NASA video sheds light on 2012

Now I already know what people are going to say " if it comes from NASA it is a lie"

Well I want people to think about this with an open mind, just because NASA does something does not mean they are trying to cover something else up. They are trying to stop fearmongering if you ask me.

Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have put out a new video to address false claims about the "Mayan apocalypse," a non-event that some people believe will bring the world to an end on Dec. 21.

Addressing the belief that the calendar used by the ancient Mayan civilization comes to a sudden end in December 2012, and that this will coincide with a cataclysmic, world-ending event, Yeomans said: "Their calendar does not end on December 21, 2012; it's just the end of the cycle and the beginning of a new one. It's just like on December 31, our calendar comes to an end, but a new calendar begins on January 1."

Like many people have stated in the past the end of this cycle of the Mayan calender will just bring in the beginning of another cycle, much like how our calender ends on 12/31 and begins again on 01/01

The JPL tries to shed light on the suppose planet/brown dwarf/whatever you want to call it Nibiru

This enormous planet is supposed to be coming toward Earth, but if it were, we would have seen it long ago. And if it were invisible somehow, we would have seen the [gravitational] effects of this planet on neighboring planets. Thousands of astronomers who scan the sky on a daily basis have not seen this," he said.

He added that there is zero possibility of a NASA cover-up. "Can you imagine thousands of astronomers who observe the skies on a daily basis keeping the same secret from the public for several years?"

Yeomans noted that the magnetic field does shift every half-million years or so, but "there's no evidence it's going to happen in December, and even if it were to be shifting, it takes thousands of years to do so. And even if it did shift, it's not going to cause a problem on the Earth apart from the fact that we're going to have to recalibrate our compasses

At the end of the report they state and qoute Carl Sagan, "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Since the beginning of time there have been literally hundreds of thousands of predictions for the end of the world, and we're still here"

www.space.com...

Since I still havent figured out how to make my youtube videos work when I embed them heres a link to the video

www.youtube.com...

Enjoy watching

I feel better now that JPL has set us straight.

Sarcasm aside, I do agree with what he is saying.

As much as I'm a fan of setting the record straight I feel like at this point NASA should just give up with these videos. If people didn't listen to them the first five times they made videos like this what makes them think it's going to work this time? All it means now is that we're going to have a number of threads posting the same video and as a result we're going to get dozens of people posting the oh so clever response of:

NASA = Never A Straight Answer

I appreciate what NASA's trying to do but at this point I think they should just let it go.

It's baffling that NASA even wastes time on this. There's maybe a handful of people who actually believe anything is going to happen and they won't believe a thing NASA says, then there are those that hope something happens but know it's extremely unlikely. Most people just don't care or find it entertaining to watch those who spend hours upon hours arguing about this stuff.

reply to post by caf1550

Not just nasa anyways.. Even the Mayan ancestors say the same, but yet people still believe this bull.

To me this seems nearly like a religion. People are so bored with their life that they want to badly believe in such doomsday's predictions.

"The end of the world is nigh"
I remember seeing some religious nut with a sandwich board saying this 50 years ago
Yet this message has echoed down the century's
For some it was so but the world still kept turning

So what does it matter to NASA if the people want to believe 2012 is the end? Why go to great lengths to put out videos disputing the end of the world? I personally don't believe in the 2012 myth but it does make me wonder why NASA feels the need to address it.

reply to post by chrismicha77


They've actually explained this at least once. As the chief experts on all things astronomical they have received a lot of letters from people worried about 2012. Among these are letters from people who are so scared they are actually thinking about committing suicide. That is why they have worked so hard to dispel these 2012 claims. They have been trying to help people get over their fear. Whereas the people that most on ATS consider the good guys, the New Age authors and conspiracy theorists, have been unleashing a steady torrent of fear over the years just to line their pockets. It absolutely amazes me that the members of ATS don't realize that the people their willing to blindly follow are some of the biggest crooks and villains around.

