The BIG VOID

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From April 20 onwards, a series of meetings is held in Paris, and a consensus emerges around a large cavity directly above GG1; its height above the floor of the King's Chamber varies slightly between the teams, as does its width. Its horizontality or inclination is not defined.

 

On May 17, Dr. Morishima and his team submit their progress report:

- The cross-section of this new large cavity is comparable to that of the Grand Gallery (GG1) and is directly above it.

- Its length is estimated at around 30m, but depends on its inclination.

- The center of the new large cavity is located between +55m and +70m from the base of the pyramid depending on the analysis method.

- Points A, B, C and D indicate muons reception peaks, with points B and C being on a slope parallel to GG1. 

- Further investigation is required to determine the precise location and inclination of the new large cavity.

This document provides details in line with what Jean-Pierre Houdin had imagined in November 2016:

- The Nagoya team has lowered the estimated height of the anomaly from an epicenter at +74.45m to a height between +55.00m and +70.00m, an area in which he has positioned GG2.

- The cross-section is comparable to that of GG1.

- If, with more data, point D is later moved to the same slope as B and C, it will be difficult not to admit that GG2 is tilted.

 

At the end of May, the three CEA telescopes, repositioned for further investigations on other pyramid edges, are all transferred in front of the North Face and installed in three air-conditioned tents; the aim is to confirm the discovery of the large Cavity with a different muography technique from the outside. The main casualty of the operation is the detection under the edges of other cavities linked to the internal ramp, while anomalies indicating possible C1 and C2 type cavities have been detected; unfortunately, as the exposure time is too short, the number of sigma needed to confirm these discoveries is insufficient.

 

At the same time, with the help of Denis Denoël, the operation of the new counterweight system based on the use of two superimposed Grand Galleries is practically defined and confirms that the inclined GG2 must be over forty meters long. 

 

Unfortunately, on June 11, Jean-Pierre Houdin is forced to suspend his research following a heart attack.

 

In September, the ScanPyramids team travels to Cairo to present the results of two years' research to the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities:

- On September 9, to the Scientific Committee of Egyptologists set up by the Ministry to give an advisory opinion on the results presented,

- On September 13, to the Permanent Committee for Egyptian Antiquities.

 

Following the presentation on September 13, the Permanent Committee for Egyptian Antiquities, acting on the recommendations of the Scientific Committee of Egyptologists, issues instructions to the ScanPyramids mission representatives: 

- Media disclosure to the general public of the results presented is prohibited at this stage,

- The results have to be published in a scientific framework, i.e. a peer-reviewed scientific publication, before being revealed by the media,

- For the next step of the mission, the authorization to install equipment in the Grand Gallery, the current entrance and the subterranean chamber is conditioned on compliance with these instructions.

 

On October 27, Ubisoft launches its video game "Assassin's Creed: Origins", part of which takes place in Khufu’s Pyramid. The game's creators are largely inspired by Jean-Pierre Houdin's theory, with his agreement, for the scenes taking place inside the pyramid. An educational "Discovery Tour" completes the video game, in which players discover the elements of the theory that inspired the scenes.

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On November 2, to the astonishment of the Scientific Committee of Egyptologists and the Permanent Committee of Egyptian Antiquities, the results are published in the journal Nature.

Having fulfilled the instructions imposed by the latter, the announcement of the discovery of the "BIG VOID" is picked up by the media worldwide.

In the article published by Nature, Fig.2 at the top of Page 3 contains three remarkable sets of information: among them, the positions of epicenters A, B, C and D have been clarified and, in a new development, point D has been largely moved following the analysis of additional data. Point D now lies on the same 26.5° sloping line as the other 2 points C and D, a line which runs parallel to the slope of the Grand Gallery, exactly as Jean-Pierre Houdin had predicted last May. The technique of the counterweight system, which can now be implemented, makes it possible to dispense with human force en masse, with all operations being ensured by the simple interplay of well-used forces. 

On November 7, the France 5 television channel broadcasts the prime-time documentary "Khéops, mystérieuses découvertes", retracing the stages of the ScanPyramids mission.