govern point

In 1952, the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU) announced the International Geophysical Year (IGY), a time span between July 1957 to December 1958. This period was to be filled with numerous scientific experiments and studies about Earth. It was in 1955 that the Soviet Union surprised the world by announcing the plan to orbit a satellite in the International Geophysical Year. As this was the time of great rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, US President Eisenhower promised that the United States would orbit a satellite in this period themselves. This was the start of the Space Race.

Both countries had missiles in development, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). Their mission was the same on both sides: To deliver a single nuclear warhead over an intercontinental distance. But as the Soviet warhead was much heavier than the US one, the Soviets developed, from the beginning on, a stronger rocket, which showed very useful later in history for use as a space launcher. In the United States, the satellite should have been orbited by an all-civil rocket, the Vanguard.

Sputnik 1 was launched by the Soviet Union on October 4, 1957. It was a shock for the western hemisphere, all forth the United States. Not only that the Soviets had orbited a satellite, it was the mass that shocked the governmental authorities. Though the Sputnik itself weighed only 84 kilograms, the third stage of the rocket orbited the Earth as well. And this stage alone weighed about 7.5 tonnes. In contrast, the US satellite, named like its launcher Vanguard, had a mass of only 1.36 kilograms and the rocket was more like a patchwork. Tauntingly said, the Americans put every kind of rocket together they could find. Not that surprising that the maiden launched failed only a few seconds after lift-off.

But in the progress of developing the first satellites, the United States slowly recognized their shortfall in rocket technology and allowed Wernher von Braun and his Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) to reinforce a military Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM), the Redstone, with two additional stages, so that this launcher, now called Jupiter-C, was able to deliver a small payload into orbit. The first US satellite, Explorer 1, was successfully put into orbit on January 31, 1958. In the meantime, the Soviets had launched a dog onboard Sputnik 2, a satellite with a mass of 508 kilograms. But already in this very early phase, one difference showed up.

While the Soviets were able to put large payloads into orbit, their scientific payloads often suffered under the backlog in electronics and the kind of the academic landscape. Explorer 1, for example, although weighing only a bit more than a kilogram, gave valuable information about a radiation belt around the Earth, later called the Van-Allen Belt after the professor who developed the instrument onboard the satellite. In contrast the Soviets had problems to exchange data and information as the whole space program was highly classified.

It soon became clear for both sides, that space flight was a perfect environment to show their assumed technological supremacy over each other. Both thought that they could document the superiority of their respective administrations. That’s why both of them early envisaged a manned space flight. The Soviets approached their goal with a relatively simple solution. A sphere-shaped capsule with no possibility for the spaceman to control or steer the craft.

On the other side of the Earth, the Americans had two concepts under investigation. They had a very successful experimental flight program, the X-15. One option was to develop a next evolutionary step of this craft, the reusable like a plane X-20. First to be carried under a Mach-3 bomber, the B-70, up the atmosphere to fly ballistic flight profiles. Later the craft should have been fitted onto a Titan rocket in order to fly orbital missions. As the realisation of this program would have taken a long time, it was decided to initiate the “Man in Space Soonest” program, that later became the Mercury project. The X-20 was kept alive for a few years as an Air Force program but was then cancelled. One can only speculate how space flight would have developed if the United States had chosen a fully reusable craft from the beginning on.

After these initial competitions between the two Superpowers about the firsts, like first satellite, first man in space, first “space walk”, both states soon targeted a new major goal: the moon. Although the Soviets denied until its decline in 1991 all the time that they had a moon program, the whole program is clear today. Both countries depended with their ambitious programs on large boosters: the Saturn V on the US side and the N-1 on the Soviet side. Today one can say, that the N-1 was the only major failure of the Soviet or today Russian space program (beside the point, that not a single Mars probe ever functioned as intended, if ever reaching Mars).

But it was a very serious duel. Both rivals took great risks in achieving their goals. And as no one has luck for all times, both had to mourn about first victims. Vladimir Komarov died on the first manned flight of a new capsule, the Soyuz 1. The United States lamented about the crew of Apollo 1, Ed White, Roger Chaffee and Virgil “Gus” Grissom.

But nonetheless the United States landed on the moon in 1969 and after a third failure in trying to launch their super-rocket N-1 the Soviets cancelled their moon program. But this was not the end of the Space Race. It seemed that the United States had won, but the Soviets had an ace in the hole. They switched from the exploration of the moon to a completely different goal: manned space stations. Salyut 1 was launched on April 19, 1971. The first crew that docked with the station, Soyuz 11, directly achieved a new endurance record of 23 days, the obviously new goal of the Space Race. Sadly, the crew of Soyuz 11 died at re-entry due to an open valve.

