Quote:
Originally Posted by Neil
Things like this remind us just how vast our oceans are and how even with all our technology we know so little about them. I was surprised how much of the oceans we can't monitor by radar or satellite
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The majority of land based radars have a range of around 240 miles, OTH (Over the Horizon) radars have, as the name implies, a far greater range but are installed where any perceived threat will come from. Satellite surveillance is normally on a polar orbit although geo-stationary are used to cover areas of perceived threat or specific interest. The Indian Ocean covers some 27M sq miles according to Wikipedia so spotting a piece of debris some 4m or 5m sq is like the proverbial needle in the haystack