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Aerobatics ServerACRO E-mail Archive Thread: [Acro] Re: Trivia[International Aerobatic Club] [Articles etc] [Communications] [Contest and Patch Information] [Aviation Organizations] [Other Aerobatics Info] [Aerobatics Images] [Other Aerobatics Links] [Other Aviation Info (including weather)] [Search ACRO Website]Disclaimer: These aerobatics pages are developed by individual IAC members and do not represent official IAC policy or opinion. |
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Thread: [Acro] Re: Trivia
Message: [Acro] Re: Trivia
Follow-Up To: ACRO Email list (for List Members only)
From: Andrew Boyd <aboyd at qnx.com>
Date: Mon, 24 Feb 2003 16:49:23 UTC
On Mon, 24 Feb 2003 Klusmanp at aol.com wrote: > I can't imagine bats and radar systems operate on the same frequency they sure don't ... a bat uses audio (sound) waves that propogate through the atmosphere, likely 5Khz to 30Khz. Radar uses emag radiation in the Ghz range. > I'm guessing stealth tailoring is very frequency > specific. Hmmmm. I don't think so. Angle of incidence equals angle of reflection for waves of any sort. However, I am certain that the 117 uses Ghz-range absorbing material which is likely not effective against audio in the Khz range. There are some funny stories about the 117 ... apparently Lockheed told the air force that black wasn't actually the optimal color for low-visibility, and that a dark pastel shade of grey would work better. The air force curtly replied that real men fly black airplanes, so black it was. And remember all the funny flat surfaces in the 117? That was because the 117 was designed a long long time ago, and Lockheed didn't have the computing power to calculate low reflectivity for curved surfaces. Initially, the air force didn't like the flat surfaces, and grumbling was heard about it's appearance. Years went by, Moore's law kicked in, and low and behold Lockheed had the computing power to calculate reflectivity for curved surfaces. However, the air force replied, "we like the flat surfaces, we'll keep them, thanks". More trivia: the SR-71 was originally known as the RS-71, however the apparently mildly-dyslexic LBJ stood up one day and publicly referred to it as the SR-71, and as everyone knows, politicians never, ever make mistakes. So, at great expense and hassle, every drawing and document at Lockheed had to be changed from RS-71 to SR-71. -- aboyd
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