From: leo@zelator.in-berlin.de (Stefan Hartmann)
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.astro,alt.alien.visitors,alt.paranormal
Subject: Phobos2-probe UFO pic-pro and contra
Summary: ufo
Keywords: ufo
Date: 21 Jul 92 10:02:03 GMT
Organization: Puplic-Access-Xenix-System

Hi,
I just have posted the mysterious phobos2-probe UFO-pic  as a GIF-pic
called phobufo.gif  in the newsgroup:
alt.binaries.pictures.misc

I was asked in private email to do so, cause many people don't yet
have any JPEG viewers !

Okay, but now the Pro and Contra:

I enclose here to emails, which say it is only a particle hit or a
CCD-chip error.

Can anybody verify this ?

Here comes the email I received:


Date: Mon, 20 Jul 92 18:25:33 HST
From: deane@mozart.IFA.Hawaii.Edu (Kimo Kanaka De'ane)
Message-Id: <9207210425.AA27631@mozart.IFA.Hawaii.EDU>
To: leo@zelator.in-berlin.de
Subject: Re: phobufo.jpg, part 1/1 Phobos2-probe-UFO-pic
Newsgroups: alt.binaries.pictures.erotica
Organization: Institute for Astronomy, Hawaii
Cc: 
Status: RO

	Aloha.
	As an infrared astronomer, I am certain that the streak in this
picture is a bad column from the infrared array. Those chips are notorious
for having rows of dead pixels. I saw shapes like this one on both the 
array at the University of Wyoming IR Observatory and here at UH, though 
ours is a cutting-edge device, and has slightly better cosmetics. I put
no faith whatsoever in the UFO idea.
	Again, I've used these devices extensively, and my job is determining
what kind of structure one can believable extract from imaging electronics.
This is just an instrumental flaw. 

	N.B. CCDs are used in the Optical bandpass, roughly the same light
visible with the eye. IR-arrays are the same *basic* structure, with important
differences in detail, and are about 5-8 years behind CCDs in terms of size
and performance. It's a hard waveband to work in, but one chock full of 
scientific merit.

	Clear skies,
		Kimo


Date: Mon, 20 Jul 92 19:13:32 EDT
From: tarl@apache.sw.stratus.com (Tarl Neustaedter)
Message-Id: <9207202313.AA15439@apache.sw.stratus.com>
To: leo@zelator.in-berlin.de
Subject: phobufo.jpg, part 1/1 Phobos2-probe-UFO-pic
Status: RO

> Hmm,
> interesting idea, but tell me, won't there be visible only a little
> white pixel and not this long big line ?

If you happen to get a charged particle hitting the edge of the detector
parallel to the plane, it will travel through a number of cells, triggering
them. Under some conditions, the cascade of secondary particles can make the
line much wider than a single pixel.

> What about all the other photos that were taken ? Why are over there
> no white lines or spots ?

The effect is temporary, so you won't get the same damage in all images.
If you question is why none of the other pictures show any damage, there
are two answers:
   a) Do you have all of the raw data for all the images? Knowing how
      glavkosmos works (even post-perestroika), you don't. It's common
      practice to process images removing defects before you release
      them, and to simply discard images that are too badly damaged.
   b) Have you heard of the term "random"?

> Would a CCD chip camera for space mission not made safe for this
> charged particle hits ? If not, You would see every time only white
> spots !

No.
  a) It takes miles of insulation to defend against relativistic charged
     particles. There is no way to make a CCD "safe" against cosmic rays.
  b) They aren't common enough to zap all your images. Most images won't
     have any cosmic ray hits, and those that do will probably be at a
     sharper angle than this, and thus a smaller hit.
  c) My comment about cosmic rays was simply one of the defects that could
     be the cause; I'd have to have the raw data and specifications on the
     imaging and transmission hardware before I could comment on the likely
     candidates.

I've observed this discussion before, and I don't care to carry it on.
It is the provenance of conspiracy theorists and ufo true-believers, not
anyone who has ever worked with CCDs or space equipment. The only reason
I commented is because after posting it to sci.astro, you posted it to an
erotica group, which was inappropriate.

> Rethink about it !

Give me a break.
	Tarl



So, what do You all say about this ?

Best regards Stefan Hartmann.
email to: leo@zelator.in-berlin.de


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