Russian Rocket Malfuctioned over Northern Norway

[JHawke]

First, here's a couple of pictures, this was taken with a long shuttertime:
The blue spiral "tail" was visible for several minutes, and went from blue to white..

http://media.aftenposten.no/archive/01161/_G-Tittel-IMG_0742_1161264x.jpg

http://multimedia.ekstrabladet.dk/eb/archive/00498/Lys1000_498831m.jpg

And here's some videos of varying quality:
http://ekstrabladet.tv/nyheder/verdenpaavrangen/article1267179.ece
http://www.vgtv.no/?id=27558&category=1
http://www.vgtv.no/?id=27553
http://www.vgtv.no/?id=27559

I read a Norwegian article about this, and it seems the Russians send out a warning "not to go near Kvitsjøen", since they would be shooting something from a vessel near Kvitsjøen. Afterwards an anonymous Russian spokesman denied that there were any launch, rocket or explosion.
Apparently, the explosion could be seen in all of Northern Norway.

The scientist are not worried, they say it was just an malfuctioning rocket going nuts. And the spiral shapes was made by the sun shining on the leaked propellant.

But wow, those pictures are amazing

[wmadoss]

Where did you read that it was a rocket?
On the article you linked to they still dont know.
But there was a rocket launch sunday with somehow similar effects but nowhere near as cool as these.
http://www.yr.no/nyheter/1.6847340
But this "fenomena" still lacks an explanation (althought it probably was a rocket again).

[Safe-Keeper]

One of the articles says that "the whole nation is in an upror" or whatever, when I hadn't even heard of this until now.

The other is associated with VG, a notoriously unserious tabloid paper.

Sorry, but I'm witholding comments until I get some serious sources.

[JHawke]

Where did you read that it was a rocket?
On the article you linked to they still dont know.
But there was a rocket launch sunday with somehow similar effects but nowhere near as cool as these.
http://www.yr.no/nyheter/1.6847340
But this "fenomena" still lacks an explanation (althought it probably was a rocket again).

I read it here: http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/article3413787.ece

"- Raketten har trolig kommet ut av kontroll og eksplodert. Det spesielle spiralformede lysmønsteret kommer av at sola skinte på drivstoffet som lekket ut, sier han til NRK."

[wmadoss]

Ahh thanks.

[JHawke]

One of the articles says that "the whole nation is in an upror" or whatever, when I hadn't even heard of this until now.

The other is associated with VG, a notoriously unserious tabloid paper.

Sorry, but I'm witholding comments until I get some serious sources.

You have to be upset, the paper told you too! :p
Yeah, it seems that only the tabloids have picked it up.. Though I wouldn't know, since I'm not from Norway.

But please remember, I'm not claiming this is E.T coming to get us, I think it is a rocket..

Here some more cool pictures:

http://www.yr.no/nyheter/1.6902555

EDIT: lol, some people are already claiming it's HAARP! :D

[erlando]

http://multimedia.ekstrabladet.dk/eb/archive/00498/Lys1000_498831m.jpg

But wow, those pictures are amazing

Is it just me or...

The photographer claims to have taken this picture at long shuttertimes. Wouldn't there at least be some stars visible? (Oh ****, that makes me sound like a moon-hoaxer, doesn't it?)

[JHawke]

Is it just me or...

The photographer claims to have taken this picture at long shuttertimes. Wouldn't there at least be some stars visible? (Oh ****, that makes me sound like a moon-hoaxer, doesn't it?)

I don't know.. But there are no stars on any pictures of this explosion. So I guess the light from the explosion makes it impossible to capture stars on the photos, much like the moon-stuff :P

http://www.frisnit.com/cgi-bin/navtex/view.cgi?id=1159919&lan=en&type=24H&message_filter=&search=ROCKET&station_filter=&date=2009-12-09&offset=0&source=a4f7a470329caf85e2488355c7e88328

Hmm, I have no idea what this stuff means, can anyone translate? If I read it correctly, there should be several launches over the next couple of days.

