulan Ramadhan, huru-hara di bulan
Syawwal, konflik antar suku pada bulan Dzulqa'idah, dan pada
tahun  itu para jamaah haji dirampok dan terjadi pembantaian
besar di Mina dimana banyak orang terbunuh dan darah mengalir
disana, sedangkan pada saat itu mereka berada di Jumrah Aqabah".

Beliau saw. juga bersabda:
"Bila telah muncul suara di bulan Ramadhan, maka akan terjadi
huru-hara di bulan Syawwal...". Kami bertanya: "Suara apakah,
ya Rasulullah?"  Beliau menjawab: "Suara keras di pertengahan
bulan Ramadhan, pada malam Jum'at, akan muncul suara keras
yang membangunkan orang tidur, menjadikan orang yang berdiri
jatuh terduduk , para gadis keluar dari pingitannya, pada
malam Jum'at di tahun terjadinya banyak gempa. Jika kalian
telah melaksanakan shalat Subuh pada hari Jum'at, masuklah
kalian ke dalam rumah kalian, tutuplah pintu-pintunya,
sumbatlah lubang-lubangnya, dan selimutilah diri kalian,
sumbatlah telinga kalian. Jika kalian merasakan adanya suara
menggelegar, maka bersujudlah kalian kepada Allah dan
ucapkanlah: "Mahasuci Al-Quddus, Mahasuci Al-Quddus, Rabb kami
Al-Quddus!", karena barangsiapa melakukan hal itu akan selamat,
tetapi barangsiapa yang tidak melakukan hal itu akan binasa".

Muhammad bin Ali berkata:
"Sesungguhnya, Al-Mahdi yang kita nantikan itu memiliki dua
mukjizat yang belum pernah terjadi semenjak Allah menciptakan
langit dan bumi, bulan mengalami gerhana pada malam pertama
bulan Ramadhan, sedangkan matahari mengalami gerhana pada
pertengahan bulan itu, dan kedua hal itu belum pernah terjadi
sejak Allah menciptakan langit dan bumi".
(diriwayatkan Daruquthni dalam sunan-nya).



2) Berita dari Harian Republika

Harian REPUBLIKA
Jumat, 07 Nopember 2003
Preview Atraksi Leonid
Pertunjukan I: Atraksi Perdana
Pertemuan pertama dengan meteor Leonid diperkirakan terjadi
pada tanggal 13 November pukul 17.17 GMT. Bumi bakal menerpa
hamparan debu angkasa yang dihasilkan oleh komet Tempel-Tuttle
tahun 1499sejauh 393 ribu kilometer. Hujan meteor ini dengan
leluasa dapat disaksikan oleh pengamat angkasa di Asia, Indonesia,
dan Australia.
Diperkirakan, hujan meteor ini akan mencapai puncaknya sebelum
matahari terbit di pagi tanggal 14 November. Saat langit malam
tampak cerah, tiap pengamat langit dapat melihat 100 atau lebih
Leonid per jamnya. Tetapi, temaram sinar bulan di awal pagi akan
sedikit memburamkan pandangan.
Kemungkinan besar, Leonid akan terlihat pucat. Rata-rata tiap
jamnya akan dihitung berdasarkan interval 15 menit. Sementara
aktivitas puncaknya diperkirakan tidak akan lebih lama dari
satu jam.

Pertunjukan II: Si Sibuk yang Pucat
Kesempatan kedua untuk menyaksikan sirkus meteor dari rasi
bintang singa ini jatuh pada tanggal 19 November. Peristiwa
ini berlangsung seminggu setelah atraksi pertama berakhir.
Bumi akan menerpa jarak 53 ribu kilometer jalur debu komet
yang tercipta tahun 1533 ini.
''Pada puncak ke duanya, akan muncul 30 Leonid per jam,''
ujar Esko Lyytinen, peneliti meteor asal Finlandia.
Jeremie Vaubaillon dari Institut de Mecanique Celeste et de
Calcul des Ephemerides di Prancis malah berpendapat akan
ada 100 meteor per jamnya. Pemandangan unik ini jelas terlihat
oleh masyarkat di bagian utara dan barat Amerika Selatan.
Selama pertunjukan II ini berlangsung, ada kabar baik dan
kabar buruk. Kabar baiknya, saat itu cahaya bulan tidak
mengaburkan pandangan. Kabar buruknya, kedua peneliti-
-Lyytinen dan Vaubaillon--percaya partikel meteor ini
ukurannya sangat kecil, sehingga kecil kemungkinan akan
terlihat oleh mata telanjang.
Pertunjukan III: Hujan Bola Api
Peter Jenniskens dari NASA Ames Reseach Center dan Hans Betlem
dari Dutch Meteor Society menyatakan kesempatan terbaik untuk
mengamati atraksi Leonid adalah saat aksi ke tiga berlangsung.
Saat itu, bumi melintasi <I>the Filament<I> alias sungai meteor.
Kira-kira, 50 meteor per jam atau satu meteor per menit akan
menghantam atmosfer. Kejadiannya mirip dengan hujan Perseid
namun dengan meteor yang lebih terang.
Aksi ketiga ini berlangsung selama 24 jam, lebih lama daripada
aksi-aksi sebelumnya. Puncak 'pesta kembang api' meteor ini akan
terjadi sekitar pukul 5.25 GMT dini hari tanggal 19 November.
Masyarkaat di barat Afrika, barat Eropa, tenggara Amerika
Serikat, dan timur Kanada beruntung dapat melihatnya lebih
jelas. rei/berbagai sumber

