Susano Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures I think some of it is moisture condensed out of the air by the shockwave of the vehicle moving through the air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemming Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures I've always wondered... what causes that atmospheric ripple effect? I see it in movies all the time' date=' but sort of figured it was just the SFX guys trying to make it look cool... [/quote'] Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the pressure fluctuation causes water vapor to condense. Or something similar to that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Coincidentally enough, I was watching something tonight which may hold the answer. Discussing sniper teams, the show mentioned that the bullets conduct so much heat from friction that they literally boil the moisture in the air creating a faint ripple type of distortion. The naked eye can't see it, but the observer can see the trail with the right equipment and give feedback. I imagine the same effect is happening with the shuttles and rockets. the heat would be due to the fuel burning rather than pure friction, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveZilla Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures I've always wondered... what causes that atmospheric ripple effect? I see it in movies all the time' date=' but sort of figured it was just the SFX guys trying to make it look cool... [/quote'] The gray "cloud" hanging onto the top of the shuttle, right behind the cockpit windows is caused by a lowering of atmospheric pressure, which drops the temperature below the dew point (causing fog to appear). The same effect is seen immediately above the wings of a fighter aircraft doing hard maneuvers ( ). The larger "dish" the shuttle appears to be flying though is just the same effect, but being caused by the external tank. A "ripple effect" in the air is due to a compression wave. Air isn't completely transparent, and can bend light slightly in the right conditions. A similar effect cane sometimes be seen briefly after a very large explosion, or just from the "rippling" from rising hot air*. *I couldn't find a *single* good image of this heat ripple, or (more hopefully) a video with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSgt Baloo Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Moving pictures, but relevant: (the only video I could find that wasn't about some musical group called Heat Shimmer . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitter thorn Posted June 15, 2008 Report Share Posted June 15, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Moving pictures' date=' but relevant:[indent'] (the only video I could find that wasn't about some musical group called Heat Shimmer. [/indent] I like the first one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted June 16, 2008 Report Share Posted June 16, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Coma cluster of galaxies from APOD. Click on the image in the page, and you'll get the large version ... 6000 by 4200 pixels of space imaging. Almost physical wallpaper size. Takes a while to load, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
austenandrews Posted June 16, 2008 Report Share Posted June 16, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures I've been poking around photos like that on NASA World Wind for a few months. Space is just darn cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted June 16, 2008 Report Share Posted June 16, 2008 The Art of Tree Shaping Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemming Posted June 17, 2008 Report Share Posted June 17, 2008 Re: The Art of Tree Shaping Yea, I was thinking about posting the tree shapers as well. That was cool. Also the big Russian hole in the ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted June 17, 2008 Report Share Posted June 17, 2008 Re: The Art of Tree Shaping Yea, I was thinking about posting the tree shapers as well. That was cool. Also the big Russian hole in the ground. That was a big hole. The trees just impressed the hell out of me. "It's like shaping bonsai, but it takes longer." You think?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemming Posted June 17, 2008 Report Share Posted June 17, 2008 Re: The Art of Tree Shaping That was a big hole. The trees just impressed the hell out of me. "It's like shaping bonsai, but it takes longer." You think?? I admire the patience and planning that goes into that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Is there a link? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemming Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Same website that produced: Knitting Psychos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSgt Baloo Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Jackass Saves Dogs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nolgroth Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Jackass Saves Dogs!Awesome. Repped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Jackass Saves Dogs! Sorry, no: http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/mulelion.asp The mountain lion was already dead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSgt Baloo Posted June 18, 2008 Report Share Posted June 18, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Sorry, no: http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/mulelion.asp The mountain lion was already dead. Either way, it's still an interesting story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveZilla Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Moving pictures, but relevant: (the only video I could find that wasn't about some musical group called Heat Shimmer . Thanks for the videos! That second one led me to a near-perfect video of the distortion caused by rising hot air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Thanks for the videos! That second one led me to a near-perfect video of the distortion caused by rising hot air. *watches video* *cues the theme from Jaws.* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSgt Baloo Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures *watches video* *cues the theme from Jaws.* I was thinking very much the same thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Main Man Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures Well, I don't know if "neat" is the right descriptor here, but... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L. Marcus Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures . . . "Disturbing" might be the word you're looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Main Man Posted June 20, 2008 Report Share Posted June 20, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures As a matter of fact, that's how I found it: I Googled "disturbing." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted June 20, 2008 Report Share Posted June 20, 2008 Re: "Neat" Pictures This is the neat pictures thread? (SFW) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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