Were Russian submarines actually "spotted" off the US coast?

[taterguy]

That's what the headline in my morning paper says.

I'm no expert on submarines but I'm skeptical.

I doubt that the submarines ever surfaced and/or were ever visible to a camera or person.

Sure, our sonar tracked them and we knew exactly where they were.

But don't you have to actually see something to "spot" it?

Why is our media so damn lazy?

Could any of you Tom Clancy wannabes or language experts clarify this?

[Heidi]

1. AP: Russian general confirms submarine patrols near US

(AP) – 57 minutes ago

MOSCOW — A top Russian general says two nuclear-powered Russian attack submarines that have been spotted off the U.S. East Coast are part of regular patrols.

Anatoly Nogovitsyn, the deputy chief of staff of Russia's armed forces, says the patrols are not newsworthy.

Nogovitsyn said Wednesday Russia resumed the submarine patrols after restarting strategic bomber patrol flights in 2007.

More: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j_IHdIeMYKrCdmsqo-vqSGgSFOywD99SL5800

[wroberts189]

3. Thanks.. and Thx to the OP ...I had the same questions. nt

[SleeplessInAlabama]

2. Merriam-Webster gives "single out, identify, detect, notice, to locate accurately" n/t

[taterguy]

4. D'oh. Nevermind. Fucking dictionary

[ColbertWatcher]

5. Pfft. That just means Sarah Palin's got a new job. n/t

[NutmegYankee]

6. SOSUS Sonar Network off the coast.

It's still there. We "spot" things on Radar (planes) and sonar(subs, etc) all the time, but that is just waves reflected back to a receiver.

[formercia]

12. SOSUS was developed by the Germans in WWII

It has been maintained, using vintage parts because they work better than anything we have been able to produce.
After WWII, the German plant that built the original array was dismantled, shipped to the States and reconstituted. Many pieces of test equipment still bear the Nazi Waffenampt stamp on them.

[FSogol]

7. Oh Noes? Where's Sarah? Putin's rearing his head and you know where that will be?

Alaska! ;-)

[taterguy]

8. If I wanted snarky comments about Sarah I would have started a thread about her

I was just making what I thought was a quasi-interesting observation about the media.

But apparently I should have looked up the definition of the word "spotted" before making my OP

[zippy890]

9. "patrolling in international waters off East Coast"

"several hundred miles off east coast"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/04/AR2009080402863.html?hpid=moreheadlinesThe headline

the headline you saw about Russian subs being 'spotted' sounds like that movie 'The Russians are Coming'

[DailyGrind51]

10. There was this great movie in the '60s, "The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming!"

[SidDithers]

11. "Emergency! Emergency! Everyone is getting off streets!"...

Alan Arkin was hilarious in that movie :hi:

Sid

[DailyGrind51]

13. It went, "Eemergencee! Eemergencee! Please to get off from strit!"

My stomach hurt for a week, I laughed so much! You are so right, Alan Arkin is good in every decade. Paul Ford's Paul Revere wannabee character would be a "tea-bagger" today. What ever happened to Andrea Dromm?

[SidDithers]

14. Yeah, you're right...

I was going from memory, from a movie not seen in many years.

A collection of funny bits here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXXGep9RB34

Sid

[DailyGrind51]

15. Thank you!

At the time, I didn't know that Theodore Bikkel (Russian Captain) was also a stage actor and singer. He said more with his facial expressions than most actors do with scripted lines.

[supernova]

16. Hattaras lighthouse shines the light of truth on them.

[ThomWV]

17. There have been Russian submarines off our coasts every minute for the last 45 years

Every since they built their first nuclear sub. Give you another clue, we have submarines in every ocean, every sea, every Gulf, and several of the large rivers everywhere on the face of the earth for just as long.

[TexasObserver]

18. Don't let the Captain hear you say that!

But, yeah, you're right.

[Howardx]

20. exactly right

why is this news?

[KG]

19. were they racing?

used to love to take my date to the submarine races, :P