Harian REPUBLIKA
Jumat, 07 Nopember 2003
Malam November yang Spesial
Banyak fenomena alam yang terjadi selama bulan ini. Salah satu
yang sudah dan akan kembali terjadi adalah fenomena badai
matahari pekan lalu. Kantor Antariksa Jepang melaporkan mereka
kehilangan kontak dengan satelit pemantau lingkungan saat
badai itu terjadi.
Sebelumnya, aktifitas matahari ini memang disebut-sebut bakal
berpengaruh pada kerja satelit, radio komunikasi frekuensi
tinggi dan jejaring pembangkit listrik.
Namun, aktifitas matahari ini juga mengirimkan pemandangan
indah berupa aurora yang sangat spektakuler bentuknya.
Semburat cahaya merah hijau jingga terlihat jelas di langit
selatan Texas, Arizona, dan Alabama, Amerika Serikat.
Lalu, setelah berbinar indah September silam, Mars kembali
menebarkan pesonanya. Di bulan November ini, pecinta astronomi
dapat menyaksikan permukaan Mars beserta kabut putihnya.
Pemandangan menarik itu bisa diintip lewat teleskop.
Venus pun tidak ketinggalan memperindah angkasa. Planet yang
berada di belahan bawah tenggara horison ini akan tampil elok
di malam hari. Tepat di Hari Raya Idul Fitri mendatang,
25 November, Venus muncul 30 menit setelah matahari terbenam.
Planet terang ini akan berada persis di kanan atas bulan baru.
Sedangkan, Merkurius mulai dapat ditengok sesaat setelah hari
berganti petang. Planet mungil itu berada di kanan bawah Venus.
Sementara itu, langit pagi tidak kalah menarik untuk dipandangi.
Pagi merupakan waktunya Saturnus dan Jupiter beraksi. Meski
terbit pukul 20.00, Saturnus justru terlihat jelas selepas
tengah malam. Sedangkan, Jupiter baru muncul sekitar pukul
02.00 dini hari.
Tak hanya malam yang bertebar keindahan. Kita akan disuguhi
pemandangan menajubkan dan diajak bertasbih di awal pagi
18 November nanti. Meteor Leonid beratraksi di timur angkasa.
Meteor ini berasal dari konstalasi rasi bintang Leo.
Meteor ini letaknya berhadapan langsung dengan bumi.
Itu sebabnya ia mampu melintas cepat ke atmosfer bumi.
Kecepatannya mencapai 160 ribu mil per jam.
Kejadian ini termasuk peristiwa yang luar biasa. Sebab,
hujan meteor Leonid menciptakan badai meteor yang amat hebat,
seperti di tahun 1966 dulu. Kala itu di Pantai Barat terjadi
badai 150 meteor per jam.
Meteor Leonid terbentuk dari debu sisa-sisa komet Tempel-Tuttle
yang menyapu sistem matahari bagian dalam tiap 33 tahun.
Tiap kali komet ini melintas dekat matahari, ia meninggalkan
serpihan-serpihan padat. Ukuran debunya ada yang lebih kecil
dari butiran pasir dan ada pula yang mencapai besar kelereng.
Penampilan Leonid dipastikan menandingi hujan meteor tahunan,
Perseid Agustus dan Geminid Desember. Leonid tahun ini muncul
tidak cuma sekali. Penampilan perdananya jatuh pada tanggal
13 dan terakhir tanggal 19 November.
Seluruh penduduk bumi bisa menyaksikan atraksi Leonid ini.
Paling tidak salah satu aksinya saja. Tiap hujan meteor Leonid
terlihat dari lokasi yang berbeda.
Di tahun ini, gerhana bulan total ke dua berlangsung 8 November.
Sayang, peristiwa ini tidak dapat dipantau oleh masyarakat
Indonesia. Kejadian ini cuma bisa terlihat oleh mereka yang
berada di Amerika, sebagian wilayah Eropa, dan juga Afrika.
Untuk memperjelas pengamatan, binocular atau teleskop bisa
membantu. Gerhana akan mulai terjadi saat bulan memasuki bagian
luar bayangan bumi yang redup alias penumbra. Kejadian itu
berlangsung lebih dari satu jam sebelum bulan bergerak ke umbra,
bayangan dalam bumi yang lebih gelap.
Diperkirakan, bulan akan menghabiskan waktu sekitar tiga jam
dan 33 menit untuk menyelesaikan perjalanannya melewati umbra.
Gerhana bulan total selanjutnya bakal berlangsung pada
4 Mei 2004. Pemandangan mengagumkan ini juga bisa ditengok
oleh mereka yang tinggal di belahan timur Eropa, Afrika Tengah
dan Timur, serta bagian barat Asia pada dini hari tanggal
9 November.
Menjelang Idul Fitri, 23 November, gerhana matahari total
tayang di Antartika. Mereka yang berada di Australia dan
Selandia Baru akan melihat fenomena alam yang sama sebagai
gerhana matahari sebagian. Tidak seperti gerhana bulan,
gerhana matahari tidak bisa dipantau langsung dengan mata
telanjang.
Saat ini, matahari tengah mempertontonkan kondisi aktifnya.
Menurut para peneliti, inilah saat matahari paling aktif selama
berabad-abad. Buktinya terlihat dari badai geomagnetik yang
menimpa bumi.
''Saat ini kita hidup dengan kondisi matahari yang berbeda dari
biasanya,'' ujar Mike Lockwood dari Rutherford Appleton Laboratory,
Inggris. Aktivitas magnetik matahari ini disinyalir berpengaruh
kepada pemanasan global.  reiny dwinanda/bbc


3) Berita dari NASA / Goddard Space Flight Center,
   lengkapnya bisa dilihat di:
   http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/OH2003.html

Eclipses During 2003
by Fred Espenak
Observer's Handbook 2003, Royal Astronomical Society of Canada

During the year 2003, there will be two solar eclipses and two
lunar eclipses:
2003 May 16: Total Lunar Eclipse
2003 May 31: Annular Solar Eclipse
2003 Nov 09: Total Lunar Eclipse
2003 Nov 23: Total Solar Eclipse

Predictions for the eclipses are summarized in figures 1
through 6. World maps show the regions of visibility for
each eclipse. The lunar eclipse diagrams also include the
path of the Moon through Earth's shadows. Contact times
for each principal phase are tabulated along with the
magnitudes and geocentric coordinates of the Sun and Moon
at greatest eclipse.
.... http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/eclipse/OH/OH2003.html ....

Astronomi: Perjalanan Menembus Tapal Batas

Judhistira Aria Utama

---

Sudah sejak dulu manusia memandang langit dengan penuh ketakjuban. Bagi mereka semesta mempunyai daya magis yang memberi pengharapan maupun mendatangkan kecemasan. Tak heran karenanya semua fenomena langit lantas diterjemahkan sebagai pekabaran dari para dewa kepada umat manusia di Bumi. Sebagai sebuah pekabaran, berarti gejala alam tersebut terkait dengan bencana maupun keberuntungan yang akan di alami oleh suatu bangsa. Catatan sejarah tentang hal ini misalnya, bertepatan dengan saat Komet Halley menampakkan diri pada abad ke-11 M. Kala itu Bangsa Norman yang tengah menghadapi peperangan memperoleh gairah dan semangat bertempur sebab mengartikan penampakan bintang berekor ini sebagai pertanda kemenangan, dan memang pada akhirnya Bangsa Norman berhasil mengalahkan musuhnya.

