A sudden loss of signal unexpectedly took place just before the closest approach, but this now appears to have been a safety measure taken by the onboard fault-management system, and did not result in a loss of important data, as was originally feared. It happened during an eighteen minute period when the probe was being eclipsed by the shadow of Mercury. With solar power temporarily cut off, the probe was supposed to operate on its own internal batteries during this time, but ten minutes after entering eclipse and four minutes before the closest approach point, the signal from the probe stopped.

According to Eric Finnegan of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, the spacecraft had autonomously switched itself to a safe operating mode due to an unexpected configuration of the power system during the eclipse. While in this safe mode, the probe preserved all data on its solid-state recorder. When the probe came out of eclipse, it returned to operational mode and began transmitting the stored data to Earth. All the data have now been received, and are being analyzed to confirm the full sequence of events.

It now appears that the main purpose of the flyby, the gravity assist to alter the probe’s orbit, was completely successful. In addition, all of the observational data from the approach have been retrieved, including pictures of previously unseen terrain.

This was MESSENGER’s final flyby of Mercury. For the next 18 months, the probe and the planet will move in their respective orbits, and when they approach each other again, MESSENGER will not flyby, but instead will go into orbit around the planet. From that vantage point, it will be able to observe the planet in unprecedented detail.

It will be the culmination of a mission that has been a model of success from the start. MESSENGER was launched on August 3, 2004, the first probe to be sent to Mercury since the Mariner 10 flyby 33 years earlier. The planned course would be an ambitious voyage through the inner solar system, with course modifications provided by one flyby of Earth, two flybys of Venus and three flybys of Mercury.

The first of the Mercury encounters happened on January 14, 2008. In it, MESSENGER passed 200 kilometers from the planet, imaging portions of the surface that had never been seen before and collecting a wide array of scientific observations, including magnetometer readings and spectrographic data. The second flyby took place on October 6, 2008. Again the probe passed about 200 kilometers from the surface, and took advantage of the opportunity to make further observations.

The third flyby was the closest, bringing the probe within about 140 miles of Mercury’s surface. On this one, Mercury still had a few surprises. One of these was a double-ringed impact basin 180 miles across. The shape of the feature is remarkably well preserved, indicating that it is probably relatively young, perhaps only a billion years old. That’s unusual, since most impact craters date to the early days of the solar system, some four billion years ago. The inner floor of this basin is of a different color from its surroundings, and appears to be even younger than the rest of the feature. This may be the youngest volcanic material on Mercury.

Spectrographic observations performed on the third flyby also revealed that the surface material on Mercury is rusty. It contains a high percentage of iron oxide, which provides the answer to an earlier puzzle. Previous observations had indicated that there was a low amount of iron on the surface, which was a surprise for a small, rocky planet. Now we know that the iron is there after all; it’s just locked up in those oxides.

This flyby also provided the chance for further observations of Mercury’s magnetic field and its exosphere (extremely thin atmosphere) and the first detailed scans of the north and south poles. These polar regions will be a great source of interest when MESSENGER settles into its final orbit around the planet, since there is at least a slight possibility that they could contain water. This amazing possibility is due to a paradox: since Mercury keeps the same face toward the sun at all times, its dark side- and particularly the polar regions- may have some of the coldest real estate in the solar system. As incredible as it seems, Mercury may have ice that has been frozen since the planet’s birth.

That’s just one of the many questions that will be addressed when MESSENGER and Mercury come back together and the probe goes into its permanent orbit. When that happens, we will start to really get acquainted with the sun’s closest planet, until recently the least explored body in the solar system.

Space policy experts say that having an abundance of water for future exploration would provide drinking water and a key ingredient for rocket fuel. Water on the moon changes everything in regard to future space exploration. The ecstatic LCROSS mission team led by NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California said they had hints water existed on the lunar surface. Micahel Wargo, chief lunar scientist at NASA in Washington said, “The moon harbors many secrets, and LCROSS has added a new layer to our understanding.”

