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U.S. Navy Building "Macross"?

Posted by timothy on from the your-money-at-play dept.

Sang Woo Han writes: "It seems that the US Navy is planning on building a floating structure a mile long called the Joint Mobile Offshore Base (JMOB). Featured on MIT's Technology Review, the article explains in detail not only about the JMOB, but plans to build other structures such as ports, airports, and even a floating city. Now all we need is for a couple of giant humanoid aliens to show up and we start beating them up in Valkyrie fighters. (And who'll be our Lynn Min Mei, then?)" Zhang Ziyi, if it can be arranged, please.

8 of 34 comments (clear)

  1. JBOD? by sacremon · · Score: 2

    If this is a collection of multiple structures combined into one platform, would JMOB then stand for Just a Mass of Boats?

    --
    If you can't beat them, embrace and extend them.
  2. Coincidence? by PD · · Score: 2

    First, we get a story about the future of 3D first person shooters (the elusive virtual world) and now we've got a story about giant floating barges and condominiums.

    I'm not going to open any bitmaps today.

    --
    If tits were wings it'd be flying around.
  3. Stress by lavaforge · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I read the article, and I still have one question: How does a ship this size attain the structural rigidity to keep from deforming under it's own weight? I have this image of the entire ship squishing like some kind of cartoon.

    1. Re:Stress by epzoutes · · Score: 2, Funny

      By using Damascus steel, of course!

  4. Quack! by refactored · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The phrase "Sitting Duck" comes to mind...

  5. Possible Applications by Starquake · · Score: 2, Insightful

    These types of things would make interesting scientific platforms for marine research. And what about NASA? I bet they could save some major cheese on rocket/shuttle launches.

    Or maybe they'll just be used as "Floating Fortresses" (ala 1984).

  6. Why settle for sinking a ship... by seanmeister · · Score: 2

    ...when you can sink the whole base?

  7. Overheard by SEWilco · · Score: 4, Funny
    • "Sir? Where do I aim my peashooter on this thing?"
    • "One gun emplacement hit, two thousand to go..."
    • "Sir, my artillery can only reach halfway across the target!"
    • "Wow, the torpedoes certainly have a smooth ride on the leeward side of that mobile breakwater."
    • "500 watertight compartments flooded, forty thousand left..."
    • "The fleet's next assignment is to paint the deck white and reverse the 'el Nino' warming."
    • "Well, of course there are depth charge and torpedo hatches on the bottom. The destroyer escort can't reach the six subs hiding underneath."
    • "You're right, a tactical nuclear satchel charge is a sensible solution for the problem..."
    • "What do you mean independence? How many times the square footage of Sealand?"
    • "The paper is called 'The use of tidal gauges to track massive oceanic displacements'"
    • "Here are the surveillance camera recordings of the arrival at the bow of the grandchildren of the dolphins that have been chasing us..."
    • "Kilroy was here"