Seiring dengan berjalannya waktu, timbul pengertian dalam diri manusia-dulu untuk mengatasi desakan kebutuhannya dengan memanfaatkan keteraturan yang teramati di langit. Kebutuhan itu menyangkut penanggalan untuk penentuan pesta atau upacara keagamaan, penentuan waktu untuk mulai menabur benih dan waktu panen saat pola hidup menetap (food gathering) menjadi pilihan, juga kebutuhan akan kepastian arah pada saat harus mulai mengembara. Peninggalan dari zaman Megalitikum yang dijumpai di daerah Inggris Utara, Stonehenge, menunjukkan kepada kita bahwa selain dimanfaatkan sebagai penentu awal tahun, yakni saat Matahari terbit di titik terjauhnya di utara di banding pada hari-hari lainnya sepanjang tahun, bangunan berupa batu melingkar ini juga digunakan sebagai alat prediksi peristiwa gerhana. Orang-orang Mesir Kuno, yang sezaman dengan era Megalitikum di atas, telah mengetahui bahwa tampaknya Sirius di langit sebelah timur menjadi pertanda akan pasangnya sungai Nil. Demikian juga dengan orang-orang Funisia dan Minoan yang menggunakan arah terbit dan terbenam bintang-bintang sebagai alat navigasi mereka. Selain yang disebutkan di atas, kita pun mengenal peradaban Babilonia, Cina Kuno, Caldea, Indian Maya di Amerika Tengah, juga Inca di Peru dengan pemahaman keastronomian dan matematikanya masing-masing. Singkatnya, manusia-dulu sudah menerapkan astronomi praktis dalam kehidupannya meskipun keilmuan astronomi sendiri belum terkodifikasi. Mereka hanya memanfaatkan fakta yang teramati untuk keperluan praktis keseharian mereka.

Era Yunani Kuno

Meskipun demikian, tidak bisa dipungkiri bahwa peradaban kuno di atas telah memberi andil besar dalam meletakkan ide dasar bagi pemahaman kita tentang semesta. Perenungan yang lebih dalam atas fenomena langit dimulai pada era Yunani Kuno. Berangkat dari kekaguman atas keindahan geometri lingkaran, orang-orang Yunani memandang bentuk ini sebagai suatu bangun yang sempurna. "Tuhan selalu sibuk dengan geometri," demikian kata Plato pada suatu ketika. Dari keindahan dan harmoni geometri, para pemikir bangsa Yunani menggunakannya untuk menerjemahkan gerakan benda-benda langit, meskipun baru pada era Newton (abad ke-17) penjelasan ilmiah untuk persoalan ini tersedia dengan menggunakan perangkat matematika kalkulus diferensial. Setidaknya ini memberi gambaran bagi kita bahwa ketajaman intuisi diperlukan untuk bisa menerangkan sesuatu seperti yang dicontohkan oleh para filosof Yunani di atas.
Ada banyak sumbangan pemikiran yang diwariskan oleh peradaban Yunani Kuno bagi kita. Pada era itu mereka berani untuk mendobrak pemikiran-pemikiran lama dan menggantikannya dengan hal-hal baru yang "menantang". Mereka mulai meninggalkan konsep Bumi datar, yang merupakan warisan terdahulu, dengan konsep Bumi bulat yang memang terbukti menjelaskan fenomena yang teramati. Mereka juga tahu bahwa kesegarispandangan Matahari-Bulan dari Bumilah yang membuat peristiwa gerhana terjadi. Pada abad ke-6 SM, Pythagoras berpendapat bahwa semua benda langit melakukan gerakan melingkar. Sejalan dengan ide Pythagoras, Philolaus yang hidup pada abad ke-7 SM menyatakan bahwa alih-alih diam di tempat, Bumi tempat kita berpijak justru bergerak dan bukan merupakan pusat alam semesta. Pada masa itu, antara mistik dan pemikiran rasional masih belum memiliki batas pemisah yang tegas, karenanya tak heran bila Philolaus pun mengusulkan keberadaan objek yang disebutnya anti-Bumi untuk menggenapi ke sembilan planet yang telah dikenal pada masa itu. Hal ini tidak lain karena angka sepuluh bagi mereka menggambarkan kesempurnaan.

Adalah Anaxagoras dari Clazomenae yang dengan lantangnya menyatakan bahwa sinar Bulan yang sampai ke mata kita adalah pantulan cahaya Matahari yang diterima permukaannya dan bahwa Matahari sendiri adalah sebuah logam yang bersinar karena panasnya, alih-alih sebagai dewa. Karena keberaniannya ini, Anaxagoras harus rela dituduh kafir karena menyebarkan ajaran bid'ah dan mengalami pembuangan ke Lampsacus. Selain Anaxagoras kita mengenal pula nama Aristarchus dalam sejarah. Pada abad ke-3 SM, mendukung ide Philolaus tentang Bumi yang bergerak, Aristarchus menambahkan bahwa Bumi juga berotasi. Ia juga terkenal karena berhasil mengukur diameter Matahari. Walau hasil yang diperolehnya saat itu melenceng jauh dari hasil pengukuran modern saat ini, setidaknya pada zaman itu mereka sudah mempunyai gambaran tentang ukuran relatif benda-benda langit. Setelah itu, berturut-turut astronom dan matematikawan Yunani seperti Eratosthenes, Hipparchus, Thales, Apollonius, Aristoteles, dan Ptolomeus semakin melengkapi khasanah pengetahuan pada masa itu.

Zaman Keemasan Islam

Saat Abad Kegelapan melanda Eropa, kendali atas ilmu pengetahuan berada di tangan ilmuwan-ilmuwan Dunia Timur. Pada masa itu banyak dilakukan penerjemahan karya-karya besar para pemikir Yunani ke dalam bahasa Arab oleh ilmuwan-ilmuwan muslim, termasuk di antaranya karya Ptolomeus yang termasyhur, Almagest. Dengan Baghdad sebagai pusatnya, budaya keilmuan di Dunia Timur tumbuh dengan subur. Ada banyak nama yang bisa disebut, misalnya Al-Biruni, yang mendapat julukan al-Ustadz fil 'Ulum (guru berbagai ilmu), Nasiruddin at-Tusi (hidup pada akhir abad ke-13 M) yang memodifikasi model semesta episiklus Ptolomeus dengan prinsip-prinsip mekanika untuk menjaga keseragaman rotasi benda-benda langit, Al-Khawarizmi yang banyak membuat tabel-tabel untuk digunakan menentukan saat terjadinya Bulan baru, terbit-terbenam Matahari, Bulan, planet, dan untuk prediksi gerhana, juga Ibnu Sina yang mewakili dunia kedokteran dengan karya terbesarnya al-Qanun yang berisi tentang deskripsi peralatan kedokteran dan cara penyembuhan berbagai penyakit termasuk didalamnya proses pembedahan (operasi), yang hingga kini masih dijadikan rujukan utama oleh dunia. Beragam sumbangan para ilmuwan muslim dalam memperkaya bangunan ilmu pengetahuan antara lain konsep metode ilmiah, matematika trigonometri, sistem bilangan dengan memperkenalkan angka 0 (nol), peralatan mekanik yang disebut torquetum untuk menghitung posisi bintang dengan teliti, juga penyempurnaan astrolab, alat yang digunakan Ptolomeus sebagai penunjuk waktu di malam hari dengan mengukur posisi bintang-bintang terang. Selain itu kata-kata dari bahasa Arab pun mewarnai istilah-istilah yang digunakan di dalam astronomi, misalnya zenit, nadir, almanak, termasuk juga nama-nama bintang seperti Alnitak, Alnilam, dan Mintaka (tiga bintang terang di sabuk Orion), Aldebaran, Algol, Altair, Betelgeus, dan masih banyak lagi. Sampai saat gemerlap cahaya Dunia Timur mulai meredup, Eropa menggeliat bangkit membebaskan diri dari kegelapan.

