Uncovered facts shed light on last year's sunken cruiser
The Russian cruiser Moscow sank on April 14th, 2022, a day after being hit by Ukrainian Neptun missiles. Initially, it was believed that these missiles alone were responsible for the sinking. However, recent research suggests unexpected weather conditions played a crucial role in the incident.
12:34 PM EST, November 19, 2023
According to the online platform Science, the forecasting team who recently presented their model in the "Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society" believe that favorable atmospheric conditions significantly aided the Ukrainian forces during the attack on the Moscow cruiser. This doesn't only concern the successful missile launch, but primarily concerns weather anomalies which significantly extended the range of the radar used by Ukrainians.
Initially, Russian sources reported onboard explosions in the Moscow cruiser, which they declared as an accident. However, it soon became clear that Ukraine was responsible for the damages, leading to the sinking of Moscow. After this revelation, it was noted that the Russian ship was targeted from a distance approximately three times beyond the official range of Ukrainian radar.
Meanwhile, theories surfaced suggesting the US army guided the Ukrainian missiles. The recent scientific findings, however, suggest the truth to be very different: atypical weather conditions amplified the Ukrainians' ability to destroy the ship.
The weather assisted Ukraine in sinking the Moscow
According to scientists, the decisive weather phenomenon was the light refraction effect. They theorize that this specific weather condition present during the sea attack granted Ukrainians the ability to spot Moscow from a distance far greater than the radar's standard range could usually detect.
Andreas Grantinger, a meteorologist with the Swedish armed forces and referenced by the Science platform, explains that such conditions frequently occur in the Mediterranean Sea region. However, they can also occasionally occur in other regions and bodies of water. This phenomenon, which happens amidst low-lying clouds and precipitation, causes these clouds to mimic a screen that reflects and extends the radar signal. This effect, which has been utilized for many years, enables radars to detect objects from a greater distance.
Lars Norin, among others, researched the influence of weather on the potential sinking of Moscow. The space physicist examined whether the Ukrainian Mineral-U Radar, which usually detects units approximately 24.85-31.07 miles away, could identify a ship about 74.57 miles away. The findings indicate that the weather indeed played a substantial role in aiding the Ukrainians, although the window of time in which Moscow could be detected from such a distance was relatively brief.
