Dave Lindorff: The Bush Administration Takes Us for Idiots

[marmar]

The Bush Administration Takes Us for Idiots
Sun, 02/17/2008 - 22:06 — dlindorff


Anybody who thinks that the government is telling the truth about the plan to shoot down a dead spy satellite--that it's all about protecting us, and not about testing an anti-satellite weapon--has to be really stupid.

And stupid is what the Bush administration and the Pentagon apparently think we are.

They're claiming they need to shoot this thing down because it's got a tank with 1000 pounds of hydrazine, a fuel used for maneuvering satellites while in orbit which is said to be as toxic as chlorine if breathed.

Well, the odds of a tank of hydrazine surviving an 18,000 mph plunge into the atmosphere intact and making it to the ground is basically zero. That sucker will heat up to a fine redhot glow and blow up before it even makes it to the stratosphere.

If you want to know how likely it is that such a tank would make it to ground, check out the pieces of the space shuttle Columbia that made it back to earth when it came down in pieces. That shuttle, a damned sight bigger than this spy satellite, included some heavy pieces of equipment like landing gear that had to carry the full weight of the vehicle on the tarmac, and even that stuff got toasted. (The shuttle also contained tanks of hydrazine, by the way, which didn't make it to earth). .....(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thiscantbehappening.net/?q=node/107

[seemslikeadream]

1. Thanks marmar

:hi:

[PDJane]

2. I hate to say this,

but anyone with half a brain would realize that a volatile substance is not going to make it to earth.

Blowing it up in space has a few problems, however. I have problems with this lot.

[angrycarpenter]

3. What if it had a plutonium power cell?

I don't know much about it but such a power system would mean no solar panels to malfunction.

The space probe to Saturn had one.