jwm@stdc.jhuapl.edu (Jim Meritt) (12/23/88)
In article <184@maths.tcd.ie> ftoomey@maths.tcd.ie (Fergal Toomey) writes: }I remember seeing a TV program about this some time ago. }Apparently the cunning ruskies in Leningrad or some place used to }haul out giant rubber submarines just when the american spy satellites }came overhead. The americans were completely fooled until a storm }came up and blew the rubber subs onto the piers. I strongly suspect this comes under the heading of urban myth. Perhaps a deliberate one. As you inflate a large balloon it does NOT look vaguely real, and even a minor wind/current would cause a floating balloon to behave extremely unlike heavy steel. Like fold itself almost double pierside, for instance. Disclaimer: "It's mine! All mine!!!" - D. Duck
steve@eos.UUCP (Steve Philipson) (12/23/88)
In article <2777@aplcomm.jhuapl.edu> jwm@aplvax.UUCP (Jim Meritt) writes: >In article <184@maths.tcd.ie> ftoomey@maths.tcd.ie (Fergal Toomey) writes: >}I remember seeing a TV program about this some time ago. >}Apparently the cunning ruskies in Leningrad or some place used to >}haul out giant rubber submarines just when the american spy satellites >}came overhead. ... >I strongly suspect this comes under the heading of urban myth. >Perhaps a deliberate one. >As you inflate a large balloon it does NOT look vaguely real, and even >a minor wind/current would cause a floating balloon to behave extremely >unlike heavy steel. I don't know about the Soviet use of blow-up subs, but the Allies actually did use blow up tanks, artillery, trucks, etc. during WWII to deceive German recon aircraft. They did have a problem with things getting blown around when the wind came up, but usually were able to tie things down or weight them. In modern times, we do it a little differently. Aviation Week reported that the modern day Allies set up fake fighters made out of tent poles and fabric to fool Soviet recon planes and satellites. Av Leak even ran photos of them. There's no reason to think we couldn't do the same thing with fake subs. The blow up models wouldn't be cheap, but they would be virtually free compared to the cost of a real sub. -- Steve (the certified flying fanatic) steve@aurora.arc.nasa.gov