9.5 – THE VISIONARIES (6.10.16)

TSIOLKOVSKY & VON BRAUN ^[6e]

Kaluga, Russia. December, 1903. Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky publishes the article, “Exploration of Outer Space by Means of Rocket Devices.” Most scientists of the time consider the topic of space exploration highly speculative and even far-fetched, considering the Wright Brothers had just achieved the first powered flight that same month. But many of the major points contained in Tsiolkovsky’s article, such as the proposal that the speed required for orbit around the Earth is five miles per second and that this could be achieved by means of a multistage rocket, would be proven to be incredibly accurate.

“He’s a fascinating character and the father of Soviet rocketry, who actually designed the rockets that put the first man into space, that put the first dog into space, that launched Sputnik, the first satellite, into space in 1957.” – Andrew Jenks, Ph.D. (Prof. of History, Cal State Long Beach)

Tsiolkovsky’s main source of inspiration was his friend and mentor, Nikolai Fyodorov, a Russian Orthodox Christian philosopher. Fyodorov was one of the founders of “cosmism,” which was a precursor to Ancient Astronaut Theory.

“The cosmists began with Nikolai Fyodorov in the 1870s and 1880s, and they believed that human civilization actually had origins in outer space and that it was our destiny as human beings to move back into space, and we would go back to our origins from whence we came.” – Andrew Jenks, Ph.D. (Prof. of History, Cal State Long Beach)

Like Fyodorov, Tsiolkovsky came to be a cosmist himself. And he not only inspired Soviet rocket scientists but also the genius responsible for putting the first man on the Moon, Wernher von Braun.

Germany. May 1945. After six years of the deadliest warfare the world has ever seen, the Nazis surrender to the Allied Powers. Germany’s top rocket scientist, Wernher von Braun, predicted the defeat months earlier and, by deceiving his superiors, has managed to move his team of scientists south into Austria to surrender to the American forces. Acquiring von Braun was considered a major coup by the United States. His work in rocketry was so important that the Soviets scoured his former headquarters at Peenemunde Army Research Center in search of any information he may have left behind. What they discovered were the writings of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and found that almost every page was embellished by von Braun’s comments and notes.

“Wernher von Braun was heavily influenced by Tsiolkovsky. Tsiolkovsky himself had this concept of human beings being birthed in the stars. And if you really think about it, could it be that these scientists coming out of Russia had some kind of advanced knowledge? Could they have been communicating with some form of advanced extraterrestrial intelligence that was influencing the space race and influencing this push to get humanity to go back to the stars?” – David Whitehead (Talk Radio Personality, “The Truth Warrior” / Truth Frequency Radio)

As a young boy, Wernher von Braun was fascinated with the science fiction of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells and was convinced that he could make their visions of space travel a reality, even going so far as to tell his mother that he would build a machine that would take man to the Moon. But when von Braun actually achieved this in 1969, it was such an extraordinary technological leap, that some people believed, like Tsiolkovsky, he too was guided by extraterrestrial beings.

“Wernher von Braun was utterly captivated by the idea that we belong in the stars. It’s as if the Earth is a seed, and if that seed never germinates, then it could just die. We need to go out into space. And that vision of a new tomorrow is what fueled him to want to succeed even further. That leads me to suggest the possibility that some sort of extraterrestrial contact might have happened with Wernher von Braun. Something or someone might have reached him and saw where we needed to go as a civilization and gave him the tools and the insights that he needed to be able to build our way out into space.” – David Wilcock (Author/Filmmaker), (Author, The Source Field Investigations), (The Synchronicity Key)

Is it possible, as Ancient Astronaut Theorists suggest, that Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and Wernher von Braun were aided by extraterrestrial beings? And if so, why? Perhaps the answer can be found by examining predictions not of science, but of science fiction.

Previous: Turing & von Neumann | Next: Science Fiction & Fact

References:

^[1] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: Season 9. [DVD Back Cover]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™.

^[2] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.1 – Pyramids of Antarctica. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[3] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.2 – Destination Mars. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[4] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.3 – The Next Humans. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[5] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.4 – The New Evidence. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

[6] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9. [6a] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Introduction]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6b] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Steve Jobs]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6c] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Srinivasa Ramanujan]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6d] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Turing & Von Neumann]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6e] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Tsiolkovsky & Von Braun]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6f] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Science Fiction & Fact]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™. [6g] Prometheus Entertainment. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.5 – The Visionaries. [DVD Footage: Predetermined Master Plan]. Los Angeles, CA: A&E Networks, LLC / History™.

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^[8] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.7 – The Wisdom Keepers. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[9] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.8 – The Mysterious Nine. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[10] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.9 – The Hidden Empire. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[11] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.10 – The Prototypes. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[12] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.11 – Space Station Moon. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[13] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.12 – Russia’s Secret Files. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[14] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.13 – Beyond Roswell. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[15] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.14 – The Returned. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.

^[16] History™. (2016). Ancient Aliens: 9.15 – Shiva the Destroyer. [Episode Description]. Retrieved: May 1, 2016, from http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens/season-9.