LCROSS Mission

The LCROSS mission was launched from Kennedy Space Center on June 18th as a companion mission to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). Just after 7:31 a.m. EST on October 9th, NASA’s Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) slammed an empty rocket into the surface of the moon at a speed of 5,400 miles per hour. Another spacecraft followed about four minutes behind and recorded the event before crashing into the same spot in the Cabeus crater. The part of the crater where the impact occurred has apparently not seen sunlight for billions of years. Previous unmanned missions to the moon had detected hydrogen in soil near the lunar poles. The LCROSS team, as well as other scientists, had suspected the possibility of water in the forms of ice and ice vapor on the moon.

Space junkies who stayed up late to see the promised impact plumes from the spacecraft were sorely disappointed as a one-mile plume showed the only evidence of both impacts. NASA scientists had predicted a six-mile high plume of moon dust and debris shooting into space.  The event was covered live on BAC’s Good Morning America but turned out to be a public relations disaster when the highly anticipated impact turned out to be a “no-show.” Despite the absence of a live impact on morning television, the stunning news that water is evident in the debris plume was indeed spectacular news. The prospect of water would mean a great deal to the future colonization of Mars, discoveries on other planets, and the exploration of the universe.

Possible Lunar Water Rush?

While it’s not likely that water found on the lunar surface will be bottled and sold at your local market, it might be possible the ice discovered can be melted and put to some use for future space explorers based on the moon. LCROSS mission lead scientist Anthony Colaprete stated at a recent press conference that if the water contained elements such as methanol then it would not be drinkable. Apparently the data from spectrometers is still being assessed as to the exact composition of the ice churned up by the LCROSS impact. The data indicates other emission lines in the spectrographic data that haven’t completely been identified. The LCROSS probe only impacted one small area of the moon so it’s unclear if water exists anywhere else on the surface.

To analyze, understand, and decipher all of the massive amounts of rich data collected by LCROSS will take some time. The data shows traces of other substances as well as providing additional insight into the mechanics of lunar impacts and the resulting craters. The LRO remains in Lunar orbit and moves over the impact site providing more and more data with each pass. In order to gain the most data and understanding from the impact, LCROSS scientists continue to work with LRO scientists. The long-term implications of this discovery will certainly change what we know about Earth’s nearest celestial neighbor.

The ancient Mayans are largely responsible for pinpointing this particular date as being of significance, although the date was not arrived at by accident or simply chosen; it was carefully calculated. The Maya people flourished in Central America, from around 300 BC to around 900 AD, when their civilization mysteriously vanished, for reasons that are still not fully clear. Apart from their end of the world prediction, the Maya are also well known for their regular human sacrifices and the construction of their huge stone pyramids, many of which can still be seen today.

The year 2012 is arrived at from the Maya Long Count, a calendar that tracks a span of time lasting just over 5,125 years and which will end in the year 2012. An English anthropologist, Eric Thompson, worked out that this cycle would have begun on August 13^th of 3114 BC, which meant that it would end on December 21st, 2012. The Mayans had various other calendars that they used regularly as well; it is only the Long Calendar that places any significance on this particular date.

However, the date of December 21st, 2012 is also significant as on that day, the earth and sun will be in alignment with the center of the Milky Way galaxy, an event that occurs only once every 26,000 years. The Mayans had an excellent knowledge of astronomy as indicated by their surviving texts and the construction of their buildings; although whether they somehow knew this, or whether this is all coincidence is an intriguing question. And to add to the intrigue, that date is also the date of the winter solstice – the shortest day of the year.

The fact that the world will end seems to have been misinterpreted, according to many sources. Experts point out that several other cycles of the Mayan Long Count calendar have come and gone, without any apparent disasters – so why should this one be any different? In fact, the end of the calendar should bring something good, rather than doom and gloom – the Mayans generally believed that the passing of a full cycle would be a time of rejoicing. Skeptics also point out that we change our calendar every December 31^st, with no apparent disastrous effects.

