It would have been beyond stupid for Isreal to pin some kind of hope on the UN. If it were up to the IAEA and the UN Iraq, Iran, North Korea, Libya, and any other despotic regime would have free access to any nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons.

Israel continually shows the right way to deal with threatening weapon manufacturers.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – DigitalGlobe, provider of imagery for Google Inc’s interactive mapping program Google Earth, said a new high-resolution satellite will boost the accuracy of its satellite images and flesh out its archive.

The new spacecraft, dubbed WorldView I, is to be launched on Tuesday.

Together with the company’s existing Quickbird satellite, it will offer half-meter resolution and will be able to collect over 600,000 square kilometers of imagery each day, up from the current collection of that amount each week, Chief Executive Jill Smith told Reuters in a telephone interview.

“The reason we have an IAEA and a safeguard system is that, if there is evidence of wrongdoing, it can be presented by a neutral body to the international community so that a collective response can be pursued,”

*spit*

copyright on the image shows 2007.
CommentGuy on October 24, 2007 at 3:12 PM

I think they continue to update the copyright on the pix. Last year, I found an old pic of my former house with a 2006 copyright.

Unless Google recently updated the pictures, the photos in Google Earth are generally over a year old, sometimes several years old except in certain regions where Google keeps them updated sooner for whatever reason.

copyright on the image shows 2007.

Here’s a satellite image of one of North Korea’s suspected reactors from 2004. The actual reactor building is, I believe, the squarish structure in the center with the antenna on top.

Respectfully I don’t believe you are correct. The building to the right in the photo is more likely the containment structure for the reactor.

The building you are pointing to is more likely a power generation plant from the output of the plant…it has to dissipate the energy produced somewhere. Also note the cooling tower at the lower left of the photo.

The reactor would not be in the same building with auxiliary machinery. The separate containment building is common industry practice.

This is coming from a nuke industry person with 13 years experience in the Navy and consulting work over the years since then.

I could search for other examples from civilian plants but I will leave that for others to confirm.

Sure it wasn’t an empty pharmaceutical plant?

Rick on October 24, 2007 at 2:39 PM

Oh, the humanity!!!

The last time I looked, the pictures on Google Earth of my house were three years old.

“The reason we have an IAEA and a safeguard system is that, if there is evidence of wrongdoing, it can be presented covered up and hidden by a neutral a totalitarian support body to the international community be swept under the rug so that a collective no response can be pursued,” said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association. “It seems to me highly risky and premature likely to be effective for another country to bomb such a facility. (and nobody wants an effective deterrent of course) ”

Wow that took some effort to untangle. I think I’ve changed his quote to reflect accuracy and the real situation in the world and in the IAEA… which obviously wasn’t the goal.

Exit Question (since AP didn’t have one).

How long would it have taken Syria to relocate this facility had Israel tipped off the IAEA instead of launching a strike?

Oh no! That was Syria’s main pistachio nut salting facility!

Shy Guy on October 24, 2007 at 2:31 PM

Sure it wasn’t an empty pharmaceutical plant?

But good on Israel again, of course.

The real question is why Israel acted now when the reactor surely wouldn’t have been completed for years.

Maybe they were housing someone else’s WMDs…

Fantastically amazing! Is Iran as much of a paper tiger as well? (Rhetorical Question)

The real question is why Israel acted now when the reactor surely wouldn’t have been completed for years.

Isn’t that reason enough to bomb it? Take care of the situation when it isn’t an imminent threat?

Here’s a better idea – use the same .kmz file to find the place as was used in the images Allah posted:

Click here to open the location in GoogEarth.