#copernicus — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #copernicus, aggregated by home.social.
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#ESA:
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Von Daten zu Taten: Satellitendaten gezielt für Notfälle nutzen
"
"Erdbeobachtungssatelliten .. Daten in nützliche Informationen umzuwandeln, .. Herausforderung .., vor allem bei Naturkatastrophen oder in Notsituationen. Ein Jahr nach .. Start des Projekts „OneWeb Copernicus Data Hub“ zeigt .. GeoVille ..mit .. ESA u. Eutelsat .. Lösung."13.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #Eutelsat #GeoVille #OneWebCopernicusDataHub #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #SpaceFlight
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#ESA:
"
Von Daten zu Taten: Satellitendaten gezielt für Notfälle nutzen
"
"Erdbeobachtungssatelliten .. Daten in nützliche Informationen umzuwandeln, .. Herausforderung .., vor allem bei Naturkatastrophen oder in Notsituationen. Ein Jahr nach .. Start des Projekts „OneWeb Copernicus Data Hub“ zeigt .. GeoVille ..mit .. ESA u. Eutelsat .. Lösung."13.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #Eutelsat #GeoVille #OneWebCopernicusDataHub #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #SpaceFlight
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#ESA:
"
Von Daten zu Taten: Satellitendaten gezielt für Notfälle nutzen
"
"Erdbeobachtungssatelliten .. Daten in nützliche Informationen umzuwandeln, .. Herausforderung .., vor allem bei Naturkatastrophen oder in Notsituationen. Ein Jahr nach .. Start des Projekts „OneWeb Copernicus Data Hub“ zeigt .. GeoVille ..mit .. ESA u. Eutelsat .. Lösung."13.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #Eutelsat #GeoVille #OneWebCopernicusDataHub #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #SpaceFlight
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#ESA:
"
Von Daten zu Taten: Satellitendaten gezielt für Notfälle nutzen
"
"Erdbeobachtungssatelliten .. Daten in nützliche Informationen umzuwandeln, .. Herausforderung .., vor allem bei Naturkatastrophen oder in Notsituationen. Ein Jahr nach .. Start des Projekts „OneWeb Copernicus Data Hub“ zeigt .. GeoVille ..mit .. ESA u. Eutelsat .. Lösung."13.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #Eutelsat #GeoVille #OneWebCopernicusDataHub #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #SpaceFlight
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#ESA:
"
Von Daten zu Taten: Satellitendaten gezielt für Notfälle nutzen
"
"Erdbeobachtungssatelliten .. Daten in nützliche Informationen umzuwandeln, .. Herausforderung .., vor allem bei Naturkatastrophen oder in Notsituationen. Ein Jahr nach .. Start des Projekts „OneWeb Copernicus Data Hub“ zeigt .. GeoVille ..mit .. ESA u. Eutelsat .. Lösung."13.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #Eutelsat #GeoVille #OneWebCopernicusDataHub #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #SpaceFlight
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Tonight (5/13/2026 at 6pm EDT) we're going to play around in #Copernicus. We'll try to make some Slap Comp setups, and maybe mess around with some of the simulation stuff as well. Hope to see you there!
more info: houdinihangout.com
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April 2026 in Europa zehntwärmster Aprilmonat seit 1979: https://www.wetterkontor.de/de/wetternews.asp
#wetter #météo #weather #climate #climatechange #April2026 #Nachrichten #Klima #Copernicus #Europa
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#PhotoOfTheDay: Earth from Space: #Olympic view
During 2026 #Winter Olympics, the #Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission brings us a striking view of northern Italy, highlighting several key Olympic venues.
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2026/02/Earth_from_Space_Olympic_view
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Les #océans proches des records de chaleur avant même le retour d’ #ElNiño
Les océans mondiaux pourraient battre un record de températures en mai, alors que le retour du phénomène El Niño se profile alerte vendredi l’observatoire climatique européen #Copernicus. Des vagues de chaleur marines record traversent une vaste région s’étendant du centre du #Pacifique équatorial à la côte ouest des #ÉtatsUnis et du #Mexique https://www.7sur7.be/ecologie/les-oceans-proches-des-records-de-chaleur-avant-meme-le-retour-del-nino~a4eca599/
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https://www.europesays.com/afrique/96169/ Climat : l’Europe se réchauffe deux fois plus vite que la moyenne mondiale #albédo #canicule #ChangementClimatique #climat #Copernicus #CouvertureNeigeuse #CriseClimatique #Environnement #Europe #événementsExtrêmes #Fennoscandie #FeuxDeForêt #FonteDesGlaces #glaciers #Groenland #Océans #RéchauffementClimatique #RéchauffementGlobal #températures #VaguesDeChaleur
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Our latest Satellite Image of the Month highlights Franconia (Germany) from space. It compares 2021 and 2022, revealing the impact of drought as green landscapes turn beige and brown.
Learn more: https://www.mundialis.de/en/satellite-image-of-the-month-may-franconia-germany/ -
#SpatialSource:
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Sentinel-1D satellite declared fully operational
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"The Sentinel-1D satellite has passed its commissioning phase and is now fully operational.The synthetic aperture radar Earth observation spacecraft was launched on 4 November 2025, and is the fourth and last in the first generation of Sentinel-1 satellites. .."
https://www.spatialsource.com.au/sentinel-1d-satellite-declared-fully-operational/
4.5.2026
#Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESA #GMES #Radar #Raumfahrt #SAR #Satelliten #Sentinel1 #Sentinel1D #SpaceFlight
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Sunday service 2026 May 3 Experiences of religion
Spring seemed to have arrived properly this last week.
It’s really lovely to have you all with us. Very lovely to have Jonathan and Rachel Edwards from Winton meeting, and Rachel will be talking to us, giving words of encouragement a bit later.
It’s so good, isn’t it, to be together as a family, a family in Christ, so that we can praise God and thank Him for His creation and for everything that He’s done for us. And of course, most importantly, to remember what Jesus has done and what he is still doing for us day by day. Because it’s because of him that we’re here now. And it’s because of his sacrifice that we have hope in the future.
And we know that he is here with us in this hall, because he said that whenever 2 or 3 people gather in his name, he’s there in the midst of us.So he may have lived 2000 years ago, but he is alive today in this year 2026.
May our singing, may our meeting of the Bible and remembering Jesus in bread and wine give Jesus and his God the honour they deserve.
So, dear God, now we simply put this meeting into Your Hands. May we feel Your presence here with us today and throughout the week and always.
In the name of our loving lord Jesus, we offer this our service to You now, Amen.Julian has had a stroke, which has affected his right arm. He is now at home with support from the family, coming to terms with his new situation. They are managing their change circumstance with fortitude, and they’re not doing too badly. Regular physiotherapy sessions at home, the care review is scheduled for next week. They send their love and best wishes to everyone.
Belanwa Methode from our Anderlecht ecclesia is feeling much better and recovering after a recent heart attack and spell in hospital. We do hope to have a service again on Saturday, 16 May at the house church in Anderlecht.
Jane reports that the family of her brother-in-law in Australia are facing a very difficult time; he is facing a major operation in May, which will be life-changing. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
John Launchbury from Portland, USA, had a major heart surgery last Monday. By Wednesday, he was sitting up in bed and had actually been out of bed moving around, having had most of the tubes removed. This weekend, they hope that he’ll be able to return home. – We pray for him and his family at this difficult time.
With our song “Give thanks” we gave thanks to our Most High God, from whom we all receive those blessings from Mother Earth.
Next, we listened to the reading talking of the time when Jacob, the 3rd patriarch, son of Isaac and Rebekah, went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
Coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head, he went to sleep in that place.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them. And he saw Jehovah by his side, saying that He is the Lord, the God of Abraham his Father, and the God of Isaac. This God said to Jacob:
“13 … I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:13-15 ASV)
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said,
“16 …Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17 ASV)
And early in the morning, Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it. And he gave that place the name of Beth-el (house of God), but before that time the town was named Luz. Then Jacob took an oath and said,
“20… If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God, 22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:20-22 ASV)
Our speaker today wants to think about the experiences of religion,
as I’m sure you know, means to tie fast. It’s a binding between God and man, and I want to try to explore how long or short that finding is.
We’re told God is in heaven. Isaiah chapter 66 begins:
Thus says the Lord, heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest? (Isaiah 66:1)
The first mention is in Genesis chapter one, quoting the authorised version.
“1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. …
“6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [were] under the firmament from the waters which [were] above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:1, 6-8 AV)
I understand that the firmament was a word made up in the 17th century. The NIV uses the words “expanse ” and “sky,” and the NLT says it’s a space called “sky.”
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 2, Paul talks about some caught up to the third heaven, and this is often explained as the first heaven being the atmosphere and the clouds at 1 to 3 miles above the surface of the earth.
Planes fly about 6 to 7 miles high. So, these days, it’s within touching distance.
The second head is the planets, stars and galaxies.
Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He could probably see about 3.000 stars, so he was promised a huge family. In the universe in total, there are about 8.000 stars bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
But there are actually thought to be 200 million trillion steps, 200.000 million, million, million stars in the universe. So he was promised an amazingly large family.The third heaven is the final sphere, God’s dwelling place.
The Hebrew word means to be lofty. And looking at the Greek word for heaven, strong offers by explanation happiness, power, and eternity.
The physical space was finite, and beyond the material world was the spiritual space of God. The physical world was subject to death and decay, but the heavens were eternal, spiritual, and better than the earth. And the planets and stars were pointers to the religious heaven of God.
Up to the Middle Ages, the cosmos was believed to have had the Earth at the centre of everything, surrounded by concentric spheres of the moon, the sun, planets and stars.
Art aimed to represent the spiritual order beyond the material world and portrayed heaven in pictures comprising a light blue background with flat, out-of-proportion figures, often in gold, referencing the sky and the sun.
But art in the 13th century developed a new way of seeing heaven. And even a pope encouraged a change of style to incorporate linear perspective, which made a sort of medieval virtual reality. Which was thought to have the power to convert unbelievers to the Christian faith by making heaven more believable.
Science took up the reins of the shift a couple of hundred years later, with Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, who were all on the side of God. To them, the new astronomy reflected the glory of God the Father, Whose power and order in the universe supported their faith in Christianity’s eternal salvation, whose domain is the Kingdom of heaven.
Firstly, Copernicus suggested that the Earth went round the sun so that the Earth, including us, was no longer at the centre of everything. Newton’s big idea was that gravity, the gravity that makes an apple fall to the ground, also keeps the moon orbiting the Earth and planets orbiting the sun. So space everywhere is ruled by the same physical laws. This continuity between terrestrial and celestial realms, by this continuity, Newton famously united the heavens and the earth. The physical space could go on forever. So there was no room left over for heaven as a superior alternative domain.
