Where no man has gone before! Apes always led the way - we just followed. They test our medicine, they have to test our vehicles and even fly into outer space for us.

More? Ape-O-nauts.org

Click image for a larger version.

Such images give me the shivers - a mixtures of oneness with the universe and pride that some of my tax money is well spent*.

*actually in this case that of my American friends. The image is from NASA.

Not every country is a green and pleasant land. Ever tried to eat sand? Most people in a mild climate, fertile lands with rich streams and lakes should always be happy to have so much ‘life support’ around them. There are some nasty places for us humans out there …

Wikipedia entry

The first of 41 satellites. One of the greatest achievements of mankind and one of the greatest PR move ever! America was shocked out of it’s wits by the Russian Beeper in space.

Some videos from that time: Russian Show reel, Dutch report, American reel and great BBC dramatization.

Happy Sputnik day!

I think the Nile and the Ganges are true nation builders. They have created countries and great civilizations. I think they should be worshipped as gods and symbols of nature - nurturing us humans and allowing us to create our civilizations.

Too bad we don’t seem to care much about our life givers. The Ganges is incredibly polluted in some areas and therefore kills people and animals alike. What a shame.

From Wikipedia:

The Ganges River (Ganga in Indian languages; Ganges is the Latin form) is the major river in northern India and Bangladesh. The river has a long history of reverence in India and is often called the ‘holy Ganga’. It originates as the Bhagirathi from the Gangotri Glacier in the Uttaranchal Himalayas and joins the Alaknanda near Deoprayag to form the Ganga. Then on, the Ganga flows across the large plains of North India (called the Gangetic Plains) and empties into the Bay of Bengal after dividing up into many distributaries. One of them is the Hoogli River near Kolkata, another major distributary being the Padma River that enters Bangladesh and merges with Jamuna River, a branch of the Brahmaputra River.

The total length of the river is about 2,510 km (1,557 mi). One of the densest human population belts on earth is built around the Ganga. The region encompassing the delta near the Bay of Bengal coast is known as The Sundarbans (Beautiful Forests) — a region of thick mangrove forests, and one of the major habitats of the Royal Bengal tiger.

The Ganges Basin is incredibly fertile and, at present, about one in every 12 people in the world (8.5%) live in its catchment area. However, due to this incredible concentration of population, pollution and destruction of habitats is increasing at an alarming rate in the region. The Yamuna River — a major river in its own right, and nearly as sacred — is a tributary of the Ganga, and their confluence is near what is the site of the traditional holy Hindu city of Prayag, now known as Allahabad.

Two species of dolphin can be found in the Ganges, the Ganges River Dolphin and the Irrawaddy Dolphin. The Ganges is also notable in that it contains a rare species of freshwater shark, Glyphis gangeticus about which little is known.

… they haven’t build women like these yet …

… on the other side - I am already frustrated by women. Why wait another 150 years for even more male depressions?!

RichM has sent me a link to this amazing Gallery of NASA images.

Prepare to be amazed!

I wonder if a meditation on the moon would grant us more tranquility? But I would love to visit this place in my lifetime.

One day I would like watch a rocket launch - it was told it is a tremendous experience. I have watched countless videos and live transmissions, but it ain’t the real thing. Anyone been to such a great event?