As the United States launched their first space station, Skylab, in 1973, the Soviet Union already had Salyut 2 in orbit and gained a lot of experience in long time stays in microgravity and about operating space stations. But Salyut 2 was still a small station compared to Skylab and had much in common with the first one of its name. So it was not very surprising that the first crew of Skylab set a new endurance record in 1973. After the United States stopped their Apollo-based flights with the Apollo-Soyuz-Test-Project (ASTP) in 1975 to wait for their new Space Transportation System or Space Shuttle, the Soviet Union continued their space station program with a steady pace. In regular intervals, new stations were orbited and each of them incorporated improvements and new features. With Salyut 6, launched in 1977, the Soviets entered a new phase. This was the first station that had two docking ports, so it could be replenished by unmanned cargo transports as well as receiving guests on an additional Soyuz ferry.

The Space Race practically ended with the mothballing of Skylab but still both states walked somewhat side by side: both opened their spacecrafts to international guests. The Soviet Union started their Intercosmos program in 1978 with the first flight of a Czech cosmonaut, Vladimir Remek, the Space Shuttle saw the first non-American to fly in 1983, German Ulf Merbold. Although during the first half of the 1980s the rivalry between both countries grew over again, the signs of a new Space Race were only a short flame up: Neither the United States with their space station Freedom, nor the Soviet Union with their Shuttle-craft Buran had the will or money to push these programs through.

With the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, a new era was to become reality. US-built rockets like the Atlas flew with Russian-built engines. The Space Shuttle docked with the Mir space station and Americans stayed for 6 months onboard the station while Russian cosmonauts flew on the Shuttle. And today we have the International Space Station ISS.

But this was only the end of the first part: A new Space Race already waited on the horizon. To be more precise, not only one, but instead three Space Races would soon become reality.

Watch out for the next parts of the Space Race.

Klaus Schmidt writes about the developments in spaceflight at http://space-future.blogspot.com and The Space Fellowship.

Author: Klaus Schmidt
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

The roots of the black space experience date back some 8,500 years when the first lunar calendar was crafted from a bone. Like ancient peoples elsewhere in the world, Africans (sub-Saharan black peoples) “shared the same inspiration and awe of the stars” and “struggled to make sense of it [through] creativity and intelligence” [1] patiently taking “countless generations to watch, justify and map the heavens”[2] and define their relationship with them. According to Dr. Thebe Medupe, a prominent astronomer at the University of Cape Town and the South African Astronomical Observatory, “[Africans] shaped constellations out of stellar patterns and came up with stories about them, …constructed calendars to organize their lives and even erected stone alignments… to follow the sun’s ‘path’ throughout the year.”[3] It was for this reason that Bernard Harris, Jr., the first black astronaut to walk in space stated, “When we look at history itself, you realize that astronomy – the study of the stars – that whole origin… [was] being done by people from Africa. And now I get to fly amongst those same stars” when emphasizing the importance of knowing and understanding history – “If you don’t know where you are and where you came from, you’ll never know where you are going.”[4]

African societies dating back to the ancient times relied on “the stars to predict the likelihood of rain, so they could prepare the land”[5] for planting, for migration (e.g. the Bozo people of Mali “migrate along the delta of the Niger river when the Pleiades transit overhead and begin their fishing season when the Pleiades leave the night sky”[6]) and navigation as well as for determining points in time, leading to the construction of megalith (large stone) observatories and the development of lunar-based calendars, all of which were critical since for them, “knowledge about the movement of the stars [was] a matter of life and death.”[7]

Accordingly the Moon and the stars had a special place in African societies. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) “the Milky Way is called ‘God’s clock’ [since] it is orientated east-west during the wet season and… north-south during the middle of the dry season.[8] At the same time, in “central Nigeria… a strong correlation [is] observed between the tilt of the points on the crescent moon and rainfall. As points tilt to the right, dramatic increases in rain[fall occur and] as points tilt to the left, dramatic decreases in rainfall [occur].[9]

Two famous African megaliths that made use of astronomy are Nabta, built between 5500 B.C. and 3500 B.C. by Central African nomads in southern Egypt near the modern-day border with Sudan and Namoratunga II, which was erected in 300 B.C. (aligned to the 7 stars of the Borana calendar – Triangulum, Pleiades, Aldebarran, Belletrix, Orion, Saiph, and Sirius)[10] and stands near Kenya’s Lake Turkana. Based on archeological data, Nabta consisting of “stones aligned with the different rising positions of the Sun… (caused by the Earth’s rotation) [used] to determine the seasons”[11] is perhaps the oldest astronomical alignment in the world, 1,000 years older than Stonehenge. At the same time archeological finds indicate that the Mursi of Ethiopia and Kushites and Bambara of Sudan were also influenced by and “interested in horizon and zenith (sunrise and sunset) events”[12] as were the peoples inhabiting Benin, Togo, and Zimbabwe.

In Benin and Togo, “the Batamalimba people designed their houses such that their crossbeams [were] aligned to the equinox sunrise and sunset” while the Karanga people constructed “a chevron pattern bisected by the solstice Sun” in the Great Zimbabwe stone city that was built around A.D. 400 and completed about A.D. 1350 to mark “important astronomical seasonal events.”[13] In addition, the Pyramids of Meroë built in Kush (now part of Sudan) and the more than 1600 stone circles discovered to date in the lands comprising the Gambia, Senegal and Togo are likely further examples of African archaeoastronomy.

