Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!henry From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer) Newsgroups: net.followup Subject: Re: Star Wars Defense Plan Message-ID: <4227@utzoo.UUCP> Date: Fri, 17-Aug-84 16:58:52 EDT Article-I.D.: utzoo.4227 Posted: Fri Aug 17 16:58:52 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 17-Aug-84 16:58:52 EDT References: <966@ulysses.UUCP>, <1292@ihuxl.UUCP> Organization: U of Toronto Zoology Lines: 17 When we're talking about the formidable nature of missile submarines, let us not forget the one major discovery that came out of the Seasat project: the precise shape of the sea surface tells you a lot about what's underneath. Seasat radar images of shallow areas often showed accurate bottom detail, even though the radar was very definitely not penetrating the water. It would appear that the surface tends to mimic the shape of the bottom! The implications of this for submarines are obvious: the "transparent oceans" breakthrough that submariners have feared for some time may have happened. Nobody is saying anything in public about tracking submarines using Seasat-like radar techniques, but I would be very uneasy about assuming that missile subs are invulnerable because you can't find them. It ain't necessarily so any more. -- Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology {allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry