9 thoughts on ““All I Want For Christmas””

  1. “The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.” — Marcus Aurelius

    Lots of people are definitely finding themselves in the ranks of the insane nowadays, and it seems to be what they want. I don’t think it will pay off for them too much longer though…

  2. Stratolaunch’s Roc set to launch Talon-A on first hypersonic flight
    By Courtney Albon Monday, Dec 11

    “The implications of a successful Talon-A test campaign are significant for the Defense Department’s hypersonic efforts, which are focused on developing and fielding high-speed weapons and defending against similar systems that China and Russia are building.

    To get there, DoD is working to increase its testing rigor, setting a goal in 2022 to eventually conduct one flight each week. Today, most major hypersonic programs fly just a few trials each year.”

    The company hasn’t disclosed the cost of a single Talon-A flight, but Krevor said it’s “an order of magnitude less” than the average DoD hypersonic flight test, which sits around $100 million, according to the Congressional Research Service.

    As Stratolaunch works toward achieving a once-a-month flight test cadence, he expects the department to very quickly see the impact of that reduced cost.
    “We should be providing that [return on investment] back to the DOD by the end of next year or early 2025,” he said.”
    https://www.defensenews.com/battlefield-tech/hypersonics/2023/12/11/stratolaunchs-roc-set-to-launch-talon-a-on-first-hypersonic-flight/

    1. I remember a plan in the 60’s to create a wider & lockless Panama Canal using H-Bombs as excavators. A major objection was the idea that an un-elevated canal without a fresh water barrier would allow for the unfettered mixing of Pacific and Atlantic wildlife. Another presumed major environmental catastrophe. I guess there isn’t any such wildlife around Tierra Del Feugo nor the Straight of Magellan.

      1. Straight of Magellan is 54 deg south. It is much colder there than the Panama Canal at about 9 deg north.

        Maybe the warm-ocean wildlife near Panama doesn’t have much contact with the cold-ocean wildlife near the southern tip of South America.

        Not that I am saying the eco-doomsayers are right about a sea-level Panama canal, but I am not to dismiss the concerns out-of-hand.

        1. Maybe the warm-ocean wildlife near Panama doesn’t have much contact with the cold-ocean wildlife near the southern tip of South America.

          This. Fauna is somewhat different on the Atlantic and Pacific sides at the Panama latitude. If they get together, someone will get eaten.

          Wikipedia indicates that the Panama isthmus closed some point between 10 million and 5 million years ago. Plenty of time for speciation to occur under those conditions.

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