Newton tore a hole in the social fabric that we’ve been … we’re struggling to comprehend, and reverberate still in the war between science and religion.
Einstein replaced Newton’s cosmology with space-time, and this has been developed into hyperspace, which I don’t understand, but is described as nothing but space curled up into patterns.
At the start of our universe, space had no structure, formless and empty darkness, to quote Genesis chapter. It was simple and uniform, like a blank piece of paper. Then, as time proceeded, the paper crinkled up into ever more elaborate structures, eventually giving rise to the complexities of today. So, perhaps this is God as the origami artist.
The new understanding of space impacts on who we think we are in space today is an arena to be mapped and measured. If heaven isn’t special, are we special?
Are we in conglomeration with molecules?
Christadelphians and other fundamental Christians and even New Age proponents do not accept this poor, demoralising, reductionist world.
But, I don’t think there is a war between science and religion. Science has furthered our understanding of the physical world. And as we’ve mentioned, it greatly enhanced the promise of Abraham.
But God doesn’t need to live in heaven. He is everywhere. Acts chapter 17 verses 27 and 28 say He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Jesus often spoke about the Kingdom of heaven, or the Kingdom of God.
In the road spray, he taught us to ask
They Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Asking for the divide between God and man to be dissolved.
The Kingdom of heaven is still the domain of human salvation, the righteousness of God replacing the sin of the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Today, the expression “a thin place” is used to describe a place in time where space, the space between heaven and earth, grows thin and the sacred and the secular seem to meet.
This is what I mean by the experience of religion.
The Bible is full op people being touched by God, often in a vision or a dream. I picked a few examples showing how people felt about God drawing near to them. We’ve read about Jacob and his ladder experience in Genesis chapter 28. And his conclusion was
How awasome is this place?
This is none other than the House of God. This is the gate of heaven.Then in the New Testament, I think of Mary.
My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the couple on the road to Emmaus expressed their vivid feelings.
When are our hearts burning within us? While he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us.
In our 21st-century lives, a thin place offers a sense of peace or a feeling of awe, where we feel our connection with God more strongly.
Some people feel it in wonderful landscapes. Others in a quiet place, or listening to music, or appreciating a work of art, or a moment in daily life, like opening the door onto a sunny morning.
I expect lots of people find the giving of thanks and taking the bread and wine a thin place.
As we’re about to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, may you know Jesus, your saviour.
May I know Jesus, my saviour. Thank you.
Thank you, Rachel, for those lovely words. It’s almost impossible, isn’t it, to imagine the extent of the universe, the cosmos, and to think that God is both filling that. But also, as you said, so close to every one of us now. And you have brought us beautifully to the centre point of our meeting, to think about Jesus, who said about himself, and I’m doing this remembering Jesus would one day see the angels ascending on himself, the Son of man. So just as Jacob saw the connection between heaven and earth, wo we see heaven and earth coming together in Jesus, our lord.
Before we share the bread and wine, we’re going to sing another hymn. And this time it’s going to be ” Praise the Lord” 174, which reminds us of the depths of the love that has been poured out on us in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Who his love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing his praise?He can never be forgotten, thoughout heav’n’s eternal days.
We thank You Father,
we come before You at this time to give our thanks and praise for all the blessings You bestow on us.We thank You for the love that You show towards us because You loved us so much.
You gave your only son.
We come now to remember the love that Your son, our lord, showed not only to You, but to us and the whole world also, in that he fullfilled Your word to the very end.As we pass these emblems of our lor’s love and great sacrifice to one another, we again give our thanks for the Plan that You have for all people that believe in You.
We ask that we may soon see the return of our lord and that we can therefore be brought closer to You, our eternal Father.
We ask that You be with us all and that You will hear this prayer through our lord and saviour’s name. Amen.
Together we sing a Christian hymn based on Joachim Neander’s German-language hymn “Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren”, published in 1680.: When we look down from a lofty mountain grandeur,
O Lord my God! when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!*
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX8CyJwvyBg?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent&w=560&h=315]*
We finish our Sunday service with prayer:
Let us pray, Lord God Heavenly Father,
we put oour minds to places where we just can’t comprehend Your dwelling place, the sky above the stars above the sun and moon, places You hold in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yeah, beyond our wildest imagination,Yeah,
we come to You in prayer, whether we are gathered in this room, whether we are sat in our various homes across different countries worshipping and praising You now and we know You’re in our presence. You are hearing these very words now. That’s amazing and we are in such actual majesty and splendour and Your power and glory in our presence now.
It is humbling and we pray tha what we have done this morning just a litle bit goes towards chewing as a sweet smell. As pleasing and acceptable we are mindful of the clouds above. And in our lives, we feel the rains pouring down at us sometimes and the stresses and strains and struggles of life.
Oh, too much.
And there’s no sunshine, and there’sno brightness. There’s nothing to look forward to. Then the clouds break. And the blue sky above is always there. The sun is always there. And the same with You, that well, whatever our situation, whatever our circumstances, whatever our troubles and problems and strains and anxiety, You are therejust above it all. And we can come to You in our prayers, or we can seek strength and guidance. As we face another week we know that You are ina principle of hearts and minds. And You control everything, and You planeverything for us. So guide our ways. Help us take our hand and lead us as Yougo towards another week.
So we thank You for so much, we thank You for Your blessings, for Your kindness, for Your love.Rate this:
#13Century #2Corinthians122 #3Heaven #Acts172728 #Astronomy #Atmosphere #BelanwaMethode #BethElBeitElBethelHouseOfGod #CelestialRealm #Copernicus #DreamOfJacob #Earth #Einstein #Expanse #ExperiencesOfReligion #Firmament #Galileo #Genesis11 #Genesis168 #Genesis281315 #Genesis281617 #Genesis282022 #Gravity #HouseChurchOfAnderlecht #IsaacNewton #Isaiah661 #JacobYaAqov3rdPatriarchSonOfIsaacRebekah #JoachimNeander #JohnLaunchbury #JulianBaseley #KingdomOfGod #KingdomOfHeaven #MiddleAges #RachelEdwards #Science #Sky #StarAstronomy #TerrestrialRealm #Universe -
Sunday service 2026 May 3 Experiences of religion
Spring seemed to have arrived properly this last week.
It’s really lovely to have you all with us. Very lovely to have Jonathan and Rachel Edwards from Winton meeting, and Rachel will be talking to us, giving words of encouragement a bit later.
It’s so good, isn’t it, to be together as a family, a family in Christ, so that we can praise God and thank Him for His creation and for everything that He’s done for us. And of course, most importantly, to remember what Jesus has done and what he is still doing for us day by day. Because it’s because of him that we’re here now. And it’s because of his sacrifice that we have hope in the future.
And we know that he is here with us in this hall, because he said that whenever 2 or 3 people gather in his name, he’s there in the midst of us.So he may have lived 2000 years ago, but he is alive today in this year 2026.
May our singing, may our meeting of the Bible and remembering Jesus in bread and wine give Jesus and his God the honour they deserve.
So, dear God, now we simply put this meeting into Your Hands. May we feel Your presence here with us today and throughout the week and always.
In the name of our loving lord Jesus, we offer this our service to You now, Amen.Julian has had a stroke, which has affected his right arm. He is now at home with support from the family, coming to terms with his new situation. They are managing their change circumstance with fortitude, and they’re not doing too badly. Regular physiotherapy sessions at home, the care review is scheduled for next week. They send their love and best wishes to everyone.
Belanwa Methode from our Anderlecht ecclesia is feeling much better and recovering after a recent heart attack and spell in hospital. We do hope to have a service again on Saturday, 16 May at the house church in Anderlecht.
Jane reports that the family of her brother-in-law in Australia are facing a very difficult time; he is facing a major operation in May, which will be life-changing. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
John Launchbury from Portland, USA, had a major heart surgery last Monday. By Wednesday, he was sitting up in bed and had actually been out of bed moving around, having had most of the tubes removed. This weekend, they hope that he’ll be able to return home. – We pray for him and his family at this difficult time.
With our song “Give thanks” we gave thanks to our Most High God, from whom we all receive those blessings from Mother Earth.
Next, we listened to the reading talking of the time when Jacob, the 3rd patriarch, son of Isaac and Rebekah, went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
Coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head, he went to sleep in that place.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them. And he saw Jehovah by his side, saying that He is the Lord, the God of Abraham his Father, and the God of Isaac. This God said to Jacob:
“13 … I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:13-15 ASV)
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said,
“16 …Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17 ASV)
And early in the morning, Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it. And he gave that place the name of Beth-el (house of God), but before that time the town was named Luz. Then Jacob took an oath and said,
“20… If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God, 22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:20-22 ASV)
Our speaker today wants to think about the experiences of religion,
as I’m sure you know, means to tie fast. It’s a binding between God and man, and I want to try to explore how long or short that finding is.
We’re told God is in heaven. Isaiah chapter 66 begins:
Thus says the Lord, heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest? (Isaiah 66:1)
The first mention is in Genesis chapter one, quoting the authorised version.
“1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. …
“6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [were] under the firmament from the waters which [were] above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:1, 6-8 AV)
I understand that the firmament was a word made up in the 17th century. The NIV uses the words “expanse ” and “sky,” and the NLT says it’s a space called “sky.”
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 2, Paul talks about some caught up to the third heaven, and this is often explained as the first heaven being the atmosphere and the clouds at 1 to 3 miles above the surface of the earth.
Planes fly about 6 to 7 miles high. So, these days, it’s within touching distance.
The second head is the planets, stars and galaxies.
Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He could probably see about 3.000 stars, so he was promised a huge family. In the universe in total, there are about 8.000 stars bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
But there are actually thought to be 200 million trillion steps, 200.000 million, million, million stars in the universe. So he was promised an amazingly large family.The third heaven is the final sphere, God’s dwelling place.
The Hebrew word means to be lofty. And looking at the Greek word for heaven, strong offers by explanation happiness, power, and eternity.
The physical space was finite, and beyond the material world was the spiritual space of God. The physical world was subject to death and decay, but the heavens were eternal, spiritual, and better than the earth. And the planets and stars were pointers to the religious heaven of God.
Up to the Middle Ages, the cosmos was believed to have had the Earth at the centre of everything, surrounded by concentric spheres of the moon, the sun, planets and stars.
Art aimed to represent the spiritual order beyond the material world and portrayed heaven in pictures comprising a light blue background with flat, out-of-proportion figures, often in gold, referencing the sky and the sun.