The Mayans aren’t the only ones responsible for causing otherwise rational people to believe the world will end on that date. The ancient Egyptians calculated that the year 2012 would be a year of great changes, although these weren’t really specified. And more recently, NASA has calculated a sharp increase in the amount of sun flares and sunspots that year, two things sure to cause widespread electrical failure. Some geologists have also predicted that the hot geysers under Yellowstone National Park will experience a huge eruption around that time; and some claim that the Bible and certain Hindu texts also pinpoint that date. Again, skeptics point out that almost any information or data can be interpreted to fit a theory and that none of this proves anything.

If you are concerned, you can do what various other people around the world have done and start to amass emergency rations and a safe place for your family to hide during the apocalypse. Realistically though, all indications are that December 21, 2012 will be just another day. However, you should be warned that there will only be four shopping days left until Christmas!

This is considered a minor partial umbral lunar eclipse. The duration of the umbral eclipse is almost 60 minutes. The greatest eclipse occurs at 19:23 UT time. The penumbral magnitude will be 1.0556 and the umbral magnitude is estimated to be .0763. These magnitudes are the fraction of the diameter of the moon that is within the shadows during the greatest eclipse.

Lunar eclipses occur when the moon moves into the earth’s shadows. The earth has two kinds of shadows which are known as the penumbra and the umbra. Lunar eclipses can only occur during a full moon as the moon opposes the sun in the sky. During a partial lunar eclipse a small portion of the moon passes through the umbral shadow. This will block out a chunk of the moon.

No special equipment is needed to view umbral lunar eclipses. It is readily seen with the unaided eye. Why not take a little night stroll on New Year’s Eve and glance up at the moon? Wondering when the next lunar eclipse will be? The chart below lists lunar eclipses that will occur for the next two years.

This meteor shower is one of the most showy and dazzling of them all in the northern hemisphere. For over a hundred and fifty years this event has been known to be very active displaying at least one streaking meteor every thirty seconds. In other past occurrences it created sixty meteors per hour. On the average, one hundred meteors per hour radiate throughout the sky. This is known as the Zenith Hourly Rate (ZHR).

The winter December sky will provide an excellent chance to experience the meteor event. Visibility will be enhanced by a new moon ensuring that zenith hour rate is seen. Originating from the Gemini constellation and scattering relatively slowly across the sky provides viewers a chance to see the trails with the unaided eye. These shooting star trails last a number of seconds and be seen in varying colors. In the northern latitudes it can be visible in the not-to-late evenings. This is perfect timing for star parties, astrophotography and even family viewing.
Discovery of the Geminids
Three astronomers all working independently in 1862 are credited for the discovery of the Geminids meteor shower. The first noted was R. P. Greg (England), secondly B. V. Marsh (United States.) and lastly A.C. Twining (United States). More sightings and reports came during 1863 and 1864.

It wasn’t until 1983 that the origin of the Geminids meteor shower was uncovered. Once again, three astronomers are given the credit. Two for identifying an asteroid and one for researching and associating the orbit to the meteor shower. Simon Green and John Davies identified the asteroid 3200 Phaethon. Fred Whipple noted the asteroid’s orbit and associated it to the meteor shower.

What is still a mystery about the Geminids meteor shower? Even though 3200 Phaethon has been identified as an asteroid, there is a possibility that it could be a dormant comet. The question arose when a photographic density study was conducted and the results proved to be less dense than asteroids.

Asteroid or comet, 3200 Phaethon has been officially linked to be the origin of the Geminids meteor shower. The meteor shower happens every December and this year gives us a great chance to watch.

With this heightened telescopic acuity, there has been a flurry of research concerning a period of early galaxy formation known as the reionization epoch, a period that has remained largely a mystery up until now. A recent study by an American and Japanese team of astronomers led by Carnegie Observatory’s Masami Ouchi, has been able to precisely determine the age and distance of some of the universe’s oldest galaxies, and in doing so has answered a question that has been puzzling astronomers for ages.

The Big Bang, an event estimated to have occurred approximately 13.7 billion years ago, created a hot, chaotic soup of free-floating atomic particles. A mere 400,000 years later, the atomic particles combined to form neutral hydrogen molecules, or H₂. Sometime in the next 600,000 years, these neutral hydrogen molecules began to form enormous stars, which in turn emitted radiation and newly charged hydrogen ions, clearing the soup and allowing visible light to be emitted.