reply to post by chrismicha77


well think about it, rememeber that cult that committed mass suicide a few years back because of that passing comet now that was just a cult of maybe 100 people, there are thousands if not millions of people who believe in the whole 2012 doomsday hype, that would be a huge tragedy if that many people killed themselves over a date that doesn't actually mean anything i think that is one reason they don't want to see people hurt themselves or others because of a date

personally i can't wait for it to be 2013 so we can all just forget about the 2012 hype and fearmongering

I wouldn't say that NASA lies to us, but they are scientists, and good science never jumps to conclusions or publishes sensationalism. People get upset that they are withholding information, but in reality they simply will not release anything until they are certain it is correct.

However, in regards to this particular article, they are wrong about at least one point:

"Their calendar does not end on December 21, 2012; it's just the end of the cycle and the beginning of a new one. It's just like on December 31, our calendar comes to an end, but a new calendar begins on January 1."

This quote is simply not true as far as I understand it...

Along with the Calendar we also have several Codices that have survived. A couple of those contain the predictions that went along with the calendar. The Mayans believed that when this cycle ends, and we are in line with the rest of the Universe, that this world will end. As far as I know, this is the end of the 4th repetition of the world according to their religion:

Fifth world
The Fifth World is the physical world in several Native American beliefs that center around a cyclical understanding of time. According to Maya mythology, the current world we inhabit is the "Fourth World". In these belief systems, time is cyclical, and the end of one world is the beginning of the next. The Maya calendar charts out this progression through astrology with some believing that the world will end sometime near the December solstice in 2012 although this has been denied by various Mayan groups, scholars and ancient inscriptions occasionally mention predicted future events or commemorations beyond 2012.
The Aztecs held similar beliefs, but they believed we are currently in the fifth world, and that it is the sixth world that is to arrive next.

The Paris Codex:

Paris Codex
The Paris Codex (also or formerly the Codex Peresianus) contains prophecies for tuns and katuns (see Maya Calendar), as well as a Maya zodiac, and is thus, in both respects, akin to the Books of Chilam Balam.

The Dresden Codex:

Dresden Codex
The Dresden Codex contains astronomical tables of outstanding accuracy. It is most famous for its Lunar Series and Venus table. The lunar series has intervals correlating with eclipses. The Venus Table correlates with the apparent movements of the planet. The codex also contains almanacs, astronomical and astrological tables, and ritual schedules. The specific numen references have to do with a 260-day ritual cycle divided up in several ways. The Dresden Codex also includes instructions concerning new-year ceremonies as well as descriptions of the Rain God's locations.

On the last page of the Dresden Codex is this picture:

This image supposedly represents the ending of this fourth world. The supposed translation for this is:

"The last page of the Dresden Codex shows the destruction of the world via water. Waves gush from the mouth of a celestial dragon. More flood waters pour from sun and moon symbols on the underside of the monster's body. An aged goddess also pours flood water onto the Earth. At the bottom of the picture crouches a ruler of the underworld. Above the picture, about half of the 15 glyphs have been destroyed, but a few of the remaining ones consistently refer to "Black Earth" or "Black on High"."

reply to post by defcon5


I understand why some people do not agree with NASA because of the way the do things, ive heard about the codices before but never really knew what they were talking about, the Dresden Codex says that this world will end in water,

what do you think that means, do you think anything will happen at the end of this cycle we are in?