In conjunction with the construction of megaliths, African societies ranging from southern Africa to sub-Saharan northern Africa, also developed calendars based on the lunar cycle. The oldest such calendar, the Ishango bone, dating back to 6500 B.C. that “was found at the site of a fishing village on the shores of Lake Edward which borders the [Democratic Republic of] Congo (DRC) and Uganda”[14] and is believed to have been used for predicting tidal phenomena. At the same time, another early lunar calendar based on a series of concentric circles ranging in number from 29 to 30 was found in “certain caves in Tanzania.”[15]

Even today several African peoples use lunar calendars. Examples are the Borana of southern Ethiopia and northwest Kenya, the Mursi of Ethiopia, the Ngas of Nigeria, and the Dogon of Mali, each of whom either adds an extra month consisting of 11 days at the end of the year or a 33-day month at the end of each third year to compensate for the difference that arises from the 365.25 day solar year (period of time it takes the Earth to complete one revolution around the Sun) in which there are 12 lunar cycles (period of time ranging from the first rise of the new moon to the final setting of the full moon) consisting of 29.5 days each. The Ngas use the term “bergu” for each 29.5-day month and “gamwe” to describe the final 11 days that follow the 12th and last “bergu” of each year. In addition, some peoples in South Africa “still use the same word for month and moon”[16] because of their connotative relationship.

Because of their interest in the heavens and their attempt to create intelligible frameworks around them, Africans also developed myths and legends surrounding celestial bodies and constellations. “The Pleiades and Sirius figure largely in the star lore of the peoples of Mali and Ethiopia… The Milky Way… and Venus… are focused on all over Africa, while the Southern Cross is important to the Zulu, Sotho, and Tswana [peoples] of southern Africa and… recognized as a navigation constellation.”[17]

Examples of these African myths and legends are as follows: The Bushmen who inhabit southern Africa “believe the Milky Way was made by a Bushman girl who wished for a little light and threw wood ashes into the sky [creating] different colored stars by throwing different colored burning roots into the air. [There are also two other stories. One involves] two stars of the Southern Cross, Alpha and Gamma Crucis… The creator had two sons called Khanka and Khoma. One day the two boys went hunting with a family of lions, but the treacherous lions ate the boys. In his anger and despair, the creator made fire and hid it in a meteor disguised as an eland’s horn. The creator called down the meteor and it hit [and killed] the lion. [Afterwards the creator’s] heart was calmed and there was fire for everyone. Khanka and Khoma are Alpha Crucis and Gamma Crucis. [The next is about Pleiades and the three stars of the Orion Belt, in which] …seven daughters of the sky god (Pleiades) were married to a hunter. One evening [he] went hunting [for] zebras (the three stars of Orion’s Belt). He was such a bad hunter that his arrow missed, and because he was afraid of the nearby lion (Betelgeuse, another star) he left the arrow where it lay (now known as Orion’s sword). [Afterwards, being] …too embarrassed to [return] home to his wives because he did not have meat to bring to them, …he [stayed] out… in the cold as the star called Aldebaran.”[18]

In addition to merely studying astronomy, developing lunar calendars, and creating myths and legends about the heavens, Africans also exchanged information and ideas with Islamic scientists following the establishment of protected trade routes in the areas encompassing Mali, Mauritania and Senegal. The peak of this exchange occurred during the rule of the Ghana, Mali and Songhay empires (c. A.D. 1200-A.D. 1591) when Islamic traders traveled to African cities in search of gold, the economic standard of their lands after Iranian scholar, Ibn al-Faqih al-Hamadhani wrote in c. A.D. 900:

It is said that beyond the source of the Nile is darkness and beyond the darkness are waters which make the gold grow… to the town of Ghana is a three-months’ journey through deserts. In the country of Ghana gold grows in the sand as carrots do, and is plucked at sunrise.[19]

During the height of this trans-Saharan trade, Islamic scholars established learning centers and introduced the written language, resulting in the creation of thousands of African books pertaining to astronomy and science.

However, it was not until late in the 20th century, some two decades after the United States and the now defunct Soviet Union (USSR) had begun their manned space programs, that descendents of these early African astronomers actually made it into space, much in part due to the efforts of Luke Weathers (b. A.D. 1920), a black World War II veteran with a degree in science and biology and others who had “pressured the U.S. military to train a corps of black pilots at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama… to prove that black Americans… could handle the most challenging… jobs.”[20]

This led to June A.D. 1967 when another pilot, Major Robert H. Lawrence, Jr. (A.D. 1935-A.D. 1967) with over 2,500 flight hours behind him, successfully completed the Air Force’s Flight Test Pilot Training School at Edwards Air Force Base in California and was named the first African-American astronaut. “Though he never made it into space”[21] dying on December 8th when the F-104 Starfighter piloted by a trainee whom he was instructing crashed, Major Lawrence had participated in the Air Force’s Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) Program, a project that “would eventually lead to today’s International Space Station.”[22]

Despite the setback, blacks were not going to be denied their place in space. Following the success of the Civil Rights movement, new opportunities emerged much in part due to improved education and equal opportunity chances. As a result greater numbers of blacks enrolled and were accepted into America’s space program.