ZCZC FA80
071400 UTC DEC 09
COASTAL WARNING ARKHANGELSK 95
SOUTHEN PAT WHIT SEA
1. ROCKET LAUNCHING 2300 10DEC TO 0800 11 DEC
0900 TO 700 11 DEC 2100 11 DECTO 0600 12 DEC
1000 TO 1700 12 DEC 200 12 DE TO 1000 13 DEC
1100 TO 1700 13 DEC 2100 TO 100 14 DEC
010 TO 070 AND 1TO 22CT MYUU
NAVIGATION PROHIBITED IN ARA .5-126
BP
YTAUWN 036-26.0E6-12.3, 037-19.0E 6-04.0N 037-47.0E
66-03.
038-8.0 6ZE PQATHONP
6-1.0N 037-8.0E 65-12.1N 06-49.5 VPXUFSTAL LINE 65-2.2N 036-47.E
WM CANCEL THIS MESSAGE 152300 DEC=
NNNN

ZCZC FA79
031230 UTC DEC 09
COASTAL WARNING ARKHANGELSK 94
SOUTHERN PART WHITE SEA
1.ROCKET LAUNCHING 2300 07 DEC TO 0600 08 DEC
09 DC 0200 TO 0900 10 DEC 0100 TO 0900
NAVIGATION PROHIBITED IN AREA
65-12.6N 036-37.0E 65-37.2N 036-26.0E
66-12.3N 037-19.0E 66-04.0N 037-47.0E
66-03.0N 038-38.0E 66-06.5N 038-55.0E
65-11.0N 037-28.0E 65-12.1N 036-49.5E
THEN COASTAL LINE 65-12.2N 036-47.6E
2. CANCEL THIS MESSAGE 101000 DEC=
NNNN

[Jack by the hedge]

Perhaps there are more launches planned, or perhaps they just pencilled in several possible launch windows to cope with weather & technical hitches.

[JHawke]

I think your second option sounds very plausible Jack.. Well, we'll find out tomorrow I guess :)

[Limbo]

Anyone around here live in Norway? If so have they heard anything about this?

Giant Mysterious Spiral Takes Over the Skies of Norway (http://gizmodo.com/5422574/giant-mysterious-spiral-takes-over-the-skies-of-norway)

http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/4/2009/12/500x_fenomen_over_borras_340152c.jpg

"People are freaking out all over Norway because of what you are seeing here. According to Norwegian news outlets, the spooky giant spiral was seen, photographed, and recorded on video from all over the country.

Could it all be a hoax? Maybe it's a massive joke, but all kinds of Norwegian news sites are reporting on it. According to NKR—Norway's national TV channel—it could be related to a rocket fired from a Russian submarine in the White Sea. The Russians are denying any part on it at this at the moment. Nick Banbury, a witness located at Harstad, described how it all happened:

We are used to seeing lots of auroras here in Arctic Norway, but on my way to work this morning I saw something completely unexpected. Between 7:50 and 8:00 a.m. local time, there was a strange light in the sky. It consisted initially of a green beam of light similar in colour to the aurora with a mysterious rotating spiral at one end. This spiral then got bigger and bigger until it turned into a huge halo in the sky with the green beam extending down to the earth.


As hard as it is to believe, you can't dispute the fact that the strange spiral was witnessed and recorded by thousands of people from hundreds of miles away, which means that the phenomenon occurred at a very high altitude. Even Phil Plait from Bad Astronomy agrees that this is real, and says that it was probably a rocket out of control. Norwegian astronomers and news outlets have actually confirmed that this was a failed Russian missile launch."

[...]

http://cache.gizmodo.com/assets/images/4/2009/12/500x_il9yx8rkw_jfdwmcverfyq0uldk3ol4wtkqwpjz1jvqa. jpg

http://cache.gizmodo.com/assets/images/4/2009/12/500x_sofalv6pjvs5mtuzhhm85w9-40xvu4luidl54xx_iewg.jpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3z8DlNZKag

[Jack by the hedge]

Russian rocket, apparently. http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=161635

[GreenLines]

Ha, that was amusing. Reminds me of the space ships from Star Wars appearing over the San Fransisco Bay area.

[whatthebutlersaw]

Dang, and here was me hoping it to be a viral marketing campaign for a Norwegian multi platform SF production of some sort. It would be exactly the kind of thing Erlend Eidsem Hansen with friends could be imagined doing.

