TYB
SpaceX Starlink Mission
December 31, 2024
On Tuesday, December 31 at 12:39 a.m. ET, Falcon 9 launched 21 Starlink satellites, including 13 with Direct to Cell capabilities, to low-Earth orbit from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
This was the 16th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-6, Bluebird-1, mPOWER-B, USSF-124, and now 12 Starlink missions.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=sl-12-6
Aurora alert: Powerful geomagnetic storm could spark northern lights as far south as Illinois tonight and tomorrow
December 30, 2024
We could be in for a New Year's aurora treat with northern lights potentially visible deep into mid-latitudes tonight and tomorrow (Dec. 30 to Dec. 31).
Due to an incoming solar storm, also known as a coronal mass ejection (CME), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center issued a G3 (strong) geomagnetic storm warning for Dec. 31.
This is great news for those wishing to see the northern lights as the predicted geomagnetic storm could spark auroras as far south as Illinois and Oregon (around 50° latitude).
The culprit? A CME — a vast plume of plasma and magnetic field — was hurled out into space by the sun on Dec. 29 and Earth is in the firing line.
The CME isn't alone, several other eruptions over the last few days have also produced Earth-directed eruptions which are expected to trigger strong geomagnetic storm conditions on Dec. 31, according to Solar Astrophysicist Ryan French.
"The Sun has really stepped up over the past few days, with frequent solar flares including a strong X-class event!" French wrote in a post on X.
"A selection of these flares produced Earth-directed eruptions, expected to trigger a strong geomagnetic storm (bringing aurora) on the 31st!" French continued.
When CMEs strike Earth's magnetosphere, they bring electrically charged particles called ions that collide with Earth's magnetic field. These collisions can spark geomagnetic storms.
During these storms, ions collide with atmospheric gases, releasing energy that manifests as light.
This creates the stunning displays known as the northern lights, or aurora borealis, in the Northern Hemisphere, and the southern lights, or aurora australis, in the Southern Hemisphere.
NOAA classifies geomagnetic storms using a G-scale, which ranks their intensity from G1 (minor) to G5 (extreme). The recent geomagnetic storm watch NOAA issued is rated as a G3, indicating strong storm conditions.
Current predictions place the highest level of activity (G1 to G3 conditions) between 10 p.m. EST on Dec. 30 and 10 a.m. EST on Dec. 31 (0300 GMT and 1500 GMT on Dec. 31).
Another spate of activity is currently anticipated for between 4:00 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) on Dec. 31 and 10:00 p.m. EST (0300 GMT on Jan 1), with G1 conditions expected. Check out NOAA's 3-day forecast for the latest timings — note that timings are listed as UT.
Keep in mind that space weather, much like Earth's weather, is unpredictable and difficult to forecast. Even though geomagnetic storm warnings at this level are rare, they can occasionally amount to nothing.
https://www.space.com/stargazing/aurora-borealis/aurora-alert-powerful-geomagnetic-storm-could-spark-northern-lights-as-far-south-as-illinois-tonight-and-tomorrow
https://twitter.com/RyanJFrench/status/1873490571844821421
https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/3-day-forecast
>The Fog
There is some kind of residue reportedly being left by it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43wgzuxQkNE
Get ready for the 'New Year Comet': What to expect from Comet ATLAS (C/2024) G3
December 30, 2024
In the second week of 2025, we could see a new object grace the skies as comet ATLAS (C/2024) G3 gets close to the sun.
In the wake of comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) in October, comet G3 is due to reach perihelion — its closest to the sun — on Jan. 13, 2025.
That day, this icy visitor to the inner solar system will get to within just 8.3 million miles (13.5 million kilometers) from the sun.
For context, Mercury orbits the sun from as close as 29 million miles (47 million kilometers). Jan. 13 will also see comet G3 closest to Earth, so at its brightest as seen from our planet.
Although comet C/2024 G3 could be the brightest comet of 2025, it's only likely to become a naked-eye object to observers in the Southern Hemisphere.
According to The Planetary Society, comet G3 could get as bright as magnitude -4.5, about the same brightness as Venus during January 2025. It will be in the constellation Sagittarius.
However, the comet's unusually close journey to the sun makes its survival questionable. In its favor is the fact that its orbital path suggests that it visited the inner solar system about 160,000 years ago, so it may have survived a close pass before.
