B-2 Bombers over Arkansas

[mikewint]

Occasionally I can actually grab a camera (and telephoto lens) quick enough to get a picture.
With the recent discussion of "Chemtrails" on the forum, yesterday (3/28) whilst sitting on the deck I noticed 3 aircraft in formation making contrails. Grabbing a camera and telephoto lens I was surprised to find the aircraft were actually B-2s.
The B-2's are most likely the ones based at Whiteman Air Force Base near Knob Noster, and are operated by the 509th Bomb Wing.

 

[bobbysocks]

nice....my grand parents used to live on the traffic pattern for the NG base at Pittsburgh. I used to love to watch the delta wing jets turning on final and the boxcars taking off and landing. you never knew what you would see next

 

[GrauGeist]

Look at those magnificent bastards with their rainbirds going!

Seriously though, nice catch, Mike!

 

[Capt. Vick]

Absolutely beautiful! Great stuff Mike! Thanks for posting.

 

[Wayne Little]

Awesome Mike, good catch!

 

[Airframes]

Nice one Mike !
It's a long time since I saw a formation high overhead - most military high altitude traffic in the UK is over the sea.
Last time I saw a formation, six aircraft of unknown type, but probably Tornado F3s, was when I left the hospital after seeing my eldest daughter born, in May 1987.
It seemed like a congratulatory salute at the time !

 

[FLYBOYJ]

OMG - B-2s making chem trails!!!

kidding aside, nice catch!

 

[rochie]

Great pics Mike

 

[Airframes]

Hmm. I would have thought that 'stealth' aircraft would leave stealth trails ................. sort of b*ggers up the whole concept of stealth, don't you think ?!!
"Hey Bob, we're OK up here, cos the bad guys can't see us on their radar."
"Er ... Jim, but what about that bl**dy twenty mile long contrail then?".

 

[rochie]

Hmm. I would have thought that 'stealth' aircraft would leave stealth trails ................. sort of b*ggers up the whole concept of stealth, don't you think ?!!
"Hey Bob, we're OK up here, cos the bad guys can't see us on their radar."
"Er ... Jim, but what about that bl**dy twenty mile long contrail then?".

Wow do contrails show up on radar ?

 

[Wurger]

 

[Airframes]

No - but anyone on the ground, looking up, can see them with the Mark 1 eyeball - don't need radar - just point and shoot !

 

[mikewint]

Thanks guys, normally I sit there with my finger in my... while something cool happens but this time the formation caught my eye. Contrails are common in my sky as commercial flight head to Dallas/Ft.Worth but they are single aircraft this group of three was very distinctive.

 

[Airframes]

Yep, and a bit too high for formation crop spraying !!

 

[Gnomey]

Nice shots!

 

[Wildcat]

Great catch Mike!

 

[Capt. Vick]

IIRC The early B-45 spy flights over the Soviet Union out of England always had a trailer to tell the the lead pilot if they were pulling contrail. If the couldn't find a safe altitude where this wasn't happening, the mission was scrubbed for another day. I suspect the B-2 would avoid creating contrails, at least during the day, which is not it's normal operating time from what I understand. In these pictures, in transit somewhere, over friendly territory...who cares?

 

[rochie]

No - but anyone on the ground, looking up, can see them with the Mark 1 eyeball - don't need radar - just point and shoot !

Guess i should've put a on the end

 

[Airframes]

He he !
Just thought - if 'weather radar' can pick up clouds, maybe it can pic up contrails too !

 

[mikewint]

Terry, weather radar cannot detect all cloud types. Cirrius clouds are high-level clouds that are thin and often wispy. Typically found at heights greater than 20,000 feet (6,000 meters), cirrus clouds are composed of ice crystals that originate from the freezing of supercooled water droplets thus very similar to contrails. From Geophysical Research Papers:
Our essential finding is that the ability of radar to detect cirrus cloud top and contrails, even using state-of-the-art millimeter-wave systems, will ultimately be limited by the poor scattering response of microwaves to the minute ice particles characteristic of certain ice cloud targets. Assuming a minimum detectable signal in the 10 -3 to 10 -4 Z (Z is reflectivity in dB) range at cirrus cloud altitudes, it is clear that significant portions of cirrus clouds where new particle generation is occurring, as well as contrails in general, will not be effectively sampled by current research radar systems.