[Gawdzilla]

I've seen pictures with and without the blue streak. Is that actually part of the event or a photoshop?

[jabberwocky]

why are the still pictures found on the newspapers, so different than the videos?

they look like complete digital renditions...

the videos look more plausible... as the spiral looks way way smaller, and with more realistic color....

i have seen photos of aurora boralis, wich cover the whole sky of color, even making this go pale in comparison... but, why is it moving in a circular spiral motion?

is it all a viral hoax? is it the famous bluebeam project? is it something else?

will they try to sell us this as some climate change side effect, now that we all seen it is a hoax supported and feeded by gobernments, scientists, media and ecologist organizations alike? :D

any one got any video showing the spiral and the blue beam in its full size, just like in the pictures?

[JHawke]

why are the still pictures found on the newspapers, so different than the videos?

they look like complete digital renditions...

the videos look more plausible... as the spiral looks way way smaller, and with more realistic color....

i have seen photos of aurora boralis, wich cover the whole sky of color, even making this go pale in comparison... but, why is it moving in a circular spiral motion?

is it all a viral hoax? is it the famous bluebeam project? is it something else?

will they try to sell us this as some climate change side effect, now that we all seen it is a hoax supported and feeded by gobernments, scientists, media and ecologist organizations alike? :D

any one got any video showing the spiral and the blue beam in its full size, just like in the pictures?

The pictures looks nothing like the videos, because they were taken with a very long shuttertime. If I understand that correctly, this means you are watching the whole event in one picture. All of this was never visible all at once.. I bet someone can confirm/debunk this.

It's moving in spirals because the rocket malfunctioned.. Like when you break the stick of a normal rocket.
The colours were created because the sun shined on the propellant/fuel.

[Gawdzilla]

It's nice to be in at the start of a mythological event, isn't it? Whatever it finally turns out to be will be dissed by the tinfoiled ones and they'll have a dozen websites devoted to "the truth" up in a week.

[Drudgewire]

I wish this was my joke, but someone on my forums responded:

na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na BJATMAN!!!

:D

[jabberwocky]

I havent considered the rocket hypotesis, as it looked to me more like projected light, or any form of energy (electromagnetic), since it didnt seem to be affected by physical fenomena...

The pictures looks nothing like the videos, because they were taken with a very long shuttertime. If I understand that correctly, this means you are watching the whole event in one picture. All of this was never visible all at once.. I bet someone can confirm/debunk this.


good point.. it sound more plausible to me...

It would be nice to see any video of the blue beam of light, wich seem to originate on that mountain's hidden side..



It's moving in spirals because the rocket malfunctioned.. Like when you break the stick of a normal rocket.
The colours were created because the sun shined on the propellant/fuel.

so, the rocket drawn a PERFECTLY shaped Archimedean spiral (r = a + bθ), even against the force of gravity, wich would make the rocket's spiral trajectory to be deformed...?

and how can it be that the smoke (or whatever the spiral traces are made of) keeps on rotating as a whole solid thing?

when you launch a rocket, the smoke left behind remains more or less in its position, and it's only affected by wind/air and gravity...

i mean, smoke dont "group togheter" and keep on following the rocket's trajectory for long time... or keeps on rotating in the direction the rocket rotated...

if anything, it would be propelled in the oposite direction of the rocket's trajectory, and fade away with wind/gravity effects...

(excuse my poor english, i'm from spain)

[Limbo]

In this video:

The Norway Spiral Lights UFO Extended (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrNh8b_0elw)

The center of the spiral seems to expand in blackness. How does it do that? What accounts for that effect?

[jabberwocky]

right!!!

[Limbo]

It seems that there was a similar spiral type thing in 2006. Here is the vid. Was there a rocket test then too...right over a Russian city?

http://noolmusic.com/google_videos/spiral_ufo_coming_out_wormhole_or_hyperspace_tomsk _russia_2006.php

[LTC8K6]

Good explanation:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx8i5EfmYU4

[Tumblehome]

In the last five minutes, I've seen at least 15 photographs and one video of this event, and there must be a lot more. In my whole life, I have yet to see even one credible photograph/video/evidence of any kind for aliens, bigfoot, ghosts, etcetera etcetera. It's amazing how man-made events are recorded to excess even when they happen accidentally, yet "not of this world" events never seem to make it to film or memory cards.

is it all a viral hoax?


