ANCIENT SKIES

Magazine Overview

Title: ANCIENT SKIES
Issue: Volume 18, Number 4
Date: September-October, 1991
Publisher: ANCIENT ASTRONAUT SOCIETY
Country: USA
Theme: Ancient Astronauts, Ancient Knowledge, Astronomy, Mathematics, Mysterious Artifacts

This issue of "Ancient Skies" presents a collection of articles exploring the intersection of ancient history, scientific knowledge, and the possibility of extraterrestrial influence. The central piece is an extensive article by Maurice Chatelain, a former NASA scientist and designer of the Apollo spacecraft, who argues passionately for the existence of ancient astronauts and their role in shaping human civilization.

Our Ancestors' Incredible Scientific Knowledge by Maurice Chatelain

Chatelain begins by rejecting both the biblical creation myth and the theory of evolution. Instead, he posits that multiple advanced human civilizations have been destroyed by natural cataclysms. Drawing on Sumerian cuneiform tablets, he believes that extraterrestrial astronauts, referred to as 'Elohim' or 'Nefilim,' landed on Earth thousands of years ago and, through insemination and genetic mutation, transformed primitive humanoids into intelligent beings. These ancient humans then worshipped the astronauts as gods.

Chatelain, who has authored nine books on the subject, asserts that his forty years of research, since coming to the US to work on space programs, have focused on demonstrating the incredible scientific knowledge of our ancestors, which he contrasts with the perceived ignorance of religious leaders.

I. Ancient Astronomers

Chatelain contends that prehistoric ancestors possessed advanced astronomical and mathematical knowledge. He claims they knew the Earth's circumference and diameter, the value of Pi (22/7), and the metric system, which he believes was not invented by Egyptians but given to them by ancient astronauts. He highlights the use of various ancient units of measurement, such as feet, cubits, and stadia, which were exact fractions of the Earth's polar circumference. He provides examples, such as the Great Pyramid of Cheops and the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan, Mexico, whose dimensions he relates to ancient astronomical calculations and measurements, suggesting a common origin possibly linked to ancient astronauts who may have visited Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Polynesia.

He further discusses the 'megalithic yard' used in Stonehenge, England, and its presence in ancient sites in Greece, Egypt, the Indus Valley, China, and Mexico, reinforcing the idea of a shared, advanced knowledge base.

Chatelain then delves into the recent discovery that Egyptian astronomers had computed the distances from the Sun and orbital velocities of the first six planets. He argues that this knowledge, far beyond what was expected for ancient peoples, was likely derived from ancient astronauts. He presents calculations based on the relative sidereal revolution periods of the planets, showing how Egyptian astronomers could have accurately determined these values, which closely match modern astronomical computations.

II. The Marduk Mystery

This section explores the Sumerian belief in a large planet called NIBIRU (or MARDUK by the Babylonians) with an average orbital period of 3600 years. According to Sumerian texts, this planet caused terrible cataclysms on Earth during its passages near the Sun. The article discusses Zecharia Sitchin's interpretation of these texts and the theory that Marduk collided with and destroyed a planet named TIAMAT.

Thomas Van Flandern, an astronomer, is credited with a significant discovery: by running the orbits of asteroids and comets backward in time, he calculated that the explosion of Tiamat occurred approximately ten million years ago. This finding, which supports the Sumerian account, was reportedly ignored by official scientists due to political and religious censorship.

Sitchin's book, "The 12th Planet," suggests that Marduk's catastrophic passages occurred around 11,000 BC, 7,400 BC, and 3,800 BC. Chatelain also explores the possibility of a 1800-year orbital period for Marduk, suggesting that if it passed between Mars and Jupiter, it might have escaped the solar system and will not return.

III. The Cow Yard

Chatelain expresses his preference for the metric system, which he believes is more practical and easier to compare with ancient measuring systems. He discusses an article titled "The Cow Yard," which demonstrated the compatibility of the metric system with ancient measurements. The article noted that British cows, when returning to their stables, left a regular pattern of parallel ridges, averaging 2.43 feet (740 mm), which was termed a "Cow Yard."

Chatelain investigated this in Normandy, France, and found similar intervals. He discovered that the Cow Yard was related to the Earth's polar circumference, being 1/54,000,000 of it. He also found connections to the Egyptian 'REMEN' unit and other ancient measurement systems, including those used in Roman temples and various historical units like French Aunes, Megalithic Yards, and Babylonian cubits.

IV. More on the 76 UFO Landing Sites in France

This section addresses reader requests for more information on calculations related to 76 UFO landing sites in France, previously discussed in "Ancient Skies 18:1." The article provides the formula for calculating the shortest angular distance between two points on Earth using latitude and longitude. It then applies this formula to a French triangle formed by points 1, 33, and 54, calculating the angular distances and demonstrating that this triangle is isosceles. The article also mentions the formula for calculating the number of triangles that can be formed from a given number of points (70,300 triangles from 76 points) and lists the decimal coordinates for the 76 French landing sites.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue are the profound scientific and mathematical knowledge possessed by ancient civilizations, the potential influence of extraterrestrial visitors on human history, and the exploration of mysterious astronomical phenomena like the planet Marduk. The editorial stance, as represented by Maurice Chatelain's article, strongly supports the ancient astronaut theory, presenting it as a more plausible explanation for ancient achievements than conventional historical or scientific models. The magazine actively promotes research and discussion within the ancient astronaut community, as evidenced by the "Coming Events" section and the society's founding anniversary.