History.

Main objectives.

In 1999, the different concepts of the three main contributors of ESA (Germany, France and Italy) for Galileo were compared and reduced to one by a joint team of engineers from all three countries. The first stage of the Galileo programme was agreed upon officially

Funding.

The European Commission had some difficulty funding the project's next stage, after several allegedly "per annum" sales projection graphs for the project were exposed in November 2001 as "cumulative" projections which for each year projected included all previous years of sales. The attention that was brought to this multibillion-euro growing error in sales forecasts resulted in a general awareness in the Commission and elsewhere that it was unlikely that the program would yield the return on investment that had previously been suggested to investors and decision-makers. On 17 January 2002, a spokesman for the project stated that, as a result of US pressure and economic difficulties, "Galileo is almost dead."  A few months later, however, the situation changed dramatically. European Union member states decided it was important to have a satellite-based positioning and timing infrastructure

Tension with the United States.

Galileo is intended to be an EU civilian GNSS that allows all users access to it. Initially GPS reserved the highest quality signal for military use, and the signal available for civilian use was intentionally degraded (Selective Availability). This changed with President Bill Clinton signing a policy directive in 1996 to turn off Selective Availability. Since May 2000 the same precision signal has been provided to both civilians and the military.  Since Galileo was designed to provide the highest possible precision (greater than GPS) to anyone, the US was concerned that an enemy could use Galileo signals in military strikes against the US and its allies

GPS and Galileo.

One of the reasons given for developing Galileo as an independent system was that position information from GPS can be made significantly inaccurate by the deliberate application of universal Selective Availability (SA) by the US military. GPS is widely used worldwide for civilian applications; Galileo's proponents argued that civil infrastructure, including airplane navigation and landing, should not rely solely upon a system with this vulnerability.  On 2 May 2000, SA was disabled by the President of the United States, Bill

Cooperation with the United States.

In June 2004, in a signed agreement with the United States, the European Union agreed to switch to a modulation known as BOC(1,1) (Binary Offset Carrier

First experimental satellites: GIOVE-A and GIOVE-B.

The first experimental satellite, GIOVE-A, was launched in December 2005 and was followed by a second test satellite, GIOVE-B, launched in April 2008. After successful completion

Funding again, governance issues.

In mid-2006 the public/private partnership fell apart, and the European Commission decided to nationalise the Galileo programme.  In early 2007 the EU had yet to decide how to pay for the system and the project was said to be "in deep crisis" due to lack of more public funds. German Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee was particularly doubtful about the consortium's ability to end the infighting at a time when only one testbed satellite had been successfully launched.  Although a decision was yet to be reached, on 13 July 2007 EU countries discussed cutting €548m ($755m, £370m) from the union's competitiveness budget for the following year and shifting some of these funds to other parts of the financing

Clock failures.

In January 2017, news agencies reported that six of the passive hydrogen masers and three of the rubidium atomic clocks had failed. Four of the full operational satellites have each lost at least one clock; but no satellite has lost more than two. The operation of the constellation has not been affected as each satellite is launched with three spare clocks. The possibility of a systemic flaw is being considered. SpectraTime, the Swiss producer of both on-board clock types, declined to comment. According to ESA they concluded with their industrial partners for the rubidium atomic clocks that some implemented testing and operational measures were required. Additionally some refurbishment is required for the rubidium atomic clocks that still have to be launched. For

2019 outage.

From 11 July till 18 July 2019 the whole constellation experienced an "unexplained" signal outage with all active satellites showing

International involvement.

In September 2003, China joined the Galileo project. China was to invest €230 million (US$302 million, GBP 155 million, CNY 2.34 billion) in the project over the following years.  In July 2004, Israel signed an agreement with the EU to become a partner in the Galileo project.  On 3 June 2005 the EU and Ukraine signed an agreement for Ukraine to join the project, as noted in a press release.  As of November 2005, Morocco also joined the programme.  In mid-2006, the Public-Private Partnership fell apart and the European Commission decided to nationalise Galileo as an EU programme.  In November 2006, China opted instead to upgrade BeiDou navigation system, its then-regional satellite navigation system. The decision was due to security concerns and issues with Galileo financing.  On 30 November 2007, the 27 member states of the European Union unanimously agreed to move forward with the project, with plans for bases in Germany and Italy. Spain did not approve during the initial vote, but approved it later that day. This greatly improved the viability of the Galileo project: "The EU's executive had previously said that if agreement was not reached by January 2008,

System description.

Space segment.

As of 2012, the system was scheduled to have 15

Ground segment.

The system's orbit and signal accuracy

Signals.

The system transmits three signals: E1 (1575.42 MHz), E5 (1191.795

Services.

The Galileo system will have four main services:  The former Safety of Life service is being re-profiled and it will probably be up to the receiver to assess the integrity of the

Concept.

Each Galileo satellite has two master passive hydrogen maser atomic clocks and two secondary rubidium atomic clocks which are independent of one other. As precise and stable space-qualified atomic clocks are critical components to any satellite-navigation system, the employed quadruple redundancy keeps Galileo functioning when onboard atomic clocks fail in space. The onboard passive hydrogen maser clocks' precision is four times better than the onboard rubidium atomic clocks and estimated at 1 second per 3 million years (a timing error of a nanosecond or 1 billionth of a second (10 or / s) translates into a positional error on Earth's surface), and will provide an accurate timing signal to allow a receiver to calculate the time that it takes the signal to reach it. The Galileo satellites are configured to run one hydrogen maser clock in primary mode and a rubidium clock as hot backup. Under normal conditions, the operating hydrogen maser clock produces the reference frequency from which the navigation signal is generated. Should the hydrogen maser encounter any problem, an instantaneous switchover to the rubidium clock would be performed. In case

European GNSS Service Centre.

The European GNSS Service Centre (GSC), located in Madrid, is an integral part of Galileo and provides the single interface between the Galileo system and Galileo users. GSC publishes Galileo official documentation, promotes Galileo current and future services worldwide, supports standardization and distributes Galileo almanacs, ephemeris and metadata.  The GSC

Search and rescue.

Galileo is to provide a new global search and rescue (SAR) function as part of the MEOSAR system. Satellites will be equipped with a transponder which will relay distress signals from emergency beacons to the Rescue coordination centre, which will then initiate a rescue operation. At the same time, the system is projected to provide a signal, the Return Link Message (RLM), "to" the emergency

Constellation.

Galileo satellite test beds: GIOVE.

In 2004 the Galileo System Test Bed Version 1 (GSTB-V1) project validated the on-ground algorithms for Orbit Determination and Time Synchronisation (OD&TS). This project, led by ESA and European Satellite Navigation Industries, has provided industry with fundamental knowledge to develop the mission segment of the Galileo positioning system.  A third satellite, GIOVE-A2, was originally planned to be built by SSTL for launch in the second half of 2008. Construction of GIOVE-A2 was terminated due to the successful launch

In-Orbit Validation (IOV) satellites.

These testbed satellites were followed by four IOV Galileo satellites that are much closer to the final Galileo satellite design. The Search & Rescue feature is also installed. The first two satellites were launched on 21 October 2011 from Guiana Space Centre using a Soyuz launcher, the other two on 12 October 2012. This

Full Operational Capability (FOC) satellites.

On 7 January 2010, it was announced that the contract to build the first 14 FOC satellites was awarded to OHB System and Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL). Fourteen satellites will be built at a cost of €566M (£510M; $811M). Arianespace will launch the satellites for a cost of €397M (£358M; $569M). The European Commission also announced that the €85 million contract for system support covering industrial services required by ESA for integration and validation of the Galileo system had been awarded to Thales Alenia Space. Thales Alenia Space subcontract performances to Astrium GmbH and security to Thales Communications.  In February 2012, an additional order of eight satellites was awarded to OHB Systems for €250M ($327M), after outbidding EADS Astrium tender offer. Thus bringing the total to 22 FOC satellites.  On 7 May 2014, the first two FOC satellites landed in Guyana for their joint launch planned in summer Originally planned for launch during 2013, problems tooling and establishing the production line for assembly led to a delay of a year in serial production of Galileo satellites. These two satellites (Galileo satellites GSAT-201 and GSAT-202) were launched on 22 August 2014. The

Second generation (G2G) satellites.

As of 2014, ESA and its industry partners have begun studies on Galileo Second Generation satellites, which will be presented to the EC for the late 2020s launch period. One idea is

Applications and impact.

Science projects using Galileo.

In July 2006 an international consortium of universities and research institutions embarked on a study of potential scientific applications of the Galileo constellation. This project, named GEO6, is a broad study oriented to the general scientific community, aiming to define and implement new applications of Galileo.  Among the various GNSS users identified by the Galileo Joint Undertaking, the GEO6, project addresses the Scientific User Community (UC).  The GEO6 project aims at fostering possible novel applications within the scientific UC of GNSS signals, and particularly of Galileo.

Receivers.

All major GNSS receiver chips support Galileo and hundreds of end-user devices are compatible with Galileo. The first, dual-frequency-GNSS-capable Android devices, which track more than one radio signal from each satellite, E1 and E5a frequencies for Galileo, were the Huawei Mate 20 line, Xiaomi Mi 8, Xiaomi Mi 9 and Xiaomi Mi MIX 3., there were more than 140 Galileo-enabled smartphones on the market of which 9 were dual-frequency enabled. On 24 December 2018, the European Commission passed a mandate for all new smartphones to implement Galileo for E112 support.  Effective 1 April 2018, all new vehicles sold in Europe must

Coins.

The European Satellite Navigation project was selected as the main motif of a very high-value collectors' coin: the Austrian European Satellite Navigation commemorative coin, minted on 1 March 2006. The

Galileo is the global navigation satellite system (GNSS) that went live in 2016, created by the European Union through the European GNSS Agency (GSA), headquartered in Prague, Czechia, with two ground operations centers in Fucino, Italy, and Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany. The €10 billion project is named after the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei. One of the aims of Galileo is to provide an independent high-precision positioning system so European nations do not have to rely on the U.S. GPS, or the Russian GLONASS systems, which could be disabled or degraded by their operators at any time. The use of basic (lower-precision) Galileo services is free and open to everyone. The higher-precision capabilities are available for paying commercial users. Galileo is intended to provide horizontal and vertical position measurements within 1-metre precision, and better positioning services at higher latitudes than other positioning systems. Galileo is also to provide a new global search and rescue (SAR) function as part of the MEOSAR system.