"It will be strongly heated and may not survive," said Nick James, director of the British Astronomical Association's comet section. "But if it does, it may be an impressive object in the evening sky from the southern hemisphere after perihelion."
If it does get through its perihelion unscathed, comet G3 is likely to be about as bright as Venus in the west in the post-sunset sky after Jan. 13 from the Southern Hemisphere.
However, James also said that the comet's closeness to the sun means that observing it could be dangerous and that it "should only be attempted if you are an experienced observer."
There will also be some interference by moonlight around the time of comet G3's perihelion.
A bright moon will be in the eastern sky in the few evenings before January's full "Cold Moon," which on Jan. 13 will rise opposite the comet on the eastern horizon.
That may make observations a bit more difficult, though with the moon rising about 50 minutes later each night after the full moon phase, conditions will quickly improve for post-sunset viewing.
Discovered on Apr. 5, 2024, by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) system of telescopes, G3 comes from the Oort Cloud, a sphere of comets that encircles the entire solar system.
https://www.space.com/the-universe/comets/get-ready-for-the-new-year-comet-what-to-expect-from-comet-atlas-c-2024-g3
https://www.planetary.org/articles/how-to-spot-comet-c2024-g3
https://www.livescience.com/space/space-exploration/coolest-space-missions-coming-in-2025
Coolest space missions coming in 2025
December 30, 2024
his year will be an exciting time for space missions.
2025 kicks off with two moon landing attempts in January, followed by SpaceX's daring demonstration to transfer propellants between two Starship vehicles in low Earth orbit — a critical step in testing the company's ability to use the spacecraft to reach the moon and Mars.
Later in 2025, Europe will launch an uncrewed robotic laboratory, and NASA's Juno spacecraft may reach the end of its extended mission and burn up in Jupiter's dense atmosphere.
Here are the coolest space missions to look forward to in 2025.
Blue Ghost 1 and Intuitive Machines' moon landings
In mid-January, Texas-based Firefly Aerospace will launch the "Ghost Riders in the Sky" mission, which aims to ferry a moon lander with 10 NASA payloads.
The moon lander will head to Mons Latreille, a volcanic feature on the near side of the moon that was formed by volcanic eruptions over 3 billion years ago.
The lander, called Blue Ghost 1, is expected to operate during the daylight hours of one lunar day, or roughly 14 Earth days, during which it will gather data about the moon's regolith, or rocky surface, and how that rock interacts with the solar wind (the stream of charged particles that flows out of the sun's outer atmosphere) and Earth's magnetic field.
Toward the end of its mission, Blue Ghost 1 will take images of the moon's sunset and collect data about what changes occur on the lunar surface at dusk.
Meanwhile, Texas-based Intuitive Machines hopes to land its IM-2 spacecraft at the moon's south pole in February.
The spacecraft aims to measure the regolith's volatiles, or delicate chemical compounds, using a drill and mass spectrometer.
The spacecraft will also carry a small satellite, Lunar Trailblazer, which is designed to map water deposits on the moon to help NASA identify future landing sites for its Artemis missions IM-2 will fly a more direct route than Blue Ghost 1 and aims to land on the moon just a week after launch.
SpaceX's attempt at daring in-orbit propellant transfer
SpaceX is gearing up for a groundbreaking test to transfer propellant from one Starship to another while docked in low Earth orbit.
The demonstration, scheduled for March 2025, will involve launching two windowless Starship vehicles about three to four weeks apart, with the second serving as a refueling tanker for the first.
This test is a crucial step in demonstrating that the spacecraft can be used to reach the moon and, eventually, Mars.
Current NASA plans to reach the moon and Mars rely on the Human Landing System variant of Starship. In theory, astronauts who board the Human Landing System as a part of the Artemis 3 mission will reach the moon no sooner than mid-2027.
First NASA-ISRO Earth science mission
Also in March 2025, NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) are teaming up to launch the first of their spacecraft on the Earth-observing NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission, which will scan much of Earth's land and ice nearly every week.
Using a pair of radar instruments that can see through clouds in both day and night, the spacecraft will measure the motion of Earth's surface down to fractions of an inch.
Such precise measurements will help scientists track land movements that may be precursors to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, as well as monitor changes in forests and agricultural lands.
