Bizarre WW2 radar question..

[legionserial]

Some of you might know the answer to this, or perhaps no one will.

In Saving Private Ryan, there was an assault on a german radar station, which resulted in the the medic, Wade, getting killed. The radar was a big squarish thing.

Does anyone know what these sorts of radars are called, or anything else about them? I've seen these sorts of radars before, and I've tried numerous google searches, but I'm coming up with nothing. Any ideas?

[Greg_L]

I don't know, but that was a kick ass movie.

[Gandalf]

There's loads of stuff here but I can't be fucked to read it for you to see if it has what u want

http://www.vectorsite.net/ttwiz.html

[32-20-Blues]

Originally Posted by legionserial

Some of you might know the answer to this, or perhaps no one will.

In Saving Private Ryan, there was an assault on a german radar station, which resulted in the the medic, Wade, getting killed. The radar was a big squarish thing.

Does anyone know what these sorts of radars are called, or anything else about them? I've seen these sorts of radars before, and I've tried numerous google searches, but I'm coming up with nothing. Any ideas?

TelePaul will know, Ill ask him.

[dwillis45]

I don't think it's radar. I think it's the device the Germans used to broadcast the secret killer joke that caused so much devastation during WW2.

[32-20-Blues]

Originally Posted by dwillis45

I don't think it's radar. I think it's the device the Germans used to broadcast the secret killer joke that caused so much devastation during WW2.

All through the winter of '43 we had translators working, in joke-proof conditions, to try and produce a German version of the joke. They worked on one word each for greater safety. One of them saw two words of the joke and spent several weeks in hospital. But apart from that things went pretty quickly, and we soon had the joke by January, in a form which our troops couldn't understand but which the Germans could.

[Thurgood]

WW2 radars were generally of two types. One type would cover a very wide arc and the other was a very narrow beam. They were used in conjuction with the wide beam/receiver to "notice" incoming aircraft and the narrow beam to provide a more acccurate location. Further, the use of a group of radars to triangulate and locate aircraft was the normal practice. The Luftwaffe also used extensive ground control to guide the fighters/interceptors to the target; once spotted the fighters would engage and attempt to destry the incomings. (usally bomber foramtions). One tactic was to destroy as many of the broad arc units thus making th emore precise yet narrow radars work harder. Hope that helps. I thinkl the facsimile in the moview is the braoad arc type.

[Thurgood]

WW2 radars were generally of two types. One type would cover a very wide arc and the other was a very narrow beam. They were used in conjuction with the wide beam/receiver to "notice" incoming aircraft and the narrow beam to provide a more acccurate location. Further, the use of a group of radars to triangulate and locate aircraft was the normal practice. The Luftwaffe also used extensive ground control to guide the fighters/interceptors to the target; once spotted the fighters would engage and attempt to destry the incomings. (usally bomber foramtions). One tactic was to destroy as many of the broad arc units thus making th emore precise yet narrow radars work harder. Hope that helps. I thinkl the facsimile in the moview is the braoad arc type.

[TexRoadkill]

It was probably a Freya.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freya_radar

[legionserial]

Originally Posted by dwillis45

I don't think it's radar. I think it's the device the Germans used to broadcast the secret killer joke that caused so much devastation during WW2.

Zere ver zwie peanuts valking down der strasse, and vun vas assaulted...peanut....hur hur hur hur hur.

As for the radar. I think it's a Mammut judging by the information in Gandalf's link. Which is like the Freya, but more like a few Freyas stuck together. Thanks guys

I'd offer a Wikipedia link, but 'mammut' just takes me to an entry on the Mastodon. Not the band, the prehistoric elephant-like mammal, which is part of the family Mammutidae, from the genus mammut.

[dwillis45]

Originally Posted by legionserial

Zere ver zwie peanuts valking down der strasse, and vun vas assaulted...peanut....hur hur hur hur hur.

I took a chance and ran the joke through a German to English translator. Nothing happened. I'm still alive.

[legionserial]

Originally Posted by dwillis45

I took a chance and ran the joke through a German to English translator. Nothing happened. I'm still alive.

I tried to translate the joke from that sketch..

"Wenn ist das Nunstuck git und Slotermeyer? Ja!...Beiherhund das Oder die Fliperwaldt gersput!"

But it turns out its gibberish. Half of those words aren't German, they are made up. I remember years ago reading it to my German teacher and asking her to translate it then. She said it didn't make any sense. Babelfish can't make sense of it either.

Lucky really. Otherwise I'd be dead for sure.

Apparently, the actual worlds funniest joke, as decided after years of research, runs as follows...

'A couple of New Jersey hunters are out in the woods when one of them falls to the ground. He doesn't seem to be breathing, his eyes are rolled back in his head. The other guy whips out his cell phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps to the operator: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator, in a calm soothing voice says: "Just take it easy. I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence, then a shot is heard. The guy's voice comes back on the line. He says: "OK, now what?"'

----------------------------------------------

In second place....

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson go on a camping trip. After a good dinner, they retire for the night, and go to sleep.
Some hours later, Holmes wakes up and nudges his faithful friend. "Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see."

"I see millions and millions of stars, Holmes" replies Watson.

"And what do you deduce from that?"

Watson ponders for a minute.

"Well, astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. Theologically, I can see that God is all powerful, and that we are a small and insignificant part of the universe. What does it tell you, Holmes?"

Holmes is silent for a moment. "Watson, you idiot!" he says. "Someone has stolen our tent!"'

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The uk top joke was...

'A woman gets on a bus with her baby.
The bus driver says: "That's the ugliest baby that I've ever seen. Ugh!"

The woman goes to the rear of the bus and sits down, fuming. She says to a man next to her: "The driver just insulted me!"

The man says: "You go right up there and tell him off – go ahead, I'll hold your monkey for you."'

--------------------------------------------------------

While in Australia...

'This woman rushed to see her doctor, looking very much worried and all strung out. She rattles off: "Doctor, take a look at me. When I woke up this morning, I looked at myself in the mirror and saw my hair all wiry and frazzled up, my skin was all wrinkled and pasty, my eyes were bloodshot and bugging out, and I had this corpse-like look on my face! What's WRONG with me, Doctor!?"
The doctor looks her over for a couple of minutes, then calmly says: "Well, I can tell you that there ain't nothing wrong with your eyesight."'