So, Another One Bites the Dust...
Okay, so SpaceX launched another satellite. Sentinel-6B, to be exact. Big deal. We're supposed to be impressed that it's going to "monitor Earth's oceans" and "improve hurricane forecasts." Right. Because that's what's going to save us from the coming climate apocalypse. Not, you know, actual policy changes.
Don't get me wrong, I'm sure the engineers at NASA and ESA are patting themselves on the back right now, celebrating their "collaborative effort." But let's be real, this is just another expensive band-aid on a gaping wound. We're measuring sea levels "down to the inch," according to some NASA talking head, while entire coastal cities are slowly sinking into the ocean. It's like meticulously charting the course of the Titanic after it hit the iceberg.
And of course, it's a Falcon 9. SpaceX's workhorse. A reusable rocket, they keep reminding us. Which is great, I guess, if you're into rocket recycling. But does anyone really care that booster B1097.3 made a "successful touchdown on dry land" at Vandenberg's Landing Zone 4? I mean, offcourse it landed. They've done it a million times. Are we supposed to throw a parade every time a rocket doesn't explode? SpaceX plans rocket launch from Vandenberg. Where to see liftoff in California Are we supposed to throw a parade every time a rocket doesn't explode?
The "Continuity of Service" Lie
Here's the kicker: Sentinel-6B is the "second of two Jason Continuity of Service (Jason-CS) missions." Continuity of what, exactly? The continuity of us ignoring the actual problem? The continuity of governments and corporations dragging their feet while the planet burns? Give me a break.
They're bragging about "over 30 years of uninterrupted data." Thirty years of watching the problem get worse. Thirty years of collecting data that confirms what we already know. Thirty years of... well, you get the picture. It's like having a detailed weather report telling you it's raining while you're already standing in a flood.
And what's with the name, anyway? "Sentinel-6B Michael Freilich"? Sounds like a rejected character from a bad sci-fi novel. Or maybe a particularly boring insurance salesman from Des Moines.
The Tech Obsession Distraction
Let's talk about the tech for a sec. "Poseidon-4," a radar altimeter with a "1.2-meter parabolic reflector." Sounds impressive, right? But it's just a glorified measuring stick in space. And the "Advanced Microwave Radiometer for Climate (AMR-C)"? More sensors, more data, more ways to pat ourselves on the back for "understanding" the problem while doing jack squat to fix it.
The article goes on and on about "Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS) DGXX-SEV" and "Global Navigation Satellite System Radio Occultation (GNSS-RO) payload." Seriously? Are we supposed to be impressed by this alphabet soup of technological jargon? It's all just a smokescreen to distract us from the fact that we're fiddling with gadgets while Rome burns.
Wait, are we really supposed to belive this is all for the better? I mean, it sounds good...
Oh, and I almost forgot: SpaceX had another launch from Florida on the same day. Starlink satellites, of course. Because what the world really needs is more internet access, not, you know, a habitable planet. SpaceX launches 29 Starlink satellites on Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center – Spaceflight Now
So, What's the Real Story?
It's all just noise. Expensive, high-tech noise. We're so busy measuring and monitoring and "understanding" the problem that we're completely ignoring the solutions. Sentinel-6B? It's not a solution. It's a distraction. And frankly, I'm sick of it.