Era Modern

Dengan masuknya Eropa ke zaman Renaisans yang mengagungkan rasionalitas dan materialisme, arus pemikiran menjadi kian deras. Tinjauan ulang atas pemikiran-pemikiran lama yang telah diwariskan oleh para pendahulu banyak dilakukan dalam usaha menyempurnakannya atau malah membuangnya ke dalam tong sampah. Ada banyak nama-nama besar yang ditorehkan dengan tinta emas dalam lembar sejarah dunia. Nama-nama seperti Tycho Brahe, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, dan Isaac Newton hanyalah sedikit contoh dari panjangnya deretan "pendekar" yang ada. Tongkat estafet pun terus diserahterimakan sampai dengan saat ini, hingga kita pun mengenal tokoh monumental di abad XX yang hadir dalam sosok Hawking.
Manusia di abad ke-20 memandang semesta sudah bukan lagi sebagai pertanda. Manusia sudah beralih pada pemikiran bahwa langit dan seluruh isinya adalah objek yang harus dieksplorasi; manusia (baca: astronom) disibukkan dengan pencarian hukum dan kaidah-kaidah yang mengendalikan daerah ekstrim nun jauh di sana untuk mengetahui hakikat fisisnya. Lebih jauh lagi, tidak terlepas dari kepentingan yang menyertai, manusia memandang semesta sebagai sesuatu yang harus dikuasai. Perjalanan pesawat-pesawat ruang angkasa, baik berawak maupun tidak, adalah sebagai buktinya. Dan hal tersebut pada saat sekarang sudah bukan sesuatu yang musykil berkat dukungan kemajuan teknologi yang telah dicapai peradaban manusia. Pendaratan manusia di Bulan, studi yang intensif atas tetangga Bumi, Mars, untuk mengetahui peluang menjadikannya sebagai tempat tinggal kedua atau setidaknya sebagai bahan ajar bagi kemanusiaan di Bumi untuk bisa menjaga kelestarian Planet Hijau ini, penelitian atas Matahari untuk lebih memahami keterkaitan aktifitas bintang terdekat ini dengan Bumi, penelitian atas Matahari untuk lebih memahami keterkaitan aktifitas bintang terdekat ini dengan Bumi, juga rencana pembangunan pemukiman di Bulan sebagai pangkalan perjalanan luar angkasa adalah contoh dari agenda-agenda internasional yang telah, sedang, dan akan diwujudkan. Dan hebatnya, itu semua bukan isapan jempol belaka sebagaimana pernah diucapkan oleh Robert Goddard bahwa sulit untuk mengatakan 'tidak mungkin' dalam hidup ini, sebab mimpi hari kemarin adalah pengharapan di hari ini dan kenyataan esok hari. Sungguh sebuah kalimat yang indah, yang memberi manusia tenaga lebih untuk terus "bermimpi", melontarkan pertanyaan-pertanyaan tentang alam yang melingkunginya, hingga dengan atau pun tanpa sadar ia telah menjalani suatu proses penyadaran tentang betapa kecil dirinya di tengah semesta yang bergejolak ini.

Adalah kodrati bila manusia memiliki keingintahuan yang tak terpuaskan. Tidak cukup dengan informasi yang diterima di Bumi pada jendela optik dan radio, manusia pun mengirimkan wahana ke luar atmosfer dengan "mata" yang berbeda untuk bisa menangkap sinyal-sinyal lain dari langit. Pada tahun 1970 diluncurkan satelit sinar-X yang pertama, UHURU, yang segera disusul dengan peluncuran "saudara-saudaranya" seperti ROSAT (Roentgen Satellite), EINSTEIN, IUE (International Ultraviolet Explorer), IRAS (Infra Red Astronomical Satellite), HUBBLE dan yang belum lama berselang, peluncuran observatorium sinar-X landas layang CHANDRA. Dengan makin banyaknya data yang bisa dikumpulkan, banyak hal yang bisa dipelajari dari langit yang bukan sekadar kubah setengah bola ini. Penjelajahan alam ini, sebagai suatu kegiatan terhormat dari homo sapiens, tak ubahnya dengan permainan yang memerlukan keberanian dan imajinasi. Keberanian untuk terus bertanya hingga menerobos batas-batas yang telah disusunnya sendiri untuk sampai pada pemahaman tertinggi dan imajinasi untuk bisa turut merasakan objek-objek yang berada di luar kuasanya. Manusia masih bertanya dan bertanya. Pekerjaan rumah berupa sejumlah persoalan yang belum terpecahkan pun menjadi kian bertambah. Teori demi teori lahir dan tumbang dan belum ada tanda-tanda akhir dari perjalanan panjang dan agung ini.

Was The Apollo Moon Landing In 1969 Faked?

