The Astronomy Thread
- Thread starter Araxen
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You do understand that your cell phone doesn't go out to space when it makes calls, right?
Gavinmad
Mr. Poopybutthole
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Apparently I didn't I knew it went to towers in your area but I assumed if it was pretty far off it would be bounced off a satellite, apparently I am stupid
lol
Sorry I guess I could have said that less combatively. In any case, your cell phone is not a satellite phone.
That would be pretty sweet if it were true (since basically you'd never lose coverage) but AFAIK the transmitter in your phone isn't powerful enough for that. That's not to say it couldn't severely fuck up communication networks, but the impact would be on a large scale (international communications would be pretty boned I think).Apparently I didn't I knew it went to towers in your area but I assumed if it was pretty far off it would be bounced off a satellite, apparently I am stupid
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GPS would be fucked, Satellite phones would be fucked, the vast majority of television (not all, yay for local stations), due to heavy dependance on GPS flights might entirely be grounded, international communications would be fucked as mentioned. It would be some heavy duty shit, the big question is how could one get rich preparing for such a disaster in case it happened.
Eomer
Trakanon Raider
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What do satellites and cell phones or other telco networks have to do with each other? All that shit is land based due to the distances involved with geo-sync satellites.
edit: ah, my bad, didn't see that it was addressed
It's not solely about power. It's about distance. Geo-synchronous orbit is 42,000 km up. Even at the speed of light (300,000 km/sec), communications signals bouncing back and forth four times for voice calls causes pretty large latency, so it's not practical.
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I had a Merlin moment, Sorry. Oh add weather forecast to the list of shit that would disappear, oh and April 13, 2029 is when it would pass by us and knock out the satellites. Just imagine hurricane season with out satellites, as someone who lives on the coast that would deadly as fuck if we had landfall.
Eomer
Trakanon Raider
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I don't know that ALL weather satellites are at geosynchronous orbit either, actually. Some may be lower.
spronk
FPS noob
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Some more on it.
http://www.universetoday.com/99750/a...ing-on-mars-2/
And those rocks would be no trouble to navigate. The scale on that picture is deceiving: it's small stuff.
http://www.universetoday.com/99750/a...ing-on-mars-2/
And those rocks would be no trouble to navigate. The scale on that picture is deceiving: it's small stuff.
stuff like this spring an interesting question: if by chance we find an alien device on mars, something that proof intelligent life is out there somewhere, what do you think will be the general reaction ? indifference ? wild panic ? some kind of global social "growup" like Star Trek ?
iannis
Musty Nester
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My expectation would be: authoritarian secrecy (not conspiracy nutter stuff), general indifference, a burst of cashflow into aerospace R&D.
I'm not even a conspiracy nut. But if the NASA rover finds spaceship parts on Mars I don't think we're gonna have an Oprah Special telling us about it. I don't think wars will end because we have a sudden, global, Pale Blue Dot epiphany. I think the information would be there but it wouldn't be widely publicized, widely understood, or widely credited. And most people wouldn't care too much even when they're aware of it.
Because honestly, there are wonders and mysteries in the world in plenty already. Most of us don't give a shit about any of that.
I'm not even a conspiracy nut. But if the NASA rover finds spaceship parts on Mars I don't think we're gonna have an Oprah Special telling us about it. I don't think wars will end because we have a sudden, global, Pale Blue Dot epiphany. I think the information would be there but it wouldn't be widely publicized, widely understood, or widely credited. And most people wouldn't care too much even when they're aware of it.
Because honestly, there are wonders and mysteries in the world in plenty already. Most of us don't give a shit about any of that.
Big Phoenix
Pronouns: zie/zhem/zer
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