Navigační systém Galileo je evropský autonomní globální družicový polohový systém (GNSS), který financuje Evropská unie prostřednictvím Evropské kosmické agentury (ESA). Galileo má poskytnout přesný a nezávislý navigační systém, aby státy Evropské unie nebyly závislé na americkém systému GPS nebo ruském GLONASS. První testovací služby začal systém Galileo poskytovat v roce 2016, plný operační režim byl předpokládán v roce 2019, ale na začátku roku 2020 ještě nenastal.


History.

Recent times.

The team was promoted to Czech First League for the first time in its history in 2004 and in their first top-flight season fought against relegation, eventually finishing in 14th place. The club's greatest success was achieved in the 2005–06 season, as they finished runners-up in the Czech First League, earning a place in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Champions League. They came through their first tie, defeating Vålerenga (3–1 and 2–2), then lost against Galatasaray (2–5 away, 1–1 home), dropping into the UEFA Cup first round. The club went on to achieve a surprising 4–3 aggregate victory over Marseille (1st leg: 0–1, 2nd leg 4–2). However, the team was eliminated after reaching the group stage, taking just 3 points from 4 matches (Panathinaikos 0–1, Hapoel Tel Aviv 1–1, Paris Saint-Germain 0–0, Rapid București 1–1).  The following season, the club qualified directly for the first round of the UEFA Cup after finishing 3rd in the league. (Luboš Pecka was the top goalscorer in the league that year.) Qualification for the group stage was only narrowly secured by beating Palermo 4–2 on penalties after a nail biting 1–1 aggregate scoreline. On the verge of being eliminated with the score reading 1–0 Palermo, (with their goal in the first leg still standing) in the 2nd leg, Tomáš Sedláček scored the winner in the 2nd leg with only seconds to spare. In their group Mladá Boleslav defeated IF Elfsborg 3–1, but again failed to reach the knockout stages of the competition after losing matches against Villarreal 1–2, AEK Athens 0–1 and Fiorentina 1–2. The club subsequently achieved a 7th place league finish in the 2007–08 season, missing out on European qualification.  The major sponsor of the club is Škoda Auto.

Player records.

Highlighted players are in the current squad.

FK Mladá Boleslav is a Czech football club based in the city of Mladá Boleslav. The club currently plays in the Czech First League.

FK Mladá Boleslav (celým názvem: Fotbalový klub Mladá Boleslav) je český fotbalový klub, který sídlí v Mladé Boleslavi ve Středočeském kraji. Jako letopočet založení klubu je tradičně uváděn rok 1902, který se dá ovšem brát spíše jako ročník založení mladoboleslavského fotbalu. Současný fotbalový klub byl totiž založen v roce 1950 po velké fúzi městských klubu. Klubové barvy jsou modrá a bílá. Od sezóny 2004/05 působí v české nejvyšší fotbalové soutěži. Největšími úspěchy jsou dva triumfy v národním poháru ze sezón 2010/11 a 2015/16, což jsou doposud jediné „velké trofeje“ ve sbírce tohoto klubu.


Origins.

Medieval forerunners.

Anabaptists are considered to have begun with the Radical Reformers in the 16th century, but historians classify certain people and groups as their forerunners because of a similar approach to the interpretation and application of the Bible. For instance, Petr Chelčický, a 15th-century Bohemian reformer, taught most of the beliefs considered integral to Anabaptist theology. Medieval antecedents may include the Brethren of the Common Life, the Hussites, Dutch Sacramentists, and some forms of monasticism. The Waldensians also represent a faith similar to the Anabaptists.  Medieval dissenters and Anabaptists who held to a literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount share in common the following affirmations:

Zwickau prophets and the German Peasants' War.

On December 27, 1521, three "prophets" appeared in Wittenberg from Zwickau who were influenced by (and, in turn, influencing) Thomas Müntzer—Thomas Dreschel, Nicholas Storch, and Mark Thomas Stübner. They preached an apocalyptic, radical alternative to Lutheranism. Their preaching helped to stir the feelings concerning the social crisis which erupted in the German Peasants' War in southern Germany in 1525 as a revolt against feudal oppression. Under the leadership of Müntzer, it became a war against all constituted authorities and an attempt to establish by revolution an ideal Christian commonwealth, with absolute equality among persons and the community of goods. The Zwickau prophets were not Anabaptists (that is, they did not practise "rebaptism"); nevertheless, the prevalent social inequities and the preaching of men such as these have been seen as laying the foundation for the Anabaptist movement. The social ideals of the Anabaptist movement coincided closely with those of leaders in the German Peasants' War. Studies have found a very low percentage of subsequent sectarians to have taken part in the peasant uprising.

Views on origins.

Research on the origins of the Anabaptists has been tainted both by the attempts of their enemies to slander them and by the attempts of their supporters to vindicate them. It was long popular to classify all Anabaptists as Munsterites and radicals associated with the Zwickau prophets, Jan Matthys, John of Leiden, and Thomas Müntzer. Those desiring to correct this error tended to over-correct and deny all connections between the larger Anabaptist movement and the most radical elements.  The modern era of Anabaptist historiography arose with Roman Catholic scholar Carl Adolf Cornelius' publication of "Die Geschichte des Münsterischen Aufruhrs" (The History of the Münster Uprising) in 1855. Baptist historian Albert Henry Newman (1852–1933), who Harold S. Bender said occupied "first position in the field of American Anabaptist historiography", made a major contribution with his "A History of Anti-Pedobaptism" (1897).  Three main theories on origins of the Anabaptists are the following:

Monogenesis.

A number of scholars (e.g. Harold S. Bender, William Estep, Robert Friedmann) consider the Anabaptist movement to have developed from the Swiss Brethren movement of Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, et al. They generally held that Anabaptism had its origins in Zürich, and that the Anabaptism of the Swiss Brethren was transmitted to southern Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and northern Germany, where it developed into its various branches. The monogenesis theory usually rejects the Münsterites and other radicals from the category of true Anabaptists. In the monogenesis view the time of origin is January 21, 1525, when Conrad Grebel baptized George Blaurock, and Blaurock in turn baptized several others immediately. These baptisms were the first "re-baptisms" known in the movement. This continues to be the most widely accepted date posited for the establishment of Anabaptism.

Polygenesis.

James M. Stayer, Werner O. Packull, and Klaus Deppermann disputed the idea of a single origin of Anabaptists in a 1975 essay entitled "From Monogenesis to Polygenesis", suggesting that February 24, 1527, at Schleitheim is the proper date of the origin of Anabaptism. On this date the Swiss Brethren wrote a declaration of belief called the Schleitheim Confession. The authors of the essay noted the agreement among previous Anabaptist historians on polygenesis, even when disputing the date for a single starting point: "Hillerbrand and Bender (like Holl and Troeltsch) were in agreement that there was a single dispersion of Anabaptism..., which certainly ran through Zurich. The only question was whether or not it went back further to Saxony." After criticizing the standard polygenetic history, the authors found six groups in early Anabaptism which could be collapsed into three originating "points of departure": "South German Anabaptism, the Swiss Brethren, and the Melchiorites". According to their polygenesis theory, South German–Austrian Anabaptism "was a diluted form of Rhineland mysticism", Swiss Anabaptism "arose out of Reformed congregationalism", and Dutch Anabaptism was formed by "Social unrest and the apocalyptic visions of Melchior Hoffman". As examples of how the Anabaptist movement was influenced from sources other than the Swiss Brethren movement, mention has been made of how Pilgram Marpeck's "Vermanung" of 1542 was deeply influenced by the "Bekenntnisse" of 1533 by Münster theologian Bernhard Rothmann. Melchior Hoffman influenced the Hutterites when they used his commentary on the Apocalypse shortly after he wrote it.  Others who have written in support of polygenesis include Grete Mecenseffy and Walter Klaassen, who established links between Thomas Müntzer and Hans Hut. In another work, Gottfried Seebaß and Werner Packull showed the influence of Thomas Müntzer on the formation of South German Anabaptism. Similarly, author Steven Ozment linked Hans Denck and Hans Hut with Thomas Müntzer, Sebastian Franck, and others. Author Calvin Pater showed how Andreas Karlstadt influenced Swiss Anabaptism in various areas, including his view of Scripture, doctrine of the church, and views on baptism.  Several historians, including Thor Hall, Kenneth Davis, and Robert Kreider, have also noted the influence of Humanism on Radical Reformers in the three originating points of departure to account for how this brand of reform could develop independently from each other. Relatively recent research, begun in a more advanced and deliberate manner by Andrew P. Klager, also explores how the influence and a particular reading of the Church Fathers contributed to the development of distinctly Anabaptist beliefs and practices in separate regions of Europe in the early 16th century, including by Menno Simons in the Netherlands, Conrad Grebel in Switzerland, Thomas Müntzer in central Germany, Pilgram Marpeck in the Tyrol, Peter Walpot in Moravia, and especially Balthasar Hubmaier in southern Germany, Switzerland, and Moravia.

Apostolic succession.

Baptist successionists have, at times, pointed to 16th-century Anabaptists as part of an apostolic succession of churches ("church perpetuity") from the time of Christ. This view is held by some Baptists, some Mennonites, and a number of "true church" movements.  The opponents of the Baptist successionism theory emphasize that these non-Catholic groups clearly differed from each other, that they held some heretical views, or that the groups had no connection with one another and had origins that were separate both in time and in place.  A different strain of successionism is the theory that the Anabaptists are of Waldensian origin. Some hold the idea that the Waldensians are part of the apostolic succession, while others simply believe they were an independent group out of whom the Anabaptists arose. Ludwig Keller, Thomas M. Lindsay, H. C. Vedder, Delbert Grätz, John T. Christian and Thieleman J. van Braght (author of Martyrs Mirror) all held, in varying degrees, the position that the Anabaptists were of Waldensian origin.

History.

Switzerland.

