This is rich. I just read an article that reported that over 32 million Americans doubt the veracity of the Apollo 11 landing on the moon.
I read the historical accounts and one of them caught my eye. It turns out that Luna 15, a Russian space vehicle was in orbit around the moon at the time the Eagle landed and overflew the site. The Russian craft had been intended to land, retrieve a soil sample and leave before the Americans did. Unfortunately for them and good for the US, they were unable to land when they anticipated and remained in orbit. They had a literal bird’s eye view of the NASA men on the surface along with their craft.
When the Russian engineers attempted to land their vehicle later, they miscalculated and crashed into the side of a lunar mountain. (Note: They needed Neil Armstrong to pilot it. But I digress.) Despite crashing, the probe recorded telemetry and, pictures, which were transmitted back to the earth. Now, think a second. Given the frantic race to beat each other to the moon, do you think that if the Russian propagandists had pictures of an empty landing area that they would not have posted them all around the world as the Apollo astronauts supposedly landed and were lauded for their “successful,” but faked trip to the moon?
After completely humiliating the US space program they would have trumpeted their own successes, even if the landings were unmanned. But, even though they did manage to land a couple times before the Americans did, they were not able to return them to the earth. Only the US has sent manned teams, six in all, to the moon and back. So the conspiracy theorists have a mighty tall mountain of evidence to claim that they were all fake. And the mountain of evidence is even higher than the pile of, well, you know, that the deniers have thrown up.
Are the Russian photos somewhere? They would be fun to see. One other little nugget I discovered was on a site discussing ham radio operators tracking Apollo 11. I quote it here.
Due to the necessary trajectory of the spacecraft, the enroute communications did not appear to be coming from a direct line between the Earth and Moon, which is what another poster is referring to in the earlier comment. Trying to set up something that has the proper characteristics requires, well, that one has a spacecraft with people in it on its way to the moon.
Another note reported that an observatory in England tracked both the Luna 15 and Apollo 11 to the surface of the moon by measuring doppler shift. (Gee I love that kind of talk.) They literally “watched” the Luna 15 crash as it descended too rapidly. Isn’t science great?
Thank you for your time and attention. Some people will contest that the sun came up today, so we just humor them and hurry on to more important topics.
Tuesday, July 23, 2019
Wednesday, July 3, 2019
VAR
Disclaimer: There is no political or partisan (maybe) perspective in this post. :>)
VAR
The VAR or Video Assistant Referee has shown up at the World Cup and other soccer (fooootball) games recently. In the game between the United States and England, the VAR “giveth and taketh away.” The supposed tying goal by England by their star, “Google Eyes,” was disallowed. I thought she was offsides when the play ran live.
(Disclaimer: I was rooting for the US but I am sure, and VAR confirmed it, that she was a little ahead. Incidentally years ago a famous football play in the game between UT and Auburn had a similar “close play” and I saw it correctly, as confirmed by instant replay. A friend of mine, an Auburn alum, said the video was at a bad angle and therefore was wrong. Oh yes, one last item. Recall the Music City Miracle? I could tell clearly that the lateral had gone backward by at least the width of the yard line. Wycheck’s foot was on the line as he threw it and it was a sidearm pass. Clearly in front of the line. Dyson caught the ball, facing his own goal, just in front of his foot which was planted on the line. At worst, the pass was a literal lateral that did not move down the field. Our Buffalo friends again argued that the angle was bad and the “pass” was indeed forward and illegal. Perspective, and I do not mean camera angle, comes into play here. Back to soccer.)
So the tying goal did not count, but a few minutes later VAR awarded a penalty kick on a play that certainly did not look like interference on first or second or even third viewing. Only when another view, one from down field and behind the play, could we see the offending “clip.” We should have intuited that from the fact that the offender fell down after the encounter. These athletes seldom fall without being hit some way. (We will withhold commentary on the blatant embellishment that occurs in our beloved game. Can VAR penalize that as well? It seems to work in hockey. But I digress.)
The point of VAR is that it affords multiple camera angles and essentially provides five, or six, or seven, or more additional officials to manage the game. Now instead of only three pairs of eyes, effectively only two as the second assistant referee is over half a field (or pitch) away, we now have multiple, close up viewers from which to make the correct calls.
