[grhazelton]

The irony? The meteor blast on the atmosphere was detected by their infrasound system, an apparatus created during the Cold War era to detect nukes going off around the globe. That's why they estimate the kinetic energy of meteors in kilotons. For all effects, a meteor would be a nuke in the 50's.

Wowzer! I didn't know there'd been anything like that. I wonder how such a system would react to some of the "rides" with subwoofers that rattle my fillings....

[Tom S.]

Wowzer! I didn't know there'd been anything like that. I wonder how such a system would react to some of the "rides" with subwoofers that rattle my fillings....

Hopefully, it would nuke them out of existence.

[jogiba]

As Chelyabinsk began its healing process, residents of San Francisco, on the other side of the planet, worried that they might be next. A science institute in Northern California says it has received numerous reports of a bright streak of light over the San Francisco Bay area on Friday night.

Cuba apparently experienced a phenomenon similar to the meteorite that detonated over Russia this week, island media reported, with startled residents describing a bright light in the sky and a loud explosion that shook windows and walls.

There were no reports of any injuries or damage such as those caused by the Russia meteorite, which sent out shockwaves that hurt some 1,200 people and shattered countless windows.

Cuba apparently experienced a phenomenon similar to the Chelyabinsk meteor several days earlier, island media reported, with startled residents describing a bright light in the sky and a loud explosion that shook windows and walls.

In a video from a state TV newscast posted on the website CubaSi late Friday, unidentified residents of the central city of Rodas, near Cienfuegos, said the explosion was impressive.

"On Tuesday we left home to fish around five in the afternoon, and around 8 p.m. we saw a light in the heavens and then a big ball of fire, bigger than the sun," one local man said in the video.

Russian region begins recovery from meteor fall | General Headlines | Comcast

[Ratmagiclady]

Hopefully, it would nuke them out of existence.

I think I would be much sadder if someone *didn't* try to make that much music-noise. Poor souls just can't realize just how stupid they look to the rest of the world when we can hear their license plate rattle from half a mile away. It's like, *your woofers cost more than my car, if you want to think you're cool, secure the loose parts. All the rest of the world hears is parts getting ready to fall off. ... And dress your damn power steering belt.

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Last edited by Ratmagiclady; 02-16-2013 at 07:34 PM.

[ihasa]

Hopefully, it would nuke them out of existence.

[DAZ]

Although there were many events that could have escalated to nuclear war during and after the cold war (most in 62) for the most part a single event like this meteor would not have been a trigger. The exception is in the early 80s. In 81 the USSR began operation RYAN. Leaders were positive that the US was going to start a nuclear war and were trying to collect any information that could indicate a start to the attack so they would not get surprised and not able to retaliate. The USSR system was never as good as the US system in detecting an attack and the Soviets new this. Russia has a little cultural paranoia over surprise attacks having had more then a few in there history. RYAN was intended to insure this did not happen. The problem was RYAN was all collection and no interpretation. When you do nothing but look for something you start to see it everywhere. Every event in the early 80s just fed to the predetermined outcome. By the end of 83 the Soviets considered an attack invincible. In September of 83 a new soviet missile early warning system detected an US missile launch. It was a false alarm and the Lieutenant Colonel on duty at the time determined it had to be an error. He was correct but was fired and drummed out of the military for not passing the bad information up the chain so the leaders could make the inevitable decision based on this bad information. With out knowing any of this in November 83 NATO had a simulated nuclear war exercise called Able Archer. This was a big exercise that included all the real world western leaders. To the Soviets this look like the start they had been looking for. It was only because at the last minute the US President decided not to participate in the exercise did the Soviet not launch an attack. If the meteor that recently entered over Russia happened during Able Archer 83 the Soviets would not have been able to tell the difference between the meteor or a nuclear detonation and I would not be writing this.


DAZ

[ihasa]

That's quite a chilling thing to contemplate, Daz

[Tom S.]

Although there were many events that could have escalated to nuclear war during and after the cold war (most in 62) for the most part a single event like this meteor would not have been a trigger. The exception is in the early 80s. In 81 the USSR began operation RYAN. Leaders were positive that the US was going to start a nuclear war and were trying to collect any information that could indicate a start to the attack so they would not get surprised and not able to retaliate. The USSR system was never as good as the US system in detecting an attack and the Soviets new this. Russia has a little cultural paranoia over surprise attacks having had more then a few in there history. RYAN was intended to insure this did not happen. The problem was RYAN was all collection and no interpretation. When you do nothing but look for something you start to see it everywhere. Every event in the early 80s just fed to the predetermined outcome. By the end of 83 the Soviets considered an attack invincible. In September of 83 a new soviet missile early warning system detected an US missile launch. It was a false alarm and the Lieutenant Colonel on duty at the time determined it had to be an error. He was correct but was fired and drummed out of the military for not passing the bad information up the chain so the leaders could make the inevitable decision based on this bad information. With out knowing any of this in November 83 NATO had a simulated nuclear war exercise called Able Archer. This was a big exercise that included all the real world western leaders. To the Soviets this look like the start they had been looking for. It was only because at the last minute the US President decided not to participate in the exercise did the Soviet not launch an attack. If the meteor that recently entered over Russia happened during Able Archer 83 the Soviets would not have been able to tell the difference between the meteor or a nuclear detonation and I would not be writing this.


DAZ

What if it had happened during the Cuban missile crisis?

[Medium FormatPro]

There were dedicated phone lines installed between Washington and the former USSR just after the Cuban missle crisis.

Outside of the incident in which Russia shot down a "somewhat" civilian Korean airliner for (eerrr) accidently violating it's airspace; the Russians tend to play a much better game of chess than they ever get credit for.

[Unsinkable II]

I just attended a wedding in Phuket this weekend where several guests were from Chelyabinsk. Many had their outside doors blown off their hinges!

[grhazelton]

I think I would be much sadder if someone *didn't* try to make that much music-noise. Poor souls just can't realize just how stupid they look to the rest of the world when we can hear their license plate rattle from half a mile away. It's like, *your woofers cost more than my car, if you want to think you're cool, secure the loose parts. All the rest of the world hears is parts getting ready to fall off. ... And dress your damn power steering belt.

I remember living in Vidalia GA and marvelling at some dolt in a small pickup. He (I assume the driver was male) had a sheet of plywood installed in the load bed, on the front to rear diagonal, thus at the bed level in back and at the rail level by the cab. In this were installed four huge woofers, 12 inches or more in diameter. These were all pumping out his "music," whatever it was. No mid-range or treble audible, just thump-athumpa....

A thunderstorm would have been a blessing!

And of course my camera was at home, alas. Although I'm not sure I'd have wanted to get close enough without a tele! Note to self: see if any hearing aid companies are publically traded. These bozos'll be deaf in only a few years.