In the first half, journalist and author Earl Swift discussed the story of the final three Apollo moon missions (15, 16, and 17), and their use of the revolutionary Lunar Roving Vehicles, the engineers and astronauts who designed and operated them, and the scientific discoveries they enabled. While many remember the earlier Apollo missions, Swift argued that the later ones were set apart because of the increased time astronauts spent on the lunar surface and the longer distances they traveled via the rovers (they were able to explore miles away from the landing site). He described the rover as somewhat resembling a go-cart with two seats and a trunk in the back, and ingeniously, it was able to fold up in order to fit into the lunar module. The rover weighed less than 500 pounds and had a TV camera mounted on its nose.
Wernher von Braun had predicted vehicles on the moon as far back as 1952 in Collier's magazine, and he was instrumental in the rover's development. Swift was surprised by the breakneck pace of the rover's construction, and how engineers faced the possibility that the whole program might not survive long enough for them to finish (Apollo missions 18-20 were scuttled while they were still at work). In response to a caller, Swift addressed the moan landing hoax theory. Evidence that the missions were real comes from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (circling the moon since 2008)-- its high-resolution cameras captured the Apollo landing sites, the instruments and trash they left behind, and the rover parked nearby.
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In the latter half, eclectic witch Kat Eckhart and psychic medium Dan Eckhart talked about their work with seances, the occult, and spirit communication. The two worked with different methods for communicating with the spirit world, including magick techniques, before becoming mediums. In recent years, they started hosting seances focusing on removing the fear and misinformation associated with these kinds of events. They conduct clearing and protection rituals even before their guests arrive, and then once they do, they work with such tools as a pendulum and a spirit board for people to pose questions to the spirit realm. The sessions may include automatic writing and channeled messages-- the Eckharts receive and share such messages, and also invite the sitters to channel or connect with spirit directly.
During some of the sessions, Kat exhibits "spirit masking" such that her face takes on characteristics of a spirit she's channeling. Their seances are typically not conducted in total darkness, Kat explained, as this can be disorienting for participants-- rather, they use candlelight and red light. "I sometimes wonder if spirit co-creates with us," Dan mused. During the pandemic era, in Zoom and digital seances they led, there were weird moments with "indescribable shadows, blobs, and figures moving from Zoom window to Zoom window," almost as if they need to be seen as part of their existence, he said. Kat also spoke about the 'Death Positivity Movement.' It's a way to destigmatize the dying process, and to refrain from thinking of death "as a great fearful thing." During the last hour, they offered readings to callers.
News segment guests: Howard Bloom, Mish Shedlock