History was made on September 18, A.D. 1980 when Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez (b. A.D. 1942), a Cuban of black-hispanic heritage was launched into space as part of the Soyuz 38 crew. “After docking with Salyut 6, Tamayo (a Cuban Air Force pilot) and [his partner Yuri] Romanenko (b. A.D. 1944) conducted experiments in an attempt to find [the cause] of space sickness, and… a cure.”[23] He spent 188 hours and 43 minutes in space before returning to Earth on September 26, A.D. 1980.

This was followed by the August 30, A.D. 1983 launch of Guion “Guy” Bluford (b. A.D. 1942), a U.S. Air Force Colonel who had majored in aerospace engineering and minored in laser physics, aboard the space shuttle Challenger on the STS-8 mission which lasted 145 hours. Upon entering space during the worlds’ first night launch, Guy Bluford became the first African-American astronaut to make the trip.

Afterwards Guy Bluford participated in three additional missions – STS-61-A (October 30-November 6, A.D. 1985 aboard Challenger), STS-39 (April 28-May 6, A.D. 1991 aboard Discovery), and STS-53 (December 2-December 9, A.D. 1992 aboard Discovery). During his career, Col. Bluford who retired from active space duty in 1993, amassed 28 days, 16 hours and 33 minutes in space. Since then Col. Bluford has been inducted into the International Space Hall of Fame (A.D. 1997) and “has spoken before many groups… where he serves as a role model,” all possible because his mother, a teacher, and father, an engineer, had encouraged him and his three brothers to “set their goals high” and because he ignored a school counselor’s advice to”learn a trade, since he was not college material.”[24]

The next black astronaut to make history was Dr. Mae Jemison (b. A.D. 1956), the daughter of a maintenance worker (her father) and teacher (her mother) who earned a BS in Chemical Engineering, a BA in African-American studies, and a doctorate in medicine. Notably, during her years in medical school and participation in the Peace Corps she had provided medical care to persons in Cuba, Kenya, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Thailand.

When the space shuttle Endeavor was launched on September 12, A.D. 1992, Dr. Jemison became the first African-American woman in space. Following her 7 day, 22 hour, 30 minute mission aboard Endeavor as a mission specialist (STS-47 September 12-20, A.D. 1992), Jemison retired from space flight to found The Jemison Group “to research, develop and implement advanced technologies suited to the social, political, cultural and economic context of the individual, especially for the developing world.”[25] Yet despite her post NASA pursuits, Dr. Jemison in following the encouragement and support given by her parents, consistently encourages African-Americans to pursue scientific careers especially with the space program – “This is the one time when we can get in on the ground floor.”[26]

A third history making black astronaut was Dr. Bernard A. Harris, Jr. (b. A.D. 1956), a private pilot and flight surgeon with a doctorate in medical science and a master’s degree in biomedical science who had dreamed “to look down on the clouds” since he was 8. “I was watching what was happening with the space program, watching these guys go up… people called them American heroes. I wanted to be a hero too,” he declared when thinking back to the infancy of the U.S. space program.[27] On February 9, A.D. 1995, Dr. Harris became the first African-American to walk in space when he and astronaut Michael Foale (b. A.D. 1957) “made a five hour space walk to test thermal improvements in space suits and to hoist a 2,800 pound telescope that would aid… efforts to design [the] International Space Station.”[28] Afterwards, he reflected back to 1963, perhaps the most pivotal year in the Civil Rights movement (e.g. the march on Washington, D.C. where Martin Luther King, Jr. made his famous “I have a dream” speech in August, the Birmingham Church bombing a month later that martyred four young black girls, etc.) stating, “Those were some of the best times and worst times. Here on this planet we were fighting for human rights and at the same time we were sending men to the moon.”[29] Appropriately, Dr. Harris dedicated his space walk, which he described as “probably the most wonderful day of my life”[30] to “all African-Americans and to African American achievement.”[31]

During his astronaut career, Dr. Bernard Harris, Jr. took part in two missions – STS-55 (April 26-May 6, A.D. 1993 aboard Columbia as a mission specialist conducting “a variety of research in physical and life sciences”[32]) and STS-63 (February 2-11, A.D. 1995 aboard Discovery as payload commander) logging 18 days, 6 hours and 8 minutes in space. Like Bluford, Dr. Harris also serves as an inspiration encouraging “children of all races to follow his example – ‘Don’t be afraid to dream… Get… an education. Be willing to work hard. If you do these three things, there is nothing that you can’t do in life.’”[33]

In addition to the above-mentioned African-American astronauts, others have also pursued and made the journey to and from space. In the process, two – Ronald E. McNair, Ph.D. and Col. Michael A. Anderson, made the ultimate sacrifice – giving up their lives in quest of scientific exploration and discovery for the benefit of humanity. Summaries of these inspirational astronauts are listed below:

Lt. Col. Michael P. Anderson (A.D. 1959-A.D. 2003) amassed 24 days, 18 hours, and 8 minutes in space, participating in STS-89 (January 22-31, A.D. 1998 aboard Endeavor) and STS-107 (January 16-February 1, A.D. 2003 aboard Columbia). Tragically Lt. Col. Anderson lost his life when the “space shuttle Columbia and her crew perished during entry, 16 minutes before scheduled landing”[34] at Cape Canaveral.

