The Moon, looking at it and visiting it

Moonlight reflecting on the placid waters of Porto Rafti bay.

The Moon’s dominance in the night sky and its regular cycle of phases had profound influence in human art, mythology, calendar and religions. Gravitational forces from the Moon and the Sun are causing the tides.  Tides are more pronounced in big bodies of water and are very high when the Sun and the Moon are in alignment.  The Moon is in synchronous rotation with the Earth, which results in always keeping the same side facing us on planet Earth.

Yuri Gagarin was the first human to journey into outer space, on April 12, 1961.  Gagarin accomplishment made him an international celebrity, and a Hero of the Soviet Union.  He died in 1968 when the MIG-15 jet he was piloting crashed. 

John Glenn, Jr. became the first American to orbit the Earth on February 20, 1962.   After he retired from NASA he was elected in the U.S. Senate representing the State of Ohio.  Senator Glenn became the oldest astronaut, when at age 77, flew on space shuttle Discovery.

Neil Armstrong was the first human to walk on the Moon.  He made his first space flight, as command pilot of Gemini 8, in 1966.  Armstrong's second and last spaceflight was as mission commander of the Apollo 11 moon landing, on July 20, 1969. When he stepped on the lunar surface he uttered the famous line ”that’s one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind”.  Many listeners at the time believed he left out the “a”. In recent years researchers at Michigan State and Ohio State Universities analyzed the recording of the famous quote and provided evidence that he said it.   Upon retiring from NASA in 1979 he became a professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Cincinnati.   Armstrong was an unassuming man and lived quietly on his farm in Lebanon, Ohio.

The Goddess, the Queen and the Plant

Artemis (Greek: Ἄρτεμις) was the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and the twin sister of Apollo. She was the goddess of hunt, animals, childbirth and virginity.  

Artemis name could be related to Bear (Greek:  Αρκτος), supported by the bear cult of the goddess in Attica where a sanctuary was established in Brauron (Greek: Βραυρων) since Iphigenia’s return from the land of Taurus. 

Many gods and men were attracted to Artemis, but only her hunting companion, Orion, won her heart.  A scorpion sent by Apollo, who wanted to protect his sister honor killed Orion, a giant and a legendary hunter.  Apollo to appease his bereaving sister threw Orion and his dog to heaven.  Orion became the most beautiful constellation and Sirius the brightest star in the winter sky of the northern hemisphere.  There are many myths about Artemis and the bear; such as she became enraged when Callisto, one of her nymphs who allowed Zeus to seduce her and bear him a son, Arcas, the ancestor of Arcadians.  Artemis changed her into a bear then shot and killed her. As Orion, she was sent up to the heavens, and became the constellation of the Great Bear (Ursa Major) commonly known as the Big Dipper.  In an another myth, Artemis sent a wild boar to kill Adonis as punishment for his hubristic boast that he was a better hunter than she.

Artemisia I (Greek: Ἀρτεμισία) was queen of Halicarnassus in Asia Minor, who allied and fought for Xerxes I, during the second Persian invasion of Greece.  She personally commanded her fleet at the naval battles at Artemisium and allegedly was the admiral of the Persian fleet at Salamis in 480 BC.  Herodotus, states that she was the only female commander on either side and praises her decisiveness, intelligence, and courage.  The Great King Xerxes during the battle of Salamis said that if his men fought like Artemisia, a woman, no army could stand in his way. 

Artemisia is a large, diverse group of plants of the daisy family of Asteraceae.  Artemisia species grow in temperate climates, usually in dry or semiarid habitats. Notable species include A. annua (sagewort), A. vulgaris (mugwort), A. tridentata (big sagebrush), A. absinthum (wormwood), A. dracunculus (tarragon).  Most species have strong aromas and bitter tastes.  Artemisin a compound found in A. Annua has been used for medicinal purposes since the time of Hippocrates.  Treatments containing artemisinin-combination therapies are used in malaria while a recent study reports potential therapeutic effects in breast cancer.