Gunners Shot

Let us get turn away for a moment from the heat and dust of Indian electoral politics and talk again of ASAT, which creates a different kind of dust -  Star Dust.  More lethal than imagination.   This article may kindly be read with my earlier articles at links indicated below for a better understanding   https://palepurshankar.blogspot.com/2019/04/a-quick-supplement-for-understanding html ://palepurshankar.blogspot.com/2019/04/a-simplistic-understanding-of-low-earth.html Long back I had a course-mate to whom I was explaining basic trigonometry and that Sin X/X as X tends to 0 is 1. He asked me a question for which I had no answer. In Sin X/X , whether X is 0 or not please explain to me how can it be 1 if X is cancelled out in the top and bottom. Only Sin will be left!  This article is precisely for such scientific geniuses.    The recent ASAT test has evoked various reactions from various quarters. NASA was sanctimonious. That was regrettable from a s

                                       The politicization of the last bastion of India is well and truly underway. The beeline of Armed Forces officers in joining a political party is just the latest milestone in this journey. More will follow. That will be to the detriment of national security, in the short run. Very definitely. In the long run. It is debatable since the nation is into uncharted oceans. At the outset I must state, that this is an apolitical analysis of a symptom for which I do not have answers. There is a view that unless Service Officers join the political platform, there will be no redressal of the imbalances our Services and nation face. That is agreed to. However, for that to happen, induction of retired service personnel into politics must be across the political spectrum and not confined to one party alone. If it is only one party which is attracting Ex Servicemen, then there are a lot of questions and soul searching to do. The system will get e

Lt Gen. PR Shankar (retd)   New Delhi   23 April 2019 original article in sniwire.com The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), dubbed the “Project of the Century”, evokes sharp reactions, divided opinions and polarised views. The divide is clear—for or against. The views expressed here are those I consider best in India’s national interests. The second Belt and Road Forum is to be held in Beijing from 25-27 April 2019, with 37 heads of state expected to attend. During the first forum held in May 2017, the Chinese sun was fully shining. Two years down the line the Belt is a bit loose and the road is bumpy. The BRI infrastructure development and construction projects—railways, highways, ports, energy projects and industrial estate development which started off in a frenzy are facing headwinds. Irrespective of whether the slowdown is lull before the storm or not, it will affect all of us. It will need constant watch and analysis. The project covers 70-odd countries spanning all co

Today my day was made. After three weeks I got a response on my blog ( https://palepurshankar.blogspot.com/2019/03/a-rebuttal-to-spice-miss-theories-at.html ) on my views which I had expressed wherein I had proved beyond doubt that A.     The Australian expert was flawed and probably biased. B.     There was no way the Spice bombs would have missed at Balakot. The response I got was as under:- Apr 20, 6.49 to 6.54am Certain nay Sayers have this to say There is a simple error in calculation, btw. He states that if the approach angle was 60% and the miss was 33 meters, the missiles would have missed by a mere 17 meters, not over a hundred. But he doesn't see that the structure is on a hillside and calculates for flat ground! Would you like to rebut Nay Sayers further state  There is a basic error made by expert in the field. Here's the diagram he offers to 'prove' that the miss could not have been 100 meters. Notice he calculates for fla

Our ability to defend our country has been exemplified by the indigenous strides we have made in the field of space technology, nuclear technology, missile technology, ship building, gun technology, aircraft technology and communication technology. It is our endeavour now to be ahead through modernisation. We need to shift our focus on becoming a sea power, fill in the major gaps and attune ourselves to the oncoming storm of disruption in military affairs April 19, 2019   WEBSITE OF ORIGINAL ARTICLE IN RAKSHA ANIRVEDA I NDIA’s national interests are essentially enshrined in our constitution. Those which the Indian Armed Forces safeguard are: 1) Protection of land borders, coastline, island territories and sea lanes from external aggression from land, sea and air. 2) Internal protection of people and constitution against terrorism, extremism, insurgency and militancy. 3) Protection of Indians in the areas of contingencies, such as evacuation from troubled areas/ conflic

MOST PEOPLE IN/OUT OF UNIFORM DO NOT UNDERSTAND SPACE RELATED ISSUES.  AFTER ALL IT IS ' ROCKET SCIENCE '.  HOWEVER TO BE IGNORANT OF THE COMING TIDE IS SACRILEGE FOR A MAN IN UNIFORM.                                                  A satellite can be used for many military purposes. Primarily, military satellites are used for Communication, Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance, Navigation, Meteorological Observations and Electronic Warfare. Theoretically any satellite, can carry out these functions whether it is in High, Geostationary, Mid or Low Earth orbits. However, from a practical point of view it is the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) which is most commonly used for military satellites. It is highlighted at the outset that understanding LEO is more important for exploiting space rather than knocking a satellite down. The LEO is the simplest, cheapest and safest location for the deployment of satellites, space stations, and crewed space mis