WordHurdle

Saturn cloud formation stays in hexagon shape

I just had to post this photo from Saturn because it's very cool.  Click on the image for a bigger version.  It's amazing what can naturally occur in nature, and even more when that nature is on another planet.  Astronomers identified this hexagon shape -- measuring about two Earths side by side -- at the north pole of Saturn over 20 years ago, but these are the first images of the entire hexagon in one image.  It sits atop the north pole cloud formations and stays there, retaining its shape, which is very odd when you realize that clouds are constantly swirling around it. Infrared images show that it goes down 60km into the clouds.  You can see a video image of it here, which shows there is some movement but it clearly retains all 6 sides of the hexagon.  This kind of stuff amazes me.

The Apollo hoax?

I'm not one for conspiracy theories, but recently I've heard more detail about the so-called Apollo hoax, which is the claim that US astronauts never actually landed on the moon, but that instead, the astronauts orbited Earth for 8 days while NASA played pre-recorded footage from a sound stage (possibly set up at Area 51).  Crazy stuff, I know.  And I'm still not on board.

I do have to give credit, though, to some of the arguments made in support of the hoax theory based on the photographic and video evidence from the moon landings.  One site I found is here:  Alien-UFOs.com.  The site shows lots of images and video and what you're supposed to be seeing and what the images actually show.  Interesting.

"1984" Obama video changes the game

Have you seen the new, supposedly "unauthorized" Barack (Hussein) Obama anti-Hillary campaign ad?  It's fashioned, and almost identical to, the "1984" Apple computer ad run years ago.  This time, though, the blond woman (apparently the same blond woman from the Apple ads) is wearing an iPod, and instead of smashing a Big Brother figure, she's smashing videos of Hillary Clinton.  And, the most captivating part, is the new "O" graphic patterned after the Apple logo.

The Obama camp has said they have nothing to do with this video, but it's obviously a well-funded project that's designed to make you want more and create a sense of anticipation, possibly looking forward to podcasts by the candidate himself or something of the sort that steps outside the traditional campaign media outlets.  Speculation is that it was created by an outside group to influence the race, but my guess is that it's more of a "guerilla marketing" technique to capture young, online eyes and hearts for the candidate.