Charles F. Bolden, Jr. (b. A.D. 1946) amassed 28 days, 8 hours, and 37 minutes in space, participating in STS-61-C (January 12-18, 1986 aboard Columbia), STS-31 (April 24-29, A.D. 1990 aboard Discovery), STS-45 (March 24-April 2, A.D. 1992 aboard Atlantis as the first African-American mission commander), and STS-60 (February 3-11, A.D. 1994 aboard Discovery).

Robert L. Curbeam, Jr. (b. A.D. 1962) amassed 24 days, 17 hours, and 49 minutes in space, participating in STS-85 (August 7-19, A.D. 1997 aboard Discovery) and STS-98 (February 7-20, 2001 aboard Atlantis).

Col. Frederick D. Gregory (b. A.D. 1941) amassed 18 days, 23 hours, and 4 minutes in space, participating in STS-51-B (April 29-May 6, A.D. 1985 aboard Challenger), STS-33 (November 22-27, A.D. 1989 aboard Discovery), and STS-44 (November 24-December 1, A.D. 1991 aboard Atlantis).

Ronald E. McNair, Ph.D. (A.D. 1950-A.D. 1986) amassed 7 days, 23 hours, and 15 minutes in space during STS-41-B (February 3-11, A.D. 1984 aboard Challenger). Tragically Dr. McNair perished along with the rest of the Challenger crew when the space shuttle exploded minutes after launch on January 28, A.D. 1986 for the STS-51-L mission.

Stephanie D. Wilson (b. A.D. 1966) who to date has amassed 12 days, 18 hours, and 36 minutes in space (STS-121 – July 4-17, A.D. 2006 aboard Discovery).

Based on the growing roll of African-American astronauts, which likely will include Joan Higginbotham (b. A.D. 1964) who is slated for launch this fall, the efforts of Dr. Beth A. Brown, a pioneering African-American astrophysicist, the creation of a “National Astrophysics and Space Science Programme” in South Africa consisting of a collaboration among the country’s “universities and research institutes [that focuses on] honors and masters students [to create a new generation of space scientists][35], and the A.D. 2005 debut of the 11-meter-wide South African Large Telescope (SALT) at Sutherland, “the Southern Hemisphere’s largest and most advanced telescope”[36] the black space experience can only grow richer as the future remains bright like the Earth’s shining star, the Sun.

______________________________

Endnotes:

[1] Ancient Astronomy In Africa. Fall 1998. 18 July 2006. [http://hej3.as.utexas.edu/~www/wheel/africa/index.html]

[2] Jarita Holbrook. African Astronomy. Center for Archaeoastronomy. June 1998. 18 July 2006. http://www.wam.umd.edu/~tlaloc/archastro/ae28.html

[3] Africans studied astronomy in medieval times. The Royal Society. 30 January 2006. 18 July 2006. [http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/news/asp?year=&id=4117&printer=1]

[4] Kathy Nellis. Trip to the stars rooted in history. CNN.com. 24 February 1996. 18 July 2006. http://www.cnn.com/US/9602/black_astronaut/index.html

[5] M. Panther. Africans Studied Astronomy in Medieval Times. 26 February 2006. 18 July 2006. http://www.assatashakur.org/forum/archive/index.php/t-15793.html

[6] Jarita Holbrook. African Astronomy. Center for Archaeoastronomy. June 1998. 18 July 2006. http://www.wam.umd.edu/~tlaloc/archastro/ae28.html

[7] Curtis Abraham. Astronomy and the legacy of apartheid. New Scientist.com. 15 January 2005. 18 July 2006. http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18524822.000&print=true

[8] Jarita Holbrook. African Astronomy. Center for Archaeoastronomy. June 1998. 18 July 2006. http://www.wam.umd.edu/~tlaloc/archastro/ae28.html

[9] Ngas. Cultural Astronomy. 18 July 2006. http://ecuip.lib.uchicago.edu/diglib/science/cultural_astronomy/cultures_ngas-1.html

[10] Namouratunga II. Archaeoastronomy Africa. 18 July 2006. http://library.thinkquest.org/C0118421/africakenya.html

[11] M. Panther. Africans Studied Astronomy in Medieval Times. 26 February 2006. 18 July 2006. http://www.assatashakur.org/forum/archive/index.php/t-15793.html

[12] A.F. Veni. Tropical archeoastronomy. Science 213. 1981.

