Frog Blasted by Minotaur V Rocket Launch!
Summary
The Josh Universe - Space Discord Server community shared an announcement about a famous NASA photograph showing a frog being blasted into the air by the intense pressure wave of a Minotaur V rocket launch. This authentic image, captured by a remote sound-triggered camera at Wallops Flight Facility, shows the amphibian launched from a water pool used for acoustic dampening. While the initial fate of the frog was uncertain, later findings confirmed the frog did not survive the blast.
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The image captures a small frog launched high into the air, silhouetted against the intense orange fireball and rolling smoke of a Minotaur V rocket launch. The photograph was taken by one of NASA’s remote, sound-triggered cameras stationed near the launch pad at Wallops Flight Facility.
These cameras are programmed to fire rapid bursts of images the instant they detect the thunderous roar of rocket engines. In one extraordinary frame, the system inadvertently caught the frog mid-flight as the rocket ignited.
NASA later confirmed the photograph is completely authentic and has not been digitally altered. According to experts, the frog was most likely resting in a pool of water from the launch pad’s high-volume deluge system, which is used to reduce acoustic energy and shield the pad from extreme heat. When the rocket engines ignited, the immense pressure wave blasted the amphibian upward into the air.
As for the frog’s fate, NASA released a characteristically dry statement:
“The photo team confirms the frog is real and was captured in a single frame by one of the remote cameras used to photograph the launch.
The condition of the frog, however, is uncertain.”
Later findings show that the frog did not make it, a picture can be found on the second image.
Credit: NASA Wallops Flight Facility / Chris Perry
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