Noctilucent Clouds Likely Caused By Shuttle Launches 132
icebike writes "In our recent discussion of the phenomenon of noctilucent clouds, there was some suggestions that these might be the product of global warming due to moisture being lofted high into the atmosphere. It now appears that these clouds are simply the product of Shuttle launches. In a story about the Tunguska blast, Science News says: 'Each launch of a space shuttle, which burns a combination of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen as fuel, pumps about 300 metric tons of water vapor into the atmosphere at altitudes between 100 and 115 kilometers. Soon after the January 16, 2003, launch of the shuttle Columbia, a liftoff that took place just after the height of summer in the Southern Hemisphere, noctilucent clouds appeared over Antarctica. Similarly, a widespread display of the night-shining clouds showed up over Alaska two days after the shuttle Endeavour blasted off on August 8, 2007. Previous studies show that in both instances those clouds included material from the shuttle plumes.' So, man-made after all?"
See? Man-made climate change! (Score:5, Funny)
Those damn environmentalists were right!
Re:Um, first observed in 1887 - well before shuttl (Score:2, Funny)
Well, there goes my crack headline of "Latest Global Warming Cause : Shuttle Farts".
Re:Um, first observed in 1887 - well before shuttl (Score:5, Funny)
Almost a full century before the first shuttle launch by humans! Finally we have proof for UFOs! :-)
Easiest waste of modpoints (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Um, first observed in 1887 - well before shuttl (Score:4, Funny)
Schroedinger's Noctilucent Cloud?
It doesn't exist until you photograph it?
Re:See? Man-made climate change! (Score:3, Funny)
And now, they're putting toxic chemtrails in space!
Re:See? Man-made climate change! (Score:3, Funny)
At least they're not throwing around a lot of radioactive stuff in space. Would turn it in to some kind of inhospitable void.