It doesn't seem to be a hoax, but definitely, the spiral is going viral.:)

ETA--Some of those photographs are weirdly beautiful.

[shadron]

so, the rocket drawn a PERFECTLY shaped Archimedean spiral (r = a + bθ), even against the force of gravity, wich would make the rocket's spiral trajectory to be deformed...?

That's what you get when you look down the roll axis of a craft that is leaking propulsion fluid. The fluid isn't travelling in the spiral; its going straight out from the center, but in waves as the rocket rotates around. The rocket is near or in orbit, so no effective gravity or air. You're equation exactly describes the dynamics in the roll plane.

and how can it be that the smoke (or whatever the spiral traces are made of) keeps on rotating as a whole solid thing?It doesn't - it just moves outwards. and slowly disperses. See the video below; it shows how it happened.

when you launch a rocket, the smoke left behind remains more or less in its position, and it's only affected by wind/air and gravity... This isn't a rocket, exactly, it's a satellite in low earth orbit or nearly so, outside the atmosphere. It's in orbit, so no effective gravity. The fuel is in freefall after it leaves the satellite.

i mean, smoke dont "group togheter" and keep on following the rocket's trajectory for long time... or keeps on rotating in the direction the rocket rotated...

if anything, it would be propelled in the oposite direction of the rocket's trajectory, and fade away with wind/gravity effects...Just watch the video given by LTC8K6; it explains it better than words can.

Zx8i5EfmYU4

[Jack by the hedge]

...how can it be that the smoke (or whatever the spiral traces are made of) keeps on rotating as a whole solid thing?

The spiral of ejecta is not rotating, it's expanding, and that gives us the optical illusion that it's rotating.

What's odd from my point of view is that whatever the ejected material is, it keeps moving away at a steady rate, creating the expanding spiral, instead of stopping or dispersing in the air. That implies either that the ejecta consists of something much heavier than smoke particles or that we're watching it outside the atmosphere (which seems very unlikely to me).

I was initially thinking it could be a test of some kind of anti-missile missile, which sprays a cloud of particles sufficiently heavy to disrupt an incoming warhead passing through the cloud at very high speed.

<shrug> Just thinking out loud.

[I Ratant]

I've seen a few of that type of phenomena.
In the late '50s, NASA launched some rockets from Wallops Island off the Virginia Coast, which released barium particles, which glowed in different colors.
Somewhat like the Northern Lights, but more muted.
And not long ago I saw a few submarine launched IRBMs off the California coast which released MIRVs. The vehicle carrying the MIRVs would show a spiral exhaust, and then a smaller object would be ejected. More spiral, and another ejection.
The whole bunch would proceed on down into the target area in the Pacific Ocean.

[I Ratant]

It seems that there was a similar spiral type thing in 2006. Here is the vid. Was there a rocket test then too...right over a Russian city?

http://noolmusic.com/google_videos/spiral_ufo_coming_out_wormhole_or_hyperspace_tomsk _russia_2006.php
.
Missile tests from Vandenburg AFB on the west coast of California have been seen from points in Arizona, hundreds of miles to the east.
There's no real way to determine how far away something like that is.
Those tests are beautiful to see.

[jabberwocky]

That's what you get when you [...] better than words can.

nice!

this video by LTC8K6 explains the rocket theory perfectly.. i didnt consider the fact that the rocket could have a leakage on one of its sides...

that will effectively appear like a flat spiral, to someone who was right at the bottom of it, or under it...

but, were all the pictures/videos taken from the same angle?

to me this LTC explanation, works for some of the pictures i've seen so far, but not completely, as in the videos the spiral smoke (or whatever) fades rapidly, not forming the hughe spirals we see on the pictures, or in the simulation... this videos also look exactly like the russian video..

now, the pictures are different.. they show way bigger spirals with as much as 14 levels or turns..

in that simulation the particles last for a good time, creating an effect similar to those on the pictures.. the videos are different.