The U.S. and India are also partnering on a high-profile effort to send the first Indian astronaut — Indian Air Force test pilot Shubhanshu Shukla — to the International Space Station no sooner than April 2025 on the private Axiom Mission 4.
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Liftoff of delayed "Blue" and "Gold" Mars satellites
NASA's two Mars-bound satellites, which were designed at the University of California, Berkeley, will study how and when the Red Planet lost its atmosphere.
They are now slated to launch no earlier than spring 2025, following a delay of the mission's original October 2024 launch.
The satellites — named "Blue" and "Gold" as a nod to UC Berkeley's school colors — will orbit Mars at different altitudes to gather simultaneous data on the planet's plasma and magnetic fields.
With this information, scientists hope to learn how atoms are stripped from the Red Planet's atmosphere.
The mission, called Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers (ESCAPADE), was paused in September due to concerns that the delivery vehicle, Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket, wouldn't be ready.
The alignment of Earth and Mars creates an ideal launch window every 26 months, so even small schedule changes can cause months-long delays.
The spring 2025 launch will include a necessary gravity assist past Venus, which will lengthen the flight time by 1.5 years.
China's mission to snag samples from a near-Earth asteroid
China is preparing for an ambitious mission to scoop up pieces of a near-Earth asteroid, return them to Earth, and then explore a comet in deep space.
The Tianwen-2 spacecraft, which is scheduled to launch in May 2025, will rendezvous with 469219 Kamo'oalewa, a quasi-moon of our planet that was discovered in 2016.
Ground-based observations suggest that, unlike most near-Earth asteroids, 469219 Kamo'oalewa may have been blasted from the moon's surface by a major impact between 10 million and 1 million years ago, relatively recently in the solar system's history.
Tianwen-2 will carry out remote sensing observations to assess potential landing sites before attempting to collect samples from the space rock.
Then, the spacecraft will deliver the extraterrestrial bounty to Earth and use our planet's gravity to fling itself into a seven-year trajectory that will take it to the main-belt comet 311P/PANSTARRS in the mid-2030s.
Juno's potential death swirl into Jupiter
NASA's $1.1 billion Juno spacecraft has been studying Jupiter and its moons since 2016.
The mission, which had been extended, will finally end in September 2025 as the spacecraft swirls into the gas giant, unless it survives Jupiter's intense radiation.
According to the mission plan, Juno's orbit will degrade naturally, allowing Jupiter's gravity to pull the probe into the planet's dense clouds.
The final hurl, which will last about 5.5 days, will ensure the spacecraft and any Earthly bacteria that may have hitched a ride don't accidentally contaminate Jupiter's ice-crusted moon Europa, which scientists consider one of the best places in our solar system to search for alien life.
Europe's launch of reusable uncrewed robotic laboratory
The European Space Agency's (ESA) Space Rider, an uncrewed robotic laboratory about the size of two minivans, is expected to launch in the third quarter of 2025.
The space plane will stay in low Earth orbit for two months, during which the robotic laboratory will automatically conduct technology demonstrations and experiments in microgravity.
At the end of its mission, Space Rider will deorbit and land on a runway at Europe's spaceport in French Guiana and get refurbished for at least five more flights.
The space plane is ESA's bid to provide commercial customers with affordable end-to-end launch services, with a broader strategy to help Europe maintain independent, routine access to and from low Earth orbit.
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https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4018361/s4s-establishes-strategic-vision-after-first-year-of-successes/
S4S establishes strategic vision after first year of successes
Dec. 30, 2024
On Dec. 6, 2023, U.S. Space Forces – Space stood up as the Space Force Service Component to U.S. Space Command.
The activation of S4S was part of U.S. Space Force’s plan to normalize the presentation of space forces across combatant commands and most efficiently meet the challenges presented by the dynamic national security environment and the return to Great Power Competition.
“It is the service component that writes tactics, builds CONOPs [Concept of Operations], and gains and maintains space superiority,” said Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman. “Guardians are warfighters, not simply force providers.”
Building out these tactics, concepts and plans that enable the Space Force to gain and maintain space superiority takes time and effort, but the women and men of S4S have embraced the challenge.
“S4S harnesses the collective expertise of our military, civilians, and contractors to meet our warfighters’ needs, as well as protect U.S. and allied interests,” said Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess, S4S commander and Combined Joint Force Space Component commander.