But art in the 13th century developed a new way of seeing heaven. And even a pope encouraged a change of style to incorporate linear perspective, which made a sort of medieval virtual reality. Which was thought to have the power to convert unbelievers to the Christian faith by making heaven more believable.
Science took up the reins of the shift a couple of hundred years later, with Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, who were all on the side of God. To them, the new astronomy reflected the glory of God the Father, Whose power and order in the universe supported their faith in Christianity’s eternal salvation, whose domain is the Kingdom of heaven.
Firstly, Copernicus suggested that the Earth went round the sun so that the Earth, including us, was no longer at the centre of everything. Newton’s big idea was that gravity, the gravity that makes an apple fall to the ground, also keeps the moon orbiting the Earth and planets orbiting the sun. So space everywhere is ruled by the same physical laws. This continuity between terrestrial and celestial realms, by this continuity, Newton famously united the heavens and the earth. The physical space could go on forever. So there was no room left over for heaven as a superior alternative domain.
Newton tore a hole in the social fabric that we’ve been … we’re struggling to comprehend, and reverberate still in the war between science and religion.
Einstein replaced Newton’s cosmology with space-time, and this has been developed into hyperspace, which I don’t understand, but is described as nothing but space curled up into patterns.
At the start of our universe, space had no structure, formless and empty darkness, to quote Genesis chapter. It was simple and uniform, like a blank piece of paper. Then, as time proceeded, the paper crinkled up into ever more elaborate structures, eventually giving rise to the complexities of today. So, perhaps this is God as the origami artist.
The new understanding of space impacts on who we think we are in space today is an arena to be mapped and measured. If heaven isn’t special, are we special?
Are we in conglomeration with molecules?
Christadelphians and other fundamental Christians and even New Age proponents do not accept this poor, demoralising, reductionist world.
But, I don’t think there is a war between science and religion. Science has furthered our understanding of the physical world. And as we’ve mentioned, it greatly enhanced the promise of Abraham.
But God doesn’t need to live in heaven. He is everywhere. Acts chapter 17 verses 27 and 28 say He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Jesus often spoke about the Kingdom of heaven, or the Kingdom of God.
In the road spray, he taught us to ask
They Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Asking for the divide between God and man to be dissolved.
The Kingdom of heaven is still the domain of human salvation, the righteousness of God replacing the sin of the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Today, the expression “a thin place” is used to describe a place in time where space, the space between heaven and earth, grows thin and the sacred and the secular seem to meet.
This is what I mean by the experience of religion.
The Bible is full op people being touched by God, often in a vision or a dream. I picked a few examples showing how people felt about God drawing near to them. We’ve read about Jacob and his ladder experience in Genesis chapter 28. And his conclusion was
How awasome is this place?
This is none other than the House of God. This is the gate of heaven.Then in the New Testament, I think of Mary.
My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the couple on the road to Emmaus expressed their vivid feelings.
When are our hearts burning within us? While he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us.
In our 21st-century lives, a thin place offers a sense of peace or a feeling of awe, where we feel our connection with God more strongly.
Some people feel it in wonderful landscapes. Others in a quiet place, or listening to music, or appreciating a work of art, or a moment in daily life, like opening the door onto a sunny morning.
I expect lots of people find the giving of thanks and taking the bread and wine a thin place.
As we’re about to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, may you know Jesus, your saviour.
May I know Jesus, my saviour. Thank you.
Thank you, Rachel, for those lovely words. It’s almost impossible, isn’t it, to imagine the extent of the universe, the cosmos, and to think that God is both filling that. But also, as you said, so close to every one of us now. And you have brought us beautifully to the centre point of our meeting, to think about Jesus, who said about himself, and I’m doing this remembering Jesus would one day see the angels ascending on himself, the Son of man. So just as Jacob saw the connection between heaven and earth, wo we see heaven and earth coming together in Jesus, our lord.
Before we share the bread and wine, we’re going to sing another hymn. And this time it’s going to be ” Praise the Lord” 174, which reminds us of the depths of the love that has been poured out on us in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Who his love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing his praise?He can never be forgotten, thoughout heav’n’s eternal days.
We thank You Father,
we come before You at this time to give our thanks and praise for all the blessings You bestow on us.We thank You for the love that You show towards us because You loved us so much.
You gave your only son.
We come now to remember the love that Your son, our lord, showed not only to You, but to us and the whole world also, in that he fullfilled Your word to the very end.As we pass these emblems of our lor’s love and great sacrifice to one another, we again give our thanks for the Plan that You have for all people that believe in You.
We ask that we may soon see the return of our lord and that we can therefore be brought closer to You, our eternal Father.
We ask that You be with us all and that You will hear this prayer through our lord and saviour’s name. Amen.
Together we sing a Christian hymn based on Joachim Neander’s German-language hymn “Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren”, published in 1680.: When we look down from a lofty mountain grandeur,
O Lord my God! when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!*
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX8CyJwvyBg?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent&w=560&h=315]*
We finish our Sunday service with prayer:
Let us pray, Lord God Heavenly Father,
we put oour minds to places where we just can’t comprehend Your dwelling place, the sky above the stars above the sun and moon, places You hold in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yeah, beyond our wildest imagination,Yeah,
we come to You in prayer, whether we are gathered in this room, whether we are sat in our various homes across different countries worshipping and praising You now and we know You’re in our presence. You are hearing these very words now. That’s amazing and we are in such actual majesty and splendour and Your power and glory in our presence now.
It is humbling and we pray tha what we have done this morning just a litle bit goes towards chewing as a sweet smell. As pleasing and acceptable we are mindful of the clouds above. And in our lives, we feel the rains pouring down at us sometimes and the stresses and strains and struggles of life.
Oh, too much.
And there’s no sunshine, and there’sno brightness. There’s nothing to look forward to. Then the clouds break. And the blue sky above is always there. The sun is always there. And the same with You, that well, whatever our situation, whatever our circumstances, whatever our troubles and problems and strains and anxiety, You are therejust above it all. And we can come to You in our prayers, or we can seek strength and guidance. As we face another week we know that You are ina principle of hearts and minds. And You control everything, and You planeverything for us. So guide our ways. Help us take our hand and lead us as Yougo towards another week.
So we thank You for so much, we thank You for Your blessings, for Your kindness, for Your love.Rate this:
#13Century #2Corinthians122 #3Heaven #Acts172728 #Astronomy #Atmosphere #BelanwaMethode #BethElBeitElBethelHouseOfGod #CelestialRealm #Copernicus #DreamOfJacob #Earth #Einstein #Expanse #ExperiencesOfReligion #Firmament #Galileo #Genesis11 #Genesis168 #Genesis281315 #Genesis281617 #Genesis282022 #Gravity #HouseChurchOfAnderlecht #IsaacNewton #Isaiah661 #JacobYaAqov3rdPatriarchSonOfIsaacRebekah #JoachimNeander #JohnLaunchbury #JulianBaseley #KingdomOfGod #KingdomOfHeaven #MiddleAges #RachelEdwards #Science #Sky #StarAstronomy #TerrestrialRealm #Universe -
Sunday service 2026 May 3 Experiences of religion
Spring seemed to have arrived properly this last week.
It’s really lovely to have you all with us. Very lovely to have Jonathan and Rachel Edwards from Winton meeting, and Rachel will be talking to us, giving words of encouragement a bit later.
It’s so good, isn’t it, to be together as a family, a family in Christ, so that we can praise God and thank Him for His creation and for everything that He’s done for us. And of course, most importantly, to remember what Jesus has done and what he is still doing for us day by day. Because it’s because of him that we’re here now. And it’s because of his sacrifice that we have hope in the future.
And we know that he is here with us in this hall, because he said that whenever 2 or 3 people gather in his name, he’s there in the midst of us.So he may have lived 2000 years ago, but he is alive today in this year 2026.
May our singing, may our meeting of the Bible and remembering Jesus in bread and wine give Jesus and his God the honour they deserve.
So, dear God, now we simply put this meeting into Your Hands. May we feel Your presence here with us today and throughout the week and always.
In the name of our loving lord Jesus, we offer this our service to You now, Amen.Julian has had a stroke, which has affected his right arm. He is now at home with support from the family, coming to terms with his new situation. They are managing their change circumstance with fortitude, and they’re not doing too badly. Regular physiotherapy sessions at home, the care review is scheduled for next week. They send their love and best wishes to everyone.
Belanwa Methode from our Anderlecht ecclesia is feeling much better and recovering after a recent heart attack and spell in hospital. We do hope to have a service again on Saturday, 16 May at the house church in Anderlecht.
Jane reports that the family of her brother-in-law in Australia are facing a very difficult time; he is facing a major operation in May, which will be life-changing. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
John Launchbury from Portland, USA, had a major heart surgery last Monday. By Wednesday, he was sitting up in bed and had actually been out of bed moving around, having had most of the tubes removed. This weekend, they hope that he’ll be able to return home. – We pray for him and his family at this difficult time.
With our song “Give thanks” we gave thanks to our Most High God, from whom we all receive those blessings from Mother Earth.
Next, we listened to the reading talking of the time when Jacob, the 3rd patriarch, son of Isaac and Rebekah, went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
Coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head, he went to sleep in that place.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them. And he saw Jehovah by his side, saying that He is the Lord, the God of Abraham his Father, and the God of Isaac. This God said to Jacob:
“13 … I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:13-15 ASV)
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said,
“16 …Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17 ASV)
And early in the morning, Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it. And he gave that place the name of Beth-el (house of God), but before that time the town was named Luz. Then Jacob took an oath and said,
“20… If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God, 22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:20-22 ASV)
Our speaker today wants to think about the experiences of religion,
as I’m sure you know, means to tie fast. It’s a binding between God and man, and I want to try to explore how long or short that finding is.
We’re told God is in heaven. Isaiah chapter 66 begins:
Thus says the Lord, heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest? (Isaiah 66:1)
The first mention is in Genesis chapter one, quoting the authorised version.
“1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. …
“6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [were] under the firmament from the waters which [were] above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:1, 6-8 AV)
I understand that the firmament was a word made up in the 17th century. The NIV uses the words “expanse ” and “sky,” and the NLT says it’s a space called “sky.”
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 2, Paul talks about some caught up to the third heaven, and this is often explained as the first heaven being the atmosphere and the clouds at 1 to 3 miles above the surface of the earth.
Planes fly about 6 to 7 miles high. So, these days, it’s within touching distance.
The second head is the planets, stars and galaxies.
Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He could probably see about 3.000 stars, so he was promised a huge family. In the universe in total, there are about 8.000 stars bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
But there are actually thought to be 200 million trillion steps, 200.000 million, million, million stars in the universe. So he was promised an amazingly large family.The third heaven is the final sphere, God’s dwelling place.
