Topic: Konstantin Tsiolkovsky

Greg Carlwood discusses the esoteric and occult interests of Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, a founding father of the Soviet space program. Tsiolkovsky believed in a universe filled with "ethereal" immortal beings who send messages to humans through heavenly signs. This "Russian Cosmism" suggests that the pioneers of rocketry, much like Jack Parsons in the United States, were often driven by a magical or spiritual understanding of science and technology.

The conversation shifts to Russian Cosmism, a movement led by Nikolai Fedorov who proposed the "common task" of physically resurrecting the dead. This bizarre mystical goal directly led to the birth of the Russian space program, as Fedorov believed humanity would need to colonize other planets to house the resurrected. His student, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, developed the actual mathematics and rocket science that made space travel possible, rooting technological advancement in occult and immortalist philosophy.