About This Article This article is presented as a conspiracy theory, it has been compiled from various sources by Xander Mahony and is written from an Apollo Hoax believer's point of view. It cannot be guaranteed that all the 'evidence' that this conspiracy theory contains is genuine or accurate and I do not wish to cause any discomfort to anyone who was involved in the Apollo Program. I have not given any evidence to support the fact that the moon landings did take place and were genuine because that is not the purpose of this article, if you wish to debate this topic I recommend that you visit the Alien-UFOs.com Forum. It is my opinion that the Moon Landings were genuine and if after reading this article you believe otherwise I would recommend you do some of your own research to get back on track. Introduction Everyone knows about the first moon landing in 1969. We have all seen the footage and heard those few famous poetic, words proclaimed by Neil Armstrong as he claimed our only natural satellite for America. It was a historic moment of human achievement, for the first time in recorded history, man had propelled himself to another world. So, why are people questioning that this event actually happened? There is plenty of evidence for the motion and all NASA has to defend itself with is 'Why and how could we fake such a huge operation which was watched by millions and took a decade of research and funding?' First of all I would like to say that NASA do have a point, for once. If they had faked the landing, they took the risk of the Russians finding out and publicly laughing at NASA and America. Now, having given NASA their due, giving them one sentence in support, which I have done incidentally, not because I hate NASA or because I am certain that this event was just a Hollywood epic, the prequel to 'Apollo 13'. I have done that because the whole point of this article is to put forward some queries about the pictures, footage and scientific facts about the moon landing, leaving you to make up your own mind. At this point, those of you who strongly believe the moon landing took place, especially if you watched it back In 1969 and remember the excitement about how technologically advanced our race was becoming, will be thinking something along the lines of Why would anybody be so stupid as to try and fool the whole world thinking they would get away with it? The answer to that question is hard in one aspect and easy in another. The hard part is, how on Earth did NASA think they would get away with hoaxing such a milestone, that question I seriously cannot answer, it seems very naïve, especially when considering the average IQ of these men would have been verging on 200. The other part of the question, why did NASA fake the moon landing, is relatively easy. It was a widely held opinion at the time that whoever won this leg of the space race would also win the cold war. So this, and the fact that in 1961 the President of the USA, John F. Kennedy had said that within the decade America would put man on the moon, seem like good enough motives to fake the moon landing. Photographs I am now going to detail some of the many inconsistencies in the videos supposedly taken on the Lunar surface: 1. There is no atmosphere on the moon due it its low gravity, so how exactly is the US flag in the picture blowing in the Lunar Wind? You cannot explain this away by saying someone had just moved quickly past the flag because this would have no effect on the flag either with no air to be displaced. 2. The cameras were fitted with crosshairs to make analysis of the photos easier for NASA, these crosshairs were on the lens of the camera. So they would obviously be in front of everything in the picture, the following photos show this to be untrue. This picture shows part of a crosshair to be behind a piece of equipment. This pictures shows part of a crosshair to be behind a radio. How can this happen? 3. While on the moon, the LM (Lunar Module) did not move at all, the base of it never left the moon, so how can these two pictures, obviously of the same place due to the identical hills in the background, not both show the LM? This suggests the use of a film studio with set backgrounds being used. 4. Here we have two new pictures, which are like the previous two, but the anomaly lies in the foreground, the story is, the astronauts walk down the hill in the first picture, which is at quite a distinct angle with plenty of distinct rocks on it. Then the astronauts get on the Rover (moon buggy) and travel 2.5 miles away. Then, in true Blair Witch Project style, they walk down the exact same hill, incredible! 5. There are many examples of this and I could flood you with pictures, but I think this is one of the best ones on the subject. It shows an astronaut on the moon with the sun behind him, which interestingly has a halo, an effect only seen when viewed through an atmosphere, so this picture was obviously not taken on the moon. How, if the sun was the only source of light on the moon, is the front of this astronaut lit up? This again points to the pictures and videos being made on a movie set because they have used many light sources. 6. This is another topic for which I could provide many images, but this one has notation and makes the point very clear. How can shadows from the sun intercept each other? This again shows that many light sources were used when filing the videos, something which was not available to the astronauts on the moon. 7. In this picture, there are two letter 'C's, one is on a rock and one is on the ground, if this was a movie set, which I'm certain it is, the C means centre of the shot, sceptics claim this to be just a hair, which is a very laughable theory. Facts Bill Kaysing, head of technical publications and advanced research at Rocketdyne Systems from 1956 to 1963 estimated that there is a 0.0017% chance of surviving a trip to the moon, there are many things which can kill you: radiation, solar flares and meteorites. On pictures taken by a Russian spy satellite of Groom Lake Military Base (AREA51), you can clearly see a section of the desert which is totally clear of any plants. This area of land has craters on it, and it looks exactly like the surface of the moon. On closer inspection, one of the craters is identical to a crater supposedly seen by the crew of the Apollo 12 mission from their LM as it landed. The picture also shows hangers which look similar to the kind of buildings you would find at Hollywood, the whole set up looks like a movie studio. As the LM landed with the astronauts in it, you could clearly hear the voices of the men, but there was no other sound, surly the engines of the LM would be heard firing as it approached the lunar surface. When the LM left the moons surface it looked like very old-fashioned movie special effects. It jumped of the base as though a cable had hoisted it up suddenly and there was no exhaust ploom as the engines fired. The cameras used to take all of the pictures were on the front of the astronauts suits, they had no view finder, all they could do was point themselves at what they wished to take a pictures of and hope. So, how were thousands of amazingly lined up, almost 'posed' pictures taken? This is another piece of evidence, which points towards a film crew making the videos. The bulky design of the spacesuits only made taking a decent picture more difficult. On the moon, if you are stood in sunshine, it is 250 degrees above, if you are in any shadow, such as that of the LM, the temperature is 250 degrees below. The spacesuits were well designed with layers of different material each doing their own job, but the fact that no Apollo astronaut ever suffered serious illness is incredible. The Russians have revealed that they never thought about going to the moon because they had no idea what the radiation would do. Russia have never sent their cosmonauts to the moon and NASA have no plans to send astronauts there (again?). The moon landing, if it is a movie, would be the most expensive movie ever made. The most powerful telescope in the world does not have the power to see if remnants of the lunar missions are still on the moons surface as they should be. However in 2 years time the Japanese are sending an orbiter to the moon to take close up photos of the entire surface, this should prove whether NASA went to the moon, or would NASA let the Japanese tell the world of their findings, would NASA send up empty LMs and robots to make footprints and place flags, or is this the reason President Bush wants a missile defence system? Just months before the Apollo 11 mission, Armstrong can bee seen testing the Lander at an air base, he crashes it after never really being in full control of the craft, ejecting at the last moment. He was never going to be able to fly the Lander successfully or safely on the mission. This is quoted form the National Geographic Magazine in their Q+A section. Q   When Alan Shepard hit a golf ball on the moon, did it come back to the surface, or was the moon's gravity too weak? A   In 1971, astronaut Alan Shepard, an avid golfer, hit two golf balls with a makeshift six iron he smuggled aboard the Apollo 14 mission. He joked that the ball flew 'miles and miles and miles' in the moon's low gravity, one-sixth that of the Earth. Actually both shots landed in the moon dust less than a hundred yards away. The moon has low gravity and no atmosphere, so if someone who was an avid golfer hit a ball on the moon it would literally go for miles. The only possible suggestion I have for a golfer not being able to make a 2000yard drive is the spacesuit getting in his way or the low gravity conditions making things difficult. I still believe that this does point towards the footage being filmed on Earth, though, hence the golf shot being just pretty average with the spacesuit obstructing his swing. Gravity One of the things which tripped NASA up the most was how they replicated 1/6 of Earth's Gravity. The way NASA tried to achieve this effect was by taking footage on the Earth's surface and then halving the speed of the videos. This does, at first sight, look like low gravity conditions, however what this does not change is the stride (or hop) length, or the height the astronauts jump to, because the footage is slow, they appear to be jumping far and high for their speed. If you double the speed of the moon footage, everything looks like it is in a 10 Newtons/Kilogram gravitational field strength, i.e. on Earth. To give the astronauts that extra bit of bounce NASA used cables to hold them up, if you look very closely at some of the footage you can see the cables. Its like pausing The Matrix so you can see the few frames where the camera crew are reflected in Neo's sunglasses. However, slightly more convincing than seeing the cables is seeing their effects. One astronaut falls over, then, without either help from his colleague or using his arms to push himself back up, he returns to an upright position. People Against NASA NASA did have its critics around the time of the moon landing, there were people who said NASA was unsafe and people who knew too much in relationship to the size of their mouth. So plenty of people died, maybe god wanted the achievement of his achievement to remain plausible. Gus Grissom was a veteran space traveller, he frequently spoke out about NASA, he criticized them and infamously said 'Someone is going to get killed', that someone was him. He was inside the capsule, which caught fire just before take-off, communication had failed and the whole crew perished. The families of the men think the fire was not an accident, Bethy Grissom, Gus's widow, wants NASA to come forward and tell the truth about the Apollo missions. The capsule remains locked away at a military base. Charles Barrent submitted a 500 page report to NASA about their safety, he said such things as: 'The Apollo program is in a huge mess, they will never make it to the moon'. One week later a train hit his car killing him, his wife and his stepdaughter, the report disappeared. Between 1964 and 1967, 10 astronauts lost their lives in freak accidents. It is believed that very few people at NASA know the whole picture of what happened, this minimises the chances of a leak. A rocket engineer, who worked for the company producing the rocket engines for the Apollo program reported many problems and unreliability issues prior to the mission. Radiation Around our planet are huge radiation bands, it is up for debate how thick they are, but estimations show that the Apollo astronauts would spend approximately four hours in the radiation. This is possibly the strongest proof we have against the moon landings ever taking place. There are two natural bands of radiation called the Van Allen belt, the first being just under 300 miles from Earth. No other space projects have ever gone into these deadly areas apart from the Apollo missions. In 1962, the US government implemented Operation Starfish Prime, they tried to use a megaton nuclear bomb to blast a hole in the radiation, in their infinite wisdom they made the radiation worse, by 2002 this third band will still have 25 times the amount of radiation than the natural bands. There is no way for astronauts to get through this radiation without having at least: hair loss, severe sickness, vomiting and diarrhoea, impaired vision, and death within a two month period, however no Apollo astronauts ever suffered illness from travelling through the radiation. Sunspot activity follows an 11 year cycle, every 11 years there is a the greatest amount of radiation, one of these peaks was between 1969 and 1970, there is no way men stood that radiation and made it to the moon. Between the Apollo 16 and 17 mission, one of the worst solar flares on record occurred, this would have given enough radiation to instantly kill and astronaut, however the astronauts were fine, they were safely away in AREA51. What Happened On July 16th 1969, Apollo 11 set off on a 250,000 mile, 8-day voyage to the moon. So, everyone saw the astronauts take off, that was not fake, however, they never went to the moon, they simply orbited for 8 days and then rentered the Earth's atmosphere 8 days later. The satellites were not there back then for the rocket to be detected, so the astronauts were safe, up in their low orbit, while back on Earth the world watches previously recorded videos of the astronauts on the moon. These videos had been filmed at AREA51 and were broadcast to the TV stations around the world. The world watched Neil Armstrong descend the ladder of a Lander he couldn't fly properly, onto the desert in AREA51.