The Hebrew word means to be lofty. And looking at the Greek word for heaven, strong offers by explanation happiness, power, and eternity.
The physical space was finite, and beyond the material world was the spiritual space of God. The physical world was subject to death and decay, but the heavens were eternal, spiritual, and better than the earth. And the planets and stars were pointers to the religious heaven of God.
Up to the Middle Ages, the cosmos was believed to have had the Earth at the centre of everything, surrounded by concentric spheres of the moon, the sun, planets and stars.
Art aimed to represent the spiritual order beyond the material world and portrayed heaven in pictures comprising a light blue background with flat, out-of-proportion figures, often in gold, referencing the sky and the sun.
But art in the 13th century developed a new way of seeing heaven. And even a pope encouraged a change of style to incorporate linear perspective, which made a sort of medieval virtual reality. Which was thought to have the power to convert unbelievers to the Christian faith by making heaven more believable.
Science took up the reins of the shift a couple of hundred years later, with Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, who were all on the side of God. To them, the new astronomy reflected the glory of God the Father, Whose power and order in the universe supported their faith in Christianity’s eternal salvation, whose domain is the Kingdom of heaven.
Firstly, Copernicus suggested that the Earth went round the sun so that the Earth, including us, was no longer at the centre of everything. Newton’s big idea was that gravity, the gravity that makes an apple fall to the ground, also keeps the moon orbiting the Earth and planets orbiting the sun. So space everywhere is ruled by the same physical laws. This continuity between terrestrial and celestial realms, by this continuity, Newton famously united the heavens and the earth. The physical space could go on forever. So there was no room left over for heaven as a superior alternative domain.
Newton tore a hole in the social fabric that we’ve been … we’re struggling to comprehend, and reverberate still in the war between science and religion.
Einstein replaced Newton’s cosmology with space-time, and this has been developed into hyperspace, which I don’t understand, but is described as nothing but space curled up into patterns.
At the start of our universe, space had no structure, formless and empty darkness, to quote Genesis chapter. It was simple and uniform, like a blank piece of paper. Then, as time proceeded, the paper crinkled up into ever more elaborate structures, eventually giving rise to the complexities of today. So, perhaps this is God as the origami artist.
The new understanding of space impacts on who we think we are in space today is an arena to be mapped and measured. If heaven isn’t special, are we special?
Are we in conglomeration with molecules?
Christadelphians and other fundamental Christians and even New Age proponents do not accept this poor, demoralising, reductionist world.
But, I don’t think there is a war between science and religion. Science has furthered our understanding of the physical world. And as we’ve mentioned, it greatly enhanced the promise of Abraham.
But God doesn’t need to live in heaven. He is everywhere. Acts chapter 17 verses 27 and 28 say He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Jesus often spoke about the Kingdom of heaven, or the Kingdom of God.
In the road spray, he taught us to ask
They Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Asking for the divide between God and man to be dissolved.
The Kingdom of heaven is still the domain of human salvation, the righteousness of God replacing the sin of the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Today, the expression “a thin place” is used to describe a place in time where space, the space between heaven and earth, grows thin and the sacred and the secular seem to meet.
This is what I mean by the experience of religion.
The Bible is full op people being touched by God, often in a vision or a dream. I picked a few examples showing how people felt about God drawing near to them. We’ve read about Jacob and his ladder experience in Genesis chapter 28. And his conclusion was
How awasome is this place?
This is none other than the House of God. This is the gate of heaven.Then in the New Testament, I think of Mary.
My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the couple on the road to Emmaus expressed their vivid feelings.
When are our hearts burning within us? While he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us.
In our 21st-century lives, a thin place offers a sense of peace or a feeling of awe, where we feel our connection with God more strongly.
Some people feel it in wonderful landscapes. Others in a quiet place, or listening to music, or appreciating a work of art, or a moment in daily life, like opening the door onto a sunny morning.
I expect lots of people find the giving of thanks and taking the bread and wine a thin place.
As we’re about to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, may you know Jesus, your saviour.
May I know Jesus, my saviour. Thank you.
Thank you, Rachel, for those lovely words. It’s almost impossible, isn’t it, to imagine the extent of the universe, the cosmos, and to think that God is both filling that. But also, as you said, so close to every one of us now. And you have brought us beautifully to the centre point of our meeting, to think about Jesus, who said about himself, and I’m doing this remembering Jesus would one day see the angels ascending on himself, the Son of man. So just as Jacob saw the connection between heaven and earth, wo we see heaven and earth coming together in Jesus, our lord.
Before we share the bread and wine, we’re going to sing another hymn. And this time it’s going to be ” Praise the Lord” 174, which reminds us of the depths of the love that has been poured out on us in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Who his love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing his praise?He can never be forgotten, thoughout heav’n’s eternal days.
We thank You Father,
we come before You at this time to give our thanks and praise for all the blessings You bestow on us.We thank You for the love that You show towards us because You loved us so much.
You gave your only son.
We come now to remember the love that Your son, our lord, showed not only to You, but to us and the whole world also, in that he fullfilled Your word to the very end.As we pass these emblems of our lor’s love and great sacrifice to one another, we again give our thanks for the Plan that You have for all people that believe in You.
We ask that we may soon see the return of our lord and that we can therefore be brought closer to You, our eternal Father.
We ask that You be with us all and that You will hear this prayer through our lord and saviour’s name. Amen.
Together we sing a Christian hymn based on Joachim Neander’s German-language hymn “Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren”, published in 1680.: When we look down from a lofty mountain grandeur,
O Lord my God! when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!*
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX8CyJwvyBg?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent&w=560&h=315]*
We finish our Sunday service with prayer:
Let us pray, Lord God Heavenly Father,
we put oour minds to places where we just can’t comprehend Your dwelling place, the sky above the stars above the sun and moon, places You hold in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yeah, beyond our wildest imagination,Yeah,
we come to You in prayer, whether we are gathered in this room, whether we are sat in our various homes across different countries worshipping and praising You now and we know You’re in our presence. You are hearing these very words now. That’s amazing and we are in such actual majesty and splendour and Your power and glory in our presence now.
It is humbling and we pray tha what we have done this morning just a litle bit goes towards chewing as a sweet smell. As pleasing and acceptable we are mindful of the clouds above. And in our lives, we feel the rains pouring down at us sometimes and the stresses and strains and struggles of life.
Oh, too much.
And there’s no sunshine, and there’sno brightness. There’s nothing to look forward to. Then the clouds break. And the blue sky above is always there. The sun is always there. And the same with You, that well, whatever our situation, whatever our circumstances, whatever our troubles and problems and strains and anxiety, You are therejust above it all. And we can come to You in our prayers, or we can seek strength and guidance. As we face another week we know that You are ina principle of hearts and minds. And You control everything, and You planeverything for us. So guide our ways. Help us take our hand and lead us as Yougo towards another week.
So we thank You for so much, we thank You for Your blessings, for Your kindness, for Your love.Rate this:
#13Century #2Corinthians122 #3Heaven #Acts172728 #Astronomy #Atmosphere #BelanwaMethode #BethElBeitElBethelHouseOfGod #CelestialRealm #Copernicus #DreamOfJacob #Earth #Einstein #Expanse #ExperiencesOfReligion #Firmament #Galileo #Genesis11 #Genesis168 #Genesis281315 #Genesis281617 #Genesis282022 #Gravity #HouseChurchOfAnderlecht #IsaacNewton #Isaiah661 #JacobYaAqov3rdPatriarchSonOfIsaacRebekah #JoachimNeander #JohnLaunchbury #JulianBaseley #KingdomOfGod #KingdomOfHeaven #MiddleAges #RachelEdwards #Science #Sky #StarAstronomy #TerrestrialRealm #Universe -
Sunday service 2026 May 3 Experiences of religion
Spring seemed to have arrived properly this last week.
It’s really lovely to have you all with us. Very lovely to have Jonathan and Rachel Edwards from Winton meeting, and Rachel will be talking to us, giving words of encouragement a bit later.
It’s so good, isn’t it, to be together as a family, a family in Christ, so that we can praise God and thank Him for His creation and for everything that He’s done for us. And of course, most importantly, to remember what Jesus has done and what he is still doing for us day by day. Because it’s because of him that we’re here now. And it’s because of his sacrifice that we have hope in the future.
And we know that he is here with us in this hall, because he said that whenever 2 or 3 people gather in his name, he’s there in the midst of us.So he may have lived 2000 years ago, but he is alive today in this year 2026.
May our singing, may our meeting of the Bible and remembering Jesus in bread and wine give Jesus and his God the honour they deserve.
So, dear God, now we simply put this meeting into Your Hands. May we feel Your presence here with us today and throughout the week and always.
In the name of our loving lord Jesus, we offer this our service to You now, Amen.Julian has had a stroke, which has affected his right arm. He is now at home with support from the family, coming to terms with his new situation. They are managing their change circumstance with fortitude, and they’re not doing too badly. Regular physiotherapy sessions at home, the care review is scheduled for next week. They send their love and best wishes to everyone.
Belanwa Methode from our Anderlecht ecclesia is feeling much better and recovering after a recent heart attack and spell in hospital. We do hope to have a service again on Saturday, 16 May at the house church in Anderlecht.
Jane reports that the family of her brother-in-law in Australia are facing a very difficult time; he is facing a major operation in May, which will be life-changing. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
John Launchbury from Portland, USA, had a major heart surgery last Monday. By Wednesday, he was sitting up in bed and had actually been out of bed moving around, having had most of the tubes removed. This weekend, they hope that he’ll be able to return home. – We pray for him and his family at this difficult time.
With our song “Give thanks” we gave thanks to our Most High God, from whom we all receive those blessings from Mother Earth.
Next, we listened to the reading talking of the time when Jacob, the 3rd patriarch, son of Isaac and Rebekah, went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
Coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head, he went to sleep in that place.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them. And he saw Jehovah by his side, saying that He is the Lord, the God of Abraham his Father, and the God of Isaac. This God said to Jacob:
“13 … I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:13-15 ASV)
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said,
“16 …Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17 ASV)
And early in the morning, Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it. And he gave that place the name of Beth-el (house of God), but before that time the town was named Luz. Then Jacob took an oath and said,
“20… If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God, 22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:20-22 ASV)
Our speaker today wants to think about the experiences of religion,
as I’m sure you know, means to tie fast. It’s a binding between God and man, and I want to try to explore how long or short that finding is.
