Scroll down to read this post.

 

Readers!

 

The time has come for my annual short Thanksgiving/Christmas fund drive for Behind The Black. I must do this every year in order to make sure I have earned enough money to pay my bills.

 

For this two-week campaign, I am offering a special deal to encourage donations. Donations of $200 will get a free autographed copy of the new paperback edition of Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8, while donations of $250 will get a free autographed copy of the new hardback edition. If you desire a copy, make sure you provide me your address with your donation.

 

As I noted in July, the support of my readers through the years has given me the freedom and ability to analyze objectively the ongoing renaissance in space, as well as the cultural changes -- for good or ill -- that are happening across America. Fourteen years ago I wrote that SLS and Orion were a bad ideas, a waste of money, would be years behind schedule, and better replaced by commercial private enterprise. Only now does it appear that Washington might finally recognize this reality.

 

In 2020 when the world panicked over COVID I wrote that the panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Only in the past year have some of our so-called experts in the health field have begun to recognize these facts.

 

Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.

 

Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:

 

1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.

 

2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
 

3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:

 

4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
 
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652

 

You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.


Russian meteorologists predict very cold winter

Global warming? Russian meteorologists are predicting one of the coldest winters in centuries.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 

The print edition can be purchased at Amazon. from any other book seller, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

2 comments

  • I have recorded the appearance of the Sun for almost 8,300 days and the aurora from here in ND for 2,240 times, and I would not at all be surprised by a bitter winter here. Based on last year’s weather and the behavior of the Sun, I for certain expect a colder November and December here, and guaranteed a windier March, ’11 than last season. Also a better than even chance that next summer will be drier than this past one in this area. BUT the Sun is fickle these days too and can portend activity (or not) on its own accord.

  • ZZMike

    Reminds me of 2006:

    Great Russian freeze spreads west
    “Last Updated: Saturday, 21 January 2006, 12:54 GMT
    Severe cold weather gripping large parts of Russia has now spread west, causing chaos in Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic states and Scandinavia.

    Dozens have died of the cold, with temperatures as low as -33C recorded.

    The weather is the coldest to affect the country in more than 25 years.”

    Or 2005:

    Europe shivers in severe winter cold snap
    “Europe shivers in severe winter cold snap
    WARSAW (AFP) Jan 27, 2005
    In a ceremony marking the liberation 60 years ago of the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, Poland world leaders stood in biting cold and softly falling snow pleading for the horrors of the Holocaust never to be forgotten.

    Snow and sub-zero temperatures prevented new Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, who attended the Auschwitz ceremony, from flying to Brussels to introduce himself to European Union members. And the arrival in Poland of Russian President Vladimir Putin was delayed for nearly 20 hours due to bad weather.

    Road traffic all but stopped in central Croatia as snow depths reached 1.20 meters (around four feet), breaking a record dating to 1954.
    …”

    This is the one I was looking for:
    Mongolia: 4.5 million livestock perish in drought and severe winter
    “Ulaanbaatar : Mongolia | Mar 29, 2010
    About one-tenth of Mongolia’s livestock, an estimated 4.5 million animals, have perished leaving herders desperate for food and other emergency relief.
    …”

    Mongolian dzud kills millions of domestic animals
    Posted on April 26, 2010
    The last dzud in 2001 killed about 11 million animals. However, experts estimate this dzud will be worse.

    “I have been a herder since 1960 and have never seen a winter as cold as this one,” said Mr. A. Lkhagvasurn….”

    I’m pretty sure there are no weather monitoring stations in Mongolia.

Readers: the rules for commenting!

 

No registration is required. I welcome all opinions, even those that strongly criticize my commentary.

 

However, name-calling and obscenities will not be tolerated. First time offenders who are new to the site will be warned. Second time offenders or first time offenders who have been here awhile will be suspended for a week. After that, I will ban you. Period.

 

Note also that first time commenters as well as any comment with more than one link will be placed in moderation for my approval. Be patient, I will get to it.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *