Posted on 09/02/2025 4:40:08 AM PDT by daniel1212
My name is Joe Owen. I head up the worldwide languages ministry at Answers in Genesis.
That's Charlie Duke. There were nine missions to the moon. I worked on five of them. In 1978, I became a born again Christian.
I came to faith on January 19, 1988. I was selected by NASA in 1996, and I flew four times—once on the space shuttle going to the space station and then three expeditions, each about six months long.
Many times, I am introduced as an astronaut, but if I were to describe myself, I certainly wouldn't call myself an astronaut, because the way I see myself is as a wretched sinner who is saved by grace. Second from being a wretched sinner saved by grace, I consider myself a naval aviator.
Barry and I actually shared a little bit of time in space—his first flight. He launched on the space shuttle STS 129 while I was on an expedition on the space station. So, he brought me fresh food, and there you go.
We had a great time.
He allowed us into his home because he was living there, of course, and we were just visiting. But it was a great experience. Jeff, at one point you had the most days in space. It's over 500 days, correct?
Yeah, I think they say 534 days.
And now, Butch, you're getting up there. You're at 446 total days, but also, you just came back from, as many people know, a mission that went longer than planned. Was it 286 days with the Starliner launch? So, I have three very interesting fellas in front of me with perspectives that a lot of us don't have. What is the wow moment?
The biggest wow for me is the grandeur of this place that we call home, which God created and uniquely provisioned for our habitation—we call it Earth. Orbiting the Earth 16 times a day for a year and a half, studying the surface of the Earth, and taking in all of the details you can see from that vantage point was the most spectacular part of the experience for me.
As soon as I got to space, the engines on the space shuttle cut off. We separated from the external tank. I felt weightlessness for the first time. There were jets in the nose of the space shuttle that were blasting orange bursts right up in front of me. I could hear it—little explosions at my feet. Boom. Boom. One of my crewmates levitated up from the mid deck. He didn’t climb the ladder, he just levitated up. I'd seen it on video, but never with my own eyes. It was the strangest sight—just floating up from below. When the shuttle separated from the external tank, water droplets on the tank turned to ice. Thousands of ice crystals floated outside the window, illuminated by the sun. It looked like glistening diamonds—thousands of them outside the window. Orange blast. Boom. Boom. Boom. I felt weightless. Still strapped in, my crewmates levitating everywhere. And I thought, “Wow, Lord. How did I get here? How did I get to this point where I am the guy in this seat and all this is taking place?” That was a pretty wild moment.
I think one of the most moving times of my flight was when we went into orbit around the moon and came around from the backside; we had Earthrise for the first time. Honestly, my first thought was, “We are a long way from home. I hope this thing holds together.” But then the beauty of it hit: that vision of Earth. It’s a beautiful planet. You don’t see any evidence of civilization, just that jewel suspended in the blackness of space. Vividly impressed in my mind still today.
General, when you say that, I think—wow, that vantage point of our planet from the backside of the moon, only 24 individuals have experienced that. You were one of them. That’s very special—a gift from the Lord not many people have had.
I can’t say at that point I recalled the Apollo 8 Christmas Eve broadcast. Bill Anders took that picture of Earth coming up and they started reading from Genesis: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." I got back and looked in the scriptures and it says, "When God made the earth, he suspended it upon nothing." That’s exactly what it looks like.
The three of you, in your wow moments, have not spoken about what everyone else mentions. When we ask an astronaut, we ask about the stars in the distance. All three of you have focused on Earth. I think that points again to our planet being where those made in the image of God are—the stewards and recipients of the gospel. Jesus came to this earth.
One of my favorite themes from scripture: when we think about the works of God, we think of creation, redemption, His provision and sustaining creation, but sometimes forget His work as governor and providence.
I'll echo that. He’s absolutely right. This amazing created globe that Isaiah tells us the Lord created to be inhabited—you can see that from space. It's a demonstration of God's providential care for each of us.
Everywhere I go, General, they ask: “The moon landings never happened, right?” Some people say it’s hard to believe they were fake. I say it’s hard to believe they were real. The moon landing—I just can't get behind it. I can’t believe it happened. There’s a bunch of weird theories.
It's regrettable that people believe 400,000 people supported the moon program and could all be part of a conspiracy. People believe that for strange reasons. But we know, of course, you went. There’s no way we would all stand here, professing our faith in Jesus Christ, and boldface lie to everyone—plus maintain that secret for 55 years.
The evidence is overwhelming. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has taken pictures of every Apollo landing site—there it is! Some say that's part of the conspiracy, too.
Charlie, describe what it’s like to hop around on the moon in a heavy suit at one-sixth gravity.