We’re told God is in heaven. Isaiah chapter 66 begins:
Thus says the Lord, heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest? (Isaiah 66:1)
The first mention is in Genesis chapter one, quoting the authorised version.
“1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. …
“6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [were] under the firmament from the waters which [were] above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:1, 6-8 AV)
I understand that the firmament was a word made up in the 17th century. The NIV uses the words “expanse ” and “sky,” and the NLT says it’s a space called “sky.”
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 2, Paul talks about some caught up to the third heaven, and this is often explained as the first heaven being the atmosphere and the clouds at 1 to 3 miles above the surface of the earth.
Planes fly about 6 to 7 miles high. So, these days, it’s within touching distance.
The second head is the planets, stars and galaxies.
Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He could probably see about 3.000 stars, so he was promised a huge family. In the universe in total, there are about 8.000 stars bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
But there are actually thought to be 200 million trillion steps, 200.000 million, million, million stars in the universe. So he was promised an amazingly large family.The third heaven is the final sphere, God’s dwelling place.
The Hebrew word means to be lofty. And looking at the Greek word for heaven, strong offers by explanation happiness, power, and eternity.
The physical space was finite, and beyond the material world was the spiritual space of God. The physical world was subject to death and decay, but the heavens were eternal, spiritual, and better than the earth. And the planets and stars were pointers to the religious heaven of God.
Up to the Middle Ages, the cosmos was believed to have had the Earth at the centre of everything, surrounded by concentric spheres of the moon, the sun, planets and stars.
Art aimed to represent the spiritual order beyond the material world and portrayed heaven in pictures comprising a light blue background with flat, out-of-proportion figures, often in gold, referencing the sky and the sun.
But art in the 13th century developed a new way of seeing heaven. And even a pope encouraged a change of style to incorporate linear perspective, which made a sort of medieval virtual reality. Which was thought to have the power to convert unbelievers to the Christian faith by making heaven more believable.
Science took up the reins of the shift a couple of hundred years later, with Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, who were all on the side of God. To them, the new astronomy reflected the glory of God the Father, Whose power and order in the universe supported their faith in Christianity’s eternal salvation, whose domain is the Kingdom of heaven.
Firstly, Copernicus suggested that the Earth went round the sun so that the Earth, including us, was no longer at the centre of everything. Newton’s big idea was that gravity, the gravity that makes an apple fall to the ground, also keeps the moon orbiting the Earth and planets orbiting the sun. So space everywhere is ruled by the same physical laws. This continuity between terrestrial and celestial realms, by this continuity, Newton famously united the heavens and the earth. The physical space could go on forever. So there was no room left over for heaven as a superior alternative domain.
Newton tore a hole in the social fabric that we’ve been … we’re struggling to comprehend, and reverberate still in the war between science and religion.
Einstein replaced Newton’s cosmology with space-time, and this has been developed into hyperspace, which I don’t understand, but is described as nothing but space curled up into patterns.
At the start of our universe, space had no structure, formless and empty darkness, to quote Genesis chapter. It was simple and uniform, like a blank piece of paper. Then, as time proceeded, the paper crinkled up into ever more elaborate structures, eventually giving rise to the complexities of today. So, perhaps this is God as the origami artist.
The new understanding of space impacts on who we think we are in space today is an arena to be mapped and measured. If heaven isn’t special, are we special?
Are we in conglomeration with molecules?
Christadelphians and other fundamental Christians and even New Age proponents do not accept this poor, demoralising, reductionist world.
But, I don’t think there is a war between science and religion. Science has furthered our understanding of the physical world. And as we’ve mentioned, it greatly enhanced the promise of Abraham.
But God doesn’t need to live in heaven. He is everywhere. Acts chapter 17 verses 27 and 28 say He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Jesus often spoke about the Kingdom of heaven, or the Kingdom of God.
In the road spray, he taught us to ask
They Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Asking for the divide between God and man to be dissolved.
The Kingdom of heaven is still the domain of human salvation, the righteousness of God replacing the sin of the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Today, the expression “a thin place” is used to describe a place in time where space, the space between heaven and earth, grows thin and the sacred and the secular seem to meet.
This is what I mean by the experience of religion.
The Bible is full op people being touched by God, often in a vision or a dream. I picked a few examples showing how people felt about God drawing near to them. We’ve read about Jacob and his ladder experience in Genesis chapter 28. And his conclusion was
How awasome is this place?
This is none other than the House of God. This is the gate of heaven.Then in the New Testament, I think of Mary.
My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the couple on the road to Emmaus expressed their vivid feelings.
When are our hearts burning within us? While he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us.
In our 21st-century lives, a thin place offers a sense of peace or a feeling of awe, where we feel our connection with God more strongly.
Some people feel it in wonderful landscapes. Others in a quiet place, or listening to music, or appreciating a work of art, or a moment in daily life, like opening the door onto a sunny morning.
I expect lots of people find the giving of thanks and taking the bread and wine a thin place.
As we’re about to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, may you know Jesus, your saviour.
May I know Jesus, my saviour. Thank you.
Thank you, Rachel, for those lovely words. It’s almost impossible, isn’t it, to imagine the extent of the universe, the cosmos, and to think that God is both filling that. But also, as you said, so close to every one of us now. And you have brought us beautifully to the centre point of our meeting, to think about Jesus, who said about himself, and I’m doing this remembering Jesus would one day see the angels ascending on himself, the Son of man. So just as Jacob saw the connection between heaven and earth, wo we see heaven and earth coming together in Jesus, our lord.
Before we share the bread and wine, we’re going to sing another hymn. And this time it’s going to be ” Praise the Lord” 174, which reminds us of the depths of the love that has been poured out on us in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Who his love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing his praise?He can never be forgotten, thoughout heav’n’s eternal days.
We thank You Father,
we come before You at this time to give our thanks and praise for all the blessings You bestow on us.We thank You for the love that You show towards us because You loved us so much.
You gave your only son.
We come now to remember the love that Your son, our lord, showed not only to You, but to us and the whole world also, in that he fullfilled Your word to the very end.As we pass these emblems of our lor’s love and great sacrifice to one another, we again give our thanks for the Plan that You have for all people that believe in You.
We ask that we may soon see the return of our lord and that we can therefore be brought closer to You, our eternal Father.
We ask that You be with us all and that You will hear this prayer through our lord and saviour’s name. Amen.
Together we sing a Christian hymn based on Joachim Neander’s German-language hymn “Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren”, published in 1680.: When we look down from a lofty mountain grandeur,
O Lord my God! when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!*
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX8CyJwvyBg?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent&w=560&h=315]*
We finish our Sunday service with prayer:
Let us pray, Lord God Heavenly Father,
we put oour minds to places where we just can’t comprehend Your dwelling place, the sky above the stars above the sun and moon, places You hold in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yeah, beyond our wildest imagination,Yeah,
we come to You in prayer, whether we are gathered in this room, whether we are sat in our various homes across different countries worshipping and praising You now and we know You’re in our presence. You are hearing these very words now. That’s amazing and we are in such actual majesty and splendour and Your power and glory in our presence now.
It is humbling and we pray tha what we have done this morning just a litle bit goes towards chewing as a sweet smell. As pleasing and acceptable we are mindful of the clouds above. And in our lives, we feel the rains pouring down at us sometimes and the stresses and strains and struggles of life.
Oh, too much.
And there’s no sunshine, and there’sno brightness. There’s nothing to look forward to. Then the clouds break. And the blue sky above is always there. The sun is always there. And the same with You, that well, whatever our situation, whatever our circumstances, whatever our troubles and problems and strains and anxiety, You are therejust above it all. And we can come to You in our prayers, or we can seek strength and guidance. As we face another week we know that You are ina principle of hearts and minds. And You control everything, and You planeverything for us. So guide our ways. Help us take our hand and lead us as Yougo towards another week.
So we thank You for so much, we thank You for Your blessings, for Your kindness, for Your love.Rate this:
#13Century #2Corinthians122 #3Heaven #Acts172728 #Astronomy #Atmosphere #BelanwaMethode #BethElBeitElBethelHouseOfGod #CelestialRealm #Copernicus #DreamOfJacob #Earth #Einstein #Expanse #ExperiencesOfReligion #Firmament #Galileo #Genesis11 #Genesis168 #Genesis281315 #Genesis281617 #Genesis282022 #Gravity #HouseChurchOfAnderlecht #IsaacNewton #Isaiah661 #JacobYaAqov3rdPatriarchSonOfIsaacRebekah #JoachimNeander #JohnLaunchbury #JulianBaseley #KingdomOfGod #KingdomOfHeaven #MiddleAges #RachelEdwards #Science #Sky #StarAstronomy #TerrestrialRealm #Universe -
Sunday service 2026 May 3 Experiences of religion
Spring seemed to have arrived properly this last week.
It’s really lovely to have you all with us. Very lovely to have Jonathan and Rachel Edwards from Winton meeting, and Rachel will be talking to us, giving words of encouragement a bit later.
It’s so good, isn’t it, to be together as a family, a family in Christ, so that we can praise God and thank Him for His creation and for everything that He’s done for us. And of course, most importantly, to remember what Jesus has done and what he is still doing for us day by day. Because it’s because of him that we’re here now. And it’s because of his sacrifice that we have hope in the future.
And we know that he is here with us in this hall, because he said that whenever 2 or 3 people gather in his name, he’s there in the midst of us.So he may have lived 2000 years ago, but he is alive today in this year 2026.
May our singing, may our meeting of the Bible and remembering Jesus in bread and wine give Jesus and his God the honour they deserve.
So, dear God, now we simply put this meeting into Your Hands. May we feel Your presence here with us today and throughout the week and always.
In the name of our loving lord Jesus, we offer this our service to You now, Amen.Julian has had a stroke, which has affected his right arm. He is now at home with support from the family, coming to terms with his new situation. They are managing their change circumstance with fortitude, and they’re not doing too badly. Regular physiotherapy sessions at home, the care review is scheduled for next week. They send their love and best wishes to everyone.
Belanwa Methode from our Anderlecht ecclesia is feeling much better and recovering after a recent heart attack and spell in hospital. We do hope to have a service again on Saturday, 16 May at the house church in Anderlecht.
Jane reports that the family of her brother-in-law in Australia are facing a very difficult time; he is facing a major operation in May, which will be life-changing. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family.
John Launchbury from Portland, USA, had a major heart surgery last Monday. By Wednesday, he was sitting up in bed and had actually been out of bed moving around, having had most of the tubes removed. This weekend, they hope that he’ll be able to return home. – We pray for him and his family at this difficult time.
With our song “Give thanks” we gave thanks to our Most High God, from whom we all receive those blessings from Mother Earth.
