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Google's Rogue Internet Balloon Test Spurred UFO Reports Nationwide

Posted by timothy on from the what's-the-frequency-richard dept.

Jason Koebler (3528235) writes "The hardest thing about Google X's Project Loon hasn't been the engineering challenge of beaming high-speed internet down to the far-flung corners of the world: It's trying to control all those freaking balloons. Project lead Rich DeVaul just revealed the 'Falcon 11,' a 120-foot long transparent mylar balloon made in-house at the secret Google X lab that spurred UFO reports nationwide after the company lost track of it: 'We tracked the balloon by outsourcing to the internet UFO community, it drifted all the way across the country,' he said."

14 of 65 comments (clear)

  1. reading comprehension? or network "news"? by Thud457 · · Score: 4, Funny

    What I took from that was " Google terrorizes nation with gigantic UFO "

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    the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

    1. Re:reading comprehension? or network "news"? by NotDrWho · · Score: 4, Funny

      As much as Google loves to fuck us, I'm surprised they didn't deploy anal probes too.

      --
      SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
  2. UFOs exist by Cederic · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Any unidentified flying object is a UFO. I just despair at people immediately assuming that means it's extraterrestial in nature.

    1. Re:UFOs exist by gstoddart · · Score: 2

      Any unidentified flying object is a UFO

      Kind of by definition, as you've essentially expanded the acronym. :-P

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      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    2. Re:UFOs exist by Nidi62 · · Score: 2

      Quite. All those mid-20th century UFOs were much more likely to be military test craft which nobody wanted to acknowledge to the Russkis.

      Often they were actually sightings of captured/purchased Russian aircraft such as the MiG-17 that the US was secretly studying. The profile of a MiG-17 is different enough from US planes at the time (F-101, F-4, F-8) that one could easily mistake it as something other than a plane, especially if it was unpainted.

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    3. Re:UFOs exist by alex67500 · · Score: 2

      Any unidentified flying object is a UFO.

      This tautology contest is a tautology contest.

  3. Oh the irony by Nidi62 · · Score: 2

    Tracking Project Loon by following a bunch of UFO loons. Well done Google.

    --
    The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
  4. Re:What's the protocol? by parkinglot777 · · Score: 2

    According to eyewitness testimonial, sighting was with clear, blue, cloudless skies, no aircraft in sight, altitude unknown but definitely above airliner cruising altitude. The object hovered roughly in the same location for over 2 hours, not drifting more than 10 degrees in any direction. Was sighted approximately 60 degrees above the horizon. Image in video was shot with about 150 power magnification.

    That's the quote from one of TFA...

  5. Reminds me of the Hyperblimp reports by GameboyRMH · · Score: 2

    There's a high-end RC hybrid-blimp-thing called the Hyperblimp, it's about 50ft long and transparent. It's been featured by various news stations as a UFO many times. Even with some pics close enough that you can see that it's clearly composed of non-exotic man-made technology. *facepalm*

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    "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  6. It can be tracked easily. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 2

    All you have to do is to claim a little boy has sneaked aboard and the balloon has taken off and the balloon boy is missing. Every network will find, track and cover the balloon preempting all scheduled programming. Air Force and Air National Guard will be mobilized. Airports will be closed. It will be tracked. It. Cant. Fail.

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    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  7. How hard would it be to find it? by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 2

    They just have google it right? Google will find it. They might even hit the "I feel lucky" button.

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    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  8. Re: What's the protocol? by asylumx · · Score: 2

    It didn't have to fly over the tallest point...

  9. Re:What's the protocol? by geekoid · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "According to eyewitness testimonial, sighting was with clear, blue, cloudless skies, no aircraft in sight, altitude unknown but definitely above airliner cruising altitude."

    So no reference but thew new the altitude?
    The testimony is worth exactly nothing. This is a common problem with 'UFO seekers' they have no idea that they can't actual give a distance with any accuracy without reference.. So the 'distance' they see something is set at whatever the bias of the viewer wants it to be.

    The person who took the video refuses to believe it's acutally a Balloon and thinks Google is lying. So idiocy abounds.

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    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  10. morons by slashmydots · · Score: 2

    I love how UFO believers still exist. We literally have flying discs. I think you can buy them on Thinkgeek. With all the crap we have flying around up there like drones and satellites and secret planes and hobbyist stuff and rockets and balloons, the FIRST place they do is still "must be aliens."