9/11: No Evidence of Hijacker Muslim 'Terrorists'

by JOHN KAMINSKI Know how to tell the difference between the truth and lies of 9/11? If they're talking about hijackers having done the dastardly deed, you know they're part of the sinister coverup extravaganza, wittingly or not. In order for the people of the world to be convinced that Islamic hijackers were responsible for terrible tragedy of 9/11, we need to see some evidence. Not hearsay, innuendo, aspersion or promises of evidence, but real evidence. Otherwise, the whole subject is rightly regarded as a ruse, a setup to conceal the identities of the real culprits, the ones who sit smugly in front of the TV cameras and plot their cynical war on terror - otherwise known as the war on the peoples of the world. As President Bush continues to insist that his word be accepted as truth on numerous questions, time after time his statements have been revealed as blatant falsehoods.

9-11: NORAD, FAA, Pentagon MADE It Happen

by AMERICAOVERTHROWN.COM During the dates of October 24th thru the 26th of the year 2000, exactly 11 months BEFORE 911, the Pentagon Emergency Management Team conducted a series of drills called MASCAL which stands for Mass Casualty Exercise. On October 24, 2000, exactly 11 months BEFORE 911, there was a mock terrorist incident at the Pentagon Metro stop and a construction accident to name just some of the scenarios that were practiced to better prepare local agencies for real incidents. Army nurse Maj. Lorie Brown stated for an interview* that "This is important so that we're better prepared...This is to work out the bugs. Hopefully it will never happen, but this way we're prepared." "We go over scenarios that are germane to the Pentagon," says Jake Burrell of the Pentagon Emergency Management Team. "You play the way you practice. We want people to go back to their organizations and look at their S.O.P. (standard operating procedure) and see how they responded to any of the incidents.

Egypt 'warned US of attack 12 days before September 11'

The Egyptian President says he warned the United States of an attack 12 days before the September 11 atrocity.

Hosni Mubarak has also stated that if the Israeli defence force were to kill Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, it would be a grave mistake.

He did not reveal how he learned in late August of a possible terrorist attack against the United States, and he did not mention a US response.

Mr Mubarak said he was taken aback by the scale of the attacks on New York and Washington: "We expected that something was going to happen and informed the Americans. We told them."

He went on: "But nobody expected the event would be of such enormity. We did not know that they would hit this target or that, and we were all surprised when planes with passengers on board hit the twin towers."

