Photos of mortar near Najaf shrine

ACE has the link.

A couple of days ago I noted that the gray-colored F-117 stealth fighter has been flying missions. This started a little discussion in the comments section with a reader. I just responded to questions about the reasoning behind black paint in the first place, and since I spent a little time typing, I thought I’d share for others who probably won’t check the comments section of that post. Or care, for that matter.

The three main ways of “seeing” an aircraft are visual, radar, and infra-red.

The F-117 deals with radar mostly via its bizarre shape which reflects radar signal off at bizarre angles so that they are not picked up as a “return”, effectively making the aircraft “invisible” to radars searching the skies.

It deals with infra-red mostly via ducted engine outlets that significantly cool the output of the plane’s jets.

It deals with visual mostly via operating at night. This approach apparently isn’t going to be the exclusive approach since daylight operations are being asked for.

The black paint certainly is part of the night-fighter approach. Whether the paint also impacts the radar (probable) and infra-red (not so probable) approaches is unknown to me. Even if it does, the chemical mix that reduces the radar and/or infra-red signatures can probably be used in colors other than black, so the choice of black seems (to me) to only really apply to the visual aspect of “being seen”.

(I guess radio transmissions are also a major way of “being seen”, but that is mainly addressed by not transmitting and isn’t really part of this discussion.)

Of the three main ways of being seen, radar is probably the most critical to defend against and visual is probably the least critical to defend against, at least for this aircraft and the missions that it performs.

Radar is the most important because not only can it be used to track and target the plane by air-defense missiles on both land and airborne systems, but it can detect the mere presence of the plane, which will raise the alert and blow the surprise. Visual is the least important because visually-guided weapons have only a small chance of actually bringing down a plane, though I believe that is how the F-117 that was shot down in the Balkans was hit.

So, the color black really only effects the visual method of “seeing” the plane. And even though that’s probably the least-important method, it was best approached with black paint since the plane only operated at night. Now that plans might be changing, black isn’t the best all-around choice.

To take it to the opposite extreme, we wouldn’t paint stealth aircraft bright orange even though optical sighting is the least important of the three main detection methods. Deer use sound and smell more than they use their eyes, but hunters still camouflage their spots because every little thing matters. I think that’s why F-117s are currently black, and I think that’s why they’re considering changing colors now that they’re considering changing operating environments.

If you have anything to add or debate, and especially if you have any good info on the black paint’s role in the radar signature of the F-117, go to the post and comment.

“Bring. It. On.” has become “Make. It. Stop”.

(via marcland)

Nation’s voting machines tested in secret

Just in case anyone’s forgotten, MO thinks that electronic voting machines, particularly but not limited to those without paper records of votes cast, are a total crock.

For my reasoning, see my previous post on the subject. It includes additional links to additional claims of crockery. (Hat tip to the reader who, um, tipped me off to this article.)

For what it’s worth, I think these people have the right idea. And it’s Y3K-compliant, to boot. (Get it? “To boot”? You don’t have to boot them. Ha ha.) (Via Instapundit)

I don’t care if the results are in quickly. I only care if they’re correct. (In fact, we might all be better served if we don’t know any results until all polls everywhere are closed, but that’s a different subject.)

I’ve backed off a bit from my New Year’s Day doom-and-gloom prediction that electronic voting would be the disaster of the year. I still think there will be accusations and counter-accusations (and even more annoyingly counter-counter-accusations and counter-counter-counter-accusations) in the days and weeks following the election, but I now suspect that it won’t be the end of the world as we know it because the election isn’t going to be nearly as close I thought it would be.

(Get it? “Counter”-accusations? You have to count them. Ha ha.)

Seems to be another run on XM8 search engine hits tonight. Someone let me know who said what about it that turned the interest back up to 11.

If you’re one of the few MO readers tonight that didn’t hit post #905 on the first try, click HERE to go to MO’s most popular XM8 entry. And don’t skip over the comments. A lot of folks far more knowlegable than I put their two cents in. Excellent stuff.

And don’t forget the X Weapons category. All the XM8 posts, plus more experimental weapons goodness, is contained therein.

Just noticed this on my Site Meter.

It’s a visitor from the house.gov domain. A little Congressional, um, research. I guess. Notice the search terms. (Click for larger version if interested in keeping an eye on our representatives.)

Royally wrong

On Joanne Jacobs:

Purple is replacing red as the color of correction, according to this Boston Globe story. Red is too associated with wrongness. Green and yellow don’t offer enough contrast. Orange is too close to red. Purple is “friendlier.” So pen makers are boosting production of purple pens and office supply stores are thinking purple.

I used a purple marker last night to correct a quiz I gave my kids on THE HOBBIT, which we’re studying this summer. After reading this, I might ban the use of purple ink to correct papers just on the principle of the thing.

It reminds me a sequence in MANHUNTER, which I watched this past weekend. FBI agent Graham is questioning Hannibal Lecktor, who is trying to get him to claim that he thinks he’s smarter than Lecktor:

GRAHAM
I know that I’m not smarter than you.

LECKTOR
Then how did you catch me?

GRAHAM
You had disadvantages.

LECKTOR
What disadvantages?

GRAHAM
You’re insane.

Sometimes I get the feeling that I’m an agent of good just trying to do my job, and Public Education is a sort of flesh-eating homicidal maniac. I’m not smarter than Public Education. But I’m going to win in the end.

Liberal Radio Network Air America Begins A MAJOR MARKET TEST

Joe at The Command Post notes that Clear Channel Communications is going to begin airing the struggling Air America in the San Diego area on a station recently reflagged as K-LSD. (I’m not making those call letters up, either.)

Joe notes that’s its a little strange to see Texas-based (and therefore obviously a Bush puppet) Clear Channel Communications making this move. He points out that an executive at CCC is a major donor to Bush campaigns and that this is probably a purely business-based decision.

MO has another theory. MO thinks that this may be just another ploy by the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy. And the ploy works like this:

Get the Left’s message out to the masses. This annoys the masses. Most of the masses don’t really understand what the Left is really about. Most of the masses don’t really know John Kerry. As they learn more, they become less Left. This allows the Right to undermine the Kerry campaign and the Left’s agenda while appearing to “play nice”.

I’m not saying that I think this. I’m saying that maybe CCC thinks this.

Well, okay. I admit it. I do think this. I don’t know if CCC thinks this, but I suspect that it might be the result.