This isn't a rocket, exactly, it's a satellite in low earth orbit or nearly so, outside the atmosphere. It's in orbit, so no effective gravity. The fuel is in freefall after it leaves the satellite.

can you confirm that? how do you know its a satellite and not a rocket?

in the videos it looks small, so it may be very far, in orbit as you say..

but in the pictures it seems to be very much closer..

any one got a confirmation on the pictures being taken with long shuttertime??

[ohms]

Russians say (http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4413711&c=EUR&s=AIR) this was probably from a test failure of their Bulava missile.

Describing the latest failure of the Bulava as a major embarrassment for the military, leading Russian defense analyst Pavel Felgenhauer said the images were consistent with a missile failure.

"Such lights and clouds appear from time to time when a missile fails in the upper layers of the atmosphere and have been reported before," he told AFP.

"At least this failed test made some nice fireworks for the Norwegians," he joked.

[Ririon]

Missed it. :(

[Wowbagger]

Missiles will often go 'round in spirals when they go haywire.

http://www.impactlab.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/missle-457.jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_4c4umiCddtA/SWvfM9nAwGI/AAAAAAAACR4/eeiGnImXPT8/s1600/trident-2-DNSC8906614_JPG.jpg

[dudalb]

Russians say (http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4413711&c=EUR&s=AIR) this was probably from a test failure of their Bulava missile.


Another great triumph for Russian Engineering, in the tradition of Chernoble and the "Kursk".

[Cuddles]

but, were all the pictures/videos taken from the same angle?

Effectively, yes. As already noted several times, the rocket was high in the upper atmosphere or in near space (given that it's a missile test, I doubt we'll ever get exact details of where it was). That means anyone viewing from the ground will only be able to see from directly underneath it.

the spiral smoke (or whatever) fades rapidly, not forming the hughe spirals we see on the pictures, or in the simulation

now, the pictures are different.. they show way bigger spirals with as much as 14 levels or turns..

As already noted (again), the pictures taken are long exposures which essentially show the entire event in one still frame. A long exposure also means that fainter things will be more clear, so you will see more than you would be able to in a video. You can't just look at a photograph as if it is a still from a video.


in that simulation the particles last for a good time, creating an effect similar to those on the pictures.. the videos are different.

The simulation is just a quick and dirty animation to show how that kind of thing can form. It's not pretending to be an accurate model of the event.

can you confirm that? how do you know its a satellite and not a rocket?

It's a rocket.

in the videos it looks small, so it may be very far, in orbit as you say..

What looks small? You can't see the rocket in the videos, only the patterns caused by the leaked fuel.

Another great triumph for Russian Engineering, in the tradition of Chernoble and the "Kursk".

To be fair, it's not like Europe or the US have a perfect record of rocket launches. People wouldn't keep going to Russia for satellite launches if they were that unreliable.

[OneShotKi11]

What is the explanation for when the " Black hole" appears? I notice it both in the Norway video and the video posted from 2006.
http://noolmusic.com/google_videos/spiral_ufo_coming_out_wormhole_or_hyperspace_tomsk _russia_2006.php

Except in the 2006 footage after the "Black Hole" expands the phenomenon or missile continues to spiral.

[steve s]

What is the explanation for when the " Black hole" appears?


It simply ran out of whatever it was venting. The stuff that had already been ejected keeps expanding, but there's nothing new to fill in the center, hence the black hole. Watch the vid in post 26, he explains that about 30 seconds in.



Except in the 2006 footage after the "Black Hole" expands the phenomenon or missile continues to spiral.

It's expanding, not spiraling.

Steve S.

[popscythe]

Everybody's theorizin' for the weekend.

[FramerDave]

Something like this has been covered before: http://forums.randi.org/showthread.php?t=150217

[Limbo]

Would anyone care to offer detailed comments on this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFWI0kbsiK8

[Jack by the hedge]

Would anyone care to offer detailed comments on this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFWI0kbsiK8

This is a joke, right?

(Apologies if that lacks detail)

[Limbo]

This is a joke, right?