[13] Laurence R. Doyle and Edward W. Frank. Astronomy of Africa. Encyclopedia of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. 18 July 2006. [http://www.tusker.com/Archaeo/art.encyclo.htm]

[14] Jarita Holbrook. African Astronomy. Center for Archaeoastronomy. June 1998. 18 July 2006. http://www.wam.umd.edu/~tlaloc/archastro/ae28.html

[15] Laurence R. Doyle and Edward W. Frank. Astronomy of Africa. Encyclopedia of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures. 18 July 2006. [http://www.tusker.com/Archaeo/art.encyclo.htm]

[16] M. Panther. Africans Studied Astronomy in Medieval Times. 26 February 2006. 18 July 2006. http://www.assatashakur.org/forum/archive/index.php/t-15793.html

[17] Jarita Holbrook. African Astronomy. Center for Archaeoastronomy. June 1998. 18 July 2006. http://www.wam.umd.edu/~tlaloc/archastro/ae28.html

[18] Curtis Abraham. Astronomy and the legacy of apartheid. New Scientist.com. 15 January 2005. 18 July 2006. http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18524822.000&print=true

[19] John Reader. Africa: A Biography of the Continent. Vintage Books: New York. 1997. 286.

[20] WWII flier paved way for black astronauts. News 4. 10 July 2006. http://kvoa.com/global/story.asp?s=5130972&ClientType=Printable

[21] Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr. Biography. NASA and About, Inc. 2006. 18 July 2006. http://space.about.com/cs/deceasedastronaut/a/rhlawrencebio.htm

[22] Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr. Wikipedia.com. 3 July 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Henry_Lawrence_Jr

[23] Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez. Wikipedia.com. 4 July 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnaldo_Tamayo_Mendez

[24] Nick Greene. Guion “Guy” Bluford – NASA Astronaut. About, Inc. 2006. 18 July 2006. http://space.about.com/cs/formerastronauts/a/guionbluford.htm

[25] Mae Jemison. Wikipedia.com. 28 June 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mae_Jemison

[26] Marilyn Marshall. Child of the ‘60s set to become first Black woman in space. Gale Group. 2004. 18 July 2006. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1077/is_n10_v44/ai_7804625/print

[27] First African-American To Walk In Space Speaks In Palestine. KLTV.com. 18 January 2005. 21 July 2006. http://afgen.com/bernard_harris.html

[28] 1997 Honorees – Bernard A. Harris, Jr., M.D. Dominion. 2006. 21 July 2006. [http://www.dom.com/about/education/strong/1997/bernardharris.jsp]

[29] First African-American To Walk In Space Speaks In Palestine. KLTV.com. 18 January 2005. 21 July 2006. http://afgen.com/bernard_harris.html

[30] Nick Greene. Dr. Bernard Harris, Jr., Biography. About, Inc. 2006. http://space.about.com/od/foremrastronauts/a/bernardharris.htm

[31] 1997 Honorees – Bernard A. Harris, Jr., M.D. Dominion. 2006. 21 July 2006. [http://www.dom.com/about/education/strong/1997/bernardharris.jsp]

[32] Nick Greene. Dr. Bernard Harris, Jr., Biography. About, Inc. 2006. http://space.about.com/od/foremrastronauts/a/bernardharris.htm

[33] Nick Greene. Dr. Bernard Harris, Jr., Biography. About, Inc. 2006. http://space.about.com/od/foremrastronauts/a/bernardharris.htm

[34] Michael Phillip Anderson. Wikipedia.com. 3 Julye 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_P._Anderson

[35] Space science programme takes off. Science in Africa. May 2003. 18 July 2006. http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2003/may/stars.htm

[36] George Faraday. South Africa to Build Largest Telescope South of the Equator. Africa News Service. 8 July 1998. 21 July 2006. http://allafrica.com/stories/printable/200101080369.html

Additional Sources:

Bail Davidson. The Lost Cities of Africa. Little, Brown and Company. USA. 1959.

Bernard A. Harris, Jr. Wikipedia.com. 11 May 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Harris

Charles F. Bolden, Jr. Wikipedia.com. 4 July 2006. 21 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_F._Bolden

Frederick D. Gregory. Wikipedia.com. 8 June 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Gregory

Guion Bluford. Wikipedia.com. 15 June 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guion_Bluford

Nick Greene. Dr. Mae C. Jamison. About, Inc. 2006. http://space.about.com/cs/formerastronauts/a/jemisonbio.htm

Nick Greene. Ronald E. McNair (Ph.D.). About, Inc. 2006. http://space.about.com/cs/deceasedastronaut/a/ronmcnair.htm

Robert Curbeam. Wikipedia.com. 21 June 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Curbeam

Ronald McNair. Wikipedia.com. 6 July 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_McNair

South African Large Telescope Makes Its Debut. Physorg.com. 1 September 2005. 21 July 2006. http://www.physorg.com/news6159.html

Stephanie Wilson. Wikipedia.com. 18 July 2006. 18 July 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanie_Wilson

William Sutherland is a published poet and writer. He is the author of three books, “Poetry, Prayers & Haiku” (1999), “Russian Spring” (2003) and “Aaliyah Remembered: Her Life & The Person behind the Mystique” (2005) and has been published in poetry anthologies around the world.