As a basketball and softball umpire/referee I was counseled and, yes, harangued by seasoned officials, to “be in the right place to make the call.” You cannot make a call on a play that you cannot, and did not see.” With VAR and the various instant replays, that is no longer a critical component of competent officiating. We now “get it right,” most of the time, anyway. (See note above on perspective.)
While contemplating this subject, my mind wandered to what might have been. For instance, in soccer, the infamous or famous, depending on your perspective, “hand of God” goal in soccer would have never happened. Diego Maradona, of Argentina, scored a goal against England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals. The video clearly showed him as offside and using his hand to propel the ball into the goal. (The existing video shows it, without the multiple VAR angles currently in use.) At least two referees were asleep on that play. For the record, Argentina, and Maradona again, scored a second goal to win by a 2-1 score, making the HOG goal critical. Argentina went on to win the cup against West Germany.
If VAR had been in play the goal would have been disallowed and all this delicious irony would not color our soccer legends. Additionally, the US lost a goal in the previous game on an offsides that wasn’t. At least, it didn’t look like it to my unbiased eye.
Well, let’s go on with the game. Go USA! Go VAR. Have a great day and Fourth of July.
VAR
The VAR or Video Assistant Referee has shown up at the World Cup and other soccer (fooootball) games recently. In the game between the United States and England, the VAR “giveth and taketh away.” The supposed tying goal by England by their star, “Google Eyes,” was disallowed. I thought she was offsides when the play ran live.
(Disclaimer: I was rooting for the US but I am sure, and VAR confirmed it, that she was a little ahead. Incidentally years ago a famous football play in the game between UT and Auburn had a similar “close play” and I saw it correctly, as confirmed by instant replay. A friend of mine, an Auburn alum, said the video was at a bad angle and therefore was wrong. Oh yes, one last item. Recall the Music City Miracle? I could tell clearly that the lateral had gone backward by at least the width of the yard line. Wycheck’s foot was on the line as he threw it and it was a sidearm pass. Clearly in front of the line. Dyson caught the ball, facing his own goal, just in front of his foot which was planted on the line. At worst, the pass was a literal lateral that did not move down the field. Our Buffalo friends again argued that the angle was bad and the “pass” was indeed forward and illegal. Perspective, and I do not mean camera angle, comes into play here. Back to soccer.)
So the tying goal did not count, but a few minutes later VAR awarded a penalty kick on a play that certainly did not look like interference on first or second or even third viewing. Only when another view, one from down field and behind the play, could we see the offending “clip.” We should have intuited that from the fact that the offender fell down after the encounter. These athletes seldom fall without being hit some way. (We will withhold commentary on the blatant embellishment that occurs in our beloved game. Can VAR penalize that as well? It seems to work in hockey. But I digress.)
The point of VAR is that it affords multiple camera angles and essentially provides five, or six, or seven, or more additional officials to manage the game. Now instead of only three pairs of eyes, effectively only two as the second assistant referee is over half a field (or pitch) away, we now have multiple, close up viewers from which to make the correct calls.
As a basketball and softball umpire/referee I was counseled and, yes, harangued by seasoned officials, to “be in the right place to make the call.” You cannot make a call on a play that you cannot, and did not see.” With VAR and the various instant replays, that is no longer a critical component of competent officiating. We now “get it right,” most of the time, anyway. (See note above on perspective.)
While contemplating this subject, my mind wandered to what might have been. For instance, in soccer, the infamous or famous, depending on your perspective, “hand of God” goal in soccer would have never happened. Diego Maradona, of Argentina, scored a goal against England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals. The video clearly showed him as offside and using his hand to propel the ball into the goal. (The existing video shows it, without the multiple VAR angles currently in use.) At least two referees were asleep on that play. For the record, Argentina, and Maradona again, scored a second goal to win by a 2-1 score, making the HOG goal critical. Argentina went on to win the cup against West Germany.
If VAR had been in play the goal would have been disallowed and all this delicious irony would not color our soccer legends. Additionally, the US lost a goal in the previous game on an offsides that wasn’t. At least, it didn’t look like it to my unbiased eye.
Well, let’s go on with the game. Go USA! Go VAR. Have a great day and Fourth of July.
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