“We have grown, evolved, and achieved remarkable success over the past year because of your efforts.”
One example of the “remarkable success” the command has achieved is through the codifying of the inaugural Joint Space Operations Plan.
“The JSOP was built to conduct globally integrated operations across all domains,” said Lt. Col. Laurel Jodice, S4S Operational Planning director.
“This is our plan for how we will protect against enemy actions and aggression in space; defend critical U.S., allied, partner, and commercial space capabilities; and deliver space capabilities and effects in coordination with national agencies, the Joint Force, allies and partners.”
This theme of “Protect – Defend – Deliver” is central to all S4S activities, but through Schiess’s role as the CJFSCC, the command also serves as a connection point with inter-agency organizations, commercial mission partners, and coalition partners.
A major milestone this year has been the expansion of the Department of Defense’s Operation Olympic Defender, which optimizes space operations, improves mission assurance and enhances collective resilience alongside participating nations.
Originally, allied participation in OOD was limited to Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom.
However, in September of this year, New Zealand announced their intent to join, with both France and Germany officially joining right after in October through formal accession ceremonies.
As the lead space operations integrators, it is the responsibility of S4S to ensure these new partners are meaningfully included in command processes.
“On 30 October, S4S conducted its first all-partners operations and intelligence brief,” said Jared Renne, S4S Strategic Engagements Division chief.
“Insights gained and operations coordinated via this forum will posture the U.S. space apparatus to meet and overcome challenges posed in space by our adversaries and competitors, while achieving the intent of Operation Olympic Defender on behalf of the U.S. and our allies.”
Beyond coalition partner expansion, S4S has also been expanding its network of commercial mission partners and adjusting the support given by operations in order to make these partnerships more meaningful and impactful.
“The Commercial Integration Cell operations team at the CSpOC has reinvigorated efforts to operationalize the CIC capability moving it beyond the experimental concept from which it originated,” said Australian Royal Air Force Group Captain Julien Greening, Combined Space Operations Center deputy director.
“The CIC operations team has grown to seven full-time military personnel including U.S. Navy joint members and a Royal Canadian Air Force exchange officer.
This diverse operations team has worked to develop relationships with Commercial Mission Partners through collaborative engagements.”
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This team helps to support an expanding network of 15 companies that enable real-time information flow at the top-secret level to help U.S. Space Command respond to space events and improve Space Domain Awareness.
Although a huge undertaking, these efforts to ‘Protect, Defend, Deliver and Connect’ are just scratching the surface of all S4S has accomplished in the command’s first year.
In a message to the force, Schiess outlined several other accomplishments including the first OOD Space Domain Awareness Concept of Operations, support to a variety of inter-agency, joint, commercial and coalition led exercises, the implementation of a combined National Space Defense Center and Combined Space Operations Center Master Space Plan, the monitoring of a 320% uptick in missile activity with 100% validation for all missile warning events, and the demonstration of new navigation warfare techniques to support force protection for U.S. and allied forces.
Schiess also expressed a desire to continue the momentum of this first year into the future through the implementation of a strategic vision and vision statement.
Strategic Vision: S4S is optimized to conduct global mission operations in Great Power Competition, possessing the partnerships, capabilities and authorities to provide dynamic, resolute support and assured space superiority to the Joint Force across multiple theaters of operation and the ability to ensure our freedom to operate in the space domain in defense of the nation, as well as our allies and partners.
Vision Statement: Assured global space effects anytime, anywhere, while denying our adversaries the same.
The strategic vision and vision statement serve as “guiding principles that provide purpose, foresight, and direction” Schiess said.
This, along with the Guardian values and ideal posture S4S to continue to be a leader in integrating and innovating for operational success in the space domain.
“This vision represents the command’s deliberate purpose in Great Power Competition, which presents unprecedented challenges in our nation’s history,” Schiess said.
“But it is the personnel assigned to S4S that continue to be the driving force behind our accomplishments. It is an honor to serve alongside so many dedicated, remarkable individuals.”
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Jesus Built My ~~Hotrod~~ Chainsaw
Ukraine Claims Its Drone Boat Shot Down A Russian Mi-8 Helicopter With A Surface-To-Air Missile
December 31, 2024
Ukraine says it has used an adapted air-to-air missile fired from an uncrewed surface vessel (USV), better known as a drone boat, to down a Russian Mi-8 Hip helicopter over the Black Sea earlier today.
