This video is sponsored by Brilliant. You can get started for free, or the first 200 people to sign up via https://brilliant.org/veritasium get 20% off a yearly subscription.
Massive thanks to Archisand for building such a beautiful sandcastle. https://www.youtube.com/@GregLeBon
Thanks to Inland Empire Film Services and the San Bernardino County Film Office for portions of the video shot in the County of San Bernardino.
Huge thanks to John and Angie Miller for helping us with securing the shooting location and going above and beyond to make this shoot happen – http://highdesertlocations.com/
Massive thanks to Dr David Wright for the interview and providing invaluable guidance during the research for this video.
Here's a great video about space-based missile defense – https://www.ucsusa.org/resources/space-based-missile-defense-not-good-idea
Massive thanks to Adam Savage for being part of this video
Additional photos from NASA and ESA
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References:
USAF. (2003). The US Air Force transformation flight plan.
Preston, R., Johnson, D. J., Edwards, S. J., Miller, M. D., & Shipbaugh, C. (2002). Space weapons earth wars. Rand Corporation.
Wright, D., Grego, L., & Gronlund, L. (2005). The physics of space security. A Reference Manual, Cambridge.
DeBlois, B. M., Garwin, R. L., Kemp, R. S., & Marwell, J. C. (2004). Space weapons: crossing the US Rubicon. International Security, 50-84.
Baucom, D. R. (2017). The Rise and Fall of Brilliant Pebbles 1. In United States Military History 1865 to the Present Day (pp. 329-376). Routledge.
Hitchens, T., & Samson, V. (2004). Space-based interceptors: still not a good idea. Georgetown journal of international affairs, 21-29.
National Research Council. (2012). Making sense of ballistic missile defense: An assessment of concepts and systems for US boost-phase missile defense in comparison to other alternatives. National Academies Press.
Borger, J. (2005). Bush likely to back weapons in space. The Guardian, 19.
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Special thanks to: Bernard McGee, James Sanger, Elliot Miller, Brian Busbee, Jerome Barakos M.D., Amadeo Bee, TTST, Balkrishna Heroor, Chris LaClair, John H. Austin Jr., OnlineBookClub.org, Eric Sexton, John Kiehl, Diffbot, Gnare, Dave Kircher, Burt Humburg, Blake Byers, Evgeny Skvortsov, Meekay, Bill Linder, Paul Peijzel, Josh Hibschman, Mac Malkawi, Mike Schneider, John Bauer, Jim Buckmaster, Juan Benet, Sunil Nagaraj, Richard Sundvall, Lee Redden, Stephen Wilcox, Marinus Kuivenhoven, Michael Krugman, Cy 'kkm' K'Nelson, Sam Lutfi
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Written by Petr Lebedev, Derek Muller, and Emily Zhang
Filmed by Trenton Oliver, Derek Muller, Petr Lebedev, Emily Zhang, Raquel Nuno and Eddie Lopez
Animation by Mike Radjabov, Fabio Albertelli and Jonny Hyman
Edited by Trenton Oliver
Slow Motion Camera: Shawn Sanders and Anthony Corrales
Sandcastle Timelapse by Greg LeBon and Archisand
Phantom rental from Panny Hire LA
Helicopter Pilots: Rick Shuster and Cliff Fleming
Helicopter Safety Officer: Ryan Hosking
FPV Drone Pilots: Sammie Saing and Josh Ewalt
Production Assistants: Roman Bacvic and Eddie Lopez
Intern: Katie Barnshaw
Additional video/photos supplied by Pond5 and Getty Images
Aditional images
Music from Epidemic Sound
Produced by Derek Muller, Petr Lebedev, and Emily Zhang
Got second-hand shame watching this. Myth busted (by being inaccurate)
@johnaweiss Says:
Dumbest episode. Who cares if you hit a target? Let's see some explosions!
@christopherbentley6647 Says:
Weakest video. Put a rocket on it
@JohnSmith-vz8pc Says:
Put a 50m bungee cord on the lower end of the rod, and then anchor it to a point in the middle of the building!!! 😂
@JohnSmith-vz8pc Says:
The raSSkis also have great difficulty hitting anything with an "Oreshnik" IRBM, which they claim comes in at Mach 10. 😂
@samixine9470 Says:
The guy who makes a 5 minute worth content for 25 minutes.
@bashkillszombies Says:
Veritasium showing us he's a bit of an idiot and more into doing things for views than educating.
@ErLe-u6s Says:
Stupidly inaccurate test
@SackofDooDoo Says:
8:14 for Adam Savage hello-goodbye. You're welcome.
@zaitcev0 Says:
Reminder: this was filmed before Oreshnik was deployed and employed in combat. Ted Postol presented some interesting graphs in that regard, showing that an Oreshnik rod expends more than 90% of its energy in the atmosphere. The remaining 10% is what does the devastating damage.
@gilgermesch Says:
Missed opportunity to call these "hot rods"
@blackriveroutfitters7185 Says:
With AI, targeting computers and possibly thruster adjustments by built in thrusters it could be done.
@robin_freedom Says:
Worst planning. This could have been way more fun. Veritaseum should reboot this experiment from a stable platform, such as a high-rise building, a tower, the world's tallest cranes, the world's highest bridges, or steep mountains. Using a projectile with fins. No wobbly helicopters for drops.