Down here, with all my gear on, I weighed 363 pounds. Up on the moon, 60 pounds. So you had this bounciness. Boy, was that fun. But you had to bend over to keep your center of gravity over your feet, or you’d tilt backward or fall forward. It was easy once we got used to it and how to move around the surface. John and I had a rover, so we didn’t walk far but drove 17 miles. I fell down a couple times while working on an experiment.
So now I'm flat on my face on the moon, and John's off somewhere busy. So I started a series of push-ups—rocked up on my feet and stood up. "How'd you like that?" "Ah, beautiful maneuver there, Charlie."
I felt right at home on the moon. The beauty—the rolling hills, craters, mountains, the clear horizon—no atmosphere, so you see the sharp line between black space and the gray moon. We had so much fun, I didn’t want to come back. “Come on, Houston, give us two more hours.” "Get in the spacecraft, guys." Our last hour on the moon was moving for me. I brought a picture of my family, dropped it on the moon. I thank God, looking back, for His providence, giving me that opportunity.
The general term is "spacewalk," but truly, of the three of us, only one walked on the moon. Jeff and I "spacehanded" on the space station, climbing hand over hand outside the station for nearly seven hours. It was the hardest thing we did—physically and mentally—but also the most rewarding.
This flat earth movement is gaining popularity, which surprises me. Of course, the earth is spherical. When I first heard about the flat earth movement in 2016, I thought it was satire. When I got back, I realized it was a new movement. Whenever I speak, this question comes up. Usually, someone knows a flat-earther. There's no logic to the argument. I've given up trying to argue logically. It's utter foolishness. It’s becoming more concerning: If you can believe that, you could be led astray about the truth of Scripture. It’s a dangerous heretical line of thinking.
You can look at the pictures we took of the earth—it’s round. No question. How can you defend a flat earth?
"How can you believe in the Bible and science? Aren’t those contradictory?" The true understanding of science is only understood through the biblical lens. During the age of science—Kepler, Newton, Maxwell—all were believers, driven to scientific endeavor by faith in a God of order. There's a mathematical, chemical, physical order in creation that makes science possible. We bear the image of God, the Creator; we are creative. In Genesis 1, God says to Adam, “Subdue the earth, have dominion.” Scientific endeavor, rightly understood, is subduing God’s provision.
Meanwhile, during the same era, you can see the evolution of evolutionary thought: what became known as Darwinian theory. Some, like Huxley, hated the church and even acknowledged there was little genuine science in Darwin’s work.
When people ask how the Bible and science fit, I point to Matthew 24—‘Be not deceived.’ Saying Bible and science are at odds is a deception. The Bible is absolutely true: inerrant, infallible, sufficient for all we need. It isn’t a science book, but where it speaks to science, it’s accurate, 100%. To say otherwise is heretical. Except for miracles, the Bible aligns 100% with science.
Science increasingly proves that life is not an accident: the genome, the helixes, are mathematically impossible by chance. I was a big evolutionist; that’s what NASA taught me. They called the moon rock I brought back four billion years old. They say it’s the oldest rock on earth that John and I picked up. Well, it might be the oldest, but it’s not four billion years old—that’s not what the Bible says. I believe scripture.
Sorry to bring such a philosophical, theological question at the end, but do astronauts get to keep their space suits?
No. Some keep gloves, like maybe Jeff has his Russian space suit gloves, I did not keep mine. Some keep something like that, but that’s about it. Russians have a tradition of giving gloves after a spacewalk.
Did you get to keep any of your suit?
Me? No. I wasn’t allowed to keep any of the suit. I kept some tools from the moon, and all the checklists. No moon rocks—they wouldn’t let us. You’d go to jail for a rock!
The first pix looks doctored. Could be a reconstruction from one of sun-synchronous polar orbiters. My guess is a morning orbit with the reconstruction centered over Mexico. Could you provide the source of your 2012 pix?
The second pix is the infamous backward SEX pix.
Second pix: A view of the entire sunlit side of Earth from one million miles away, taken on July 6, 2015, was the first image from the Deep Space Climate Observatory.
A complex of thunderstorms over the eastern tropical Pacific can be seen and is a common occurrence in the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).
An inverted perverted rendering of the ITCZ reveals the word “sex.” Whether the rendering was intentional or an artifact is undetermined. The image was a breakthrough in CCD camera technology.
You should tell NASA what you think of THEIR pix, not me.
Here’s a realtime loop of the Earth from GOES-19, soon to be re-designated GOES East. This is a view from 22,236 miles above. Check it out.
GOES-19 Full Disk - GeoColor
https://www.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES/fulldisk_band.php?sat=G19&band=GEOCOLOR&length=36&dim=undefined
https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/618486main_earth_full.jpg?w=1041
Which you can find by right clicking the image and then picking properties...just like I told you to do.
Laziness!
