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US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

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Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#791

Post by coutego »

nemo44x wrote: post #597
Koshkin wrote: post #506

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1/40,000,000 of the Earth’s circumference does not make sense to me, but the foot does. (As does the school bus.)

Agreed. There’s this weird idea we should have the same UX for everything. In practicality we need different scales. I don’t describe the distance between myself and my neighbor in light years.

Exactly! In fact, it would be wonderful if you had some standard way of producing different units at different scales for a given magnitude, upwards or downwards, so you could use the best in a given context. Perhaps you could even randomly chose a fixed easy multiplier to automatically produce these derived units from the fundamental unit, and then use the same factor for every magnitude. You only need to chose some base unit for every magnitude and then, boom, you get a full family of units at different scales to chose from depending on your context.

How cool would that be? I'd suggest to use a factor that is the easiest to multiply by, in order to simplify operations. I guess the optimal factor would be 10. What is easier to multiply or divide by than 10, right?

I think I need to patent this bright idea. It's amazing nobody has thought about it before.

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#792

Post by [deleted] »

smcl wrote: post #784
mulmen wrote: post #751

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What mechanisms do you recommend for reining in, say, the NSA or GHCQ? Democracy. Vote. Free expression. Tell the people what is happening and why privacy is important. > Were either reined in at all after the Snowden leaks, Yes. > or was it business as usual after things calmed down a bit? No. > I think we have to accept that these intelligence agencies are effectively untouchable and here to stay. We do not. They…

Hey I'm not saying "give up, hand over your passwords and keys to the NSA, don't ever vote or write to your representatives" but we're in a discussion over who you should be worried about spying on you more - non-specific "China" or some domestic intelligence services (or an alliance of a few "friendly" countries). I think your comment is rooted in a sort of common belief that America is, for all its faults, just pla…

[deleted]

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#793

Post by taneq »

zztop44 wrote: post #685
KennyBlanken wrote: post #676

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microwaves transmit on a frequency nowhere near missile systems and are not modulated in any way resembling a missile fire control system, but cool story. ECM gear in US warplanes can classify a system based off its emissions and people think they're fooled by a microwave oven?

Not to be too provocative, but hugely expensive precision equipment being fooled by a microwave oven with the door cut off is exactly what I’d expect from the US military.

I mean, we had a SETI false alarm from the break room microwave door being opened without pressing the ‘stop’ button first…

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#794

Post by jaclaz »

dingaling wrote: post #728
Ninjinka wrote: post #4

I mean maybe I'm just not up to date on recent history, but when was the last time we shot down anything in our our airspace prior to last week?

On the contrary there was the infamous Battle of Palmdale in 1956 wherein the USAF failed to shoot-down a rogue drone https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2005-sep-11-me-then1...

Thank you, didm't know about this episode.

The site of the people that found the remains of the plane is online and has a nice old-times look (with frames):

https://www.thexhunters.com/

https://www.thexhunters.com/xpeditions/f6f-5k_accident.html

https://www.thexhunters.com/xpeditions/f6f-5k_hunt.html

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#795

Post by klrpa »

BuyMyBitcoins wrote: post #638
godelski wrote: post #549

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think it would be a stretch to say that we're in a cold war with China. Many modern battlefields aren't on the ground and fought with bullets. They are economic, political, and proxies. In cold wars you often have technological and economic races too (see cold war with Russia). Militaries believe that if you don't want a hot war to break out you wave the biggest {st,d}ick. It would be naive to believe that mi…

I’d hesitate to call this psychological warfare, but it now seems like the American people are paranoid about spy balloons and having their airspace violated. America is the one who brazenly flies and spies over other countries, that doesn’t happen to us . So now our leaders are trigger happy about shooting down any potential new balloons in order to try and save face while looking tough. Meanwhile, I’m sure plenty o…

[flagged]

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#796

Post by Sharlin »

ilyt wrote: post #537
Sharlin wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

HN happens to be one of the rare places on the modern internet where just flapping your figurative mouth pieces for the sake of flapping your figurative mouth pieces is not looked upon favorably. The attitude of "have something to say or shut the fuck up" is very refreshing. And if you think that I didn't say anything… I suggest re-reading my comment.

I mean your entire comment could be just "...also known for centuries as Pyrrhic victory" and lose nothing but some words

The rest was important context, IMO. It was less “this already has a name” and more “this is the very essence of warfare”. And has been for tens of thousands of years.

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#797

Post by xattt »

azubinski wrote: post #788
ajsnigrutin wrote: post #505

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This was supposedly done during the US bombing of yugoslavia... open microwaves transmit pulsed radiation, automatic systems think it's a radar and bomb the site.

This is a legend that is created by propaganda. Microwave ovens frequency is 2.45GHz with a narrow spectrum because microwave ovens are under strict RF regulation, like anything that is an intentional or unintentional radiator. Microwave oven magnetron's power is miserable compared with any AAD radar. Plus, microwave oven is not designed to emit RF energy when it's opened. So, emitted power will be even less. https:/…

If you’re in wartime, microwave oven door safety interlocks are out the window.

The mesh of the door can be simply cut out, or the interlock microswitches pressed down with dowels or tape.

The article you linked shows that there’s frequency drift over time with a microwave, and that different magnetrons have different spectrum profiles.

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#798

Post by xattt »

refurb wrote: post #730
sandworm101 wrote: post #459

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estevan_Point_lighthouse Much like this story, many Japanese planners did not appreciate the vast size of the American west. A hundred random firebombs were basically irrelevant compared to the many thousands of yearly lighting strikes that also regularly cause fires. Who knows how many Japanese balloons are out there hanging from some tree undiscovered.

The other good story about remoteness https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather_Station_Kurt German sub drops off a team in 1943 to install a weather station on Newfoundland. Wasnt discovered until 35 years later only because some scholar found reference to it in the German archives.

> Newfoundland

Labrador, where’s the station was located, is a lot less densely populated than Newfoundland.

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#799

Post by toomanyrichies »

ProjectArcturis wrote: post #448
toomanyrichies wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://www.google.com/search?q=What+are+UAPs%3F&ei=6L_mY7_5...

Rude. And ineffective. Most acronyms are ambiguous. How would I be sure the answer there is what OP was referring to?

> Most acronyms are ambiguous. How would I be sure the answer there is what OP was referring to?

Is that what happened in this case? Did you initially try Googling yourself, only to encounter multiple definitions of "UAP" which seemed irrelevant to the article? Given the search results that came up for me, as well as the extent to which UAPs have been in the news lately, that would be surprising.

> Rude. And ineffective.

My goal is not to be rude. But I put about as much effort into answering your question as you did into asking it. You would have gotten your answer faster, while creating less work for others, if you had simply typed your question into Google instead of the HN comments field.

If you want to go the extra mile, you can even answer your own question, and make that your comment. Something like "OP's comment was the first time I had encountered the acronym 'UAP'. After a Google search, I found it means 'unidentified aerial phenomena'. In case others were wondering."

Re: US jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast

#800

Post by LeonB »

matthewdgreen wrote: post #383
packetslave wrote: post #362

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A Tu-95 Bear coming anywhere close to a U.S. ADIZ is very likely to get an introduction to Mr. Sidewinder or Mr. AMRAAM, considering their primary role is to deliver nuclear ordnance.

I feel like I’m reading a very upsetting children’s book.

Suddenly discovering new subtext to—-

i am sam. i am sam. sam i am. that sam-i-am! that sam-i-am! i do not like that sam-i-am!

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