@SteveBlues Says:
they should have shortened the cable in order to reduce the weight swinging under the chopper
@ssbb9972 Says:
If the rod swings you had a higher likelihood of landing on the targets if your aren’t directly over it. Positions the helicopter not over but behind the target , swing the rod lightly and forward and then drop when it has forward momentum. Find where it lands and adjust the position or swing after words
@codyleonard699 Says:
I feel like the deployment system was the problem in this experiment. Tying a weight with essentially a rope, swinging free in the wind at hundreds of meters in the air, is never gonna hit where you want it to, even if your positioning is perfect. The swinging gives it lateral momentum before you even drop it, so it’s gonna follow an arc to the ground, instead of falling straight down. You need a rigid deployment system, like a tube that holds the rod still until it’s released.
@luecam8704 Says:
so drones didnt exist 3 years ago?
@Sjsjsj-t3e Says:
Moab mentioned
@raulpfilms Says:
nice video :)
@AJ_ghdhejsien Says:
While this was fun to do, not the usual science I expect from this channel. With modern GPS and fins the rods from god could surely work.. the B2 flies after all. What is the point of this test.. weights and sand is not 10x speed of sound tungsten telephone poles against citys. Again fun but completely irrelevant
@AtkinWhat Says:
I think with a shorter rope and a cheap laser pointer you could have improved accuracy.
@dragonturtle2703 Says:
Easy solution though (to most space engineering impracticalities): build it in space with asteroid mining.
Not as simple as it sounds, but what is, and it would solve so many problems back on Earth.
@atticusrussell1225 Says:
Needs a CCAS and gos guidance kit on it (like JDAM) for this test
@luiscifuentes5245 Says:
G.I. Joe Retaliation plot
@iamhugry Says:
“They are not bombs” sounds so menacing for no reason
@DominicAbeita-y8g Says:
Is your producer married??
@genmasaotome3503 Says:
Couldn't you guys tried it with multiple ones on one heli ride? and adjust after each one? Oooh.. it is pretty heavy...
@its_meeeeeeeeee2603 Says:
No glide fins , thats why...
@bazoo513 Says:
5:10 - _Professional sandcastle builders_ ?!? What's next, professional ice cream eaters?
3:30 - A piece of trivia: "brilliant pebbles" were an evolution os "smart rocks".
1:15 - _That_ Jerry Pournelle?
@Vegai7 Says:
I think rods from god are about to be true, specially after STARSHIP attains re-usability.
200 tons to orbit and easily do atleast 50 projectiles weighing a Ton each. With some heat shields and light guidance additions, a 6 meter rod would reach ground at mach 4~ with 500 to 600 kg of TNT as explosive power.
@Nastyasscan Says:
Thor has absolutely nothing to do with Lightning, he is the God of Thunder. Zeus, and only Zeus shoots lightning bolts down from the heavens. There two totally different mythologies, ones Norse and ones Greek.
@TaiSatterfield-m5s Says:
14:48 the pool is still square
15:08 the pool is smashed up.
Why you doing stupid stuff man , you must think your viewers are idiots?
@Rangerness Says:
No guide fins? No wonder yours didn't work.
@AldrichCarrasco Says:
Everyone should hit the "dislike" button; this clown knows absolutely nothing about weapons. This year, the kinetic weapon has been successfully used in Venezuela and Iran.
@aarondanaher9426 Says:
Someone's gotta make an edit of this vid where they cut out all of the military context and just make it look like they got that whole setup just to smash a sandcastle city.
@piffman711 Says:
I’m assuming the government has the technology to actually guide them and not just shove them out the back of a rocket trunk and hope for some good wind. Literally everything he said is possible….. even the budget.
@TheScondComming Says:
Thor did not throw lightning from the sky that’s Zeus from Greek or Roman mythology. Thor would strike the heaven, enemy or something with his hammer for what ever reason. The sparks from the hammer hitting an anvil would create lightning. I do not think it was controlled at all, more as an after effect.
@baradam1153 Says:
The first assumption was the accuracy of the commercial GPS, not so much; this is, at best, 10-20 feet. If you had considered a commercial-grade device, you’re within inches or surveying-type equipment within a gnat, which requires land-based references. End of story, the accuracy between two devices can be 40’ at the worst. So, throwing in the tail of the strap and the inertia of the swinging object with a little edge from the GPS, you were right on.
Great fun and loved the demo, worth every second.
@auntoneyofuntease6704 Says:
So, Reagan and Bush considered this goofy idea. Go figure.😂😂😂
@daltonskates Says:
The shot from the heli @15:00 was awesome, there was a rainbow for a second.
@monvalleytruth5111 Says:
Definitely should have went up higher in the sky
@Freddabeast-lx6bd Says:
This is the thing from cod ghosts
@AverageLoserMan Says:
this has to be one of the worst tests ive ever seen
@FXtrtzor Says:
And here we go: ORESHNIC
@danielmicheni6769 Says:
This is. A very complex way of trying to control ppl
@brandonwagner9525 Says:
Tungsten rods from lower orbit sounds devastating. Getting them into orbit sounds rather difficult.
@curiousbear7 Says:
Should have had a collab with @markrober
@Birdmam2021 Says:
The experiment may have been considered a failure, but this is the second time I’ve watched all the way through, and isn’t that the real success?
@xaosnox Says:
I love the accent! He says, "Rah-id of Gah-id". Every vowel is a dipthong. "They" is "theh-ee" etc. So cool. Where is that from? And how did you find this huge project?! It's EXTREMELY impressive. I would have been MILES away after I saw that first one swinging like that. Who in their right mind puts themselves underneath that helicopter looking up, waiting to be squished like a cockroach. RUN!
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