This much has been known for some time, but what has puzzled scientists up until very recently was how long, exactly, after the formation of the neutral hydrogen particles did reionization occur? Furthermore, when it did occur, did it happen suddenly, like the Big Bang itself? Or was it a gradual process, evolving over time?

Using the WFC3 as well as the Subaru telescope (from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) and the Spitzer telescope (out of California), researchers are able to calculate the specific wavelength of some of these earliest galaxies, which can then be used to calculate the galaxy’s distance and age. To do this, scientists view the distant stars through a progression of red light filters. As the filters increase in wavelength, or redness, distant stars will drop out of view, based on the wavelength of light they themselves are emitting. The last stars to drop out of view are determined to be the oldest stars, and as such are the stars of greatest interest to Ouchi and colleagues.

By examining density and brightness measurements, the team calculated that star formation and ionization rate was significantly lower from about 800 million to 1 billion years after the Big Bang than it was after that period. The low rate of ionization indicates that the reionization period must have started no less than 600 million years after the Big Bang.

The low rate of ionization during the period was the most unexpected finding, contradicting inferences made from previous studies.  This could be partially explained by a difference in the types of stars that were formed during the period—stars produced in the early galaxies were massive, containing up to 200 times more matter than our sun. These massive stars produced more ionizing photons than would a greater number of smaller stars, and thus might have given the illusion of a higher ionization rate.

A generation ago, this level of detailed research was the stuff of science fiction. Now, with technology advancing at an almost exponential rate, we can only imagine the possibilities that lie ahead.

Scientists are taking the search for extraterrestrial life to the high seas with two voyages now taking shape in the lab. If everything goes according to plan in about a decade a mission will launch to send a pair of probes to explore the moons of Jupiter. These probes will concentrate on Europa and Ganymede, and they will focus on exploring the oceans that may lurk beneath the surface.

A few years after the mission to the moons of Jupiter launches, an even more ambitious mission will explore the moons of Saturn. This ambitious probe will explore the polar seas thought to lurk beneath the surface of Saturn’s moon Enceladus. The same mission will also explore the seas of Titan, long considered a leading candidate for extraterrestrial life.

These modern missions will use a decidedly old fashioned approach to space exploration – namely a hot air balloon that will hover over the deserts and mountains of the satellites, along with a boat designed to float on an ocean of liquid hydrocarbon.

This unique mission was first announced in February of 2009 as a joint venture of NASA and European Space Agency. Both the mission to Jupiter and the mission to Saturn are now in their critical early planning stages, but once those missions lift off they will provide a unique view of some of the most promising locations in the hunt for extraterrestrial life.

As it stands now the plan is for the Europe Jupiter System Mission, or EISM, to lift off early in 2020. The mission will proceed in two stages, with the NASA sponsored Jupiter Europa Orbiter and the European Space Agency’s Ganymede Orbiter due to be launched within a month of one another. The two spacecrafts will plot a parallel course for Jupiter, taking six years to reach their respective destinations. Once the probes reach the moons of Jupiter they will explore several of the planet’s satellites before each probe moves on to its primary target – Europa and Ganymede respectively.

What makes these probes unique is the fact that they will explore not only the surface of each satellite but the depths of the moons as well. As far back as the Voyager space missions scientists have suspected that the frozen crust of these satellites hides a liquid ocean, and the presence of a liquid ocean could greatly boost the chances that extraterrestrial life is lurking within the confines of our own solar system. While other exploration has focused on the possibility of life on planets orbiting distant stars, these upcoming missions take a much more local approach to the hunt for life beyond the bounds of Earth.

In order to complete their missions the orbiters will be equipped with special radar designed to penetrate the thick polar ice covering the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. If this crust of ice is relatively thin – only a few kilometers – that ice penetrating radar may even be able to peer into the deep ocean beneath the surface. But even if the ice sheet is too thick for direct observation these probes are expected to shed new light on the features of these moons, providing scientists with a wealth of new information that could lead to clues about not only the existence of life but the formation of the solar system.

by beconrad

The annular solar eclipse is not a total eclipse of the sun. What occurs is that the center of the sun will be blocked out by the shadow of the moon. The outer rim or diameter of the sun will be visible displaying an orange ring. The path that the greatest annularity will take begins in Cameroon taking an easterly course over the Indian Ocean. It will curve towards the north east to pass over the southern tip of India and Sri Lanka then onwards to Myanmar and China. Countries like Mozambique, Madagascar and Singapore are in the sub solar path.