Anabaptism in Switzerland began as an offshoot of the church reforms instigated by Ulrich Zwingli. As early as 1522 it became evident that Zwingli was on a path of reform preaching when he began to question or criticize such Catholic practices as tithes, the mass, and even infant baptism. Zwingli had gathered a group of reform-minded men around him, with whom he studied classical literature and the scriptures. However, some of these young men began to feel that Zwingli was not moving fast enough in his reform. The division between Zwingli and his more radical disciples became apparent in an October 1523 disputation held in Zurich. When the discussion of the mass was about to be ended without making any actual change in practice, Conrad Grebel stood up and asked "what should be done about the mass?" Zwingli responded by saying the council would make that decision. At this point, Simon Stumpf, a radical priest from Höngg, answered saying, "The decision has already been made by the Spirit of God."  This incident illustrated clearly that Zwingli and his more radical disciples had different expectations. To Zwingli, the reforms would only go as fast as the city Council allowed them. To the radicals, the council had no right to make that decision, but rather the Bible was the final authority of church reform. Feeling frustrated, some of them began to meet on their own for Bible study. As early as 1523, William Reublin began to preach against infant baptism in villages surrounding Zurich, encouraging parents to not baptize their children.  Seeking fellowship with other reform-minded people, the radical group wrote letters to Martin Luther, Andreas Karlstadt, and Thomas Müntzer. Felix Manz began to publish some of Karlstadt's writings in Zurich in late 1524. By this time the question of infant baptism had become agitated and the Zurich council had instructed Zwingli to meet weekly with those who rejected infant baptism "until the matter could be resolved". Zwingli broke off the meetings after two sessions, and Felix Manz petitioned the Council to find a solution, since he felt Zwingli was too hard to work with. The council then called a meeting for January 17, 1525. The Council ruled in this meeting that all who continued to refuse to baptize their infants should be expelled from Zurich if they did not have them baptized within one week. Since Conrad Grebel had refused to baptize his daughter Rachel, born on January 5, 1525, the Council decision was extremely personal to him and others who had not baptized their children. Thus, when sixteen of the radicals met on Saturday evening, January 21, 1525, the situation seemed particularly dark. The Hutterian Chronicle records the event:  Afterwards Blaurock was baptized, he in turn baptized others at the meeting. Even though some had rejected infant baptism before this date, these baptisms marked the first re-baptisms of those who had been baptized as infants and thus, technically, Swiss Anabaptism was born on that day.

Tyrol.

Anabaptism appears to have come to Tyrol through the labors of George Blaurock. Similar to the German Peasants' War, the Gasmair uprising set the stage by producing a hope for social justice. Michael Gasmair had tried to bring religious, political, and economical reform through a violent peasant uprising, but the movement was squashed. Although little hard evidence exists of a direct connection between Gasmair's uprising and Tyrolian Anabaptism, at least a few of the peasants involved in the uprising later became Anabaptists. While a connection between a violent social revolution and non-resistant Anabaptism may be hard to imagine, the common link was the desire for a radical change in the prevailing social injustices. Disappointed with the failure of armed revolt, Anabaptist ideals of an alternative peaceful, just society probably resonated on the ears of the disappointed peasants.  Before Anabaptism proper was introduced to South Tyrol, Protestant ideas had been propagated in the region by men such as Hans Vischer, a former Dominican. Some of those who participated in conventicles where Protestant ideas were presented later became Anabaptists. As well, the population in general seemed to have a favorable attitude towards reform, be it Protestant or Anabaptist. George Blaurock appears to have preached itinerantly in the Puster Valley region in 1527, which most likely was the first introduction of Anabaptist ideas in the area. Another visit through the area in 1529 reinforced these ideas, but he was captured and burned at the stake in Klausen on September 6, 1529.  Jacob Hutter was one of the early converts in South Tyrol, and later became a leader among the Hutterites, who received their name from him. Hutter made several trips between Moravia and Tyrol, and most of the Anabaptists in South Tyrol ended up emigrating to Moravia because of the fierce persecution unleashed by Ferdinand I. In November 1535, Hutter was captured near Klausen and taken to Innsbruck where he was burned at the stake on February 25, 1536. By 1540 Anabaptism in South Tyrol was beginning to die out, largely because of the emigration to Moravia of the converts because of incessant persecution.

Low Countries and northern Germany.

Melchior Hoffman is credited with the introduction of Anabaptist ideas into the Low Countries. Hoffman had picked up Lutheran and Reformed ideas, but on April 23, 1530 he was "re-baptized" at Strasbourg and within two months had gone to Emden and baptized about 300 persons. For several years Hoffman preached in the Low Countries until he was arrested and imprisoned at Strasbourg, where he died about 10 years later. Hoffman's apocalyptic ideas were indirectly related to the Münster Rebellion, even though he was "of a different spirit". Obbe and Dirk Philips had been baptized by disciples of Jan Matthijs, but were opposed to the violence that occurred at Münster. Obbe later became disillusioned with Anabaptism and withdrew from the movement in about 1540, but not before ordaining David Joris, his brother Dirk, and Menno Simons, the latter from whom the Mennonites received their name. David Joris and Menno Simons parted ways, with Joris placing more emphasis on "spirit and prophecy", while Menno emphasized the authority of the Bible. For the Mennonite side, the emphasis on the "inner" and "spiritual" permitted compromise to "escape persecution", while to the Joris side, the Mennonites were under the "dead letter of the Scripture".  Because of persecution and expansion, some of the Low Country Mennonites emigrated to Vistula delta, a region settled by Germans but under Polish rule until it became part of Prussia in 1772. There they formed the Vistula delta Mennonites integrating some other Mennonites mainly from Northern Germany. In the late 18th century, several thousand of them migrated from there to Ukraine (which at the time was part of Russia) forming the so-called Russian Mennonites. Beginning in 1874, many of them emigrated to the prairie states and provinces of the United States and Canada. In the 1920s, the conservative faction of the Canadian settlers went to Mexico and Paraguay. Beginning in the 1950s, the most conservative of them started to migrate to Bolivia. In 1958, Mexican Mennonites migrated to Belize. Since the 1980s, traditional Russian Mennonites migrated to Argentina. Smaller groups went to Brazil and Uruguay. In 2015, some Mennonites from Bolivia settled in Peru. In 2018, there are more than 200,000 of them living in colonies in Central and South America.

Moravia, Bohemia and Silesia.

Although Moravian Anabaptism was a transplant from other areas of Europe, Moravia soon became a center for the growing movement, largely because of the greater religious tolerance found there. Hans Hut was an early evangelist in the area, with one historian crediting him with baptizing more converts in two years than all the other Anabaptist evangelists put together. The coming of Balthasar Hübmaier to Nikolsburg was a definite boost for Anabaptist ideas to the area. With the great influx of religious refugees from all over Europe, many variations of Anabaptism appeared in Moravia, with Jarold Zeman documenting at least ten slightly different versions. Soon, one-eyed Jacob Wiedemann appeared at Nikolsburg, and began to teach the pacifistic convictions of the Swiss Brethren, on which Hübmaier had been less authoritative. This would lead to a division between the "Schwertler" (sword-bearing) and the "Stäbler" (staff-bearing). Wiedemann and those with him also promoted the practice of community of goods. With orders from the lords of Liechtenstein to leave Nikolsburg, about 200 "Stäbler" withdrew to Moravia to form a community at Austerlitz.  Persecution in South Tyrol brought many refugees to Moravia, many of whom formed into communities that practised community of goods. Jacob Hutter was instrumental in organizing these into what became known as the Hutterites. But others came from Silesia, Switzerland, German lands, and the Low Countries. With the passing of time and persecution, all the other versions of Anabaptism would die out in Moravia leaving only the Hutterites. Even the Hutterites would be dissipated by persecution, with a remnant fleeing to Transylvania, then to the Ukraine, and finally to North America in 1874.

South and central Germany, Austria and Alsace.

South German Anabaptism had its roots in German mysticism. Andreas Karlstadt, who first worked alongside Martin Luther, is seen as a forerunner of South German Anabaptism because of his reforming theology that rejected many Catholic practices, including infant baptism. However, Karlstadt is not known to have been "rebaptized", nor to have taught it. Hans Denck and Hans Hut, both with German Mystical background (in connection with Thomas Müntzer) both accepted "rebaptism", but Denck eventually backed off from the idea under pressure. Hans Hut is said to have brought more people into early Anabaptism than all the other Anabaptist evangelists of his time put together. However, there may have been confusion about what his baptism (at least some of the times it was done by making the sign of the Tau on the forehead) may have meant to the recipient. Some seem to have taken it as a sign by which they would escape the apocalyptical revenge of the Turks that Hut predicted. Hut even went so far as to predict a 1528 coming of the kingdom of God. When the prediction failed, some of his converts became discouraged and left the Anabaptist movement. The large congregation of Anabaptists at Augsburg fell apart (partly because of persecution) and those who stayed with Anabaptist ideas were absorbed into Swiss and Moravia Anabaptist congregations. Pilgram Marpeck was another notable leader in early South German Anabaptism who attempted to steer between the two extremes of Denck's inner Holiness and the legalistic standards of the other Anabaptists.

Persecutions and migrations.

Roman Catholics and Protestants alike persecuted the Anabaptists, resorting to torture and execution in attempts to curb the growth of the movement. The Protestants under Zwingli were the first to persecute the Anabaptists, with Felix Manz becoming the first Anabaptist martyr in 1527. On May 20 or 21, 1527, Roman Catholic authorities executed Michael Sattler. King Ferdinand declared drowning (called the "third baptism") "the best antidote to Anabaptism". The Tudor regime, even the Protestant monarchs (Edward VI of England and Elizabeth I of England), persecuted Anabaptists as they were deemed too radical and therefore a danger to religious stability. The persecution of Anabaptists was condoned by the ancient laws of Theodosius I and Justinian I which were passed against the Donatists, and decreed the death penalty for anyone who practised rebaptism. "Martyrs Mirror", by Thieleman J. van Braght, describes the persecution and execution of thousands of Anabaptists in various parts of Europe between 1525 and 1660. Continuing persecution in Europe was largely responsible for the mass emigrations to North America by the Amish, Hutterites, and Mennonites. Unlike Calvinists, Anabaptists failed to gain recognition in the Peace of Westphalia of 1648 and as a result, they continued to be persecuted in Europe long after that treaty was signed.

