Political & Elections

soccerguy315 · Guru

RE: Chinese and U.S. "Star Wars"

Canuckguy · Veteran Member

More new developments. The US is unusually conciliatory. Does the government know something we don't?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/8649685/US-wants-China-to-draw-up-rules-for-space.html

I am starting to feel some of BigG's uneasiness. I would hold China to her promise of a "peaceful rise", if only I can.

soccerguy315 · Guru

I don't think the U.S. is going to sell China any high tech weapons, but I might be wrong.

Canuckguy · Veteran Member

This comment caught my attention:

China's commerce minister, Chen Deming, responded that yuan appreciation was being carried out in a "very healthy manner". He said the United States needed to change its policies on hi-tech sales and investment to spur American manufacturing.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/may/10/china-trade-surplus-jumps-april

I guess China is interested in buying hi-tech weapons from the US as a way to reduce the trade imbalance. Did they not try to buy some American companies before and was rejected?

BigG · Guru

Tomorrow comes sooner rather than later these days...

soccerguy315 · Guru

SpaceX thinks they can put a man on Mars in 10-20 years, just to throw that out there.

Canuckguy · Veteran Member

No Luddite here.

Today's fantasy will be tomorrow's reality.

Looking at the timeline, I don't think I will be around so I am not going to worry about it. It will, however, be my descendents' problem. No mistake about it.

BigG · Guru

I done told Wilbur and I done told Orville, that thang will never fly!

"Fantasy"?

Unwashed Luddite!

Yes. I have descended into personal calumny.

Please feel free to retaliate or simply ignore me.

Canuckguy · Veteran Member

I heard the ultimate fantasy is to colonize the moon, and to establish missile sites on the dark side.

soccerguy315 · Guru

the air force is active in the space arena

the military has tons of assets in space

don't think they are ignoring it.

However, rushing to weaponize space is not necessarily the answer. Multiple countries have the proven ability to shoot down space assets.

BigG · Guru

BigG wrote:
Just in case folks did not realize this.
Orbital is the ultimate "air superiority". All atmospheric craft and all ground based armor assets are sitting ducks to orbit launched kinetic weapons.
Orbital platforms leapfrog aircraft carriers as delivery systems. If you have armed space stations you do not need aircraft carriers.
Are our "aircraft carrier admirals" making the same mistake the "battleship admirals" did?
Too bad we have to depend on a bunch of technical illiterates and military people with vested interests to make these decisions for us.
I wonder how stealthy aircraft can be from orbit? If it is not cloudy, simple high speed image analysis reveals all.
The "game" is changeing. Are we smart enough, and do we have enough assets left, to keep up?
As great and proficient as "Seal Team Six" and other similar assets are, they may very well be the Maginot Line of the new millenium.
We have gotten really good at fighting the previous war.

BigG · Guru

Just in case folks did not realize this.

Orbital is the ultimate "air superiority". All atmospheric craft and all ground based armor assets are sitting ducks to orbit launched kinetic weapons.

Orbital platforms leapfrog aircraft carriers as delivery systems. If you have armed space stations you do not need aircraft carriers.

Are our "aircraft carrier admirals" making the same mistake the "battleship admirals" did?

Too bad we have to depend on a bunch of technical illiterates and military people with vested interests to make these decisions for us.

I wonder how stealthy aircraft can be from orbit? If it is not cloudy, simple high speed image analysis reveals all.

The "game" is changeing. Are we smart enough, and do we have enough assets left, to keep up?

Poetsheart · Senior Member

Now we know where President O's got some of his grey hair.

Indeed! Interesting how this major diplomatic crisis never made the nightly news. confuse

soccerguy315 · Guru

you aren't out on a limb CanuckGuy... the Chinese space efforts are run by the PLA (Chinese Military).

Canuckguy · Veteran Member

This article caught my attention:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/26/china-space-station-tiangong

"They have decided politically that they want to be autonomous, and that is their call. They must have had some political evaluation that suggests this option is better than the others, and I would think autonomy is the key word."

I don't think I am over-stating the fact, but I would be foolish to think military research is not one of the main reasons why they choose to go it alone.

BigG · Guru

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/wikileaks/8299495/WikiLeaks-US-and-China-in-military-standoff-over-space-missiles.html

Note: Hydrazine is a monopropellent with an autoignition temperature of about 270degrees centigrade. Re-entry heating would probably produce temperatures higher than that. But the rocket fuel mentioned in the article might not be actual hydrazine but a related compound.

Now we know where President O's got some of his grey hair.

Another note: Anyone remember the classic (but crappy) Ray Bradbury novel "Fahrenheit 451"? That is the susposed autoignition temperature of book paper.
A book heated to 451 degrees F will burst into flame without a spark or ignition source. Contrast this with "flash point". A liguid heated to its flash point will burst into flame from a controlled flame source.
http://www.chemeurope.com/en/whitepapers/45235/flash-point-testing-the-definitive-test-method.html

Have I bored everybody into sleepiness? Good. Its late.

Say goodnight BigG.
Goodnight BigG.
-- Edited by BigG on Wednesday 2nd of February 2011 07:11:18 PM

-- Edited by BigG on Wednesday 2nd of February 2011 07:21:09 PM