Author: William Sutherland
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

What, you may ask, is the solfa scale (also known as the solfeggio scale)? Quite simply, it is a series of seven syllables used as a teaching aid in which each note is sung to a different syllable. These syllables are known quite commonly as do, re, mi, fa, so, la, and ti. These syllables became popular in the movie “Sound of Music” with the Do, Re Mi song.

The purpose of this article is to go beyond the superficial and delve into the origin of the syllables and the intents hidden within each one. Many books and articles have been written about the power of intent and the affect it has on our lives. The intents within the solfa syllables are very profound and have been sung unknowingly into the cosmic consciousness for hundreds of years. To grasp the magnitude of the intents it is necessary to uncover the history of certain individuals; namely, St. Gregory the Great, Paul the Deacon, and Guido d’Arezzo.

St. Gregory the Great became Pope Gregory and lived from 540 A.D. until 604 A.D. One of his many accomplishments was to establish a school for singing and to develop a new way of chanting which today we call “Gregorian Chants.” The chants were sung by the monks and used as a tool for focusing the mind and the body. It was believed that the chants had healing qualities.

The next individual to recognize is Paulus Diaconus who is also know as Paul the Deacon. He lived from around 720 A.D. until around 799 A.D. Paulus was a monk and an historian. Being a monk, he was acquainted with the work of Pope Gregory and mentions him in his writings. The latin hymm “Ut Queant Laxis” is believed to have been composed by Paulus on a day he was contemplating the restoration of the voice of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, and was written in honor of John the Baptist.

The final individual we will look at is Guido Aretinus who is also known as Guido d’Arezzo. He lived from around 995 A.D. until around 1050 A.D. He was a Benedictine monk and music theorist and he is the author of much of our modern day music notation. It was he who developed the solfa or solfeggio scale as an aid to help singers learn Gregorian chants more readily. He used the Gregorian chant “Ut Queant Laxis” written by Paulus Diaconus for developing the solfa syllables. He took the first stanza and divided each line in half. He then used the first syllable of each half line to create the solfa syllables. The ancient solfa scale contained only six syllables. The syllables were: ut, re, mi, fa, sol, and la. These original syllables have evolved into the ones used by modern day society as noted previously.

With an understanding of the origin of the solfa syllables we can now focus on the intents hidden within each one. The first stanza of the chant “Ut Queant Laxis,” with the solfa syllables written in uppercase letters, is as follows: UT queant laxis REsonare fibris. MIra gestorum FAmuli tuorum. SOLve polluti LAbii reatum. Sancte Iohannes. Please note that the words Sancte Iohannes are a study all by themselves and will only be mentioned briefly in this article.

The literal translation is: In order that the slaves might resonate(resound) the miracles (wonders) of your creations with loosened (expanded) vocal chords. Wash the guilt from (our) polluted lip. Saint John. However, using a Latin dictionary, the translation can be expanded and enlarged upon.

The expanded translation is: We, as prisoners, are crying out for release from our spoken expression of limited consciousness so that we might resonate with your expanded creative vibrations. St. John.

And, finally, painstaking research into the origin and meaning of the original words, yields the enlarged translation: The Divine Mind needs an unconfined and freely moving relationship with us that will resonate our speech, or the very fiber of our being, to produce a miracle of communication, which will solve, dissolve, and release the restrictions of our speech. St. John.

Exactly what are the intents that singers have unknowingly been broadcasting into the cosmic waves every time they practice their vocals using these syllables? A breakdown of the intents and a short definition of each original word is as follows: Ut — preparatory tone to prepare the body, soul, and spirit to receive the intent of the next five tones (in order to receive); Re — tone to begin resonance with the Divine (resound or balance frequencies); Mi — tone to begin remarkable and extraordinary changes (miracles); Fa — tone to seek out limitations imposed upon us (slaves to mindsets); Sol — tone to loosen, release, unbind, untie, open, free (solve, resolve); La — tone to open the vocal chords (release the lips).

In closing, you may ask, “What about the seventh syllable and intent?” As you may have guessed, it was created later from the final words in the first stanza, Sancte Iohannes. Originally it was “Si” and later changed to “Ti.” It also has a hidden intent based upon its translation. Without going into an elaborate explanation, the enlarged translation is: Divine favor allows me to discard my limited thoughts and mindsets so that I now exist in this physical body in a state of eternal peace.

The Divine or Cosmic or Christ Mind or whatever you choose to call it, has anchored these intents within the cosmic grid. These intents are reinforced daily by singers and, subconsciously, we are all partakers of the Divine Wisdom that inspired the solfa syllables.

Talking Elements Productions is the home of S.O.L.F.A. Sound Therapy; a modality using sound and intent for enhancing bioenergetic balance. For more information on specific intents and specific frequencies, please visit: http://solfasound.org/

Author: Verna Clay
Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Here are 8 benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

This Article is written to reach the public with a simple and clear method to point out and to reap the benefits of a healthy lifestyle while reducing the risks of chronic diseases such as diabetes.