Next, we listened to the reading talking of the time when Jacob, the 3rd patriarch, son of Isaac and Rebekah, went out from Beer-sheba to go to Haran.
Coming to a certain place, he made it his resting-place for the night, for the sun had gone down; and he took one of the stones which were there, and putting it under his head, he went to sleep in that place.
And he had a dream, and in his dream he saw steps stretching from earth to heaven, and the angels of God were going up and down on them. And he saw Jehovah by his side, saying that He is the Lord, the God of Abraham his Father, and the God of Isaac. This God said to Jacob:
“13 … I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; 14 and thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15 And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee whithersoever thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” (Genesis 28:13-15 ASV)
And Jacob, awaking from his sleep, said,
“16 …Surely Jehovah is in this place; and I knew it not. 17 And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:16-17 ASV)
And early in the morning, Jacob took the stone which had been under his head, and put it up as a pillar and put oil on it. And he gave that place the name of Beth-el (house of God), but before that time the town was named Luz. Then Jacob took an oath and said,
“20… If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, and Jehovah will be my God, 22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” (Genesis 28:20-22 ASV)
Our speaker today wants to think about the experiences of religion,
as I’m sure you know, means to tie fast. It’s a binding between God and man, and I want to try to explore how long or short that finding is.
We’re told God is in heaven. Isaiah chapter 66 begins:
Thus says the Lord, heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. Where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest? (Isaiah 66:1)
The first mention is in Genesis chapter one, quoting the authorised version.
“1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. …
“6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which [were] under the firmament from the waters which [were] above the firmament: and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” (Genesis 1:1, 6-8 AV)
I understand that the firmament was a word made up in the 17th century. The NIV uses the words “expanse ” and “sky,” and the NLT says it’s a space called “sky.”
In 2 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 2, Paul talks about some caught up to the third heaven, and this is often explained as the first heaven being the atmosphere and the clouds at 1 to 3 miles above the surface of the earth.
Planes fly about 6 to 7 miles high. So, these days, it’s within touching distance.
The second head is the planets, stars and galaxies.
Abraham was promised that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He could probably see about 3.000 stars, so he was promised a huge family. In the universe in total, there are about 8.000 stars bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.
But there are actually thought to be 200 million trillion steps, 200.000 million, million, million stars in the universe. So he was promised an amazingly large family.The third heaven is the final sphere, God’s dwelling place.
The Hebrew word means to be lofty. And looking at the Greek word for heaven, strong offers by explanation happiness, power, and eternity.
The physical space was finite, and beyond the material world was the spiritual space of God. The physical world was subject to death and decay, but the heavens were eternal, spiritual, and better than the earth. And the planets and stars were pointers to the religious heaven of God.
Up to the Middle Ages, the cosmos was believed to have had the Earth at the centre of everything, surrounded by concentric spheres of the moon, the sun, planets and stars.
Art aimed to represent the spiritual order beyond the material world and portrayed heaven in pictures comprising a light blue background with flat, out-of-proportion figures, often in gold, referencing the sky and the sun.
But art in the 13th century developed a new way of seeing heaven. And even a pope encouraged a change of style to incorporate linear perspective, which made a sort of medieval virtual reality. Which was thought to have the power to convert unbelievers to the Christian faith by making heaven more believable.
Science took up the reins of the shift a couple of hundred years later, with Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, who were all on the side of God. To them, the new astronomy reflected the glory of God the Father, Whose power and order in the universe supported their faith in Christianity’s eternal salvation, whose domain is the Kingdom of heaven.
Firstly, Copernicus suggested that the Earth went round the sun so that the Earth, including us, was no longer at the centre of everything. Newton’s big idea was that gravity, the gravity that makes an apple fall to the ground, also keeps the moon orbiting the Earth and planets orbiting the sun. So space everywhere is ruled by the same physical laws. This continuity between terrestrial and celestial realms, by this continuity, Newton famously united the heavens and the earth. The physical space could go on forever. So there was no room left over for heaven as a superior alternative domain.
Newton tore a hole in the social fabric that we’ve been … we’re struggling to comprehend, and reverberate still in the war between science and religion.
Einstein replaced Newton’s cosmology with space-time, and this has been developed into hyperspace, which I don’t understand, but is described as nothing but space curled up into patterns.
At the start of our universe, space had no structure, formless and empty darkness, to quote Genesis chapter. It was simple and uniform, like a blank piece of paper. Then, as time proceeded, the paper crinkled up into ever more elaborate structures, eventually giving rise to the complexities of today. So, perhaps this is God as the origami artist.
The new understanding of space impacts on who we think we are in space today is an arena to be mapped and measured. If heaven isn’t special, are we special?
Are we in conglomeration with molecules?
Christadelphians and other fundamental Christians and even New Age proponents do not accept this poor, demoralising, reductionist world.
But, I don’t think there is a war between science and religion. Science has furthered our understanding of the physical world. And as we’ve mentioned, it greatly enhanced the promise of Abraham.
But God doesn’t need to live in heaven. He is everywhere. Acts chapter 17 verses 27 and 28 say He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Jesus often spoke about the Kingdom of heaven, or the Kingdom of God.
In the road spray, he taught us to ask
They Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Asking for the divide between God and man to be dissolved.
The Kingdom of heaven is still the domain of human salvation, the righteousness of God replacing the sin of the world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Today, the expression “a thin place” is used to describe a place in time where space, the space between heaven and earth, grows thin and the sacred and the secular seem to meet.
This is what I mean by the experience of religion.
The Bible is full op people being touched by God, often in a vision or a dream. I picked a few examples showing how people felt about God drawing near to them. We’ve read about Jacob and his ladder experience in Genesis chapter 28. And his conclusion was
How awasome is this place?
This is none other than the House of God. This is the gate of heaven.Then in the New Testament, I think of Mary.
My soul glorifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.
After Jesus’ resurrection, the couple on the road to Emmaus expressed their vivid feelings.
When are our hearts burning within us? While he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us.
In our 21st-century lives, a thin place offers a sense of peace or a feeling of awe, where we feel our connection with God more strongly.
Some people feel it in wonderful landscapes. Others in a quiet place, or listening to music, or appreciating a work of art, or a moment in daily life, like opening the door onto a sunny morning.
I expect lots of people find the giving of thanks and taking the bread and wine a thin place.
As we’re about to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, may you know Jesus, your saviour.
May I know Jesus, my saviour. Thank you.
Thank you, Rachel, for those lovely words. It’s almost impossible, isn’t it, to imagine the extent of the universe, the cosmos, and to think that God is both filling that. But also, as you said, so close to every one of us now. And you have brought us beautifully to the centre point of our meeting, to think about Jesus, who said about himself, and I’m doing this remembering Jesus would one day see the angels ascending on himself, the Son of man. So just as Jacob saw the connection between heaven and earth, wo we see heaven and earth coming together in Jesus, our lord.
Before we share the bread and wine, we’re going to sing another hymn. And this time it’s going to be ” Praise the Lord” 174, which reminds us of the depths of the love that has been poured out on us in the sacrifice of Jesus.
Who his love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing his praise?He can never be forgotten, thoughout heav’n’s eternal days.
We thank You Father,
we come before You at this time to give our thanks and praise for all the blessings You bestow on us.We thank You for the love that You show towards us because You loved us so much.
You gave your only son.
We come now to remember the love that Your son, our lord, showed not only to You, but to us and the whole world also, in that he fullfilled Your word to the very end.As we pass these emblems of our lor’s love and great sacrifice to one another, we again give our thanks for the Plan that You have for all people that believe in You.
We ask that we may soon see the return of our lord and that we can therefore be brought closer to You, our eternal Father.
We ask that You be with us all and that You will hear this prayer through our lord and saviour’s name. Amen.
Together we sing a Christian hymn based on Joachim Neander’s German-language hymn “Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren”, published in 1680.: When we look down from a lofty mountain grandeur,
O Lord my God! when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to thee,
how great thou art! How great thou art!*
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX8CyJwvyBg?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent&w=560&h=315]*
We finish our Sunday service with prayer:
Let us pray, Lord God Heavenly Father,
we put oour minds to places where we just can’t comprehend Your dwelling place, the sky above the stars above the sun and moon, places You hold in the Palm of Your Hand.
Yeah, beyond our wildest imagination,Yeah,
we come to You in prayer, whether we are gathered in this room, whether we are sat in our various homes across different countries worshipping and praising You now and we know You’re in our presence. You are hearing these very words now. That’s amazing and we are in such actual majesty and splendour and Your power and glory in our presence now.
It is humbling and we pray tha what we have done this morning just a litle bit goes towards chewing as a sweet smell. As pleasing and acceptable we are mindful of the clouds above. And in our lives, we feel the rains pouring down at us sometimes and the stresses and strains and struggles of life.
Oh, too much.
And there’s no sunshine, and there’sno brightness. There’s nothing to look forward to. Then the clouds break. And the blue sky above is always there. The sun is always there. And the same with You, that well, whatever our situation, whatever our circumstances, whatever our troubles and problems and strains and anxiety, You are therejust above it all. And we can come to You in our prayers, or we can seek strength and guidance. As we face another week we know that You are ina principle of hearts and minds. And You control everything, and You planeverything for us. So guide our ways. Help us take our hand and lead us as Yougo towards another week.
So we thank You for so much, we thank You for Your blessings, for Your kindness, for Your love.Rate this:
#13Century #2Corinthians122 #3Heaven #Acts172728 #Astronomy #Atmosphere #BelanwaMethode #BethElBeitElBethelHouseOfGod #CelestialRealm #Copernicus #DreamOfJacob #Earth #Einstein #Expanse #ExperiencesOfReligion #Firmament #Galileo #Genesis11 #Genesis168 #Genesis281315 #Genesis281617 #Genesis282022 #Gravity #HouseChurchOfAnderlecht #IsaacNewton #Isaiah661 #JacobYaAqov3rdPatriarchSonOfIsaacRebekah #JoachimNeander #JohnLaunchbury #JulianBaseley #KingdomOfGod #KingdomOfHeaven #MiddleAges #RachelEdwards #Science #Sky #StarAstronomy #TerrestrialRealm #Universe -
European State of the Climate 2025 report published
Warming is reducing #snow and #ice cover, while dangerously high surface air temperatures, #drought, and #heatwaves, as well as record-high #ocean temperatures, are affecting regions across the continent, from the #Arctic to the #Mediterranean. The result is increasing impacts – from record heatwaves over land and at sea, to devastating #wildfires, and accelerating #biodiversity loss – with consequences for #societies and #ecosystems across #Europe.