While the results of the engagement haven’t been independently verified, they have been confirmed by Russian military bloggers, suggesting this is actually the first time that a USV has been used successfully to bring down an aircraft of any kind.
According to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, the historic engagement took place near Cape Tarkhankut in Russian-occupied Crimea.
The missile was fired from a Magura V5 USV operated by the Main Directorate of Intelligence’s (GUR) Group 13 unit. Another Russian helicopter, type undisclosed, was reportedly damaged and returned to its airfield.
The missile in question, an R-73 (AA-11 Archer) air-to-air missile, has now received the name “Sea Dragon” in its surface-launched naval application.
In the video, one of the drone boats can be seen being hosed with machine gun fire, while at least one of the targeted Mi-8s can be seen releasing infrared flares in an effort to evade the heat-seeking missile.
Evidence of Ukraine arming USVs with heat-seeking air-to-air missiles began to emerge in May of 2024, as TWZ reported at the time.
The adaptation was apparently made to provide the USVs with a defense against the Russian helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft that are regularly used to counter them, but it also gives the drone boats a new offensive capability — in addition to their primary role of going after Russian warships and other surface vessels.
Until now, it was unclear just how practical the extemporized arrangement was.
The latest Ukrainian claims suggest it has proven effective on this occasion, although there remain questions about how the weapons actually work, especially in terms of the engagement process.
Speaking today, Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the GUR, confirmed that there had been several previous unsuccessful efforts to engage Russian helicopters using R-73-armed USVs.
The R-73 short-range air-to-air missile that is used to arm some of Ukraine’s Magura V5 USVs is potentially a capable surface-to-air weapon, too.
As we described when the modification first emerged, the high-off-boresight (HOBS) seeker on the R-73 can articulate a considerable distance in any direction: aided by a helmet-mounted sight, the Archer can be launched in air-to-air engagements against targets with off-boresight angles of +/-75 degrees.
This gives the R-73 the potential to be a particularly potent, albeit improvised threat for locking onto and engaging dynamic targets with minimal assisting sensors when used in a surface-launched form.
Previous photos confirm that a pair of R-73s can be mounted on angled rails attached to the rear of the USV.
It should also be noted that there several precedents for air-to-air missiles — including the R-73 in particular — being adapted for surface launch.
The Yemen-based Houthi militants have adapted R-73s for surface launch against aircraft targets, and used them in combat, as you can read about here.
The Houthis added a commercial FLIR as part of that extemporized air defense solution, which has been used to great effect, and it would appear Ukraine has adopted a similar approach for its drone boats.
Ukraine, too, has adapted the R-73 for ground launch, adding the missile to the Cold War-era, Soviet-made 9K33 Osa (SA-8 Gecko) mobile short-range air defense system (SHORADS).
Ukraine has plentiful stocks of R-73s — and likely also the older R-60s that could potentially also be adapted for launch from USVs, although the capabilities of these older missiles are inferior overall.
The R-73 remains part of the standard armament for Ukrainian Air Force MiG-29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker fighters.
https://www.twz.com/sea/ukraine-claims-its-drone-boat-shot-down-a-russian-mi-8-helicopter-with-a-surface-to-air-missile
https://x.com/DefenceU/status/1874003853944738102
Drone discovers ‘narco tunnel’ between Arizona, Mexico
Updated: Dec 31, 2024 / 12:50 PM CST
Mexican law enforcement officials have discovered what they believe is a tunnel designed to smuggle drugs or people between the United States and Mexico after a drone detected the passageway.
Photos of the tunnel were posted on a Facebook account operated by the State Public Secretary of Security in Sonora, Mexico. Investigators believe that the discovery will disrupt the construction of the tunnel.
The agency said that the entrance of the tunnel was found in San Luis, Rio Colorado, in Mexico, which is located south of Yuma, Arizona.
The tunnel stretched across the U.S.-Mexico border, according to a report by Arizona’s Family.
The report indicated that a drone that was being used during a joint operation between Mexican authorities and U.S. Customs of Border Protection and discovered the tunnel’s entrance just south of the border wall.
