AS SEEN ON TV
Moonwalks
I had an “out of this world” conversation with space fanatic and ANC Dateline Philippines guest Dean Jorge Bocobo on the first moonwalker (who’s not Michael Jackson by the way).
It is the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 with Neil Armstrong at the helm of that mission and the world is celebrating advances in space.
“Armstrong, really set foot on lunar land”, attests Dean Bocobo (also an accomplished Physicist, a rabied Jose Rizal fan and a Facebooker among countless other things). He discredits conspiracy theories that moonwalk was fake.
“It did happen” Dean Bocobo quips.
“In fact if you laser beam on the moon’s surface a small mirror left by Armstrong and company, will beam it back to earth,” he dares, half jokingly.
“Really?” I asked, half seriously.
I’m good with moonwalk as I know it. No need for laser beams to refute the fact that mankind had made that giant step in 1969. Being a bit of a space fan myself, I am not about to poop on my own party by accepting that moon conquest was just cold war propaganda.
“The US had to outdo Russians who had already sent satellites into orbit”, Dean Bocobo explains, “and moon landing was the one feat that JFK thought could top the Russian satellites”. Literally. So some just found that too tall a tale.
The most outrageous stories were told during the cold war from secret subterranean spy tunnels from Russia to the US (v.v.) to aliens crashing in the Arizona desert. But moon landing as “just hype” is one wag I am not inclined to believe, for very humanitarian reasons.
Moon landing was a big step for man. It epitomizes the privileges of this generation that lofty dreams are reachable. Conquering the moon is a testament of what man can do.
Undeniably, moon landing is still the biggest achievement of the century although sadly, it is largely associated with just 3 astronauts.
“Did you know that there were 400,000 scientists and experts who contributed to the entire Apollo 11 mission?” Dean Bocobo speaks of moonwalk’s unsung heroes.
“And some of them were Filipinos!” he adds.
This country can really be… space savvy given the chance! RP does have its pool of scientists and renegade inventors who (sans the funding) can whip up interesting gizmos such as the Lunar Rover of Pinoy Space Junkman Eduardo San Juan.
“In fact during the reign of Ferdinand Marcos, the Philippines was poised to have its own space program,” Bocobo proudly said.
As a developing country in Southeast Asia in the 60’s RP had spare to spend on anything beyond bare essentials. Today we can’t even pull off Automated Elections!
“Election automation is our moon shot!” Dean Bocobo posts on his Facebook page.
Times have changed indeed (not just for the Philippines). With the financial crisis, war on terrorism and global warming, the race for space may take further side steps for “more earthly concerns”.
The end of the cold war may have also dampened extra terrestrial competition among super powers.
Bocobo hopes humankind will not lose view of space in favor of other some short sighted activities. We do have questions about the universe and man’s existence whose answers are just out there.
Agree. Nations and mankind can’t afford not to have passion for discovery.
“We have to have a moon shot where everyone sacrifices and contributes. It doesn’t have to be space. It has to be a conquest of inner space and ourselves, our frailties, our flaws. That will be the greatest triumph” Bocobo said.
So what moon do you wish to conquer?
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As a sidebar, moon landing is a personal tale retold again and again by my father when I was small. That story came with a sidebar on Gloria Diaz who won Miss Universe right about that time.
ANC Executive Producer Charlie Pontejos recalls, “People switched channels from Moon to Universe in those days”.
Not that Charlie was switching channels himself (he wasn’t born then) but yes, many Filipinos spoke of the moon-and-universe telecasts as the TV shows of a lifetime.
It was also an era of quotable quotes.
Neil Armstrong’s “One small step for man, one giant step for mankind” was born that year… so was Gloria Diaz’ words of wisdom on man’s aversion for space and pretty women.
“If a man on the moon would come down, how would you entertain him?” barks Miss Universe Host Bob Barker to the finalists.
“I guess since he’s been on the moon so long, he would enjoy anything that an ordinary man would,” was Gloria Diaz’ winning, (naughty) answer.
Were they that lonely?
“They were only gone for 4 days!” I recall Dean Bocobo saying.
I think enjoying the company of the most beautiful girl in the universe was farthest on the mind of Armstrong who was “love struck” by earth’s beauty as seen by man (for the first time) from the moon.
“…like looking at himself in the mirror” Dean Bocobo poeticizes.