"The result was that the world economy was disrupted. Tourism and civil aviation were severely affected in Egypt, Europe and throughout the world," he added.

Mr Mubarak said there was no comparison between the US-led coalition against Iraq in the Gulf War of 1991 and the current US-led campaign to destroy Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida group.

"In the Gulf War there was a person (Saddam Hussein) who occupied a country (Kuwait), and the war was launched to put an end to the aggression and send him back behind his borders.

"The war in Afghanistan is against terrorism in a land that listens to nobody, that contains people of all kinds and races, and is uncontrollable," he said.


Speaking about the Middle East troubles, Mr Mubarak said that if Israel were to kill Mr Arafat, it would create a vacuum in the Palestinian leadership that none of the "six to eight contenders" would be able to fill.

4000 Pegawai Israel di WTC Absen Pada Hari Meletusnya Tragedi

Sumber : EraMuslim

Washington - Jika analisa ini benar, maka kemungkinan besar, orang-orang Yahudi-lah sebagai pelaku penghancuran gedung WTC dan Pentagon, namun mengalihkan pelaku penghancuran itu pada orang-orang Arab.

Setelah mencermati semua kejadian yang berlangsung, ada sejumlah hal-hal menarik, antara lain;

Tersangka utama Adnan dan Amir Bukhari sebagaimana yang resmi diumumkan pemerintah AS, terbukti kemudian tidak benar. Amir Bukhari telah tewas setahun lalu dalam suatu kecelakaan pesawat terbang.

Pembajak yang yang disebutkan FBI mati dalam kasus penabrakan pesawat ke gedung WTC, ternyata ditemukan masih hidup di Arabia. Ia tidak terlibat, dan KTP-nya dicuri saat ia berada di USA. Mossad kemungkinan besar dapat mencuri KTP tersebut.

Barbara Olson salah satu saksi mata, tak pernah menyebut-nyebut satupun nama-nama orang Arab dalam peristiwa berdarah tersebut.

Selanjutnya, dalam suatu laporan di InformationTimes.com, disebutkan 4000 pegawai WTC keturunan Israel absen pada hari terjadinya serangan berdarah di New York. Laporan di situs itu memaparkan kejadiannya sebagai berikut.

Dengan diumumkannya serangan pada WTC New York, seluruh media internasional, khususnya media Israel, bergegas mengambil keuntungan dari insiden tersebut. Media massa Israel semula menuliskan suasana berkabung atas matinya 4000 pegawai Israel yang bekerja pada dua menara itu. Tapi tiba-tiba, tak satupun dari 4000 orang itu disebutkan termasuk dalam daftar korban tragedi WTC New York.

Kemudian teka-teki itu menjadi clear, saat diketahui bahwa ternyata mereka telah diingatkan untuk tidak masuk kantor pada hari insiden itu terjadi.

Tak satupun disebutkan adanya orang Israel yang tewas atau luka dalam tragedi serangan berdarah itu. Sumber-sumber diplomatik Arab mengungkapkan pada harian al-Watan, Jordania, bahwa orang-orang Israel yang absen pada hari itu, atas peringatan dari Aparat Keamanan Israel, Shabak.

Fakta inilah yang menimbulkan kecurigaan para pejabat Amerika yang ingin mengetahui, bagaimana bisa pemerintah Israel mempelajari insiden tersebut sebelum terjadi. Atas dasar alasan tersebut, fakta yang sesungguhnya itu tidak pernah diinformasikan penguasa AS. Jadi daftar tersangka kasus penghancuran WTC dan Pentagon yang keburu beredar itu adalah keliru belaka.

Kecurigaan kian mengembang setelah harian Israel Yadiot Ahranot mengungkap bahwa Shabak telah mencegah PM Ariel Sharon agar tidak melakukan perjalanan ke New York, khususnya ke kota pantai sebelah timur untuk berpartisipasi dalam sebuah festival yang diorganisasi oleh organisasi-organisasi Zionis yang mendukung Israel.

Aharon Bernie, komentator pada harian itu mengangkat isu tersebut dan menyimpulkannya secara negatif. Bernie tidak memberi kesimpulan tentang kejadian itu. Ia memang mengakui adanya peran Shabak di balik urungnya Sharon berpartisipasi dalam acara festival di New York. Tapi lagi-lagi ia tak memberi komentar apapun.

Bernie menambahkan bahwa Sharon, memang gembira ketika diminta untuk memberikan pidatonya pada puncak festival. Tapi kemudian Sharon meminta pimpinan organisasi untuk menghubungkan Shabak, agar merubah posisinya. Hari berikutnya setelah sekretaris Sharon secara resmi mengumumkan, ternyata terbukti Sharon tidak jadi berpartisipasi pada hari terjadinya insiden.

Terkait dengan itu, harian Israel Ha'aretz mengungkapkan bahwa FBI menangkap 5 orang Israel 4 jam setelah terjadinya serangan pada Menara Kembar WTC. Kelima orang itu ditangkap saat sedang memfilmkan peristiwa terbakarnya gedung pencakar langit itu dari atap kantor mereka.

FBI menangkap kelima orang tersebut karena gelagatnya mencurigakan. Mereka dikatakan telah mengambil gambar saat terjadinya tragedi itu dengan video, yang diinterpretasikan sebagai bentuk sorak-sorai dan kepuasan orang-orang Yahudi.

Did man really walk on the Moon ???

MOON LANDINGS WERE HOAX! Internet Researcher proves what was always blatantly obvious, now that we think about it. Academic & Scientific World Dumfounded.