From the web site:
“Lighted areas shown in nighttime images are not real-time depictions of city lights. The layer is derived from a compilation of JPSS VIIRS Day Night Band images and is included for orientation purposes.”
Presumably we are supposed to believe that the rest of the “images” have not been tampered with in any way.
Got it.
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Definition of image:
“a representation of the external form of a person or thing in art”
Evolution is not like the Global Warming Hoax. It has plenty of evidence . The people who deny it think they are upholding God's word and will virtue signal until the end of time. What shows more commitment, putting everything together in 7 days, or after flashing the Universe into existence then keeping a close watch over it for 13 billion years?
Distance to Horizon calculator:
https://www.omnicalculator.com/physics/distance-to-horizon
I once calculated the formula for this and then tested it from the Handcock Tower in Chicago. Sure enough Island’s in Lake Michigan which you could not see from the shore you could see from the top of the tower.
Btw—when NOAA lies to you and tells you on their web page they are lying to you that is called...
The Revelation of the Method.
The best explanation I have seen on Revelation of the Method:
“”Revelation of the Method” is a concept in occult practices that suggests a requirement for the hidden powers to reveal their actions to the public, even if in a disguised or symbolic form. This revelation serves several purposes:
Moral and Cosmic Balance: By revealing their methods, these powers believe they balance the cosmic scales. It’s thought to be a way to avoid karmic repercussions by providing the public with an opportunity to know and potentially resist.
Desensitization: Repeated exposure to these revelations, often through media, literature, or symbolic representations, is believed to desensitise the public. This gradual exposure makes the public more accepting of the hidden powers’ actions and less likely to resist or recognise them as malevolent.
Psychological Manipulation: The revelation is also considered a form of psychological manipulation, creating a sense of inevitability and powerlessness among the general population. By showing their hand, the hidden powers foster a belief that their control is so absolute that they can flaunt it without fear of opposition.
Occult Tradition: In the context of occult practices, revealing the method aligns with certain esoteric traditions that value the dissemination of hidden knowledge, albeit in a coded or symbolic manner. This serves both as a rite and a way to communicate with those “in the know.””
https://x.com/TheProjectUnity/status/1816998609054785769
If you believe their lies after they tell you they are lying they view that as “consent” and justification for continuing to lie to you.
In approximately 240 BCE, the Greek scholar Eratosthenes calculated the circumference of the Earth to be about 25,000 miles a figure remarkably close to the modern measurement. Do you actually believe in a flat Earth or do you just enjoy yanking people's chain?
Neither do your replies.
Simply amazing. You complain about how something looks doctored and you want me to look at something else from the people you believed doctored it.
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You posted two pictures of the Earth from space. I identified the source for the second pix (2015). I was not familiar with the first pix (2012) and asked you for your source, where you got the pix. You did not provide an answer.
You misinterpreted what I said about the first pix being doctored. The continent of North America seemed out of proportion compared with South America. I offered a possible source, an image from a polar orbiter centered over Mexico. You did not provide an answer to my question. Instead, you try to misrepresent what I said. But I forgot, you believe that everything from NASA is wrong. You are being intellectually dishonest.
Tell me...what is the curvature at 3 miles? Still waiting.
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Why are you arguing about the curvature of the Earth when you believe that the Earth is flat? Your estimate using a parabola is approximate for three miles but quickly loses accuracy for longer distances.
For celestial mechanics, trying to fit a parabola to a circle does not provide the precision for scientific calculations.
You can find several sources for the answer to your question. I looked up one source for you. [1]
From the web site:
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What website? Please provide the website and maybe we can have an open and honest discussion. I think you are being intellectually dishonest. Prove me wrong, provide the source (website).
The website is from your post 143.
Btw—when NOAA lies to you and tells you on their web page they are lying to you that is called... The Revelation of the Method.
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Yes, there are presentations at NOAA that I disagree with, especially about anthropogenic climate change. But the forecasting at the National Weather Service (NWS) is useful. We should use critical thinking skills when deciding what is useful and what is not. The GOES website is not fake or demonic. What you presented here sounds like something out of the Middle Ages, perhaps a Monty Python skit. How do you know she’s a witch?
The GOES East (formerly known as GOES-16, now GOES-19) satellite offers superior temporal (30 seconds) and spatial (0.5 km) resolution with 16 channels (spectral bands) using the ABI imager. GOES East transmits petabytes per hour of data that needs processing before being published.
Blending and binary stitching of imagery is an essential part of the rendering process, the seamless transition from daytime visible to nighttime infrared, for example. GeoColor is my favorite rendering.
They are lying to you.
Apparently you like it when they lie to you.
Got it.
The website is from your post 143.
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This website?
https://www.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES/fulldisk_band.php?sat=G19&band=GEOCOLOR&length=12
So, what is wrong with this website?
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