I know it is tough to say honestly, no one really does know, I feel like NASA is really trying to help people not hurt themselves because I don't see anything coming of all the 2012 stuff.

recently or actually within the last year I have seen so many predictions saying that "Nibiru" will come, Comet Elenin isnt a comet but something else, NASA lies. Everything that was said about Elenin never came to be true which is was most people figured would happen. People believed something would happen and it never did, so just because people believe something will happen doesn't mean that it is actually true

reply to post by defcon5


The thing is these claims regarding a cataclysm after 13 baktun don't actually have any basis in Mayan iconagraphy or epigraphy. From what I can tell this claim comes from the merging of a number of Classic and post-Columbian sources. The only reference I can find to the end of the 13th baktun anywhere is Tortuguero Monument 6. This is a Classic period monument that discusses a religious ceremony that would occur on that day. Then there's the Popol Vuh. This is a post-Columbian text written after the Long Count fell out of use and was significantly influenced by the Christian beliefs of the Spanish (the same goes for the books of the Chilam Balam). This is the source for the claims regarding multiple worlds. Then you have the last page of the Dresden codex which simply depicts a flood. There is no date related to this drawing or anything to tie it to 2012.

I have tried to find more substantial evidence regarding the claims surrounding 2012 but have turned nothing up. I have even asked people of this site to provide even a single example of the Long Count ending after the 13th baktun but no one was able to provide one. The more I actually research this subject the more I realize how shoddy the research that produced these claims actually was.

Originally posted by caf1550
what do you think that means, do you think anything will happen at the end of this cycle we are in?

I have no idea what to believe. I do know that the Mayans are not the only ancient religion to believe that the world has ended and been re-created in the past. Even the Bible does not exclude this, and in fact I believe that it actually supports it. The creation of Genesis is actually talking about “this world”, yet the Earth was here before that in a destroyed state:

(Genesis- 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.)

Even the Fossil record seems to support this theory of destruction and creation:

Catastrophism
The leading scientific proponent of catastrophism in the early nineteenth century was the French anatomist and paleontologist Georges Cuvier. His motivation was to explain the patterns of extinction and faunal succession that he and others were observing in the fossil record.

Fossil Record
Georges Cuvier came to believe that most if not all the animal fossils he examined were remains of species that were now extinct. This led Cuvier to become an active proponent of the geological school of thought called catastrophism. Near the end of his 1796 paper on living and fossil elephants he said:
”All of these facts, consistent among themselves, and not opposed by any report, seem to me to prove the existence of a world previous to ours, destroyed by some kind of catastrophe.”

UC Berkeley: Tracking the Course of Evolution
However, there are time of extremely rapid extinction, just as there are times of extremely rapid evolutionary radiation.

We like to think that we are the top of the scientific pyramid, and our ancestors were stupid cavemen. However, our ancestors have been proven to have been every bit as cleaver and smart as we are. I would certainly not write off their observations and beliefs as being completely unfounded.

The fact of the matter, is that the hatred of all religion among many of the scientific community has blinded them to the truth on certain subjects. They deny what's obvious because they fear that it helps further the case for certain religious beliefs.

reply to post by defcon5

We like to think that we are the top of the scientific pyramid, and our ancestors were stupid cavemen. However, our ancestors have been proven to have been every bit as cleaver and smart as we are. I would certainly not write off their observations and beliefs as being completely unfounded.

i totally agree that our ancestors were much smarter then we make them out to be, just look at some of the things they built and some of the things they were able to create.

but do you think they were that clever that they could predict a catasprophe with the ending of their calender?

reply to post by defcon5


What you say makes sense to me
I think it is highly likely a prior civilization existed
To think ours is somehow exempt from destruction is foolhardy
As far as I know the Mayan long count starts again after 2012
As does Zep Tepi - The Egyptian Calender
21st Dec 2012 is not saying Boom bye bye world at all just the end of a cycle
And yes many charlatans have made money overlaying their version of events onto this date
BUT and it is a big BUT - Anyone can see and many do see the way the world is heading is self destructive and a change is needed so just because Doom predictions overlayed onto 2012 may be false - We should not think things are all fine and dandy and carry on on the path we are on.
These big cycles can be gone through smoothly depending on the way we are or rough depending on the way we are - It is down to the choices we have made and we still have a choice to change our self destructive ways.
If you want to merely rubbish any who feel a transition is necessary so be it but you are the real fools if you think all is well on planet Earth

reply to post by Xcalibur254
I am certainly no expert on the subject, but I have spent a bit of time among the American Indians. Many of their prophecies point to this time as the ending of “this world”. I know that some of the Indians here in Florida point to the destruction of the Everglades as the last significant event before the return of the “Creator”, or “Great Breath Giver”.