Duration of this solar eclipse is estimated to be around 11 minutes and 8 seconds. The instant when the axis of the shadow from the moon passes closest to the Earth’s center will occur at 07:06 UT time. Since this is an annular solar eclipse the magnitude will only be measured at .919. The magnitude is the fraction of the diameter of the sun that will be obscured by the moon.

There is only one other solar eclipse that will take place in the year 2010 and that is on July 11th. This is categorized as a total eclipse. The shadow of the moon will obscure all the diameter of the sun. The greatest eclipse path will take place over the South Pacific and it will just graze the tip of Chile and Argentina. These are the only two continental places where this total solar eclipse will be viewable. South pacific islands like Easter Island are near the greatest eclipse path. Partial viewing of about ten or twenty percent may occur over Paraguay, Peru and Bolivia. The duration of this total solar eclipse is five minutes and twenty seconds. The next total solar eclipse won’t be until the fall of 2012.

These are the only two solar eclipse occurrences for the year of 2010. The following year will bring us four more however; none of these will be a total or an annular solar eclipse. Different kinds of solar eclipses occur at least twice a year which means that you can plan ahead to view one. Below is a chart of solar eclipses for the next two years:

Did We Really Walk On The Moon?

What would you say if I told you World War II never happened? Or that George Bush is really an alien impostor? You’d probably call me crazy, and you’d probably be right. But what if I told you mankind have never even been close to the moon; let alone walked on it? I’d probably get the same response. However you’d be surprised at the number of people who believe that mankind’s greatest achievement was actually the biggest hoax of all time.

According to historical truth, twelve men walked on the moon between the years of 1969 and 1972. The most famous of these trips was Apollo 11, which launched on July 16^th 1969. According to this particular history, man’s first steps on the moon were taken on July 20^th 1969.

“It’s one small step for man…”

The first man on the moon is one of the most well-known men in the world. Neil Armstrong. As the 38 year-old American took his first steps onto the lunar surface, millions of people across the globe held their breath in anticipation. This very moment was broadcast live into living rooms across the globe; truly uniting mankind as a whole. So how is it possible that anyone could claim such an achievement was a hoax cooked up by the American government?

“One giant leap for deception?”

Almost 40 years on from those first steps, more and more people are buying into the theory that man has never visited its closest astronomical neighbour. In an attempt to understand people’s thinking, I asked a few folks what they thought. In the poll of 125 people, 73% of them believed the landings took place; whilst 27% believed the opposite – that it was all an elaborate deception.

So, if the lunar landings were nothing more than some clever governmental hocus pocus, what evidence is there? The ‘evidence’ provided by conspiracy theory nuts ranges from photographic problems to radiation issues. I’ll list a few here; however these are only a cross-section, there are far more.

Waving Flags, Strange Shadows and Crosshairs?

Out of all of the evidence against the moon landings, the most controversial has to be the photo evidence. It seems the conspiracy theorists have been through every photo with a fine-tooth comb. According to these theorists, several of the photos have shadows which are technically impossible. Let me explain. When the astronauts were on the moon, their only source of light was the sun; they took no artificial lights.

Strange, then, that in more than one photo the shadows of equipment and astronauts appear to be pointing in more than one direction. One light source means one shadow direction, right? Not in these photos it doesn’t.

Another interesting aspect of these photos is the crosshairs. In a nutshell, a crosshair is a mark on the film of the camera to help NASA work out distances between objects. The fact that they’re on the film means they can never be behind an object. Or can they? Again, in these photos, it seems so. One final piece of photographic ‘evidence’ is the United States flag. A symbol of freedom. A symbol of liberty. A symbol which should be completely still in the airless vacuum of space. Once more these photos would seem to disagree. Theorists claim it’s clear that the flag changes its shape from one photo to the next. There’s no wind in space so how can this be?