With the increased understanding of our bodies that we have gained from science over the past few decades, the benefits of a healthy lifestyle are becoming more apparent, along with the reasons why we should detoxify the body at least once a year to remove harmful bacteria, and even worms, from our digestive system. For people of all ages, weights, and abilities the benefits of a healthy lifestyle are endless. But for now let’s look at eight simple benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

1. Your Health:

Good Health is not something that you buy from a drug store or a department store, but can be achieved by practicing collective patterns of health-related behavior, based on choices made from available options. Following this logic, if you wish to realize the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, you have to repeat some healthy pattern as a part of your daily or weekly activities, some patterns like eating right and exercising. Other benefits includes: Reduced health care costs, reduced illness and injuries, reduced doctors visit, Keeps you employed and improved employee/employer relations.

2. Weight:

Managing your weight is the key to attaining all of the health benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle. A weight reduction of just 10 percent will significantly reduce risk of heart disease and other obesity-related illnesses. Obesity/overweight is the second leading contributing factor to many childhood diseases such as orthopedic disorders, sleep apnea, type II diabetes mellitus, asthma, high blood pressure and cholesterol, skin disorders, emotional and psychosocial problems (Spigel, 2002), and many more. Weight-bearing exercise such as walking and strength training helps slow the onset of and/or prevent osteoporosis and some research shows that participating in such activities can actually build bone density and begin to reverse the disease. Other benefits are: Weight reduction, reduced tension and stress, improved well-being, Enhanced self-image and self-esteem and improved physical function.

3. Exercise:

Although drugs alone can often bring cholesterol down to normal levels, diet and exercise provide benefits that drugs don’t. They’ll lower blood pressure, reduce weight, and lower the risk of developing diabetes. A sedentary lifestyle is a dangerous risk factor for disease. Exercise and a healthy diet helps the body use insulin more efficiently and can help control, alleviate and prevent many diseases. Exercise, cessation of tobacco consumption, eating a high-fiber, low-fat diet, controlling body weight, and learning to cope with stress, reduce the risk of heart disease.

4. Medical:

We all want a trim and have healthy body for a variety of aesthetic, social and medical reasons. Healthy living is truly the best medicine. In a study conducted by Tufts University at the New England Medical Center, among patients with cardiovascular disease, an exercise program was shown to significantly reduce LDL cholesterol and other risk factors beyond what’s provided by drug therapy. Even modest weight loss can help reduce medical and pharmacy costs, help avoid bariatric surgery, and co-morbidities such as asthma, hypertension, and diabetes.

5. Wellness:

Wellness is about being comfortable in your space: your body, your attitude, and your environment. A healthy lifestyle can greatly increase a person’s longevity. And even though catching something contagious like a cold or flu is sometimes unavoidable, having the wisdom that feeling healthy is a better way to live should have you asking yourself why you are not taking action to live each day as beneficially as possible. The issue with a lot of people nowadays is that they are so busy working and/or taking care of everyone around them, that they neglect their own health and wellness. Make sure your heart is healthy and your bones are strong and Keep it that way to see the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

6. Care:

The best way to ensure good health is by taking care of yourself. The Care stakes are high but the potential rewards are great-preventing premature death, unnecessary illness, and disability, controlling health care cost, and maintaining a high quality of life into old age. With a healthy lifestyle, you are who you are and you don’t have to be self-conscious about those things that you otherwise would be if you didn’t care about your lifestyle

7. Control:

With a healthy lifestyle, you have more control of your life as you work with your body against those aspects of living which may work to hold you back if you would let them. With a healthy lifestyle, you have control over your sleep patterns so that you feel generally well rested throughout the day. With a healthy lifestyle, everything works together to help other aspects of your lifestyle make sense and benefit you. Science has proven that healthy weight loss, healthy eating and fitness routines make dramatic improvements in health, and help control common chronic illnesses like high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, stress, and general lack of stamina.

8. Strength:

Another benefit of a healthy lifestyle is a steady flow of stamina and strength; you can perform activities and exercises that will enhance your flexibility. With a healthy lifestyle, you have a balanced and varied diet that provides your body its needed nutrients and energy as well. You have strength to train to help build the muscle that supports the bones and joints; therefore decreasing the risk of falls and fractures. Cardiovascular exercise, also known as aerobic exercise, strengthens the heart muscle, therefore increases the heart’s efficiency. As we age, our bones biologically begin to lose mass and strength. Weight-bearing exercise such as walking and strength training helps slow the onset of and/or prevent osteoporosis and some research shows that participating in such activities can actually build bone density and begin to reverse the disease.

The good news is you don’t have to train like an Olympic athlete to enjoy the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. The secret and logic are repeating a chosen healthy pattern as a part of your daily or weekly activities. We hope that this will get you to a healthy lifestyle if you are not there already. A healthy lifestyle is a way of life.

To find handpicked resources, materials, products, articles, recipes or FREE stuffs to help you in your quest to achieving a better and more fulfilling life go to http://www.paystolivewell.com For weight loss products see Weight loss

Author: Fortune Ezeoha
Article Source: EzineArticles.com