HAARPing On Chemspiracy

[Image courtesy of Wikipedia]

For several years now, there have been a number of conspiracy theories circulating which have gained quite a bit of traction, especially concerning the HAARP facility in Gakona, Alaska, and similar facilities in other countries, and the phenomenon known as "chemtrails," which are supposedly composed of a variety of compounds sprayed from commercial aircraft at the behest of the government. The supposed purpose of chemtrails is to poison the soil in certain areas of the US to prevent non-GMO crops from growing, and/or to facilitate HAARP signals to control the weather and/or cause earthquakes. Here's my take on these theories.

I'll start with HAARP, because it deals with topics about which I know quite a bit. The HAARP facility in Alaska is composed of two parts: a variety of radio-frequency receiving equipment; and a HF transmitter array capable of generating a 3.6 megawatt (MW) signal in the 2.8-10 megahertz (MHz) range. These frequencies fall within the 80- to 30-meter bands, which includes quite a lot of commercial line-of-sight communications, satellite data transmissions, RADAR, and "worldwide" bands -- so-called because they may be bounced off certain layers of the ionosphere to reach over the horizon, even as far as the other side of the world (Gordon West, WB6NOA, claims to have reached someone in Russia while load-testing a transmitter with a light bulb). Disruptions in the ionosphere can bend the radio waves in this band in strange and unforeseen ways, interfering with line-of-sight radio applications. The HAARP project exists because more data is needed to be able to predict and hopefully compensate for these disruptions, improving line-of-sight communications.

The conspiracy theorists speculate that HAARP can be used in one of two ways. First (and most plausible), the radio waves can be used to cause localized heating in the atmosphere, influencing weather formations. The other -- which I hesitate to mention because it is so fantastic -- is that the HF waves can be used to heat large areas of the ionosphere, raising the atmosphere. When the signal is removed, the heated area cools rapidly, slamming into the ground and triggering earthquakes. Chemtrails loaded with aluminum and barium compounds can supposedly be used to direct the signals to specific points.

Now, I could hardly be considered an expert, lacking any university degrees or practical experience in the fields of meteorology or seismology, but nobody can deny that I'm smarter than the average bear. Controlling the weather is a feat which is very, very far off. We can barely predict the weather now -- mucking around with Lorentz equations and grainy satellite images, when weather is influenced at both the macro and micro scales by every particle and molecule among quadrillions. If Earth manages to reach level 2 on the Kardashev scale, we might have access to that type of technology -- but not now. Additionally, the 2.8-10 MHz range of the HF array impacts the chemical makeup of the ionosphere, but not the troposphere, where all weather takes place.

Using the atmosphere to generate earthquakes is a neat idea, but basic thermodynamics would prevent it. Even if HAARP could generate the kind of power needed to heat large enough areas of the atmosphere -- I estimate about 10 million times HAARP's present 3.6 MW output -- locally and uniformly enough to impact fault lines, it would onyl be able to do so gradually -- and all that power would leach away just as gradually, not suddenly as stated in the theory. Simple application of critical thinking blows this theory out of the water. (Why, then, is the HAARP HF array so large? All radio applications require an antenna, and that antenna must be of a length equal to the wavelength of the target signal or one of its fundamentals. A 75-meter antenna at one-quarter of the wavelength -- the second fundamental -- would be over 60 feet long.) Additionally, see the above "additionally" note on weather modification. The energy of descending air from the ionosphere would be dissipated by the stratosphere and troposphere before it even reached the ground.

Chemtrails are a bit harder for me to debunk, not possessing the necessary equipment (an aircraft capable of  flying up to 12 miles altitude, atmospheric sampling setup, and a mass spectrometer) to analyze them, but I know a bit about fluid dynamics and combustion science. Commercial aircraft burn a fuel very similar to kerosene or diesel. The burning of hydrocarbon fuels releases, among other things, copious amounts of water vapor, which has a high density relative to the fuel from which it comes and consequently imparts a high degree of impulse (thrust) to the output of the jet engines. In the cooler layers of the upper atmosphere, this water vapor often condenses into a "contrail," which is the signature "jet trail" you will see streaming out of the tiny silver speck streaking across the sky. Water vapor leaves the jet nozzles at a very high pressure, which drops catastrophically upon contact with the cooler and relatively unpressurized air of the upper troposphere, triggering concdensation. Tiny specks of soot will also be among the exhaust products, providing more or fewer seeds for condensation, depending on the exact fuel mix and the condition of the engines. Depending on atmospheric conditions, i.e. barometric pressure, absolute humidity, and wind shear, those trails can persist for a very long time, even hours. In dense urban areas with major airports, the mingling of multiple persistent contrails can often give the appearance of grids or other patterns, especially if the conditions are right for persistent contrails. (For a more thorough debunking, see the Wikipedia article on the chemtrail conspiracy theory.)

Many of you know me as a highly credulous person. I am prepared to believe anything in the face of a robust, logical argument. I rule out nothing as impossible, having experienced many, many strange things in my lifetime. However, among my many experiences has been contact with people who suffer delusions, and the phenomenon known as folie à deux. Delusions happen when one part of the mind invents a fiction, and another part of the mind believes it as fact. These delusions arise from a wide variety of environmental stimuli and memories, and can appear quite real -- in some cases, more real than actual reality. (As a point of interest, I am a mad scientist responsible for implanting computer chips in the heads of dozens of people, according to one schizophrenic.) It may be a delusion itself, but I think I've become quite adept at distinguishing delusional statements from those repeated out of honest ignorance -- a phenomenon of pandemic proportions in today's society. Most folks are honest, and as such assume that everyone else is just as honest and would not lie to them. Also, most people seem to believe anything told to them by someone they perceive as more knowledgeable and/or intelligent than they are. (This is why I always say "DON'T BELIEVE A WORD I SAY! Verify it for yourself!") Therefore, a delusion can be passed from person to person in a geometric progression until we have a folie à plusieurs, and various government agencies are bombarded by calls from irate citizens demanding that they stop their nefarious activities at once.

Whatever the origin may be of any delusion, it remains exactly that -- a delusion, a fiction. A folie à deux, no matter how many people assert that it is fact, remains a shared fiction with little or no basis in actual fact. Do your own research, learn what you need to learn, and think critically about everything you see and hear. And at the end of the day, always remember that when God created this world, She filled it with many strange wonders and as yet unexplainable phenomena. Keep your mind open, but well-guarded.