Space case

In July of 1969, kids all across the country sat in front of their television sets with a glass of Tang and watched as Neil Armstrong took "one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind." It must have been so surreal and captivating. It was a shining moment for our country. NASA had come through - America was the first country to make it to the moon. Kids all across the country wanted to be astronauts when they grew up.

Since then, NASA has lost some of it's luster. Botched missions and mismanagement have made the once beloved organization irrelevant. Tang sales have severely suffered. Even Hollywood has given up on NASA; instead of making movies where NASA shines like Apollo 13 and Space Cowboys, the newest space film, The Astronaut Farmer, depicts NASA as a villains trying to stop Billy Bob Thornton from building his own rocket.

Now that NASA is planning a return trip to the moon, it is the perfect time to revisit that footage of Neil Armstrong stepping off the Apollo 11 and stepping onto the surface of the moon. Children of the 60s could easily go on YouTube and watch that same grainy footage the saw that summer in hopes of recapturing some of their childhood glee. However, something might be lost on the children of today, who were raised on CGI graphics and high definition television screens.

But what if, instead of the grainy, choppy footage that was broadcast in 1969, there was a crisp, clear video that clearly captured the moment? Even kids today might be impressed by that. Hell, they might even start drinking Tang again.

Well, it turns out there is a clearer copy of Neil Armstrong's walk across the moon - or, at least there was. Only a handful of people have ever seen it, but a clear copy of the moonwalk does exist. The problem is, NASA can't seem to find the footage.

"We're doing a kind of massive tape and document search that's never been done before," NASA engineer Richard Nafzger told The Washington Post. "We might discover the tapes tomorrow, or we might reach a point where we have to say we can't go any further. Right now, I would have to tell you their fate is pretty much a mystery."

No one knows where the tapes might be. Nafzger and others spent weeks searching weeks the National Records Center, but came up empty handed. They aren't even sure if the tapes are there or if they were sent off somewhere else. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that the chances of finding the tapes aren't good.

Of course, this also adds fuel to all the conspiracy theorists out there who will probably argue that the tapes were destroyed by the government because the high quality version made it clear that the whole thing was filmed in a Hollywood studio. The clear footage probably reveals deli trays and a group of teamsters in the background.

Really, it doesn't matter what really happened to the tapes. All the matters is that they are missing and NASA once again missed a chance to be relevant. I'd feel bad for them, but like most people of my generation, I have a short attention span, so I've already forgotten about them and moved on to someone who is actually doing something cool and relevant with advanced technology ...

I'm talking about Rafi Yoeli of Israel, who might actually make one of my dreams come true. Yoeli is working on making a flying car. He has already gotten one vehicle about three feet off of the ground and by 2010 he hopes to produce a marketable version of his X-Hawk flying car. Textron Inc.'s Bell Helicopters has taken an interest in the project.

The hope is to have the X-Hawk replaces helicopters in urban environments. Unlike a helicopter, the X-Hawk has no exposed rotors, so the hope is that it would be just as effective as a helicopter, without the danger of accidentally getting your head chopped off by the blades.

But, let's be honest - while it's cool that the X-Hawk may be a safer alternative to helicopters, it's only a matter of time before a wise entrepreneur makes these flying cars available to the public. Because, while my generation wasn't alive to sip Tang while watching Neil Armstrong's version of the moonwalk, we were all alive to see a Delorian take flight at the end of Back to The Future.

Random thought of the week:
The mooninites on Aqua Teen Hunger Force are the bomb, yo!

Joel Murphy is the creator of HoboTrashcan, which is probably why he has his own column. He also has some really hot friends. You can contact him at murphyslaw@hobotrashcan.com.