Types.

Different types exist among the Anabaptists, although the categorizations tend to vary with the scholar's viewpoint on origins. Estep claims that in order to understand Anabaptism, one must "distinguish between the Anabaptists, inspirationists, and rationalists". He classes the likes of Blaurock, Grebel, Balthasar Hubmaier, Manz, Marpeck, and Simons as Anabaptists. He groups Müntzer, Storch, et al. as inspirationists, and anti-trinitarians such as Michael Servetus, Juan de Valdés, Sebastian Castellio, and Faustus Socinus as rationalists. Mark S. Ritchie follows this line of thought, saying, "The Anabaptists were one of several branches of 'Radical' reformers (i.e. reformers that went further than the mainstream Reformers) to arise out of the Renaissance and Reformation. Two other branches were Spirituals or Inspirationists, who believed that they had received direct revelation from the Spirit, and rationalists or anti-Trinitarians, who rebelled against traditional Christian doctrine, like Michael Servetus."  Those of the polygenesis viewpoint use "Anabaptist" to define the larger movement, and include the inspirationists and rationalists as true Anabaptists. James M. Stayer used the term "Anabaptist" for those who "rebaptized" persons already "baptized" in infancy. Walter Klaassen was perhaps the first Mennonite scholar to define "Anabaptists" that way in his 1960 Oxford dissertation. This represents a rejection of the previous standard held by Mennonite scholars such as Bender and Friedmann.  Another method of categorization acknowledges regional variations, such as Swiss Brethren (Grebel, Manz), Dutch and Frisian Anabaptism (Menno Simons, Dirk Philips), and South German Anabaptism (Hübmaier, Marpeck).  Historians and sociologists have made further distinctions between radical Anabaptists, who were prepared to use violence in their attempts to build a New Jerusalem, and their pacifist brethren, later broadly known as Mennonites. Radical Anabaptist groups included the Münsterites, who occupied and held the German city of Münster in 1534–1535, and the Batenburgers, who persisted in various guises as late as the 1570s.

Spirituality.

Charismatic manifestations.

Within the inspirationist wing of the Anabaptist movement, it was not unusual for charismatic manifestations to appear, such as dancing, falling under the power of the Holy Spirit, "prophetic processions" (at Zurich in 1525, at Munster in 1534 and at Amsterdam in 1535), and speaking in tongues. In Germany some Anabaptists, "excited by mass hypnosis, experienced healings, glossolalia, contortions and other manifestations of a camp-meeting revival". The Anabaptist congregations that later developed into the Mennonite and Hutterite churches tended not to promote these manifestations, but did not totally reject the miraculous. Pilgram Marpeck, for example, wrote against the exclusion of miracles: "Nor does Scripture assert this exclusion... God has a free hand even in these last days." Referring to some who had been raised from the dead, he wrote: "Many of them have remained constant, enduring tortures inflicted by sword, rope, fire and water and suffering terrible, tyrannical, unheard-of deaths and martyrdoms, all of which they could easily have avoided by recantation. Moreover one also marvels when he sees how the faithful God (Who, after all, overflows with goodness) raises from the dead several such brothers and sisters of Christ after they were hanged, drowned, or killed in other ways. Even today, they are found alive and we can hear their own testimony... Cannot everyone who sees, even the blind, say with a good conscience that such things are a powerful, unusual, and miraculous act of God? Those who would deny it must be hardened men." The Hutterite Chronicle and the "Martyrs Mirror" record several accounts of miraculous events, such as when a man named Martin prophesied while being led across a bridge to his execution in 1531: "this once yet the pious are led over this bridge, but no more hereafter". Just "a short time afterwards such a violent storm and flood came that the bridge was demolished".

Holy Spirit leadership.

The Anabaptists insisted upon the "free course" of the Holy Spirit in worship, yet still maintained it all must be judged according to the Scriptures. The Swiss Anabaptist document titled "Answer of Some Who Are Called (Ana-)Baptists – Why They Do Not Attend the Churches". One reason given for not attending the state churches was that these institutions forbade the congregation to exercise spiritual gifts according to "the Christian order as taught in the gospel or the Word of God in 1 Corinthians 14". "When such believers come together, 'Everyone of you (note every one) hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation', and so on. When someone comes to church and constantly hears only one person speaking, and all the listeners are silent, neither speaking nor prophesying, who can or will regard or confess the same to be a spiritual congregation, or confess according to 1 Corinthians 14 that God is dwelling and operating in them through His Holy Spirit with His gifts, impelling them one after another in the above-mentioned order of speaking and prophesying."

Today.

Anabaptists.

Several existing denominational bodies are the direct successors of the continental Anabaptists. Mennonites, Amish and Hutterites are in a direct and unbroken line back to the Anabapists of the early 16th century. Schwarzenau Brethren and River Brethren emerged in the 18th century and adopted many Anabapist elements. The same is true for the Bruderhof Communities that emerged in the early 20th century. Sometimes the Apostolic Christian Church is seen as "Neutäufer" ("Neo-Anabaptist"). Some historical connections have been demonstrated for all of these spiritual descendants, though perhaps not as clearly as the noted institutionally lineal descendants.  Although many see the more well-known Anabaptist groups (Amish, Hutterites and Mennonites) as ethnic groups, only the Amish and the Hutterites today are composed almost totally of descendants of the continental Anabaptists, while among the Mennonites there are Ethnic Mennonites and others who are not. Brethren groups have mostly lost their ethnic distinctiveness.  Total worldwide membership of the Mennonite, Brethren in Christ and related churches totals 1,616,126 (as of 2009) with about 60 percent in Africa, Asia and Latin America. In 2015 there were some 300,000 Amish, more than 200,000 "Russian" Mennonites in Latin America, some 60,000 to 80,000 Old Order Mennonites and some 50,000 Hutterites, who have preserved their ethnicity, their German dialects (Pennsylvania German, Plautdietsch, Hutterisch), plain dress and other old traditions.

Similar groups.

The Bruderhof Communities were founded in Germany by Eberhard Arnold in 1920, establishing and organisationally joining the Hutterites in 1930. The group moved to England after the Gestapo confiscated their property in 1933, and they subsequently moved to Paraguay in order to avoid military conscription, and after World War II, they moved to the United States.  Groups which are derived from the Schwarzenau Brethren, often called German Baptists, while not directly descended from the 16th-century Anabaptists, are usually considered Anabaptist because their doctrine and practice are almost identical to the doctrine and practice of Anabaptism. The modern-day Brethren movement is a combination of Anabaptism and Radical Pietism.  The relationship between Baptists and Anabaptists was originally strained. In 1624, the then five existing Baptist churches of London issued a condemnation of the Anabaptists. Puritans of England and their Baptist branch arose independently, and although they may have been informed by Anabaptist theology, they clearly differentiate themselves from Anabaptists as seen in the London Baptist Confession of Faith A.D. 1644, "Of those Churches which are commonly (though falsely) called ANABAPTISTS". Moreover, Baptist historian Chris Traffanstedt maintains that Anabaptists share "some similarities with the early General Baptists, but overall these similarities are slight and not always relational. In the end, we must come to say that this group of Christians does not reflect the historical teaching of the Baptists". German Baptists are not related to the English Baptist movement and were inspired by central European Anabaptists. Upon moving to the United States, they associated with Mennonites and Quakers.  Anabaptist characters exist in popular culture, most notably Chaplain Tappman in Joseph Heller's novel "Catch-22", James (Jacques) in Voltaire's novella "Candide", Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera "Le prophète" (1849), and the central character in the novel "Q", by the collective known as "Luther Blissett".

Neo-Anabaptists.

The term "Neo-Anabaptist" has been used to describe a late twentieth and early twenty-first century theological movement within American evangelical Christianity which draws inspiration from theologians who are located within the Anabaptist tradition but are ecclesiastically outside it. Neo-Anabaptists have been noted for their "low church, counter-cultural, prophetic-stance-against-empire ethos" as well as for their focus on pacifism, social justice and poverty. The works of Mennonite theologians Ron Sider and John Howard Yoder are frequently cited as having a strong influence on the movement.

Legacy.

Common Anabaptist beliefs and practices of the 16th century continue to influence modern Christianity and Western society.  The Anabaptists were early promoters of a free church and freedom of religion (sometimes associated with separation of church and state). When it was introduced by the Anabaptists in the 15th and 16th centuries, religious freedom which was independent from the state was unthinkable to both clerical and governmental leaders. Religious liberty was equated with anarchy; Kropotkin traces the birth of anarchist thought in Europe to these early Anabaptist communities.  According to Estep:

Anabaptism (from Neo-Latin, from the Greek : "re-" and "baptism",, earlier also ) is a Christian movement which traces its origins to the Radical Reformation. The movement is generally seen as an offshoot of Protestantism, although this view has been challenged by some Anabaptists.

Novokřtěnectví ("Anabaptismus") je jedno z mnoha reformních křesťanských náboženských hnutí vzniklých v 16. století. Anabaptisté se považují za příslušníky tzv. radikální reformace.


Nomenclature.

The trivial name "ozone" is the most commonly used and preferred IUPAC name. The systematic names "2λ-trioxidiene" and "catena-trioxygen", valid IUPAC names, are constructed according to the substitutive and additive nomenclatures, respectively. The name "ozone" derives from "ozein" (ὄζειν), the Greek verb for smell, referring to ozone's distinctive smell.  In appropriate contexts, ozone can be viewed as trioxidane with

History.

In 1785, the Dutch chemist Martinus van Marum was conducting experiments involving electrical sparking above water when he noticed an unusual smell, which he attributed to the electrical reactions, failing to realize that he had in fact created ozone.  A half century later, Christian Friedrich Schönbein noticed the same pungent odour and recognized it as the smell often following a bolt of lightning. In 1839, he succeeded in isolating the gaseous chemical and named it "ozone", from the Greek word "" () meaning "to smell". For this reason, Schönbein is generally credited with the discovery of ozone. The formula for ozone, O, was not determined until 1865 by Jacques-Louis Soret and confirmed by Schönbein in 1867.  For much of the second half of the nineteenth century and well into the twentieth, ozone was considered a healthy component of the environment by naturalists and health-seekers. Beaumont, California had as its official slogan "Beaumont: Zone of Ozone", as evidenced on postcards and Chamber of Commerce letterhead. Naturalists working outdoors often considered the higher elevations beneficial because of their ozone content. "There is quite a

Physical properties.

