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Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

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Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#61

Post by rangibaby »

toomanybeersies wrote: post #55
grkvlt wrote: post #45

Also interesting are the resolution targets, using sets of black and white bars at varying widths in both X any X orientation, to determine the spatial resolution i.e. how high frequency a component could still be imaged separately as lines, similar to TV test cards. These are discussed in various blogs [1][2] with some amazing picures. I think these were for both satellite imaging and spy-plane (U2 and SR-71 plus le…

Those tri-bar patterns are fascinating. I'd imagine that American surveillance equipment would be able to discern all but the smallest couple of squares. They'd easily be able to read registration numbers on aircraft, probably almost be able to discern specific small arms (e.g. count the number of RPGs and AK-47s sitting on some tarmac somewhere). Amazing.

USSR "trolled" the US by painting windows on top of a plane or helicopter while it was under development. I can't remember the exact one will have a look around.

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#62

Post by e2021 »

initram wrote: post #57

Anyone know what's nearby there at about (32.92669, -111.922201)[0]? It looks like some sort of strip mine a few hundred feet to the north, so I assume it's related, but was just curious what it is. It looks like a painting! [0] http://maps.apple.com/maps?ll=32.926699,-111.822201&spn=0.00...

Looks like a tailings dam to me, containing waste materials from the mine after processing. The solution has partially evaporated leaving a salt residue.

At least thats what it looks like to me. I don't think its a raised pyramid like the other reply says, pretty sure it is a hole.

If you do a google image search for 'tailings dam' you see some things that look pretty similar...

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#63

Post by grkvlt »

Bronze_Colossus wrote: post #12
mslev wrote: post #3

I love stuff like this, I just think its so cool. Similar to this are the large cement arrows across the US: http://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2013-06-17/transcontinenta...

Here is a few more picture more: http://www.messynessychic.com/2013/11/15/the-forgotten-giant... I also find these kind of things cool. Forgotten structures that once served an important roll but now are mostly forgotten.

It's known as industrial or scientific archaeology [1] and is a fascinating area of study. I found a good book on it, called 'Industrial Archaeology: Future Directions' [2] which most university libraries should have.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_archaeology [2] http://www.springer.com/gb/book/9780387226088

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#65

Post by fit2rule »

initram wrote: post #57

Anyone know what's nearby there at about (32.92669, -111.922201)[0]? It looks like some sort of strip mine a few hundred feet to the north, so I assume it's related, but was just curious what it is. It looks like a painting! [0] http://maps.apple.com/maps?ll=32.926699,-111.822201&spn=0.00...

Fascinating discovery, it truly does look like a bit of modern art .. I sit here considering making a desktop wallpaper of it, at least ..

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#66

Post by fapjacks »

kweks wrote: post #47
grkvlt wrote: post #45

Also interesting are the resolution targets, using sets of black and white bars at varying widths in both X any X orientation, to determine the spatial resolution i.e. how high frequency a component could still be imaged separately as lines, similar to TV test cards. These are discussed in various blogs [1][2] with some amazing picures. I think these were for both satellite imaging and spy-plane (U2 and SR-71 plus le…

I recently visited the Chinese ones. It tools a good day or so of driving off road (after two weeks of driving to get into the area) to reach them. Totally in the middle of nowhere, and quite amazing to see.

Awesome! Did you by any chance blog about your trip (with photos)?

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#67

Post by helb »

initram wrote: post #57

Anyone know what's nearby there at about (32.92669, -111.922201)[0]? It looks like some sort of strip mine a few hundred feet to the north, so I assume it's related, but was just curious what it is. It looks like a painting! [0] http://maps.apple.com/maps?ll=32.926699,-111.822201&spn=0.00...

As e2021 said, these are some kind of tailing dams to treat remaining water from mining.

Google even has streetview photos from the nearby road, resolution is just enough to read "[something] wastewater evaporation ponds" on the fence sign: https://goo.gl/maps/WZKbdPxs5sS2

The mine itself looks cool, too: https://www.google.cz/search?q=Casa+Grande+Copper+Mine&safe=...

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#68

Post by ptaipale »

fizzbatter wrote: post #25
strictnein wrote: post #15

One of the most interesting things about the Corona satellites was that they shot on film and that film was developed back on earth. So how'd they get that film back down from space? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corona_(satellite)#Recovery

Answered here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12695808

Another question of course is that since it was impossible to load the cameras with new film, how much film did they carry when deployed? After using it all the camera was useless.

A modern digital camera would have been really valuable for these purposes.

BTW were those Corona satellites guidable, or did they just fly wherever they flew and operators could ask them to photograph what was under?

A useful way to decommission a satellite that is about to run out of its film storage would have been to guide it to a trajectory where it can take more accurate pictures from a lower position -- because once the satellite goes on such a trajectory, it will soon come down completely. But if you could use the last bit of film that way, and eject it for retrieval, then the dying of the satellite would at least have been utilized.

Re: Decades-Old Mystery Put to Rest: Why Are There X's in the Desert?

#70

Post by grkvlt »

rangibaby wrote: post #61
toomanybeersies wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Those tri-bar patterns are fascinating. I'd imagine that American surveillance equipment would be able to discern all but the smallest couple of squares. They'd easily be able to read registration numbers on aircraft, probably almost be able to discern specific small arms (e.g. count the number of RPGs and AK-47s sitting on some tarmac somewhere). Amazing.

USSR "trolled" the US by painting windows on top of a plane or helicopter while it was under development. I can't remember the exact one will have a look around.

I'm sure I've also read about this, but can't find any links at the moment. The art of Maskirovka [1] (deception and camouflage) is still part of Russian military doctrine. Interestingly, the US also does something similar with planes like the A-10, which has a 'fake cockpit' painted on its underside, so that it is hard to determine the orientation of the aircraft visually. This is actually patented [2] and has been applied to various different aircraft, see the pictures accompanying this answer [3] on stackexchange.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_military_deception [2] https://www.google.com/patents/US4448371 [3] http://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/2078/what-is-the...

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