The #ESOTC report is produced by the #EU’s #Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S), implemented by #ECMWF, and the World Meteorological Organization (#WMO), and brings together the work of around 100 scientific contributors.
Report:
https://climate.copernicus.eu/esotc/2025https://www.ecmwf.int/en/about/media-centre/news/2026/european-state-climate-2025-report-published
-
European State of the Climate 2025
Key Messages:
At least 95% of Europe experienced above-average annual temperatures in 2025.
A record three-week #heatwave affected sub-Arctic #Fennoscandia, with temperatures near to and within the Arctic Circle exceeding 30°C.#Glaciers in all European regions saw a net mass loss, with #Iceland recording its second-largest glacier loss on record; snow cover was 31% below average; the #Greenland Ice Sheet lost 139 gigatonnes (139 billion tonnes) of ice.
The annual sea surface temperature for the European region was the highest on record, and 86% of the region experienced at least ‘strong’ marine heatwaves.
#Wildfires burnt around 1,034,550 hectares, the largest area on record.
#River flows were below average for 11 months of the year across #Europe, with 70% of rivers seeing below-average annual flows.
#Storms and #flooding affected thousands across Europe, though extreme #rainfall and flooding were less widespread than in recent years.
#Renewables supplied nearly half (46.4%) of Europe’s electricity in 2025, with solar power reaching a new contribution record of 12.5%.
#Biodiversity is vital for a sustainable future, but #ClimateChange is a major cause of its degradation. Climate change and biodiversity are strongly connected within European policy and frameworks.
-
#ESA:
"
Drei von der ESA gebaute Satelliten werden in Frankreich präsentiert
"
"Drei Erdbeobachtungssatelliten, die .. noch in diesem Jahr starten sollen, haben ihre Funktions- und Umgebungstests abgeschlossen und sind bereit für den Transport zum europäischen Weltraumbahnhof .."16.4.2026
#Cannes #Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESOC #Eumetsat #FLEX #GMES #MTG #MTGI2 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel3C #SpaceFlight #TAS #ThalesAleniaSpace #Wettersatellit
-
#ESA:
"
Drei von der ESA gebaute Satelliten werden in Frankreich präsentiert
"
"Drei Erdbeobachtungssatelliten, die .. noch in diesem Jahr starten sollen, haben ihre Funktions- und Umgebungstests abgeschlossen und sind bereit für den Transport zum europäischen Weltraumbahnhof .."16.4.2026
#Cannes #Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESOC #Eumetsat #FLEX #GMES #MTG #MTGI2 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel3C #SpaceFlight #TAS #ThalesAleniaSpace #Wettersatellit
-
#ESA:
"
Drei von der ESA gebaute Satelliten werden in Frankreich präsentiert
"
"Drei Erdbeobachtungssatelliten, die .. noch in diesem Jahr starten sollen, haben ihre Funktions- und Umgebungstests abgeschlossen und sind bereit für den Transport zum europäischen Weltraumbahnhof .."16.4.2026
#Cannes #Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESOC #Eumetsat #FLEX #GMES #MTG #MTGI2 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel3C #SpaceFlight #TAS #ThalesAleniaSpace #Wettersatellit
-
#ESA:
"
Drei von der ESA gebaute Satelliten werden in Frankreich präsentiert
"
"Drei Erdbeobachtungssatelliten, die .. noch in diesem Jahr starten sollen, haben ihre Funktions- und Umgebungstests abgeschlossen und sind bereit für den Transport zum europäischen Weltraumbahnhof .."16.4.2026
#Cannes #Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESOC #Eumetsat #FLEX #GMES #MTG #MTGI2 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel3C #SpaceFlight #TAS #ThalesAleniaSpace #Wettersatellit
-
#ESA:
"
Drei von der ESA gebaute Satelliten werden in Frankreich präsentiert
"
"Drei Erdbeobachtungssatelliten, die .. noch in diesem Jahr starten sollen, haben ihre Funktions- und Umgebungstests abgeschlossen und sind bereit für den Transport zum europäischen Weltraumbahnhof .."16.4.2026
#Cannes #Copernicus #EO #Erdbeobachtung #ESOC #Eumetsat #FLEX #GMES #MTG #MTGI2 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel3C #SpaceFlight #TAS #ThalesAleniaSpace #Wettersatellit
-
European Ground Motion Service (#EGMS)
--
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2026.115389 <-- shared paper
--
#GIS #spatial #mapping #EuropeanGroundMotionService #EGMS #copernicus #satellite #PersistentScattererInterferometry #SAR #sentinel #sentinel1 #displacement #deformation #useruptake #serviceevolution #Envisat #InSAR #ROSEL #CopernicusGlobalGroundMotionService #CGGMS #risk #hazard #disaster #ground #motion #surface #deformation #usecase #subsidence #differential #remotesensing #earthobservation
@ESA -
European Ground Motion Service (#EGMS)
--
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2026.115389 <-- shared paper
--
#GIS #spatial #mapping #EuropeanGroundMotionService #EGMS #copernicus #satellite #PersistentScattererInterferometry #SAR #sentinel #sentinel1 #displacement #deformation #useruptake #serviceevolution #Envisat #InSAR #ROSEL #CopernicusGlobalGroundMotionService #CGGMS #risk #hazard #disaster #ground #motion #surface #deformation #usecase #subsidence #differential #remotesensing #earthobservation
@ESA -
European Ground Motion Service (#EGMS)
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2026.115389 <-- shared paper
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#GIS #spatial #mapping #EuropeanGroundMotionService #EGMS #copernicus #satellite #PersistentScattererInterferometry #SAR #sentinel #sentinel1 #displacement #deformation #useruptake #serviceevolution #Envisat #InSAR #ROSEL #CopernicusGlobalGroundMotionService #CGGMS #risk #hazard #disaster #ground #motion #surface #deformation #usecase #subsidence #differential #remotesensing #earthobservation
@ESA -
European Ground Motion Service (#EGMS)
--
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2026.115389 <-- shared paper
--
#GIS #spatial #mapping #EuropeanGroundMotionService #EGMS #copernicus #satellite #PersistentScattererInterferometry #SAR #sentinel #sentinel1 #displacement #deformation #useruptake #serviceevolution #Envisat #InSAR #ROSEL #CopernicusGlobalGroundMotionService #CGGMS #risk #hazard #disaster #ground #motion #surface #deformation #usecase #subsidence #differential #remotesensing #earthobservation
@ESA -
European Ground Motion Service (#EGMS)
--
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2026.115389 <-- shared paper
--
#GIS #spatial #mapping #EuropeanGroundMotionService #EGMS #copernicus #satellite #PersistentScattererInterferometry #SAR #sentinel #sentinel1 #displacement #deformation #useruptake #serviceevolution #Envisat #InSAR #ROSEL #CopernicusGlobalGroundMotionService #CGGMS #risk #hazard #disaster #ground #motion #surface #deformation #usecase #subsidence #differential #remotesensing #earthobservation
@ESA -
https://www.europesays.com/si/41396/ v Maroku že dolgo ni bilo tako zeleno #Copernicus #DeževnaZima #kmetijstvo #Maroko #meteorologija #PodnebneSpremembe #SatelitskiPosnetki #Slovene #Slovenščina #suša #Svet #vegetacija #VodnaKriza #World
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World on track to breach 1.5C target by 2030
#ClimateChange #GlobalWarming #1Point5Degrees #ParisAgreement #Copernicus #WMO #ExtremeWeather #ClimateCrisis #GlobalSouth #LossAndDamage #Adaptation #FossilFuels #Heatwaves #Floods #Drought #Environment
https://the-14.com/world-on-track-to-breach-1-5c-target-by-2030/ -
Satellites Help Tackle Landfill Methane Leaks
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https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Space_for_our_climate/Satellites_help_tackle_landfill_methane_leaks <-- shared (ESA) technical article
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https://www.ghgsat.com/en/case-studies/landfill-gas/ <-- details of GHGSat usage for landfill gases
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#ESA ##GHGSat #landfill #methane #remotesensing #earthobservation #spatialanalysis #GIS #spatial #mapping #spatiotemporal #greenhousegas #emissions #pollution #GlobalMethanePledge #satellite #Copernicus #Sentinel #Sentinel5P #climatechange #MEDUSA #wastemanagement #waste #oilandgas #landfillsites
@europeanspaceagency -
Rapid Mass Movements Triggered By An Atmospheric River In Disko Island, West Greenland
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https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.70201 <-- shared paper, 2023 event(s)
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https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-022-01922-7 <-- shared paper, 2021 event(s)
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https://www.polarresearch.at/the-great-landslide-of-assapaat/ <-- shared technical article
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#landslide #massmovement #thawing #permafrost #extremewweather #cryosphere #Qeqertarsuaq #ArcticDEM #DiskoIsland #Greenland #ERA5 #CARRA #fluvial #pluvial #precipitation #rainfall #snow #ice #glacier #glacial #temperature #slushflow #GIS #spatial #mapping #geomorphology #elevation #slope #atmosphericriver #climate #weather #snowmelt #island #coast #coastal #damage #humanimpacts #infrastructure #arctic #monitoring #geohazard #risk #hazard #engineeringgeology #polar #change #remotesensing #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #earthobservation #debrisflow #remoteareas
#GreenlandEcosystemMonitoring | @europeanspaceagency | #CopernicusECMWF #Copernicus -
Map Reveals How America's Forests Have Changed Over Time
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https://www.newsweek.com/america-forests-change-over-time-2041291 <-- shared 2025 media article
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https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1005-2023 <-- shared 2023 paper
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7055086 <-- shared study datasets
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#GIS #spatial #mapping #remotesensing #spatialanalysis #spatiotemporal #copernicus #CONUS #USA #forest #model #modeling #landuse #landcover #change #forestland #agriculture #urban #development #cities #industry #vegetation #America #humanimpacts #settlement #decline #cropland #pasture #grassland #grazing #reforestation #deforestation #urbanization #conservation #ecosystems #logging #mining #railroad #infrastructure #forestcover #NLDI #farmland #colonial #LULC #census #climate #hydrology #biogeochemical -
#Copernicus #ClimateBulletin monthly summary 09. Dec. 2025
"November 2025 was 1.54°C above the estimated 1850-1900 average used to define the pre-industrial level"
https://climate.copernicus.eu/climate-bulletin
#climate #ClimateScience #climatechange #ClimateEmergency #ClimateCrisis #ClimateBreakdown #ClimateDisruption #globalWarming #globalHeating #ExtremeWeather #polycrisis #EcosystemCollapse #systemcollapse #ecocide #fossilfuels #Co2 #Co2Emissions #methane #GreenhouseGases #KeepitInTheGround
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🌍✨ Something big is coming! We're working on a new feature: free and open NDVI satellite monitoring using Copernicus Sentinel-2 and OpenEO. 🛰️
This future tool will help farmers, researchers, and communities track vegetation health, ecosystem recovery, and agroecological impact using open data, free software, and citizen science principles. 🌱📡
Not released yet — but coming soon. 💚🌾
#NDVI #Copernicus #OpenData #OpenScience #Agroecology #Permaculture #CitizenScience #SatelliteImagery
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I like to verify my remote-sensing results directly in the field. Besides basic self-validation, field walks often generate new ideas and hypotheses.
