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NOAA Identifies Mystery Noise as Minke Whale

Anonymous Cowherd writes "An underwater noise that has long confounded Navy sonar operators turned out to be a call of the minke whale, the Sacramento Bee reports. Scientists at the Southwest Fisheries Science Center in San Diego made the discovery this fall when they heard the noise during a research expedition and saw a minke whale surfacing. While the story mentions minkes in the North Pacific, here's a sample from an Atlantic minke."

8 of 24 comments (clear)

  1. In other news by brejc8 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Whale researchers have found what the annoying sound that keeps interrupting their recordings of Minke Whales. The sonar pings have been desturbing whase scientists for years. The source was unknown until recently when a submarine surfaced shortly after destroying a research crews sound recording.

  2. In other other news by JabberWokky · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Whale researchers have found what the source of their extensive net of microphones is. These microphones have allowed them to track and listen in on all whale species at various depths in various oceans. The source was unknown until paperwork surfaced recently showing that the US Navy dontated the entire system to whale researchers.

    --
    "$30 for the One True Ring. $10 each additional ring!" -- JRR "Bob" Tolkien
  3. Will this endanger the whales? by Simon+Field · · Score: 3, Interesting


    Now that whaling ships know what sounds to follow, will the catch be increased?

    Or have they known all along, and just not informed the Navy?

  4. A sample? by jmd! · · Score: 3, Informative

    "Here's a sample"?
    Where's a sample?

    If you get to the page and there's no sound, it's because you're using a Free OS and Apple are assholes.

    Page nonobviously requires quicktime.

    1. Re:A sample? by orangesquid · · Score: 5, Informative

      If you look at the page source, you'll see this tag:
      embed src="atlminke10x.mov" width="80" height="20" type="video/quicktime" controller="true" autoplay="false"
      I used wget to fetch http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/sound01 /background/seasounds/media/atlminke10x.mov and it played just fine in mplayer. I used the PCM writer plugin and Notlame to make an mp3 of it (please mirror!!!!!!)

      --
      --TheOrangeSquid Is it any wonder things seem so awry? We swim in a sea of confusion and don't have to think to survive
  5. Electric shaver? by bhaskin · · Score: 3, Funny

    Whoever it is thinks that sounds like an electric shaver is in bad need of a new shaver.

  6. Re:In other other other other other news by gi-tux · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You call Pearl Harbor unsuccessful? I thought that the Japanese did a pretty good number on us there. It took six months of hard work to get ready to move against them again, and if the carriers had been in port, we would have been in even worse shape.

    There has been an invasion of the U.S. since 1812. In 1911, IIRC, Pancho Villa invaded Texas from Mexico. Many people forget about this, but Americans died when he did that. Unfortunately, the Navy doesn't have much of a presence on the Rio Grande. However, the U.S. Army did chase him out of the country and Black Jack Pershing got a little training that helped in WWI.

    We would probably be in much worse shape as a country, if we didn't have such a well trained, well supplied military. If you think that folks like Hitler, Stalin, Hussien, etc. wouldn't already be over here, then you are crazy. It was thinking like that that allowed WWI and WWII to get so out of hand before we got into them. People that thought that the ocean was enough to keep those guys out. Well, those oceans are easier to cross today than they were over a half century ago and the next series of bad guys won't think twice about coming over here, if our armed forces aren't ready for them.

    And on top of that, in our consumer based country, the trade channels of the ocean are necessary to us. Without the supplies coming in from the orient, we would be hurting very soon. Without a Navy to protect those channels, it wouldn't be long before they were in danger. Look at history, there were the barbary priates that caused problems until the Navy took care of them. It was the Navy that blockaded the CSA and essentially choked the south during the War of Northern Agression (or American Civil War, yes I am a southerner). It was the Navy that defeated the Spanish fleet at Manila Bay. The Navy defeated the Japanese Navy during WWII which kept the Japanese Army from resuppliing their forces.

    Call me a war hawk if you like. But I am a strong believer in a well prepared military and a well armed nation. These two things are what will keep the U.S. free and at peace most of the time.

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  7. Re:In other other other other other news by js7a · · Score: 3, Informative
    We would probably be in much worse shape as a country, if we didn't have such a well trained, well supplied military.
    Bullshit. This year alone, the bloated defense budget is taking:

    • $189 million from higher education
    • $541 million from Training and Employment Services
    • $1.026 billion from Law Enforcement Assistance, Community Policing and other justice programs.
    • $223 million from Small and Minority Business Assistance, a 31% reduction
    • $227 million from disaster relief
    • $109 million from Small Business Administration Disaster loans, a 59% reduction
    • $338 million from Energy Supply programs
    • $354.1 million from clean up programs at former defense sites
    • $756 million from Water Resources programs, including flood prevention efforts
    • $498 million from Pollution control and abatement programs
    • $1.23 billion from Conservation and Land Management programs
    • $144 million from Animal and Plant inspection programs

    If you think that folks like Hitler, Stalin, Hussien, etc. wouldn't already be over here, then you are crazy.

    And if you think the likely source of that threat today is not from within, then you are crazy, or, more likely, just following orders.

    I am a strong believer in a well prepared military and a well armed nation.

    Clearly, you have greater belief in military and arms than in your God's commandment against killing. Remember your drill sergeant telling you to obey without question? You have made him very proud. I hope he is there to congratulate you when you receive your "heavenly reward" for your actions.

    These two things are what will keep the U.S. free and at peace most of the time.

    Then you are a fool. How many troops are worth one more student in your children's classes? How many bombs are worth one more undiagnosed tuberculosis patient in your town? How many bullets are worth one fewer book in your public library? How many rifles are worth one fewer ambulance in your neighborhood?

    The Constitution you have sworn to uphold has been eroded to the point of unrecognizability. Are you such a coward that you refuse to see that "folks like Hitler, Stalin, Hussien, etc." are in your own backyard?