Posted on 11/09/2010 8:05:31 AM PST by Gennie
(CBS) A mysterious missile launch off the southern California coast was caught by CBS affiliate KCBS's cameras Monday night, and officials are staying tight-lipped over the nature of the projectile.
CBS station KFMB put in calls to the Navy and Air Force Monday night about the striking launch off the coast of Los Angeles, which was easily visible from the coast, but the military has said nothing about the launch.
KFMB showed video of the apparent missile to former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Robert Ellsworth, who is also a former Deputy Secretary of Defense, to get his thoughts.
Scroll down for KFMB video showing the launch.
Video here
"It's spectacular… It takes people's breath away," said Ellsworth, calling the projectile, "a big missile".
Magnificent images were captured by the KCBS news helicopter in L.A. around sunset Monday evening. The location of the missile was about 35 miles out to sea, west of L.A. and north of Catalina Island.
A Navy spokesperson told KFMB it wasn't their missile. He said there was no Navy activity reported in the area Monday evening.
On Friday night, Vandenberg Air Force Base, in California, launched a Delta II rocket, carrying an Italian satellite into orbit, but a sergeant at the base told KFMB there had been no launches since then.
Ellsworth urged American to wait for definitive answers to come from the military.
When asked, however, what he thought it might be, the former ambassador said it could possibly have been a missile test timed as a demonstration of American military might as President Obama tours Asia.
"It could be a test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile from a submarine … to demonstrate, mainly to Asia, that we can do that," speculated Ellsworth.
Ellsworth said such tests were carried out in the Atlantic to demonstrate America's power to the Soviets, when there was a Soviet Union, but he doesn't believe an ICBM has previously been tested by the U.S. over the Pacific.
Officially, at least, the projectile remains a mystery missile.
Good post, Gennie. This source gleans new information on the incident from reported by earlier sources.
If they don’t know what it was, how can they know what it *wasn’t*?
Does ANYONE in the media have any critical thinking skills left?
that or they can’t get any clarity out of the ‘CIC’. Which is troubling since there is some considerable concern within the Military about just who IS the CIC.... As OholyO has not proven he is constitutionally qualified to lead the military as CIC and a military officer under Courts Marshal for disobeying orders because the authority for giving the orders has been questioned. So far it hasn’t been answered other than to tell the officer he cant defend himself because it “might embarrass the president”. This is where the whole freaking uncertainty principle with the NBC BS is hamstringing us.
I imagine a pimply faced teenager in a basement in China saying “Cool the launch codes!”
Hmmmm ... should be ASR9 or ASR11 (RADAR) data available on this event ...... much like the MUFON explains in their 77-page MUFON report about the January 8, 2008 incident in/near Stephenville, Texas.
What are the chances this was some sort of odd reflection, image-light-bending phenomenon that transpired and this missile shot was actually some hundreds of miles further west?
No.
Maybe it wasn’t us this time.
Can’t you clowns and comedians find another thread?
It’s really distracting....
China doing to our weapon systems command and control what we did to Syria’s a couple years ago? Electronic warfare?
This is a hilarious lunch time diversion! Has no one ever seen an airplane contrail at sunset? I see them just like this all the time in fly over country were is is a little more humid. With the sun reflecting from aircraft too.
Agreed. I had this discussion with a friend subsequent to my post. If it had been a military helicopter positioned as an observation platform, it should have been out to sea closer to the launch, right?
Mark
I mean, you are in with the government. Get clearance to tell us the troot!
Let the Jihad begin! I just wish we had a President that knows how to protect America. Where is Geo Bush when we need a leader.
Any guess as to where the bugger went? Other than east... (facepalm) Seriously, why isn’t THAT question being asked?
It was under control... to WHERE?
Judging from the dates/times on the notification, perhaps it’s just the gov’t trying to keep aircraft out of the zone while they investigate.
Re: Where is Geo Bush
Signing books in Dallas ... can’t wait to pick one up
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