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Sergey Ryazansky said the prevalence of the pseudoscientific theory is due to poor education
The flat-Earth theory has been growing in popularity exponentially of late, with celebrity endorsements including basketballer Kyrie Irving and cricketer Freddie Flintoff.
Russian ISS cosmonaut Sergey Ryazansky said the prevalence of the pseudoscientific theory is due to poor education in the West.
He said: “People won’t believe in any proofs. It all originated in the West, perhaps because they are not taught the deep foundations of sciences, namely of physics, like in this country.
“I am sorry to hear it’s echoing in Russia as well. I have no idea how one can come to believe all this bulls**t.”
Mr Ryazansky said the theory is about internet “trolling” and having people on.
He added: “When it comes to Flat Earth, this is again the spirit of our time. It’s so easy to ‘troll’ a public figure, pardon me, on the internet.
“You are far away from him or her, they can’t wipe your nose even if there is a reason to. So, they can easily be insulted.
“I personally take the Flat Earth theory as a perfect massive space trolling, nothing more. There’s nothing serious behind it. This is just about playing a trick, waiting for what will come next, whether this or that cosmonaut will respond.
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“I never get involved in it on social media, as it’s a shame to spend my precious time on explaining elementary physics to people.”
The astronaut said the reason people use pseudonyms is to hide how “dull” they are.
He concluded: “On the other hand, why not, since one is striving to play jokes, and they do it on the internet.
“You have perhaps noticed that these users are most often nicknamed, since it takes a certain courage to acknowledge that you are dull.”
Mr Ryazansky is known to have partaken in two space flights, having entered open space four times in his space career.
His spacecraft “Soyuz MS-05” finalised its 139-day ISS program and safely returned from orbit on December 14, 2017.
Despite photographic evidence from space and even though a spherical globe was postulated as early as the 5th Century BC by the Greek philosopher Aristotle, adherents to the flat-Earth theory are growing in number.
Data from Google Trends show that in the past two years, searches for “flat earth” have more than tripled.
There have been several instances of high-profile celebrity endorsement, outrageous stunts to promote the theory and media coverage of flat-Earth events that have helped promote the cause.
A self-taught rocket “scientist” constructed a home-made rocket out of scrap metal in order to prove astronauts lied about the planet being flat.
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The theory has celebrity endorsements such as Kyrie Irving
“Mad Mike” Hughes planned to launch himself 1,800 feet (550 metres) and fly through the air at 500mph in his steam-powered vessel made of scrap metal.
But, he had to abandon the launch after the US Bureau of Land Management reportedly stopped him from using public land after reading about his plans in the media.
Also, fanatics attended a sellout Flat Earth International Conference (FEIC) to discuss everything from “NASA lies” to 9/11 conspiracies.
Flat-Earthers believe NASA is lying to the general public to conceal a stationary, flat planet.
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Mr Ryazansky is known to have partaken in two space flights
The Flat Earth International Community explains the community suspect the planet is a circular disk shape that relies on Antarctica to provide an icy wall barrier.
The ice barrier is supposed to prevent humans walking off the edge of the Earth.
Flat-Earther Mark Sargent told the BBC: “Nobody likes this uncomfortable feeling to be in this tiny ball, flying through space in this vast endless universe.
“So as far as what’s underneath this, I don’t know, it could be this thickness.
“It doesn’t even have to be that think, because we can only drill down eight miles. Heck, this is only fifty miles deep, we don’t know. So, it could be this sort of dimension.
“Don’t take my word for it, I could be a mental patient recently released from an institution.”