Camo Schemes - Rot Hafen

Brian I hope you don't mind but I figured I would forward this to the list
since it's interesting stuff.

> "Bell, Brian K" wrote:

> Los,

> Since the KV sight range is shifted toward the UV, some colors that

Brian, yes that's true. I did think on this before writing. A few things:

The Humans go into the Rot Hafen operation knowing very little (operationally)
about the Kra'Vak so their uniforms are pretty much based on normal visual
ranges (RLS3 where a sort of desert reddish brown). In fact when TF Hannibal
is originally gathered and dispatched to the planet the situation dirtside is
actually quite unclear. And if you are basing things off of Deacon's story (as
I had) then it's safe to assume that since NSL operatives had been killed by
the NAC in the original "Karla's Kidnap" incident (not to mention PAU) then
much of Deacon's stuff would not have originally been made available to the
NSL prior to the NAC agreement to conduct this joint exercize. Everything was
very hush hush need to know (happens all the time in real life (tm). There's
not really any time to develop new uniforms within the time frame of the
story.

However a quick-fix UV blocking spray or chemical is applied to all
uniforms before they deploy. (I mentioned it in the story where Grant is
showing Muldoon and company how to don their kit.) While it may not be that
effective, it is all they have. Note also that this is based on current US
uniforms. BDUs come brand new impregnated with a sort of IR blocking chemical
which helps reduce your signature to night vision device. Unfortunately once
you start washing your uniform it starts losing it's effectiveness. So I
figured in the short term that would be a suitable quick fix. Throughout the
story there are a number of quick fixes all the forces are doing to react to
new intelliegnce on the foe.

Just to punctuate your point the Vietnam era jungle fatigues (the OD green
ones known as OG107s) look like bright white snow suits if you see one at
night through Night Vision goggles.

> I would think that re-supply to Rot Hafen would include new paint and

It's just that it takes more than two weeks to disseminate this type of
information through the procurement channel and develop completely new
uniforms and test them. That's the procurement establishment for you. That's
why local forces on the spot usually have to develop their own quick fixes
(the spray). However I think that lessons learned from this operation will
launch many powers into a frnatic development and porduction cycle for lots of
stuff (Like adapting the Krait AAMs to allow targetting of KV fighters). As an
aside, no doubt the kra'Vak will also be going through a lesson's learned
pahse and developing new counteracting technologies.

> The KV, with a hunting tradition, may be even quicker to pickup on the

Actually the Kra'Vak have been doing pretty well through the story. There are
constant difficulties with tracking or spotting Kra'Vak since there is
something about their uniforms and equipment that defeats or degrades the IR
band, as the Humans have found out.

Thanks for the ideas. Actually I think it will be prety funny as soon as the
battle is over they get a shipment of effective UV defeating uniforms! That's
DOD for you.

> Los wrote:

> > Since the KV sight range is shifted toward the UV, some colors that

Yes, but it works in reverse too. I'm one of the people whose sight is shifted
up an octave. So I can see the near UV. Alas, this means I'm
Red-Orange colourblind, and have to be very careful near hot objects. As
far as I'm concerned, the rest of you see into the near-IR, and know
that hot things glow. They have to be very hot for me to see them. OTOH when
other people are complaining about the day being dark due to cloud,

> Alan E and Carmel J Brain wrote:
As
> far as I'm concerned, the rest of you see into the near-IR, and know
OTOH
> when other people are complaining about the day being dark due to

Facinating.

> Nyrath the nearly wise wrote:

> I've heard that the human retina is sensitive to

Yes, this is correct. There's enough variation in the human species so that
most people can see in the near UV, absent the lens problem (which isn't a
problem, it protects the eyes from damage). But there is a minority who are
descended from people who lived up high in the mountains in cloudy areas who
have lost the lens protection, but gained better vision in cloud (and who have
slightly different cones and rods,
less sensitive to UV damage). But this means deep reds are black to us -
they're Infra Red. More inconveniently, my differentiation between
bright red / Scarlet and dark orange is pretty poor (nonexistent
actually). Which has lead to some notable painting disasters with
minis...

Then again, trying to describe silver-purple, the thin band of colour
just beyond blue is impossible. Others see it as an almost imperceptible
bright blue if really dark, or not at all. All I can say is, look at a
fluorescent lamp, it appears similar.

While not as shifted as you seem to be, I too seem to have a little shift.
Twilight is my favorite time because of the glow on everything. And my wife
complains constantly when I am matching black socks or other black objects
(they appear VERY different to me, but the same to her and most people).

-----
Brian Bell
brian_bell@dscc.dla.mil
bkb@beol.net

> Nyrath the nearly wise wrote:

> During WWII, allied spies in occupied France would go

That's pretty wild. Was that surgery pupose done or a side effect of something
else? Eitehr way it's neat.

> Yes, this is correct. There's enough variation in the human

I designed a Champions character with UV vision and a
Physical Limitation: can't see red or orange--glad I'm
right.

Someone mentioned allied spies in WW2 using UV lights to signal with. I've
also heard that Britain used UV lights to mark airfields so only poeple with
UV vision gear could see
them.  Unfortunately, the UV-vision variant apparently is
most common in Teutonic populations which rather rendered it pointless.

> Bell, Brian K wrote:

Same here. One other thing: under cloud white shirts don't just glow, they
radiate quite strongly. Must be something in the washing powder

> Alan wrote:

There's a UV dye in washing power that does this. It gives white clothes a
whiter than white look, because it's reflecting UV light as well.

> Los wrote:

> Alan E and Carmel J Brain wrote:

> Nyrath the nearly wise wrote:

> > Must be something in the washing powder

Good Lord. The Wonders of the Steam Age.

> How do you see one of those 1960's style hippy

Same here, but bright purple-silver rather than dull. I suspect they use
fairly high frequency UV, which the KraVak may be able to see, but I can't.