Science Editor Joe Schmoe Reports. The world was shaken to the very core yesterday as it was once and for all proven that the Moon Landings were faked. President Bush has ordered an immediate investigation and promised that all those found to be involved with this deception shall be brought to justice. ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP Top NASA officials were placed under arrest after early morning FBI raids, and the entire organization, once the pride of American space exploration, has been shut down.    Amazement has been expressed from all quarters that this deception could have gone on for so long. "This issue is not going to go away," a senator was quoted as saying yesterday. "This must go all the way up to Capital Hill, and it's sure is one huge stinking heap of lies!" Apollo Landings: Obvious Hoax Presidential aides, however, denied that the current administration had any knowledge of the hoax. "We are as horrified as everyone else," a spokesperson said. "President Bush is totally bemused about the whole affair," he added, "but he is determined to get to the bottom of it." FEARS FOR LIFE Meanwhile, Carl West, the unassuming, but razor-sharp mind who uncovered the deception is now in a federal protection scheme, after fears for his life from the NASA hit squads who have allegedly killed so many before.  President Bush, however, had these words of comfort for West; "Our nation, and indeed the world, owes you our deepest thanks.  You have opened our eyes and exposed the lies." FIRST DOUBTS West first expressed his doubts over the Moon Landings over a year ago in a conversation with a friend during a football game.  But it was not until last week that he publicly aired the issue in a earth shattering and insightful posting to an internet discussion board.    Events moved quickly from that moment.   FBI investigator Howards, a "real life Scully" read what West had to say.  "From that moment on I was convinced.  This guy West had hit on something that no-one else had seen." Howards said yesterday at a press conference.  "I immediately swung the entire investigative power of my organization into action.  Everything we found confirmed what West had said.  It was a hoax!" THE EVIDENCE In his discussion board post West pointed out the following; If Armstrong was the first to walk on the moon, then who filmed him walking down the ladder? There's no gravity on the moon, so why didn't the astronauts just float away? It's really hot on the moon, so everyone should have died of thirst. The deadly radiation belts around the Earth turn everyone radioactive and make your eyes boil in your skull unless you are wearing 18 inches of lead. So how did they get through it? The rocks supposedly taken from the moon are just like those in his back yard, they've just been baked real hard.

"I was stunned," said Agent Howard."These were questions that absolutely no-one had an answer to, yet no-one was doing anything about it! I had to take action! " The head of NASA was unapologetic yesterday."We so nearly got away with it," he hissed, stroking his white cat.  "We had been stock piling all those billions of dollars for the last 38 years, just spending a few thousand every year to make some cheap videos in a warehouse." Banging his many ringed finger on his table and ripping out his glass eye the evil NASA chief snarled "Two more years and we could have bought Canada outright and taken over the world!"  "Damn you, Carl West!" he added. HERO Carl West is an unassuming all-American 24 year old. You might think that because he works in a convenience store that he's not the brightest guy you're likely to meet. Yet this slightly scruffy young man, five foot, nine inches in his Nike sneakers, was smart enough to break a conspiracy that successfully fooled the world for 33 years. "I guess I just got lucky," West smiles."It just goes to show you don't have to finish high school to be smart."  But just what was the break-through that led West to his remarkable conclusion?  "I just got talking with my best friend Joe about the moon and stuff. WATCHING TV We were watching football on the TV, drinking beer and just kicking back. Then he says something about kicking the ball so high that maybe it'd go into orbit and hit the moon. Well, that just got us thinking about stuff. We didn't really think you could kick something into orbit, but we weren't sure. And that got into, well how'd we reach the moon anyway?   Joe's real smart, it got me thinking.   Pretty soon I had it all worked out.   By the time the game was finished I was convinced for sure that we could never have gone to the moon and the Apollo landings must have been a hoax!" West: All American Genius INTERNET RESEARCH But West didn't leave it there. "I wasn't going to run around telling people this without checking it out first," he explains. "Otherwise I might look a right dumbass!  I spent a whole hour browsing the web.  I found a web site by some guy in California on Geocities.  He worked a  summer in the grounds staff at NASA space-camp, so he must know the truth." It was after this 4 hours of exhaustive and in depth research that West became the expert that shook the world's view of space travel. ORDINARY GUY When asked about his new-found fame West is characteristically humble. "Gee," he smiles toothily. "I'm just an ordinary guy that pointed out the obvious  I''ve no idea why I discovered all this, frankly I know nothing about science or space or anything.  I guess it's not as tricky as all those scientist pretend.." Well, we know you're just being modest Carl!   You sure showed those scientist geeks a thing or two!

SCIENTISTS BAFFLED Prof. William Stevens (58) looks justifiably embarrassed.   "I simply can't explain it." He said to reporters outside his University offices yesterday.   "Why didn't I notice this before?" 40 YEARS STUDY "I've spent 40 years in astronomical study, and 20 years of that specifically in Satellite Systems study.   I have a University chair in three major Universities and sat on 5 different governmental committees on Space Exploration.  Hell, I wrote a research paper on the Lunar Landings that took 18 months to research, then a further 3 months just to proof-read."   Steven pauses to scratch his head.   "Yet not once did it occur to me to wonder who filmed Armstrong as he stepped onto the moon. How could I have been so dumb?"   BRAINIAC "I gave a seminar on it in at the 1979 Space Exploration and Planetary Science Conference at Oxford before 200 experts in the field.   Yet not one of those dumb-asses thought to stick up a hand and tell me about the deadly Van Allen belt.  I suppose we really should have just stayed at home, watched TV and drunk beer, just like Carl Wilson.   He sure is one brainiac!" TOTAL MORON "I mean how freaking stupid are we!?   All those years of study and not once did it cross my mind about how hot the moon was. What am I, a total moron?" STUPID But Prof. Stevens is not alone. He is just one of literally thousands of supposedly highly educated men and woman fooled by this blatantly obvious hoax. Take Dr. Hitomo Tsujimura, a geologist with 24 years experience in rock formation and planetary techtonics.   Dr Tsujimura examined lunar rock samples as part of her original doctorate studies in Japan . Since then she has gone on to become a foremost expert in lunar rocks, lecturing across the world to students and enthusiast alike.   But now it seems her life-work has been nothing but a sham.   "Now I am feeling very stupid," she says, speaking from her 200 million Yen research laboratories in Tokoyo.   "After all those years of tests I did on the rocks I could have sworn they were from the moon.    I spent years getting samples from NASA, but now I realize I could have just made my own in the microwave!    We're shutting this place down next week.   We may have 20 trained scientists at work here with the very latest in technology, but we couldn't spot a cow in a bunkbed.   We are soooo stupid!     Already 5 of the staff have committed suicide through the shame of it all.   It is very bad." OTHER REACTIONS Dr. Darren Kilware. Chair of US Astronomical Association. "Somebody kill me! I swallowed this hoax from day one, but now I see what a dumb jerk I've been." Neil Armstrong. "Aw crap, It's true. They made me do it!   I just can't believe we got away with it for so long. We were making it up as we went along!" Pres. Jimmy Carter. "Cripes! I kept asking those NASA guys about where all the money was going, but they just waved papers at me and totally bamboozled me! I think West should run for President, he's way smarter than anyone else at the Whitehouse." Vladimir Putin, President of Russia .   "Hey, those crazy Americans sure fooled us! They must have been using radio-transmitters and pigeons or something!   All this time and everyone in the Soviet Space Authority thought the radio signals were coming from the moon.  Duh!  I think they must have been on the vodka!" NASA spokesperson. "We cannot comment any further on this. You simply have no idea what a 30 years supply of donuts costs."