Space Is Just a Little Bit Closer Than Expected

SpuriousLogic points out a BBC story which begins "The upper reaches of Earth's atmosphere are much lower than expected, a US Air Force satellite has found. Currently, the ionosphere — a layer of charged particles that envelopes the planet — is at an altitude of about 420km, some 200km lower than expected. The behaviour of the ionosphere is important because disturbances in its structure can upset satellite communications and radar."

Comments

Re:Odd

[MBGMorden]

Depending on the situation it's not comfortable for everyone to take notes on a computer. I type very fast (between 90 and 120 wpm depending on how complex the words are), but if I am looking to just jot down information I still prefer pen and paper. It's free form, I can draw lines and make connections quicker, etc. For anything relevant I'll go back and transcribe my notes into text/digital form later. I've met quite a few other people who have similar feelings.

Meanwhile, we're all in the Twilight Zone...

[tjstork]

The atmosphere is closer to earth, but we're living in the TWILIGHT ZONE.

We have a supposedly conservative President that borrowed a page from arch liberal Wilson and invaded two countries in the cause of spreading freedom, has essentially nationalized banking, and meanwhile his political opponent, supposedly arch liberal, goes to church every weekend, is happily married with a beautiful family, is a totally self reliant and self made man, and ran and won an election essentially based the argument that America's economic policy and foreign policy should be more pragmatic and in the interests of Americans...

don't believe me? Get thee to You Tube, and listen to Reagan 1980 and compare that to Obama 2008 victory speech. Both guys are making the same arguments - for a more effective government, for better standards of living for the middle class, for a practical foreign policy, in defense of freedom, and above all of faith in the American people.

The only reason Obama did not get 500 electoral votes was because he is black.

Re:Meanwhile, we're all in the Twilight Zone...

[huckamania]

(Off topic, but I'll bite) ...or maybe there are a lot of voters that realize that the man has not done anything of substance except run for successively higher offices. Now that he is President, everyone is waiting breathlessly to see if the man can actually do anything besides 'speak well'. Personally, I hope he does something amazing that transforms American society for the better. I'm just not holding my breath until he does.

Re:Meanwhile, we're all in the Twilight Zone...

[jhfry]

I agree and would mod you +1 insightful if I hadn't wanted to comment too (even though this whole thread is OT).

Essentially, Obama is like any other person who excels at a given task. He, like a professional athlete or superstar doctor, lawyer, or burgerflipper, is really good at what he does and people can sense it. What do coaches do with a freshman QB that outperforms the JV or Varsity player... they groom them and advance them as quickly as possible.

His inexperience is not a sign of weakness but a sign of just how good he is. I agree that he hasn't been vetted by the system, and hasn't really done anything of note but advance through the ranks... but look at the kid in your office who keeps getting promoted for simply doing the mundane work better than his peers; you don't need to make waves to prove yourself capable.

Finally, I think that the American people feel that his inexperience also means that his perspective is better. Most politicians spend years accomplishing next to nothing and over time they come to accept it as "just the way things are". Obama is still young and idealistic enough to think that he can make things happen (at least that's how people see him).

Do I think Obama is going to do anything particularly remarkable... no. Not any more than any other President could with a lot of popular support and a large majority in Congress. What Obama will do (I believe) is rally the people, and essentially wield the American people as a tool to push his adjenda... while making the people feel like they have power over their government.

I am a true Republican that voted Obama... for two reasons. I believe that the American people need to be reminded of THEIR power in government. And I believe that the Social Conservative party that pretends to be the Republican party has destroyed our two party system. Why can't I vote for a smaller government and states rights anymore?

Re:Hmm

[clam666]

It probably will be said to be because of global warming. Global warming is a stock answer for anything, because the solution is already made and cannot tolerate dissent.

I got yelled at for a previous post in which I questioned how accurate the measurements of the past could be in calculating that we've "warmed" by a whole degree and all. Apparently that's an invalid question, because those measurements are completely infallible. We can, however, completely screw up the measurement of a slice of the atmosphere by a huge margin due to our lack of meaningful measuring. Also, our satellites appear to be working most of the time anyway, which I find surprising if the information about the measured change is accurate.

The nice thing is, it doesn't matter. According to the new religion of consensus science, all that matters is that most of us agree that the ionosphere IS closer than it used to be; science being proven via popular vote apparently. I doubt this will have that big an issue on telecommunication satellites, because if there is a problem it can be solved using a redistribution of wealth to third world warlords or a satellite cap-and-trade system to solve our technological problems.