Mexican police believe that the tunnel was in the early stages of construction. However, if completed, authorities believe the passageway would have been used as a “narco tunnel” to smuggle drugs or people under the border wall and into the United States.
“Implementing the Border Security Protocol and using technology critical points were identified to strengthen surveillance in the area,” the Facebook post said.
The police agency said that the tunnel was the third of its kind found near Yuma this year.
The report said the Yuma Border Patrol did not have information about this specific tunnel. However, the agency reported it works with the Mexican police to combat border crimes.
https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/immigration/border-coverage/drone-narco-tunnel-arizona-mexico/
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1006129021559514
The Anti-Drone Laser Is Fast Approaching
December 31, 2024
While mysterious flocks of what might be drones plague the skies over the United States, across the pond, the British Army successfully tested a radical new and highly effective anti-UAV weapon in early December.
It doesn’t rely on a projectile or propellant, firing solutions are computer controlled and it’s mobile—although hardly light enough for a Russian weightlifting team on steroids to haul around.
It works by directing an intense beam of infrared light in the form of energy toward its target, using advanced sensors and tracking systems that maintain lock-on and accuracy in real time.
Unlike conventional munitions, it uses a laser that the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence (MOD) is labeling virtually limitless in terms of ammunition supply, therefore making it a cost-effective alternative to some in-service weapons.
The tested laser was integrated onto a Wolfhound—a protected troop-carrying vehicle. Soldiers from 16 Royal Artillery operating the system successfully hunted and brought down a drone at Radnor Range in mid-Wales, according to a Dec. 11 press release.
“This ground-breaking technology demonstrates Britain’s commitment to staying at the forefront of military innovation,” according to Maria Eagle, minister for Defence Procurement and Industry.
“The successful testing of this laser weapon system represents a significant step forward in our development of possible future defence capabilities and showcases British engineering excellence.”
The laser has been developed through a collaboration between the MOD’s Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) and Defence Science and Technology Laboratory—known as Team Hersa—and an industry consortium led by Raytheon UK.
According to Warrant Officer Matthew Anderson, manager for the British Army’s Mounted Close Combat Trials and Development Group, “Every engagement we’ve done has removed a drone from the sky.
While we’ve been testing a variety of distances, speeds and altitudes, one thing has remained—how quick a drone can be taken out. It’s definitely a capability that could be added to the arsenal of weapons that we use on the battlefield.”
“The successful testing of the Laser Directed Energy Weapon demonstrator is an important step towards a future capability, according to Matt Cork, head of Team Hersa.
“This technology has the potential to offer a credible and cost-effective means to defeat a range of current and future threats, which would improve the effectiveness of our armed forces.”
https://www.shootingillustrated.com/content/the-anti-drone-laser-is-fast-approaching/
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/british-army-successfully-tests-new-drone-destroying-laser
Hazmat team responds to report of downed drone in NJ, discovers it is a toy
December 31, 2024
A Hazmat team responded to a report of a downed drone in New Jersey on Monday as the state continues to reel from safety concerns after weeks of drone sightings, only for officials to discover that the object in question was a toy.
High winds carried a child’s toy drone out of control, blowing it onto a neighbor’s roof and prompting a response from the Teaneck Fire Department, according to Police Chief Andrew McGurr.
Recently implemented protocols led to Bergen County Hazmat and the Bergen County Bomb Squad responding to the scene, McGurr said.
The fire department is now required to make specific notifications when responding to calls regarding drones, and McGurr said that the reports “made the call appear to be more serious than it was.”
Fire officials safely recovered the drone. No injuries nor property damage were reported.
While officials have said that nothing about the drone sightings across New Jersey and surrounding areas have suggested a national security or public safety threat, the FBI, Homeland Security and state agencies have been investigating.
https://www.audacy.com/1010wins/news/hazmat-team-responds-to-downed-nj-drone-discovers-its-a-toy
Man Claims the Drones Are Invading Wichita Falls, Texas
December 31, 2024
Are the drones finally coming to Wichita Falls? One guy thinks so.
Earlier this month, one of the bigger stories in our country was the mysterious sighting of drones.
Mainly in the New York and New Jersey area. According to the FBI, their is nothing "nefarious" about these drones as of their current investigation into them.