Ozone is a colourless or pale blue gas, slightly soluble in water and much more soluble in inert non-polar solvents such as carbon tetrachloride or fluorocarbons, in which it forms a blue solution. At, it condenses to form a dark blue liquid. It is dangerous to allow this liquid to warm to its boiling point, because both concentrated gaseous ozone and

Structure.

According to experimental evidence from microwave spectroscopy, ozone is a bent molecule, with C symmetry (similar to the water molecule). The O – O distances are. The O – O – O angle is 116.78°. The central atom is "sp"2 hybridized

Reactions.

Ozone is among the most powerful oxidizing agents known, far stronger than O. It is also unstable at high concentrations, decaying into ordinary oxygen. Its half-life varies with atmospheric conditions such as temperature, humidity, and air movement. Under laboratory conditions, Half-Life Time (HLT) will average ~1500 minutes (25 hours) in "still" air at room temperature (24°C), "zero" humidity with "zero" air changes per hour (ACH). As such, in typical office or home environment, where air changes per hour vary between 5 and 8 ACH, ozone has a half life of as short as thirty minutes.  This reaction proceeds more rapidly with increasing temperature. Deflagration of ozone can be triggered by a spark and can occur in ozone concentrations of 10 wt% or higher.  Ozone can also be produced from oxygen at the anode of an electrochemical cell. This reaction can create smaller quantities of ozone for research purposes.  This can be observed as an unwanted reaction in a Hoffman gas apparatus during the electrolysis of water when the voltage is set above the necessary voltage.

With metals.

Ozone will oxidize most metals (except gold, platinum, and

With nitrogen and carbon compounds.

Ozone also oxidizes nitric oxide to nitrogen dioxide: This reaction is accompanied by chemiluminescence. The can be further oxidized to nitrate radical: The formed can react with to

With sulfur compounds.

Ozone oxidises sulfides to sulfates. For example, lead(II) sulfide is oxidised to lead(II) sulfate:  Sulfuric acid can be produced from ozone, water and either elemental

With alkenes and alkynes.

Alkenes can be oxidatively cleaved by ozone, in a process called ozonolysis, giving alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, and carboxylic acids, depending on the second step of the workup.  Ozone can also cleave alkynes to form an acid anhydride or diketone product. If the reaction is performed in

Other substrates.

All three atoms of ozone may also react, as in the reaction of tin(II) chloride with hydrochloric acid and ozone:

Combustion.

Ozone can be used for combustion reactions and combustible gases; ozone provides higher temperatures than burning in dioxygen (O). The following is a reaction

Reduction to ozonides.

Reduction of ozone gives the ozonide anion, O. Derivatives of this anion are explosive and must be stored at cryogenic temperatures. Ozonides for all the alkali metals are known. KO, RbO, and CsO can be prepared from their respective

Applications.

Ozone can be used to remove iron and manganese from water, forming a precipitate which can be filtered: Ozone will also oxidize dissolved hydrogen sulfide

Spectroscopic properties.

Ozone is a bent triatomic molecule with three vibrational modes: the symmetric stretch (1103.157 cm), bend (701.42 cm) and antisymmetric stretch (1042.096 cm). The symmetric stretch and bend are weak absorbers, but the antisymmetric stretch is strong and responsible for ozone being an important minor greenhouse gas. This IR band is also used to detect ambient and atmospheric ozone although UV-based measurements are more common.  The electronic spectrum of ozone is quite complex. An overview can be seen at the MPI Mainz UV/VIS Spectral Atlas of Gaseous Molecules of Atmospheric Interest.

Ozone in Earth's atmosphere.

The standard way to express total ozone levels (the amount of ozone in a given vertical column) in the atmosphere is by using Dobson units. Point measurements are reported as mole fractions in nmol/mol (parts per billion, ppb) or as concentrations in μg/m. The study of ozone concentration in the atmosphere started in the 1920s.

Ozone layer.

Location and production.

The highest levels of ozone in the atmosphere are in the stratosphere, in a region also known as the ozone layer between about 10 km and 50 km above the surface (or between about 6 and 31 miles). However, even in this "layer", the ozone concentrations are only two to eight parts per million, so most of the oxygen there is dioxygen, O, at about 210,000 parts per million by volume.  Ozone in the stratosphere is mostly produced from short-wave ultraviolet rays between 240 and 160 nm. Oxygen starts to absorb weakly at 240 nm in the Herzberg bands, but most of the oxygen is dissociated by absorption in the strong Schumann–Runge bands between 200 and 160 nm where ozone does not absorb. While shorter wavelength light, extending to even the X-Ray limit, is energetic enough to dissociate molecular oxygen, there is relatively little of it, and, the strong solar emission at Lyman-alpha, 121 nm, falls at a point where molecular oxygen absorption is a minimum.  The process of ozone creation and destruction is called the Chapman cycle and starts

Importance to surface-dwelling life on Earth.

Ozone in the ozone layer filters out sunlight wavelengths from about 200 nm UV rays to 315 nm, with ozone peak absorption at about 250 nm. This ozone UV absorption is important to life, since it extends the absorption of UV by ordinary oxygen and nitrogen in air (which absorb all wavelengths < 200 nm) through the lower UV-C (200–280 nm) and the entire UV-B band (280–315 nm). The small unabsorbed part that remains of UV-B after passage through ozone causes sunburn in humans, and direct DNA damage in living tissues in

Low level ozone.

Low level ozone (or tropospheric ozone) is an atmospheric pollutant. It is not emitted directly by car engines or by industrial operations, but formed by the reaction of sunlight on air containing hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides that react to form ozone directly at the source of the pollution or many kilometers downwind.  Ozone reacts directly with some hydrocarbons such as aldehydes and thus begins their removal from the air, but the products are themselves key components of smog. Ozone photolysis by UV light leads to production of

Low level ozone in urban areas.

Certain examples of cities with elevated ozone readings are Denver, Colorado, Houston, Texas, and Mexico City, Mexico. Houston has a reading of around 41 nmol/mol, while Mexico City is far more hazardous, with a reading of about 125 nmol/mol.  Low level ozone, or tropospheric ozone, is the most concerning type of ozone pollution in urban areas and is increasing in general. Ozone pollution in urban areas affects denser populations, and is worsened by high populations of vehicles, which emit pollutants NO and VOCs, the main contributors to problematic ozone levels. Ozone pollution in urban areas is especially concerning with increasing temperatures, raising heat-related mortality during heat waves. During heat waves in urban areas,

Ozone cracking.

Ozone gas attacks any polymer possessing olefinic or double bonds within its chain structure, such as natural rubber, nitrile rubber, and styrene-butadiene rubber. Products made using these polymers are especially susceptible to attack, which causes cracks to grow longer and deeper with time, the rate of crack growth depending on the load carried by the rubber component and the concentration of ozone in the atmosphere. Such materials can be protected by adding antiozonants, such as waxes,

Ozone as a greenhouse gas.

Although ozone was present at ground level before the Industrial Revolution, peak concentrations are now far higher than the pre-industrial levels, and even background concentrations well away from sources of pollution are substantially higher. Ozone acts as a greenhouse gas, absorbing some of the infrared energy emitted by the earth. Quantifying the greenhouse gas potency of ozone is difficult because it is not present in uniform concentrations across the globe. However, the most widely accepted scientific assessments relating to climate change (e.g. the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Third Assessment Report) suggest that the radiative forcing

Health effects.

For the last few decades, scientists studied the effects of acute and chronic ozone exposure on human health. Hundreds of studies suggest that ozone is harmful to people at levels currently found in urban areas. Ozone has been shown to affect the respiratory, cardiovascular and central nervous system. Early death and problems in reproductive health and development are also shown to be associated with ozone exposure.

Vulnerable populations.

The American Lung Association has identified five populations who are especially vulnerable to the effects of

Acute ozone exposure.

Acute ozone exposure ranges from hours to a few days. Because ozone is gas, it directly affects the lungs and the entire respiratory system. Inhaled ozone causes inflammation and acute -but reversible- changes in lung function, as well as airway hyperresponsiveness. These changes lead to shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing which may exacerbate lung diseases, like asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) resulting in the need to receive medical treatment. Acute and chronic exposure to ozone has been shown to cause an increased risk of respiratory infections, due to the following mechanism.  Multiple

Chronic ozone exposure.

Breathing ozone for periods longer than eight hours at a time for weeks, months or years defines chronic exposure. Numerous studies suggest a serious impact on the health of various populations from this exposure.  One study finds significant positive associations between chronic ozone and all-cause, circulatory, and respiratory mortality with 2%, 3%, and 12% increases in risk per 10 ppb and report an association (95% CI) of annual ozone and all-cause mortality

Ozone air pollution.

Ozone precursors are a group of pollutants, predominantly those emitted during the combustion of fossil fuels. Ground-level ozone pollution (tropospheric ozone) is created near the Earth's surface by the action of daylight UV rays on these precursors. The ozone at ground level is primarily from fossil fuel precursors, but methane is a natural precursor, and the very low natural background level of ozone at ground level is considered safe. This section examines the health impacts of fossil fuel burning, which raises ground level ozone far above background levels.  There is a great deal of evidence to show that ground-level ozone can harm lung function and irritate the respiratory system. Exposure to ozone (and the pollutants that produce it) is linked to premature death, asthma, bronchitis, heart attack, and other cardiopulmonary problems.  Long-term exposure to ozone has been shown to increase risk of death from respiratory illness. A study of 450,000 people living in United States cities saw a significant correlation between ozone levels and respiratory illness over the 18-year follow-up period. The study revealed that people living in cities with high ozone levels, such as Houston or Los Angeles, had an over 30% increased risk of dying from lung disease.  Air quality guidelines such as those from the World Health Organization, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the European Union are based on detailed studies designed to identify the levels that can cause measurable ill health effects.  According to scientists with the US EPA, susceptible people can be adversely affected by ozone levels as low as 40 nmol/mol. In the EU, the current target value for ozone concentrations is 120 μg/m which is about 60 nmol/mol. This target applies to all member states in accordance with Directive 2008/50/EC. Ozone concentration is measured as a maximum daily mean of 8 hour averages and the target should

Physiology.

