kokonut
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- Jul 9, 2006
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Optical allusion. You're on the ground looking up and across the landscape. Four things are playing tricks on your eyes, the speed of the craft, the angle from where you are, the distance from you and the craft, and the elevation of the craft relative to yours. If you were to draw a line, say at 40,000 feet and draw it continously westward at the same elevation that line would begin to look like it'd be curving downward into the horizon. That's an optical illusion because that line at that elevation is following the curvature of the earth. But had the line stayed absolutely straight and not follow the Earth's curvature it'd be seen as gradually going up because elevation wise the line is rising higher and higher away from the Earth's surface.
for your insight, TCS. I did read a report somewhere that it is possible it's part of missile defense system with laser since it's where Point Mugu's Naval Air Warfare Center-Weapons Division Sea Range is. 

