Do you believe in other life in the Universe?

[Alpo]

You're making me defend something that I don't really agree with, but that's ok. I'm a trained professional.

Gas does cool, but so does the atmosphere as altitude increases, along with the "air" becoming less dense. Moreover, there are currents that flow vertically. If the gas cloud was cooling more slowly than the air around it, the cloud could continue to "float" up until it was carried by a more horizontal current, e.g. jetstream.

Methane is lighter than air and will rise from the surface of a bloom. But I think this possible hypothesis is really not within the realm of feasible explanations. You would require a lenticular-forming windshear and who knows what else. It is more likely that the gas would dissipate with the square of its distance from the surface, don'tcha think?

 

[Alpo]

I like it, but if it wasn't an intentional event, then it was natural IMHO. If it was intentional, I think it would be alien tech unless DARPA has some REALLY cool stuff.

Could be. Light shows in the next decade ought to be awesome at concerts.

 

[printcraft]

True, but not contextual. Your original observation that mass is necessary to reflect radar is not sound. Gravity and electromagnetics could also cause a "reflection", though I don't think it is relevant in this case. Given quantum states and the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, it is unknown whether the photon is truly reflected, or absorbed and re-emitted. In addition, you assume the mass is what it might appear to be: a lozenge-shaped craft. It may be that, or it could be any number of other things. For example, any craft capable of right angle turns and high acceleration in the atmosphere might be shielded in some manner and its appearance might therefore also be altered.

While I would be happy to learn that it is an alien craft, I don't think there is anywhere near enough information to reach that conclusion.

Gravity drive, electromagnetic drive, shielding, these are beyond our current level of technology...... as far as we are to believe.
Small scale ultrasonic tractor beams are here...

[video=youtube;s5r2nmvxA4s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=18&v=s5r2nmvxA4s[/video]

Unless some really far out stuff has been developed, and that also leads to where or who that technology came from. Weird stuff to be sure.

 

[T.Lex]

Methane is lighter than air and will rise from the surface of a bloom. But I think this possible hypothesis is really not within the realm of feasible explanations. You would require a lenticular-forming windshear and who knows what else. It is more likely that the gas would dissipate with the square of its distance from the surface, don'tcha think?

So you're saying its aliens.

Could be. Light shows in the next decade ought to be awesome at concerts.

Dub step.

 

[Alpo]

 

[Alpo]

Gravity drive, electromagnetic drive, shielding, these are beyond our current level of technology...... as far as we are to believe.
Small scale ultrasonic tractor beams are here...

[video=youtube;s5r2nmvxA4s]https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=18&v=s5r2nmvxA4s[/video]

Unless some really far out stuff has been developed, and that also leads to where or who that technology came from. Weird stuff to be sure.

There is some weird stuff under development. I was at San Diego State way back when. The science professors seemed to always have something going on at Coronado. Of course, that was the Vietnam War era and generations behind what is being done today.

I have no idea what it is, but once we start talking about craft maneuvering in air without conventional aerodynamic constraints, then its possible that electromagnetics, optics and whatever else we believe to be beyond our current capabilities start to make more sense. Holograms could that have been the cause....long-range 3D projection....

I dunno.

 

[T.Lex]

Keep in mind, we recently (publicly) discovered gravity as a wave. Waves can be manipulated.

 

[Alpo]

Yes. So far we know that black hole binaries do so. Do San Diego and Chula Vista count?

 

[ATM]

Keep in mind, we recently (publicly) discovered gravity as a wave. Waves can be manipulated.

Public sentiment is a wave.

 

[T.Lex]

Yes. So far we know that black hole binaries do so. Do San Diego and Chula Vista count?

Yes. Include Tijuana and you have a black hole trifecta.

 

[BugI02]

Keep in mind, we recently (publicly) discovered gravity as a wave. Waves can be manipulated.

Any idea if the grav forces necessary to perform those maneuvers on some rationally theoretical mass for this object would be detectable by LIGO? Weak but close ~ strong but light years away?

 

[2A_Tom]

Photons don't have mass.

Well then, explain to me how photon torpedoes work.

 

[actaeon277]

Well then, explain to me how photon torpedoes work.

PFM

Pure F'n Magic.

 

[2A_Tom]

And, and, and if you remove the safety protocols on the holodeck...

 

[2A_Tom]

L. Ron Hubbard predicted that the mother ship would come to take away his followers.

The Bible prophesies the rapture, and God says...

2 Thessalonians 2:11 | View whole chapter | See verse in context
And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:

Yes I brought up the Bible this time. So

 

[BugI02]

PFM

Pure F'n Magic.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." - Arthur C Clarke

*.*

 

[T.Lex]

Any idea if the grav forces necessary to perform those maneuvers on some rationally theoretical mass for this object would be detectable by LIGO? Weak but close ~ strong but light years away?

I'm thinking that if there was a way to generate the waves, then the effect would have to be extremely localized. Dissipation at greater than the square of the distance. Otherwise, it would be really difficult to have the vehicles travel in a formation. There'd be a bunch of gravity disturbance, kinda like wing turbulence.

 

[BugI02]

Agreed. Wasn't quite thinking about it from that angle, but it makes sense if you are only supporting a couple tons then the grav effect on nearby objects would be the same order of magnitude on your aircraft or detector as a nearby normal mass of the same order. I was thinking more of two separate functions, Agrav for lift and then some form of non-reaction drive that manipulates and pushes against 'space'. I was thinking that active localized cancellation of gravity wouldn't make even a ripple in space/time

 

[T.Lex]

Yeah, there are lots of options if you can "generate" gravity. To move left, it is just a matter of creating a gravity well or something to pull your craft and everything in it that direction. Inertia would be canceled out, because the gravity would be pulling everything that way. (I think.)

 

[BugI02]

Yeah, there are lots of options if you can "generate" gravity. To move left, it is just a matter of creating a gravity well or something to pull your craft and everything in it that direction. Inertia would be canceled out, because the gravity would be pulling everything that way. (I think.)

Not sure if that would give you the uniform acceleration/inertia cancellation. Establishing a steep gravity gradient would, I think, be a bit like creating a singularity close to or within the boundaries of the craft. Messy

I would favor an idea like Alcubierre's where you move by compressing space on oneside and rarifying it on the other. To the occupants it wouldn't be perceived as motion at all, I think, except relative to their starting position

Given our current level of technology, the energy requirements for either seem ... prohibitive