(Apologies if that lacks detail)


It's not a joke, but I think your apology is.

[Olowkow]

Would anyone care to offer detailed comments on this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFWI0kbsiK8

Apparently not. Go for it! Tell us why this is even worth watching.

[Kilgore Trout]

What I took from it.. It wasn't a rocket because rockets don't do that in the atmosphere and something about the infrared and a black hole as it dissipates (I don't think they really mean a black hole in the astronomical sense, but who knows). I don't think it was aliens, though later there is mention of UFOs. Richard Hoagland was also mentioned. In 2011 the Earth will level up (maybe down, not really sure) to 4th density. December 12, 2012 something wonderful is going to happen. People are working on ways of generating free energy. And those in the know need to be prepared to help those confused and bewildered by these wonderful new things that are coming soon.

I could be wrong about several things... I just thought the pictures of the spiral looked cool and my mind wandered quite a bit after the Mandelbrot. I gave it a shot anyway.

To be fair, detailed comments would require a lot of work; it's not just about the "Norway Spiral" but actually many things rolled into one 10 minute talk. It's like a shotgun-blast of conspiracy theories. I do think I hear a giggle near the end though from whomever he was talking to. I think also it would be far more productive for someone that is in the know about the many things mentioned to give comment, as opposed to linking the video and asking for comment, unless one is to comment only on the portion that's about the "Norway Spiral" and that seems to be all over this post.

(Forgive me if this reply is out of place.. I hadn't initially followed the thread, but I did watch the video anyway...)

[Jack by the hedge]

OK, so if I try again a little more seriously, it really would be an awful lot of work to unpick all the scattergun points made in that video, particularly as the soundtrack is often making one point while the pictures scamper off on a frolic of their own.

Is it OK if I just watch it until it makes a point for which I'd like evidence, and then move on when it's satisfactorily proven?

If that's OK, then here we go:

1st sentence: "There is a HAARP facility directly where the beam appears to be originating from."

1st problem: There is a HAARP type facility near Tromsø, and the phenomenon was visible from Tromsø, but it was also visible from many other towns in northern Norway and I have seen no evidence of its origin being near Tromsø. Indeed every other account I've seen opines that the source was far away in the white sea somewhere near Arkhangelsk. Good evidence for Tromsø required, please.

2nd problem: Use of the word "beam" to describe the phenomenon. In this very thread there are examples of rockets producing spiral plumes. The phenomenon looks plausibly like a rocket trail to me and not like anything projected on the sky. Solid justification for "beam", please.

So, that's the first 6 seconds. When you prove it's a reasonable account, I can move onto the next bit, and so on. Only 3,601 more seconds to go.

[shadron]

How could it have been centered over Tromso when it was photographed all over Scandinavia and Russia to the northeast?

18 layers, eh? That's impressive. Describe how anything besides matter escaping from a tank rolling along the viewing axis could do that.

I quit listening at that point. I have a low threshold for people embarrassing themselves.

[Jack by the hedge]

O noes! We're doomed:

Norway Time Hole Leak Plunges Northern Hemisphere Into Chaos (http://beforeitsnews.com/story/2724/Norway_Time_Hole_Leak_Plunges_Northern_Hemisphere_ Into_Chaos)

"Russian scientists are reporting to Prime Minister Putin today that the high-energy beam fired into the upper heavens from the United States High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HHARP) radar facility in Ramfjordmoen, Norway this past month has resulted in a “catastrophic puncturing” of our Plant’s thermosphere thus allowing into the tropospherean “unimpeded thermal inversion” of the exosphere, which is the outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere."

Apparently teh leaky time hole has plunged the Northern Hemisphere into "chaos". (Though looking out of my window, the chaos appears to be thawing nicely, just like the weather forecast said it would).

[Kilgore Trout]

I'm more worried about 'HHARP' and what that extra 'H' may stand for than our Plant.

[Jack by the hedge]

I'm more worried about 'HHARP' and what that extra 'H' may stand for than our Plant.

Umm... Half Human Aliens Radiating Propaganda?

High-tech Heater for Astronomical Rice Puddings?

Honestly Hasn't Any Recondite Purpose?

:)