Killer Space Doughnuts?

Science books tell us that one day we’ll be able to travel beyond our own galaxy and out into the vast reaches of the universe. If we are to believe conspiracy theorists – there’s no way that’s ever going to happen. Why not? The Van Allen Belt. Imagine a huge ring doughnut of radiation surrounding the earth and you’ll have a pretty good picture of what this belt is. A common conspiracy theory is that this belt would kill anyone who tried to pass through it. The huge amounts of radiation would, well, fry them. There is, of course, no proof that this is the case, but as with many conspiracy theories, it wouldn’t seem there needs to be.

The Truth (?)

I spoke to leading space scientist and former NASA employee Tania Burchell from the National Space Centre to find out just what she thought of all of this.

“There is no way on Earth…that the US government could have faked the Moon landings” she told me “they would have needed a completely airless sound stage a couple of hundred miles across with a one-sixth gravity generator to achieve the same…effects we see in the images and video from the Moon. No one on planet Earth has such technology – not even Steven Spielberg.”

I wondered if Tania thought we’d ever revisit our closest cosmic neighbour:

“I have every confidence that humans will be back on the Moon in twenty years’ time – and in a big way that will delight us all.”

Tania also had a convincing explanation for the photography problems that seem to be on the front line of this argument.

“Have you ever taken a truly flawless image? I’ve not! The images and video are from the Moon’s difficult-to-photograph surface conditions. Any flaws in them are a result of those conditions.”

So, it would seem that the experts on science fact think the hoax claims are nothing more than science fiction.

So is it Really Made of Cheese?

There are times in life when we have to take things at face value. Whether or not the moon landings were smoke and mirrors or cold hard fact; the only person you’ll believe is you. So, do some research; watch the moon landing videos, take a look at the pictures, visit the National Space Centre, and decide for yourself where the truth lies. It’s out there somewhere!

Oh, and if you feel like spending millions of pounds building a rocket to the moon to see for yourself, be sure to send me a postcard.

I can’t promise I’ll believe you though.

Rob Taylor

His supporters maintain that he predicted the French and Russian revolutions, two World Wars, the rise and fall of Napoleon, the dominance of Hitler, and many other catastrophic world events. His detractors claim that his mixed language quatrains are so ambiguous that they can be used by the credulous to fit the facts after the event.

Is it possible that his four-line verses, written in a mixture of French, Hebrew, and Latin, deliberately obscured by the use of anagrams and abbreviations, could predict events in countries unknown during the middle ages?

Michel de Nostredame was born on 14th December 1503 in St. Remy de Provence. Although Jewish, his family took the wisest course during a time of religious intolerance, and converted to Catholicism. His great-grandfather encouraged him to study astrology, celestial sciences, and Hebrew, in addition to Greek and Latin.

At the age of fourteen he left home to study at Avignon, and five years later, in 1522, he enrolled at the University of Montpellier to study medicine. Shortly after his graduation, bubonic plague struck Montpellier, and the young doctor had his first opportunity to practice his skills.

Nostradamus could not claim to cure plague, but it appears that outbreaks were less virulent when he was the physician, and his fame as a plague doctor spread. For the next four years he traveled all over southern France, treating plague victims. Eventually, when the outbreak had finally run its course, he returned to Montpellier to obtain his doctorate.

He only practiced as a doctor for a year before setting off on his journeys again. During his travels he received a letter from Julius Caesar Scalinger, one of the foremost physicians and scholars of the day, inviting him to visit the Bishop of Agen, who was interested in some of his ideas. Whilst in Agen he married, his wife’s name is unrecorded, but we know that she bore Nostradamus two sons.

Sadly in 1537 plague struck, and although he saved many, his wife and children died. Older doctors ridiculed him for his arrogance in believing his methods superior to standard practice, when he could not even save his own family. Shortly afterwards charges of heresy were brought against him, concerning a remark he had made some time previously about a religious statue. Clearly Agen was no longer a comfortable place to be, and for several more years he wandered throughout Europe.