I believe that when you take these various beliefs of all the American and Mesoamerica Indians into account you find that the overall theme here is that we are entering a phase of destruction possibly followed by a period of creation of the “next” world.

Mesoamerican world tree
World trees are a prevalent motif occurring in the mythical cosmologies, creation accounts, and iconographies of the pre-Columbian cultures of Mesoamerica. In the Mesoamerican context, world trees embodied the four cardinal directions, which also serve to represent the fourfold nature of a central world tree, a symbolic axis mundi which connects the planes of the Underworld and the sky with that of the terrestrial realm.
…
The central world tree has also been interpreted as a representation of the band of the Milky Way.

So the alignment event of 2012, would in fact appear to have significant religious meaning to groups such as the Mayans. This is supposedly a period when the Earth is in a direct path intersecting the heavens and the underworld. If I understand their beliefs correctly, this then in turn opens the gates to the destruction of this world, and the creation of the next (if there is to be a next).

Originally posted by caf1550
but do you think they were that clever that they could predict a catasprophe with the ending of their calender?

If they had ancestors who survived such an event to pass along such wisdom to them, they would know to watch for the signs of it happening again. Another answer, the one that I personally choose being a religious sort, is that God sent advisers to man to teach them things beyond their ability to predict. Others call those advisers Aliens. Its simply a matter of perspective as to what you personally believe.

If you look at the similarities between beliefs and practices among isolated religions (the flood myths, head binding/elongation, exaggeration of the eyes, obsession with the night skies, and many more...), you can only come to two conclusions. Either they all stem from something older that spread out from a central point, or someone taught them what to believe.

Genesis 6:
1And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.

3And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.

4There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.

For many angels of God accompanied with women, and begat sons that proved unjust, and despisers of all that was good, on account of the confidence they had in their own strength; for the tradition is, that these men did what resembled the acts of those whom the Grecians call giants. - Flavius Josephus

For some reason our ancestors were obsessed with the stars. They went through a lot of effort to build colossal observatories that IMHO, have to be more then simply for tracking the planting seasons. In my opinion they were watching for something that they had been warned about.

K.I.S.S - keep it simple stupid

IMO some of the prophecies and theories of 2012 are blown way out of proportion and are figments of peoples imagination.

However, that being said we aren't all knowing beings, there is still an unknown out there in the universe and that "unknown" could have an effect on earth at any point no just 2012 and it could effect is in ways we never thought possible. We have pondered over the "lost knowledge" that ancient peoples seemed to posses that has gone astray over the years and perhaps there is some truths to this.

Trying not to go too far off topic, I think it's important people don't chance their mortgages or bills and decided to go free for all until dec 21st but as with any conspiracy there is always an air of uncertainty until the event or supposed has either happened or ceased to happen.

So back to the K.I.S.S principle - We are going to have to wait and see, either something will or won't happen but we can not predict.

(Deny Ignorance - the state or fact of being ignorant; lack of knowledge, learning, information, etc. / There are things we do not know of and we need to accept that)

reply to post by TheGreatest


Rather than think of something out there could effect the Earth - I think we should focus on closer to home and look
at how we effect the Earth.

reply to post by defcon5


The claim that the world has been recreated is not necessarily Mayan. It may be Aztec. The mixing of cultures is typical of New Age mistake. The same is seen when the Aztec sun calendar is shown when discussing the Mayan Long Count. Here a Mayan archaeologist suggests that there is no evidence of the ancient Maya believing in multiple creations.
haecceities.wordpress.com...

The fossil record does indicate that several large scale extinction occurred. This has nothing to do with the Mayan or Aztec claims. Neither group was aware of these extinctions.

It is a myth that scientists are not religious. Most are.