Ozone, along with reactive forms of oxygen such as superoxide, singlet oxygen, hydrogen peroxide, and hypochlorite ions, is produced by white blood cells and other biological systems (such as the roots of marigolds) as a means of destroying foreign bodies. Ozone reacts directly with organic double bonds. Also, when ozone breaks down to dioxygen it gives rise to oxygen free radicals, which are highly reactive and capable of damaging many organic molecules. Moreover, it is believed that the powerful oxidizing properties of ozone may be a contributing factor of inflammation. The cause-and-effect relationship of how the ozone is created in the body and what it does is still under consideration and still subject to various interpretations, since other body chemical processes can trigger some of the same reactions. A team headed by Paul Wentworth Jr. of the Department of Chemistry at the Scripps Research Institute has shown evidence linking

Safety regulations.

Because of the strongly oxidizing properties of ozone, ozone is a primary irritant, affecting especially the eyes and respiratory systems and can be hazardous at even low concentrations. The Canadian Centre for Occupation Safety and Health reports that:  Even very low concentrations of ozone can be harmful to the upper respiratory tract and the lungs. The severity of injury depends on both by the concentration of ozone and the duration of exposure. Severe and permanent lung injury or death could result from even a very short-term exposure to relatively low concentrations."  To protect workers potentially exposed to

Production.

Ozone generators, or ozonators, are used to produce ozone for cleaning air or removing smoke odours in unoccupied rooms. These ozone generators can produce over 3 g of ozone per hour. Ozone often forms in nature under conditions where O will not react. Ozone used in industry is measured in μmol/mol (ppm, parts per million), nmol/mol (ppb, parts per billion), μg/m, mg/h (milligrams per hour) or weight percent. The regime of applied concentrations ranges from 1% to 5% (in air) and from 6% to 14% (in oxygen) for older generation methods. New electrolytic methods can achieve up 20% to 30% dissolved ozone concentrations in output water.  Temperature and humidity play a large role in how much ozone is being produced using traditional generation methods (such as corona discharge and ultraviolet light). Old generation methods will produce less than 50% of nominal capacity if operated with humid ambient air, as opposed to very dry air. New generators, using electrolytic methods, can achieve higher purity and dissolution through using water molecules as the source of ozone production.

Corona discharge method.

This is the most common type of ozone generator for most industrial and personal uses. While variations of the "hot spark" coronal discharge method of ozone production exist, including medical grade and industrial grade ozone generators, these units usually work by means of a corona discharge tube or ozone plate. They are typically cost-effective and do not require an oxygen source other than the ambient air to produce ozone concentrations of 3–6%. Fluctuations in

Ultraviolet light.

UV ozone generators, or vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) ozone generators, employ a light source that generates a narrow-band ultraviolet light, a subset of that produced by the Sun. The Sun's UV sustains the ozone layer in the stratosphere of Earth.  UV ozone generators use ambient air for ozone production, no air prep systems are used (air dryer or oxygen concentrator), therefore these generators tend to be less expensive. However, UV ozone generators usually produce ozone with a concentration of about 0.5% or lower which limits the potential ozone production rate. Another disadvantage of this method is that

Cold plasma.

In the cold plasma method, pure oxygen gas is exposed to a plasma created by dielectric barrier discharge. The diatomic oxygen is split into single atoms, which then recombine in triplets to form ozone.  Cold plasma machines utilize pure oxygen as the input source and produce a maximum concentration of about 5% ozone. They produce far greater quantities of ozone in a given

Electrolytic.

Electrolytic ozone generation (EOG) splits water molecules into H, O, and O. In most EOG methods, the hydrogen gas will be removed to leave oxygen and ozone as the only reaction products. Therefore, EOG can achieve higher dissolution in water without other competing gases found in corona discharge method, such as nitrogen gases present in ambient air. This method of generation can achieve concentrations of 20–30% and is independent of air quality because water is used as

Special considerations.

Ozone cannot be stored and transported like other industrial gases (because it quickly decays into diatomic oxygen) and must therefore be produced on site. Available ozone generators vary in the arrangement and design of the high-voltage electrodes. At production capacities higher than 20 kg per hour, a gas/water tube heat-exchanger may be utilized as ground electrode and assembled with tubular high-voltage electrodes on the gas-side. The regime of typical gas pressures is around absolute in oxygen and absolute in air. Several megawatts of electrical power may be installed in large facilities, applied as single phase AC current at 50 to 8000 Hz and peak voltages between 3,000 and 20,000 volts. Applied voltage is usually inversely related to the applied frequency.  The dominating parameter influencing ozone generation efficiency is

Incidental production.

Ozone may be formed from by electrical discharges and by action of high energy electromagnetic radiation. Unsuppressed arcing in electrical contacts, motor brushes, or mechanical switches breaks down the chemical bonds of the atmospheric oxygen surrounding the contacts [ → 2O]. Free radicals of oxygen in and around the arc recombine to create ozone []. Certain electrical equipment generate significant levels of ozone. This is especially true of

Laboratory production.

In the laboratory, ozone can be produced by electrolysis using a 9 volt battery, a pencil graphite rod cathode, a platinum wire anode and a 3 molar sulfuric acid electrolyte. The half cell reactions taking place are:  In the net reaction, three equivalents of water are converted into one equivalent of ozone and three equivalents of hydrogen. Oxygen formation is a competing reaction.  It can also be generated by a high voltage arc. In its simplest form, high voltage AC, such as the output of a neon-sign transformer is connected to two metal rods with the ends placed

Applications.

Industry.

The largest use of ozone is in the preparation of pharmaceuticals, synthetic lubricants, and many other commercially useful organic compounds, where it is used to sever carbon-carbon bonds. It can also be used for bleaching substances and for killing microorganisms in air and water sources. Many municipal drinking water systems kill bacteria with ozone instead of the more common chlorine. Ozone has a very high oxidation potential. Ozone does not form organochlorine compounds, nor does it remain in the water after treatment. Ozone can form the suspected carcinogen bromate in source water with high bromide concentrations. The U.S. Safe Drinking Water Act mandates that these systems introduce an amount of chlorine to maintain a minimum of 0.2 μmol/mol residual free chlorine in the pipes, based on results of regular testing. Where electrical power is abundant, ozone is a cost-effective method of treating water, since it is produced on demand and does not require transportation and storage of hazardous chemicals. Once it has decayed, it leaves no taste or odour in drinking water.  Although low levels of ozone have been advertised to be of some disinfectant use in residential homes, the concentration of ozone in dry air required to have a rapid, substantial effect on airborne pathogens exceeds safe levels recommended by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Environmental Protection Agency. Humidity control can vastly improve both the killing power of the ozone and the rate at which it decays back to oxygen (more humidity allows more effectiveness). Spore forms of most pathogens are very tolerant of atmospheric ozone in concentrations at which asthma patients start to have issues.  Industrially, ozone is used to:  Ozone is a reagent in many organic reactions in the laboratory and in industry. Ozonolysis is the cleavage of an alkene to carbonyl compounds.  Many hospitals around the world use large ozone generators to decontaminate operating rooms between surgeries. The rooms are cleaned and then sealed airtight before being filled with ozone which effectively kills or neutralizes all remaining bacteria.  Ozone is used as an alternative to chlorine or chlorine dioxide in the bleaching of wood pulp. It is often used in conjunction with oxygen and hydrogen peroxide to eliminate the need for chlorine-containing compounds in the manufacture of high-quality, white paper.  Ozone can be used to detoxify cyanide wastes (for example from gold and silver mining) by oxidising cyanide to cyanate and eventually to carbon dioxide.

Consumers.

Devices generating high levels of ozone, some of which use ionization, are used to sanitize and deodorize uninhabited buildings, rooms, ductwork, woodsheds, boats and other vehicles.  In the U.S., air purifiers emitting low levels of ozone have been sold. This kind of air purifier is sometimes claimed to imitate nature's way of purifying the air without filters and to sanitize both it and household surfaces. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has declared that there is "evidence to show that at concentrations that do not exceed public health standards, ozone is not effective at removing many odor-causing chemicals" or "viruses, bacteria, mold, or other biological pollutants". Furthermore, its report states that "results of some controlled studies show that concentrations of ozone considerably higher than these [human safety] standards are possible even when a user follows the manufacturer's operating instructions".  Ozonated water is used to launder clothes and to sanitize food, drinking water, and surfaces in the home. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it is "amending the

Aquaculture.

Ozonation – a process of infusing water with ozone – can be used in aquaculture to facilitate organic breakdown. Ozone is also added to recirculating systems to reduce nitrite levels through conversion into nitrate. If nitrite levels in the water are high, nitrites will also accumulate in the blood and tissues of fish, where it interferes with oxygen transport (it causes oxidation of the heme-group of haemoglobin from ferrous

Agriculture.

Ozone application on freshly cut pineapple and banana shows increase in flavonoids and total phenol contents when exposure is up to 20 minutes. Decrease in ascorbic acid (one form of vitamin C) content is observed but the positive effect on total phenol content and flavonoids can overcome the negative effect. Tomatoes upon treatment with

Alternative medicine.

The use of ozone for the treatment of medical

Ozone (), or trioxygen, is an inorganic molecule with the chemical formula. It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope, breaking down in the lower atmosphere to (dioxygen). Ozone is formed from dioxygen by the action of ultraviolet (UV) light and electrical discharges within the Earth's atmosphere. It is present in very low concentrations throughout the latter, with its highest concentration high in the ozone layer of the stratosphere, which absorbs most of the Sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

Ozon (z řeckého "οζω, ozó, voním"), racionální chemický název trikyslík, je alotropní modifikace kyslíku. Kromě obvyklých dvouatomových molekul O se kyslík vyskytuje i ve formě tříatomové molekuly jako ozon O. Za normálních podmínek je to vysoce reaktivní plyn modré barvy a charakteristického zápachu s mimořádně silnými oxidačními účinky. Při teplotě −112 °C kondenzuje na kapalný tmavě modrý ozon a při −193 °C se tvoří červenofialový pevný ozon.


