Revisiting the 2012 doom prophecy and the celestial indicators?
I don’t know the exact origins of the doom prophecy for 2012, but after debunking these “alignment” claims, I have discovered something I didn’t know before.
Sure, the ecliptic and the galactic equator intersect at two points in Sagittarius. The galactic center is about 5 or 6 degrees away. Not impressive. And this “alignment” occurs every year. But what I discovered is that the intersection of these two planes occurs *right* on the winter solstice, maybe even within a couple of *hours* of it.
Now, imagine someone poring over charts and old calendars and seeing this, apparently corresponding with the last day of the Aztec calendar. Sure, the person should have asked some questions about it, but if they didn’t know this happens every year, I could see why doom-diggers would flip out. Is this what got them all excited? Well at least it wasn’t a total waste. I learned something.
Oops, I meant one point in Sagittarius. The other intersection is in Gemini or Taurus.
Dr. Kiss, I know what’s going to happen on that day. A lot of gullible, intellectually lazy adults and a sensationalist media are going to scare the crap out of a lot of children. I’ve seen it before and that’s the main reason I hate when TV stations, in all of their collective scientific ignorance, do some semi-tongue-in-cheek report and interview with a proponent of stupidity, with no skeptic or true scientist getting a fair say. Then some dumb writer for the news will have them conclude with the anchor-person saying, “Well, kids, just in case this doesn’t happen, you’d better do your homework…just to be on the safe side.” Wink at co-anchor, grin, say good night, sports guy makes an inaudible remark in the background, cue music, go to commercial.
Oops agai, I meant Mayan.
Ingineer, the galactic center, as it is currently estimated to be, is not going to cross the ecliptic or the 18h meridian for a long time. As for the galactic plane, it intersects the ecliptic extremely close to the solstices. So what do you mean by this 15 year margin of error? For what?
cbirch, funny, I never challenged the accuracy of the claim that the calender ends or on what date. I never believed it was significant in the first place. But what you say is not at all surprising. Not only do the woo-woos make all sorts of nonsense claims based on the most flimsy or irrelevant of evidence, but their very premises are wrong! Thanks, I didn’t know that.
Jesse, you said “something like that.” I have studied this myself. There is no planetary or celestial alignment of any kind on that date, that doesn’t occur every year. Sure there are a multitude of sources supporting virtually *every* kind of bogus claim that has ever been made.
When I said “supporting,” above, I meant defending. Real support would be verification. That doesn’t happen with bogus claims.
Sorry, scauma, the “facts” you quote are *not* facts. As I said, the sun does NOT line up with the center of the galaxy. It will miss it by the same 5 or 6 degrees that it misses it every year. And what do you mean by the completion of the precession of the equinoxes? Complete what? Precession doesn’t have a start or a finish. Now if you mean the solstice crosses the galactic plane on that date, if it is true, then that is a fun coincidence which has absolutely no effect on us…unless you can prove otherwise. It’s about as important as when Halley’s comet reaches aphelion.
Gevera, thanks. Like I said before, it’s funny that their premise isn’t even correct. As far as alignments, darned if I can find any. And let’s keep in mind, the Mayans didn’t have a clue about the galaxy, much less its equator or center.
Answer by Mercury2010
good for you. learning is good. We are all proud.
naw, just giving ya a hard time.
really though. is it really worth 5 points to ask a redundant question?
I guess points are just points though.
I can’t wait till 2013 so I can hear the next doom prophecy.
I didn’t think about the yearly line up. Its a good point.
Give your answer to this question below!
I watched a whole special on that on the National Geographic channel a while ago and then another one on the History Channel. One was specifically about dooms day and the other was about the Aztecs and how they figured out that the “world will end on the winter solstice of 2012″ (which is what…. Dec 2nd or 12th? Not really sure). I then looked on the internet about it because I found it all rather fasctinating. So I don’t know if you were the first to discover it but the fact that you figured that out is pretty darn amazing. I’m rather interested in what is going to happen on the day the Aztecs dubbed doom day.
I think this is what got them all excited because of the fact of how it was figured out and that it is in the near future and are excited/anticipating what is going to happen.
Interesting. I’m glad you shared this with us. Gloom and doom seekers tend to go off on only small amount of the facts.
Most star charts seem to show this intersection just east of the solstice (in 2000.0 coordinates), which means it would have happened in 1999. Of course, the galactic equator is difficult to precisely determine. I have seen an uncertainty of ±15 years on that, so 2012 is a possibility.
Humans which are prone to fears and ignorance brings speculation concerning the nature of the Expanse of the Universe. Hence we have theories as well as supertitions which speculate on the Birth and death of the Universe..Therefore one supertition or one guess is as good as another.
In the Real world every thing must be taken with a grain of Salt.
its the mayan calendar and it does not end, IT DOESNT END! i hate it when people say that. one part of it ends and another begins. its basically the mayan equivalent of going from the 1800′s to the 1900′s