I think 'Dark Ages' began shortly after Trojan World War and has been ascendant throughout world for last 3,000 years. It is time to re-evaluate our collective behavior and value systems to point where we realize 'cave men' of egalitarian roots of mankind when women were equal of men, were actually our ethical superior. It is time to throw off shackles of ego that made Euro-centric or other Scales of Nature and historical 'realities'. Is it time to recognize cycles of human existence have included those who were even more advanced than we are today? Technologically, it is possible, and we have already touched upon why we think it is no more absurd to suggest this than paradigm's insistence on our ascendant science that is often proven wrong. We've touched upon isolated and highly certain DNA of Mungo Man, who is not related to any others on earth among human family today. Where did they come from, or go to? Why did they teach us and then leave us to be lead along this path of misogynistic war and prejudice? Was Hobbit that is shown on nearby Flores Island as much capable of modern thought as a recent research report indicates? (1)

With encroachment of light pollution across globe, pristine skies of my youth have been gradually fading behind yellow-orange glow of ever more street lamps. Where stars once twinkled on a velvet background, only a few hardy garnets of light now poke through misty haze and background neon glow. But Moon is always there, outshining any murk and pollution we cough up into sky.

It's a shame we don't treat sky with same respect we give our national parks. After all, sky belongs to all of us. How many of us really appreciate people throwing garbage into our back yards or littering our parks. Why should we allow others to pollute our natural resources?

These days, I'm getting into lunar photography with digital cameras and more sophisticated CCD cameras. I've posted a few of my images on my website if you'd like to see them. I still find a night under stars with a partially lit Moon high in sky a relaxing and humbling pursuit. The Moon is only object in solar system where we can see real surface detail. I'm so passionate about it that I also wrote an ebook called Observing Moon (http://www.nightskyobserver.com/Observing-The-Moon-eBook.htm).

Growing up during Apollo era, I have to say that those missions played a great part in spurring on my interest in moon. My interest is alive and well and extending in other directions (more on that another time). I hope yours is too.

Onward and upward, as they say!

Gary Nugent has spent more years than he cares to remember pursuing astronomy as a hobby. He runs a number of astronomy based based sites: Night Sky Observer: http://www.nightskyobserver.com The Moon This Month: http://www.nightskyobserver.com/The-Moon-This-Month.htm LunarPhase Pro: http://www.lunarphasepro.com "Photon" Astronomy Ezine: http://www.photonezine.com