Development.

The original Apple II version of the game was written almost single-handedly by Jon Van Caneghem over three years. Van Caneghem had difficulty finding a publisher to distribute "Might and Magic", so he self-published as New World Computing, handling the distribution himself from his own apartment until he was able to broker a distribution deal with Activision.  Due to its popularity the game was ported to a number of other platforms that were popular at the time, and nine sequels were released over the next fifteen years.  A port of "Might and Magic" was released for Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992. While the basic gameplay was similar to ports released on earlier platforms, the graphics and general polish on the game reflected the later release date and greater capability of the Nintendo platform.  The game was remade again for release in Japan on the PC Engine platform. This version of the game was released on CD-ROM2 rather than cartridge and was able to feature digitized voices for dialogue as a result of the increased storage capacity offered by the CD medium.  The game was later included in "" Limited Edition and Special Edition.

Plot and setting.

The game is set on the world of VARN which features expansive outdoor terrain, castles, caves, underground cities and an Astral Plane.  The game centers on six adventurers who are trying to discover the secret of the Inner Sanctum: a kind of "holy grail" quest. While trying to discover the Inner Sanctum, the heroes discover information about a mysterious character named Corak and his hunt for the missing villain Sheltem. They end up unmasking Sheltem, who had been masquerading as the King, and defeating his evil machinations. At the end of the game they go through the "Gates to Another World" and travel to CRON, not knowing that Sheltem has also escaped to that world.  Although it appears to take place in a straightforward medieval fantasy setting of knights in armor, mythical monsters and magicians, a number of science fiction elements are revealed later in the game, down to the actual meaning of VARN (Vehicular Astropod Research Nacelle). This was a relatively common trait of early CRPGs, as also seen in the oldest "Ultima" and "Wizardry" titles. For example, the Sheltem plot is first introduced when the adventurers visit the site of a crashed space ship and are told by aliens that their prisoner is at large in the world.

Game mechanics.

Characters.

The characters in "Might and Magic" and its successors are defined by a number of rules, conforming loosely to the fantasy role-playing archetypes.  Characters have "statistics" (analogous to "Dungeons and Dragons" Ability scores) of Might, Endurance, Accuracy, Personality, Intelligence and Luck.  There are six character classes:  The player assigns each character a race at creation time: Human, Elf, Half-orc, Gnome or Dwarf. This affects the character's starting statistics, and their resistance to various forms of attack.  Alignment is also chosen for all characters, but because the party acts collectively all of the time, the implications of this are minimal. Alignment plays some part in the game, in particular to determine the reward for one of the game's quests.  Characters can also be male or female. Like alignment, gender serves minimal purpose in the game, save for a few situations (notably, the city of Portsmith, in which all males, and only males, are injured when stepping through certain areas of the city). A character's gender can be changed back and forth via certain actions within the game world.

Magic.

There are two types of magic spells in "Might and Magic": Sorcerer spells and Clerical spells. Sorcerer spells are available to Sorcerer and Archer characters; Clerical spells are available to Cleric and Paladin characters. Daily spellcasting ability is limited by a character's "spell points". For users of Sorcerer spells, the number of spell points available depends on that character's Intelligence statistic. For Clerical spellcasters, the number of spell points depends on the character's Personality statistic.  Sorcerer spells tend to be of an offensive nature, inflicting damage on enemy creatures.  Clerical spells are usually more defensive, focusing on healing, defense and removal of poison and other undesirable effects.

Exploration.

The world is presented as a labyrinth, utilizing a first person perspective interface similar to that employed by "The Bard's Tale", where the gaming world is divided into a maze-like grid and the player's movement options are to move forward or backward, or turn ninety degrees left or right. The walls represent mountain ridges, cave stone, rows of trees or whatever obstruction might be expected in the terrain being explored.  Exploration, like combat, is turn-based in "Might and Magic"; hence in-game time does not pass while the player delays.  If the party moves to a place where there are hostile creatures, or if a random encounter occurs, the game switches to a combat phase.

Combat.

When hostile creatures are encountered, the player is usually given the option to run away, attempt to surrender to the creatures, try to bribe them, or to attack. If the player elects to attack, or if their combat evasion attempt fails, the game enters combat mode.  On most platforms, the combat interface is presented in a text-only format. Turn-based combat is conducted, with each combatant acting in order of their speed statistic. Each round a random speed bonus is applied to either the player's party or the enemy creatures. On each player-character's turn, the player selects an action from a list of options, including attacking a creature, casting a spell or attempting to run away.  Combat ends when all combatants from one side or the other have either been rendered unconscious or dead (usually by having their hit points reduced to zero), or fled from combat. The player can also lose at combat by allowing all members of the party to succumb to sleep or paralysis effects.

Reception.

"Might and Magic" sold over 100,000 copies by 1989.  In 1987, "Compute!" magazine praised "Might and Magic" for its wealth of content, non-linear play and aspects of its graphics, though it notes that the game graphics lack animation, and that there is limited graphical representation of enemy combatants. Scorpia of "Computer Gaming World" similarly praised the game's extensiveness, but noted that early versions of the game only equipped new party members with clubs, making the beginning of the game very difficult. In 1988 "Might and Magic" joined the magazine's Hall of Fame for games highly rated over time by readers. In 1993 the magazine stated that despite the starting difficulty "it's well worth the effort". In 1996, the magazine named "Might and Magic" the 23rd best game ever. The editors wrote, "A 3D dungeon view combined with the biggest world map to date were just two of the major features of this advanced level CRPG."  The Apple II version of the game was reviewed in 1987 in "Dragon" #122 by Patricia Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. Lesser stated that "This adventure is awesome in its scope, completely fascinating, graphically pleasing, and one of the top five games ever produced for a computer." In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars. Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser reviewed the IBM version of the game in 1988 in "Dragon" #132, also giving it 5 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the MacIntosh version of the game in "Dragon" #140, giving the Macintosh II version 41⁄2 stars, and the Macintosh Plus version 31⁄2 stars.  Modern commentators acknowledge "MM1" for the immense scope of its world, for its freedom of exploration and for pioneering aspects such as incorporating player characters' race, gender and alignment into the gameplay.

Might and Magic Book One: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum (also known as simply "Might and Magic") is an early role-playing video game, first in the popular and influential "Might and Magic" franchise. It was released in 1986 as New World Computing's debut, ported to numerous platforms and re-released continuously through the early '90s.

Might and Magic I: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum (česky "Moc a kouzla 1: Tajemství vnitřní svatyně") je RPG počítačová hra ze série Might and Magic, známá také jako Might and Magic I nebo jen M&M I.


Gameplay.

In "Might and Magic VI", the player takes control of four adventurers, each starting with low attributes, guiding them to be mighty heroes to save the fictional land of Enroth. Unlike the previous titles, "The Mandate of Heaven" moved away from grid-based maps and granted players fully explorable maps to roam over, including scalable mountains. Battles can be conducted either in real time or in a turn-based mode, allowing players to take time determining what enemies to attack or what spells to cast, although turn-based mode severely limits the player's movement. As in the rest of the series, all action is shown through the eyes of the party, in first person view, but the new engine allows full 360 degree turning as well as looking up and down. For gameplay and storyline reasons, along with the fact that it is based on a new platform, "Might and Magic VI" includes no character transfer system between its prequels or sequels, unlike earlier instalments.  Apart from the main quest line, there are a number of side and promotion quests available to take on, but although they are not abundant, most are detailed in their setup and planning. Because the game operates under a calendar schedule with a day and night system, the time of year affects the availability of several scheduled events, such as the Solstices and the presence of the Circus of the Sun.

Character Creation & Improvement.

Uniquely for the series, "Might and Magic VI" is the first and only "Might and Magic" title to offer players no choice regarding race: all playable characters are human. Each character is created by first choosing them a portrait (offering either a male or female appearance and voice to match), providing them a name, and then choosing one of six class that are available in the game for use: Knight, Druid, Paladin, Cleric, Sorcerer and Archer. The class chosen for a character determines what skills they can use in the game including which two are preset for them (e.g. Archers begin with Bow from the start), and how their two primary stats (Health and Magic Points) are set up. Players can modify a character further in creation by selecting two more skills to complement their class, along with improving their ability score by adding or subtracting points from one of seven statistics, all of which are carried over from the previous instalments: Might, Intellect, Personality, Endurance, Accuracy, Speed and Luck. Characters age as game time passes (as well as through detrimental spells and potions), and so begin at roughly twenty years old, receiving statistic penalties upon going beyond fifty years of age. Characters can be improved after party creation in a number of ways. By fighting enemies, completing quests, and through other means, each character can earn experience towards advancing to a new level, although doing so requires the use of a training centre in a settlement in order to earn increases to health and magic points. Improving their other statistics, including resistances to magic, can be done by finding and using various items in the game world - barrels, cauldrons, shrines, wells and fountains - along with drinking certain potions. Characters can further improve themselves by taking on promotion quests for their class, which provide greater benefits as a result of increasing to a higher tier along with a change in title (i.e. Paladins that are promoted, become Crusaders). Characters can only receive two promotions for their class and must earn their first promotion before attempting to work on earning their second promotion, while characters not of the same class receive just an honorary promotion; classes not used can still have their promotion quests undertaken during a playthrough.

Skill Point System.