For mobile field GIS, I use QField, loading both final map layers and custom templates for data collection.
Here’s an example from Nose Hill Park, where I checked several locations that showed a consistent NDVI increase in 2025 compared to 2024.
Field observations help confirm whether the spectral trends match real vegetation changes on the ground.#RemoteSensing #EarthObservation #GIS #QGIS #QField #NDVI #VegetationMonitoring #Sentinel2 #FieldWork #GeoSpatial #OpenData #GeoDataScience #UrbanEcology #Calgary #NoseHillPark #Alberta #Canada #Copernicus #CopernicusSentinel #GreennessOfCalgary
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Comparison of the median-seasoned NDVI for central Calgary: 2024 vs 2025
Here is a side-by-side look at how the vegetation conditions in central Calgary changed between two years, using median-seasoned NDVI maps derived from Sentinel-2 imagery.
You can clearly see the interannual differences in greenness — especially in parks, riparian zones, and residential areas with large tree cover.
The spatial patterns remain stable, but 2025 shows noticeably higher NDVI in many neighbourhoods due to more favourable moisture conditions.This is part of my ongoing project on analyzing the vegetation dynamics of Calgary communities: #GreennessOfCalgary
#RemoteSensing #EarthObservation #NDVI #Sentinel2 #Calgary #UrbanEcology #GIS #RStats #DataAnalysis #EnvironmentalMonitoring #Copernicus #Alberta #Canada #YYC #UrbanHealth #QGIS #FOSS
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Here is the city-wide map of ΔNDVI for Calgary — the difference between the median summer NDVI (mid-May to mid-September) in 2024 vs 2025.
As in the previous post, the signal is quite clear:
2025 shows a systematic increase in vegetation index across almost the entire city, but some areas showing a decrease.This pattern is consistent with what I see in the frequency distributions of median NDVI:
2025 has a broader, greener distribution — likely reflecting better moisture conditions and a more favourable growing season.Working with ΔNDVI on a pixel-by-pixel scale (10 × 10 m) offers a much more detailed picture of how vegetation responds spatially, compared with community-level averages or city-wide summaries.
#NDVI #Sentinel2 #RemoteSensing #Calgary #GreennessOfCalgary #GIS #Rstats #DataAnalysis #ESA #UrbanEcology #Copernicus #CopernicusSentinel #SustainableDevelopment #SustainableUrbanDevelopment #Alberta #Canada #EnvironmentalMonitoring #GIS #Geospatial
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🌿 A noticeable shift in the statistical distribution of median NDVI values for Calgary between 2024 and 2025.
🛰️ Both histograms are based on Sentinel-2 data with 10×10 m resolution, and each NDVI value represents the median for mid-May to mid-September.
The contrast is striking:
🔥 2024 shows a distribution shifted toward lower NDVI values → drier summer, weaker vegetation growth, more heat-stress periods.
🏡 2025 is clearly shifted to the right → stronger greenness, more moisture, and more stable summer conditions.This kind of interannual comparison reveals how much the city’s ecosystems can vary from year to year — using nothing more than open satellite data and clean statistics.
#NDVI #Sentinel2 #RemoteSensing #Calgary #GreennessOfCalgary #GIS #Rstats #DataAnalysis #ESA #UrbanEcology #Copernicus #CopernicusSentinel #SustainableDevelopment #SustainableUrbanDevelopment #Alberta #Canada
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🌿 NDVI change in Calgary’s Weaselhead Flats (2024 → 2025)
This map shows how vegetation in one of Calgary’s most diverse natural areas responded to the city’s unusually wet summer of 2025.
Greener shades mark zones where NDVI increased most strongly compared to 2024 — the same floodplain and forest patches that locals know for dense canopy recovery.Even modest year-to-year shifts in temperature and rainfall leave clear spatial traces in NDVI — a reminder of how sensitive urban ecosystems are to climate variability, and how well open-data satellite products can capture it.
🛰 Data and processing: Sentinel-2 + R + QGIS
#NDVI #RemoteSensing #Calgary #UrbanEcology #ClimateImpact #EnvironmentalMonitoring #GIS #QGIS #RStats #DataVisualization #GeospatialAnalysis #Sentinel2 #CopernicusSentinel2 #CopernicusProgram #Copernicus #GreennessOfCalgary #Alberta #Canada
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#DLR:
"
Neuzugang für das Copernicus-Erdbeobachtungsprogramm
"
".. Die Deutsche Raumfahrtagentur im DLR begleitet das Programm im Auftrag des Bundes.
DLR-Institute unterstützen bei der Kalibrierung der Radarinstrumente. .."https://www.dlr.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2025/start-copernicus-sentinel-1d
5.11.2025
#Copernicus #EO #EOC #Erdbeobachtung #Fernerkundung #GMES #Oberpfaffenhofen #Raumfahrt #SAR #Satelliten #Sentinel1 #Sentinel1D #SpaceFlight
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Une alerte incendie ou inondation en moins de 30 secondes, même sans réseau.
Le projet européen #AWARE, promet une nouvelle ère pour la sécurité civile grâce aux satellites #Galileo & #Copernicus
À découvrir ce soir sur cnes.fr🔗 https://cnes.fr/actualites/aware-premiers-essais-prometteurs-futur-systeme-europeen-dalerte-aux-populations
#CNES -
Satellites Reveal The Power Of Ocean Swell
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https://www.esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth/Space_for_our_climate/Satellites_reveal_the_power_of_ocean_swell <-- shared technical article
--
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2513381122 <-- shared paper
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“During recent storms, satellites recorded ocean waves averaging nearly 20 metres high – the largest ever measured from space. Moreover, satellite data now reveal that ocean swells act as storm ‘messengers’ - even though a storm may never make landfall, its swell can travel vast distances and bring destructive energy to distant coastlines...
This record merges data from satellites such as #SARAL, #Jason3, #Copernicus #Sentinel 3A and 3B, Copernicus #Sentinel6 Michael Freilich, #CryoSat and #CFOSAT…”
#GIS #spatial #mapping #remotesensing #earthobservation #satellite #ocean #marine #oceanwaves #waves #swell #storm #extremeweather #risk #hazard #impacts #humanimpacts #coast #coastline #longswells #energy #erosion #weather #longwaves #ESA #ClimateChangeInitiative #CCI #SeaState #meteorology #coastalengineering #mitigation #ESA
@europeanspaceagency -
#DLR:
"
Neuer Webdienst EO Wald visualisiert Kronendachverluste
Satellitendaten für deutsche Wälder in Not
"
"DLR zeigt mit Satellitendaten massive Waldschäden seit 2017 und macht diese mit der frei zugänglichen Webanwendung EO Wald sichtbar."https://www.dlr.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2025/satellitendaten-fuer-deutsche-waelder-in-not
23.9.2025
#BigData #Copernicus #EO #EOC #EOWald #Erdbeobachtung #Forstwirtschaft #Klima #Klimawandel #Landsat #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel2 #SpaceFlight #Wald
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#Waldbrände in #Spanien und #Portugal sorgen für dichte Rauchentwicklung, besonders rund um #Ourense in #Galicien.
#Spanien hat bereits Mitte August 2025 den höchsten jährlichen Wert an geschätzten #Feueremissionen seit Beginn der #CAMS-Datenerhebung erreicht.
Auch in Portugal sind vor allem der Norden und die Mitte stark betroffen.
https://www.copernicus.eu/en/media/image-day-gallery/severe-wildfires-spain-and-portugal
#Klimakrise #Luftverschmutzung #Feueremissionen #Galicia #Copernicus #Sentinel2
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🌾 Mapping what matters for sustainable farming: EvoLand’s C4 prototype detects where and which cover crops are used, supporting soil health, biodiversity & CAP compliance.
✔️ 80.7% accuracy
✔️ Sentinel-2 NDVI
✔️ Grass vs leaf-rich types🔗 https://www.evo-land.eu/mapping-what-matters-cover-crop-typing-for-smarter-soil-management/
#CoverCrops #SoilHealth #SmartFarming #EvoLandEU #Copernicus #HorizonEurope #CLMS
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🌾 Mapping what matters for sustainable farming: EvoLand’s C4 prototype detects where and which cover crops are used, supporting soil health, biodiversity & CAP compliance.
✔️ 80.7% accuracy
✔️ Sentinel-2 NDVI
✔️ Grass vs leaf-rich types🔗 https://www.evo-land.eu/mapping-what-matters-cover-crop-typing-for-smarter-soil-management/
#CoverCrops #SoilHealth #SmartFarming #EvoLandEU #Copernicus #HorizonEurope #CLMS
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#DLR:
"
Am 1. Juli 2025 um 23:04 Uhr MESZ .. ist der neue MTG-S1-Satellit vom Kennedy Space Center in Florida gestartet.
Verbaut ist ein Infrarot-Sounder-Instrument, das entwickelt wurde um sich schnell verändernde Wettermuster zu verfolgen und die Vorhersagegenauigkeit zu erhöhen ..
"
https://www.dlr.de/de/aktuelles/nachrichten/2025/mtg-s12.7.2025
#Airbus #CAMS #Copernicus #EO #EOC #Erdatmosphäre #Erdbeobachtung #ESA #EUMETSAT #Luftqualität #MTG #MTGS1 #OHB #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel4 #SpaceFlight #Umweltsatellit
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#Airbus:
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Successful launch of Airbus-built Sentinel-4 onboard MTG weather satellite
"
https://www.airbus.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2025-07-successful-launch-of-airbus-built-sentinel-4-onboard-mtg-weatherpdf in Deutsch: https://www.airbus.com/sites/g/files/jlcbta136/files/2025-07/DE-Airbus-SpS-Press-Release-Sentinel-4-Launch-Success.docx.pdf
2.7.2025
#CAMS #Copernicus #EO #Erdatmosphäre #Erdbeobachtung #ESA #EUMETSAT #Luftqualität #MTG #MTGS1 #Raumfahrt #Satelliten #Sentinel4 #SpaceFlight #Umweltsatellit