Still, it has a lot of people on edge. One man claims that he spotted a pack of drones as he was coming into Wichita Falls.
X User JamminLu says he was coming into Wichita Falls and had to pull over due to the drones he saw in the sky on the side of the highway.
He believes the white light in the sky is the leader of them that then sends a communication to the other drones which would be the red lights.
I think JamminLu might be onto something, or this could be a windmill farm on the outskirts of Wichita Falls.
This video above looks almost identical to these so called 'drones' invading Wichita Falls. So I'm 99% sure we're safe from the drones invading America…for now.
Now if you want to talk about weird things in the sky in Wichita Falls. I am still waiting for someone to explain to me what the heck this is above Lawrence Road.
Looks like a sentinel from 'The Matrix' flying above The Academy Shopping Center.
https://1063thebuzz.com/drones-wichita-falls/
https://x.com/JamminLu/status/1871089683192774753
https://x.com/t_paranorm_chic/status/1861573437254443386
UFO that looks like a ‘little green man’ sighted in the Colorado sky this month
Updated: Dec 31, 2024, 12:10 pm
2024 seemed to be the year of UFOs around the world, and before the year came to a close there was an interesting one seen in Colorado…
The website OutThere Colorado received pictures from a woman who was in Colorado Springs’ westside on the evening Dec. 16th.
She told the publication that “the sky got much brighter for a split second. As the light subsided, a sort of spiral appeared in the clouds, stretching upward.
In that spiral, some sort of green figure can be seen.”
OutThere Colorado also pointed out that someone posted on the National UFO Reporting Center website about another occurrence that same day.
That witness reported a disk-shaped craft with “stealthy characteristics” was spotted near a transmission tower in the area of the local airport at about 10:25 a.m.
This witness reports that the object appeared stationary in the air for several minutes while emitting no sound, eventually getting difficult to see due to the brightness of the sun.
According to the witness, a fighter jet then appeared in the area about five to 10 minutes after the sighting.
So, were aliens visiting Colorado Springs before the holidays?
https://kygo.com/ufo-that-looks-like-a-little-green-man-sighted-in-the-colorado-sky-this-month/
https://denvergazette.com/outtherecolorado/news/little-green-man-unidentified-object-spotted-above-colorado-after-flash-of-light/article_418aacc0-c6d7-11ef-a4c5-cf3224eb68f0.html
ANOTHER Strange Phenomenon SWEEPING the Globe!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJRiBl-kyFE
Vladimir Putin cancels key event amid Ukraine conflict and UFO 'sighting' fears
08:44 ET, DEC 31 2024
Russian leader Vladimir Putin has canceled New Year's Eve fireworks in several cities across the country due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, coinciding with a UFO sighting in Siberia.
Traditionally, there is a grand fireworks display over the Kremlin and St Basil's Cathedral in Moscow to welcome the New Year, a tradition introduced by Peter the Great.
However, since Putin initiated military action in Ukraine, these displays have been halted.
This year, the Red Square will be off-limits to party-goers for hours around midnight, and fireworks have also been canceled in numerous major cities across Russia's 11 time zones, including St Petersburg and Vladivostok.
Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin, a close ally of Putin, stated that a survey indicated people were against celebrating the New Year with fireworks due to the current war.
There were concerns that the noise from the fireworks could frighten those injured in the war and fears that Ukraine might disrupt the traditional fireworks displays.
This news comes as Siberia experienced dramatic sightings of a mysterious UFO breaking up in the sky early on New Year's Eve.
The early morning cosmic spectacle led to reports to the Russian police in remote Severobaikalsk on Lake Baikal, which holds 20 percent of the world's unfrozen fresh water.
The object suddenly lit up the dark sky before fragmenting into several pieces. "What the **** is that? ," an onlooker asked in a video of the event, reports the Mirror.
"Wow… That's so cool. I've never seen that before. That's beautiful! "Some speculated it could be a disintegrating meteor, while others thought it might be a failed rocket launch.
According to experts, the object's pattern also bears resemblance to an Elon Musk Starlink satellite as it falls out of orbit.
These satellites are equipped with a self-destruct mechanism that causes them to burn up in the atmosphere. However, Russian authorities have not confirmed the cause of the unusual sighting.
https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/russia-ufo-ukraine-war-putin-34398695
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/putin-cancels-russias-new-years-34398262