The game's skill point system affords the player an uncommon degree of liberty in further character improvement. More skills can be acquired for a character after party creation through various guilds across Enroth, but what can be learned depends on their class. While many adventuring skills, such as Repair and Merchant, are fully available to all classes, most weapon, armour and magic skills are restricted to certain character classes (i.e. Sorcerers can't use swords or plate armour), although advancement in learned skills is not restricted by class: an archer, for example, can become just as skilled at using a sword as a knight can.  Each skill consists of two factors to it - Rank and Expertise, of which the latter is divided into three levels: Normal, Expert and Master. While a skill's Rank can be improved (up to a maximum of 60) by spending points earned from advancing a character in level or using special items, the amount needed to reach a new rank increases over time - a skill of Rank 2 would need 2 points to advance, but then need 3 points to advance past its new rank, then 4 points, and so forth. To improve a skill's Expertise, characters must find and gain training from a teacher of the respective skill. While there are a number of teachers available who can raise a skill to Expert and have basic pre-requisite for their training (money and a certain skill Rank), each skill has only one Master teacher; their location is known by Expert teachers, yet their pre-requisites are greater, with some requiring a character to have a stat at a certain amount, and even having gotten a class promotion. By achieving a higher level of expertise, a character can gain bonuses to complement it, such as being able to maintaining a spell's beneficial effect for much longer. Thus, a Knight who is level 20 could achieve a better expertise of Sword skill and thus become more powerful in later battles.  While the skill system in "The Mandate of Heaven" was relaxed, in later sequels it was made considerably more restrictive in terms of expertise; although a new level was added in, a character's class restricted how high it went.

Plot.

With the problem of the corrupt Guardian, Sheltem, finally dealt with in "", the 1500-year war between the Ancients and a Devil-like race of alien beings, the Kreegans, spills over into nearby planets. One of these is the world of Enroth, on which a continent-nation of the same name lies. Seven years after the events of "Heroes of Might and Magic II: The Succession Wars", on a day later to be known as the Night of Shooting Stars, meteor-like spaceships fall from the Void, infested with Kreegans. The king of Enroth, Roland Ironfist, departs north with an army seeking to attack the devil-like creatures, but he is betrayed by a traitorous air mage named Sulman. Roland's forces are ambushed by an enormous Kreegan army, and he, his court wizard Tanir, and the noble Sir Ragnar are captured, while the rest of the Enrothian forces are devastated. The Kreegan King Xenofex secretly establishes the Temple of Baa, a doomsday cult dedicated to removing the Ironfist dynasty from power. With their King missing and his young son, Prince Nicolai, left to rule the kingdom alongside Regent Wilbur Humphrey, the people of Enroth begin to fear that the Ironfists have lost the "Mandate of Heaven" (the divine right to rule). The four player characters are from the town of Sweet Water, which is attacked and overwhelmed by the Kreegan invaders.  Falagar, a powerful warlock, intervenes and teleports them to safety, where he trains them until they are ready to make their own path in the world. They discover Sulman's corpse in an abandoned goblin camp with a letter addressed to him from Xenofex, and present it to Regent Humphrey in Castle Ironfist. Humphrey rewards them and asks their help in seeking out King Roland. Before battling the Kreegans, they require the guidance of the Oracle of Enroth in the city of Free Haven, governed by the members of the Enrothian Council. However, Nicolai escapes from Ironfist to follow the party but runs off to the Circus of the Sun, and must be found before Ironfist opens its gates again. Even with Humphrey's blessing, Slicker Silvertongue, his delegate, persists in refusing them entry to the Oracle. Humphrey suggests his mind is addled and instructs the party to try to heal him, but, cornered, Silvertongue reveals himself as the High Priest of Baa and disappears, cursing the Ironfists. The remaining delegates grant the heroes entry to the Oracle, who is actually a sentient computer named Melian, created by the Ancients. Melian, damaged by Roland's usurper brother, Archibald Ironfist, during the Succession Wars, instructs the heroes to recover its memory crystals. The party recovers two crystals from Castles Darkmoor and Alamos. In Castle Kriegspire they obtain the third crystal, along with Roland's journal, which explains that Sir Ragnar died from his wounds while the Kreegans transported Roland and Tanir elsewhere to be ransomed or tortured, as confirmed in "Heroes of Might and Magic III".  Attacking the worshippers of Baa in their main temple on Hermit's Isle, the heroes obtain the last crystal, killing the traitor Silvertongue in the process. The Oracle, restored, explains the backstory of the Ancient-Kreegan war, and with a Control Cube from the Tomb of VARN, permits them to retrieve anti-Kreegan blasters from the Planetary Control Center. Before they can destroy the Kreegan, the heroes require a spell capable of preventing their apocalyptic last resort plans, and only Archibald knows of one. Nicolai agrees to release Archibald from his stone curse with Tanir's bell, and Archibald gratefully hands them the Ritual of the Void before teleporting away. Finally, the player characters return to their ruined hometown of Sweet Water and attack The Hive, the largest of the meteorite-like spaceships the Kreegans arrived in. Killing the Kreegan Queen, they destroy The Hive's reactor core and conjure the Ritual of the Void, eliminating The Hive and the Kreegans on the continent while sparing the land from the reactor's wave of destruction. The epilogue shows the heroes knighted and congratulated by Nicolai and Humphrey in a ceremony at Ironfist, with Archibald viewing the scene from afar through a crystal ball, sardonically thanking them for saving his kingdom, setting up for the events of "".

Development.

Development of "Might and Magic VI" began in 1996, following the success of "" and the first two episodes of the "Heroes of Might and Magic" series, despite the fact that during the five years between the release of the previous title and the game's announcement, New World Computing had expressed in both phonecalls and the "Might and Magic V" game itself there would not be another installment in the series. A teaser trailer, consisting of a montage of screenshots, was included as a secret extra in "Heroes of Might and Magic II". During early pre-production, New World Computing recruited science fantasy author Geary Gravel to write a trilogy of novels based on the game's tentative storyline and setting. An early plan was to include a copy of the first book with select copies of the game. As little information surfaced over time, Gravel was instructed to write the books and develop the setting first, with the developers basing their storyline on the novels instead. Del Rey Books published two of the three novels, "The Dreamwright" and "The Shadowsmith", before the release of "Might and Magic VI". However, it was decided to develop "Might and Magic VI"'s storyline independently of the novels, setting the game on Enroth, the world in which "Heroes of Might and Magic" took place. Gravel was offered to write a new novel set on Enroth instead of completing the trilogy, but declined.  The change of setting established a formal connection between the two series, and successive "Might and Magic" games continued the "Heroes" storyline, though with overt connections to the original series such as many references to the Ancients and the presence of a town named New Sorpigal, in reference to the first game's starting town. These were built upon in "" and "", which featured several characters from the first five games. The story is set ten years after "Heroes of Might and Magic II", and occurs in tandem with the events of "Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia". The game was first announced with a press release at E3 of April 1998, described by series creator Jon Van Caneghem, who led development, as "the best "Might and Magic" that I have ever made" and "by far the largest and most ambitious game in the history of role playing games" with more than a thousand miles of virtual terrain. An architect was reportedly involved with designing the gameworld's structures and dungeons, and two graphic engines named Horizon and Labyrinth were used in the creation of the game's environments. In "Might and Magic VI" larger objects like buildings, dungeons and the landscape are in 3D. Smaller objects like trees, humans and creatures are 2-dimensional sprites. The sprites were pre-rendered 3D images in 3DS Max and Character Studio. It was the first in the series to feature full motion video cinematics. The game's soundtrack was composed by Steve Baca, Rob King, Paul Romero and Jennifer Wang – Baca, King and Romero had previously composed music for "Heroes of Might and Magic".  Complex design elements such as the inclusion of rival adventuring parties and a quest system involving complicated alliances with nobles and other factions were announced, but did not make appearances in the final game.

Reception.

"Might and Magic VI" was a critical success upon release. "GameSpot" gave the game a 9.1 out of 10 and called it "a standout game in what should be a great year for role-playing game fans", as well as saying "the graphics in Might and Magic VI are the best yet seen in a 3D first-person-perspective role-playing game." "IGN" gave the game a 9.0 out of 10 in their 1998 review, saying "any fan of role-playing games should already own this game... [it] satisfies on a level that no RPG has in years. Highly recommended for almost everyone." "RPGFan" also gave the game a 9.0 out of 10, citing the gameplay as a particular strength. "When all is said and done, the sheer fun of exploration and character development is more than enough to keep playing Might and Magic VI. It can get tedious at times, and the gameplay and graphics have a few limitations. That alone is not enough to drag the game down, and in the end, the end result is more than the sum of its parts. Choose to enter the land of Enroth, and you'll find yourself playing for well over 100 hours."  In 1998, "PC Gamer" declared it the 32nd-best computer game ever released, and the editors called it "a must-have for any roleplaying fan's collection".

Awards.

"Might and Magic VI" was nominated for the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' "Role Playing Game of the Year", "Computer Gaming World"s "Best RPG", "PC Gamer US"s "The Best Roleplaying Game", GameSpot's "Role-playing Game of the Year", IGN's "Best RPG of the Year" and "Computer Games Strategy Plus"s "RPG of the Year" awards, all of which ultimately went to "Baldur's Gate". The editors of "PC Gamer US" wrote that "Might and Magic VI" "takes all of the elements that made its predecessors some of the most popular RPGs in gaming history and, amazingly, improves on them." In "Computer Gaming World", the editors called "Might and Magic VI" "a gigantic, addictive hack-'n'-slash—and not much in the depth department. Still, for 80 hours or so, it was a definite hoot to play."

Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven, commonly abbreviated to Might and Magic VI or simply MM6, is a role-playing video game developed by New World Computing and published by 3DO in 1998. It is the sixth installment in the "Might and Magic" series, the sequel to "" and the first of the Might and Magic titles to take place in the same world as "Heroes of Might and Magic". It continues the storyline of "Heroes of Might and Magic II", and takes place at the same time as "Heroes of Might and Magic III" in the series chronology.

Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven je trojrozměrná RPG hra, vyrobená společností New World Computing a vydaná společností 3DO v roce 1998. Příběh navazuje na události popsané ve hře. Odehrává se v Enrothu, kontinentu a zároveň království rodu Ironfistů. Jako ostatní hry v sérii, i tento díl začíná ve fantasy prostředí a postupně odkrývá sci-fi pozadí celého příběhu. Je to první hra Might and Magic, která využívá trojrozměrný engine (předchozí díly byly takzvané krokovací dungeony). Jako nejpopulárnější díl série byl šestý díl obsažen v Deluxe edici nejnovější hry série.