It was during this phase of his life that stories began to circulate about his supposed clairvoyant abilities. In Ancona, Italy, he prostrated himself before a young Franciscan monk, Felix Peretti. The startled monk, a former swineherd, asked Nostradamus to explain his actions. He replied that he was kneeling before his holiness, much to the amusement of the other monks. Felix Peretti was elected Pope Sixtus 1V in 1585.

On another occasion Nostradamus was supposedly the guest of a skeptic, the Seigneur de Florinville. The Seigneur asked which of two pigs would be eaten that night. Nostradamus answered that a wolf would devour the white pig, and the black pig would be served at table. Determined to prove Nostradamus wrong, Florinville ordered the slaughter of the white pig. The cook complied and the white pig was roasted.

During the meal Florinville asked which pig they were eating, and Nostradamus answered: “the black pig.” Delighted, Florinville sent for the cook and asked him which pig was on the table. He was astounded when the cook explained that a tame wolf had entered the kitchen and devoured the white pig, he had then slaughtered and cooked the black pig. Florinville was a skeptic no longer.

When Nostradamus returned to France he settled in Salon, and in November 1547 he married Anne Gemelle. His wandering days were over. He began to write, and the first book of his prophecies was published in 1555. He grouped his quatrains in sets of 100, known as the centuries. The book contained over 350 predictions (three complete centuries plus 53 quatrains of the fourth).

Nostradamus became so popular that Queen Catherine de Medici summoned him to Paris. He was appointed as personal physician to Henri II, despite one of his quatrains predicting the death of the King.

The young lion shall overcome the older

On the field of combat by single combat.

In a golden cage he shall put out his eye,

Two wounds from one, then he shall die a cruel death.

(Century. 1 – Quatrain 35)

The King was killed when a lance splintered pierced his eye during a tournament. He died as a result of his injuries.

Nostradamus made many predictions for his own time, and hundreds for events many years into the future. The following quatrain is interpreted as the start of the French revolution, the uprising of the people, followed by the King listening to Marie Antoinette, and finally betraying his promise not to leave the Tuileries.

Under the pretext of freeing the people,

The people themselves will usurp power.

He shall do worse because of the trickery of a young whore.

He shall betray in the field, delivering a false promise.

(Century. 5 – Quatrain 5)

The royal couple escaped from the Tuileries, and was heading for a hiding place in Varennes, when their coachman lost his way in the forest of Reines. The captured Queen was dressed in white, the King in gray.

By night there will come by the forest of Reines

A married couple, by a devious route.

A Queen – white stone, a monk-king in gray at Varennes.

Elected Capet, causes tempest, fire and bloody slicing.

(Century. 9 – Quatrain 20)

Is this Napoleon?

An Emperor will be born near Italy,

Who will cost his empire dearly.

They will say when they see his allies,

That he is less a prince than a butcher.

(Century. 1 – Quatrain 60)

Could this be Hitler?

Wild and hungry beasts will cross rivers.

The greatest battles shall be against Hister.

He will cause great men to be dragged in a cage of iron,

When this son of Germany respects no law.

(Century. 2 – Quatrain 24)

For our own time, perhaps the most intriguing is the following quatrain.

Sooner or later you will see great changes made.

Extreme horrors and vengeance.

As Islam is thus led by its angel,

The heavens draw near to the balance.

(Century. 1 – Quatrain 56)

The final word should go to Nostradamus himself, who had a superstitious fear of people walking on his grave, and gave instructions that he be buried upright. On his death, in 1566, his wishes were carried out and he was interred in the wall of the church of Cordeliers. After his death his fame increased and rumors began to spread that important papers had been secreted in his coffin.

In 1700 the authorities at Salon bowed to pressure and gave permission for his coffin to be examined. No papers were found, but a medallion was discovered hanging from the skeleton. It was inscribed: 1700.

Recently the History Channel started to air a program that analyzes of all of the 2012 theories.  It calls this new series the “Nostradamus Effect“.  Nostradamus is so well known for all of his future predictions that you might refer to him as the “Father of Future Predictions”.

You can view that program now by clicking here.