New B-2 paint?

Do my eyes decieve me or is this a new paint scheme for the famous black B-2A Spirit? A boom buddy of mine sent me this pic and asked me if I had ever seen one not painted black. He knew I had pics of the silver F-117's so he thought I might know something about it. I asked him if it was the sun reflecting off of it and he said for sure it wasn't, and that the entire jet was almost "faded".

So members of the best forum on the planet, is the Air Force finally getting away from old archaic RAM paint and going with a newer upgraded version? You be the judge. First, the culprit, then some other ones for comparison...










One with the sun reflecting...

reply to post by boomer135


Anything to do with this?

www.irconnect.com...

reply to post by boomer135


Here is a link to report of sighting black B-2 over Groom in 1997. Of course, it could be optical impression but who know...?

reply to post by boomer135


Meet the new Ceno Technologies paint.

CUSTOM COATINGS
Most stealth coatings consist of a radar-absorbing material, typically a form of iron, suspended in paint. But they are heavy (which lowers fuel efficiency), need to be reapplied frequently, and don’t absorb all radar frequencies. Ceno Technologies, a particles-science company in Sanborn, New York, has developed a lighter, more durable coating that uses hollow ceramic spheres, called cenospheres. Because the spheres can be covered in carbon, silver or other metals that absorb slightly different wavelengths of radar, the coating can be customized to deceive specific radar systems.

www.popsci.com...

And the Cenosphere

Cenospheres are alumina silicate hollow ceramic particles formed during the production of electricity by coal burning power stations. Also referred to as microspheres, hollow spheres, microballoons, hollow ceramic microspheres or glass beads, they are separated from fly ash by electrostatic and floatation methods and were once thought of as unwanted and difficult waste. Their buoyancy meant they could not be buried as landfill as ground water would push them to the surface, once on the surface and dry they would become persistent airborne dust. Cenospheres are now sought after as an inexpensive, lightweight filler for building products, their spherical shape lends cohesive strength to concrete and polymers, their ceramic composition provides excellent insulation and flame resistance and their lightweight reduces transportation costs.

Cenospheres - silver coatedCeno Technologies use a patented and proprietary process of wet chemistry to coat cenospheres with a thin layer of silver that allowed the finished product to perform like silver in electrical conduction and infra-red reflection AND simultaneously perform like a ceramic in thermal insulation, low cost, low maintenance and ease of use. Silver Coated Cenospheres from Ceno Technologies are extremely reflective and can exhibit an electromagnetic (EMI) shielding effectiveness of 60dB from 100 MHz to 25 GHz and higher.

cenotechnologies.com...

It even has IR properties.

IR discretion techniques focus on bands II and III which are transmission bands in the Earth’s atmosphere (see Figure 1). Band II covers the range 3 to 5 mm while Band III covers the range 8 to 12 mm. Band II is exploited primarily by missile guidance systems and band III by thermal cameras. Another wavelength of interest is 1.064 mm, which is the wavelength used by the majority of laser range-finders.

IR...Radar...or both

The emphasis to date has been on radar stealth, and thus radar-absorbing materials have received significant attention worldwide. However, with the development of more accurate infrared (IR) detection technology such as missile guidance systems and thermal cameras, the dual need for effective IR and Radar stealth capabilities vital for air, land, and sea defenses.

IR Stealth coatings
Low observable coatings render IR detection of an object more difficult. These coatings are multipurpose materials that may be tuned for specific missions, or used in standard configurations. For example, they may be designed solely for IR stealth (without compromising the radar cross section of the host), or for both IR and radar stealth simultaneously.

Ceno Technologies can also produce special infrared reflective materials which are effective from the near to far infrared region. These materials may be incorporated over radar absorbers to yield multi-spectral combination absorbers. Infrared reflective materials are supplied for use in spray-on paints, coatings, adhesives, composites and fabrics. Infrared reflective coatings are as thin as 3 mils and weigh as little as 4 grams per square.

cenotechnologies.com...

Here's a pic showing what the B-2 skin Is made up of, well a brief description as its still classified.

The B-2 was never painted black. The early test articles had a very dark gray paint scheme, but the production airframes were painted in a somewhat lighter shade of gray that eventually became standard for the fleet. I'm not just talking off the cuff here. I have had the opportunity to examine these aircraft up close on numerous occasions.

reply to post by Shadowhawk


While not technically back like the SR71, it was never painted as light a grey as the first picture. And ive seen them hundreds of times up close.

reply to post by boomer135


Just looks like an artifact of the lighting angle to me.

I always did think the navy had right.I would think only things like possible TR3 series would be black

I always did think the navy had right.I would think only things like possible TR3 series would be black
And one Question If the TR3s are indeed real what the hell would they be for?
You guys are the aviation pukes so can you speculate here,is they any rumors on this stuff you can't get burned about?

I don't want to derail the thread but is there a paint that can be used to keep the drones from seeing inside your home?

Maybe this will help you guys out?




earlscheiblasvegas.com...

reply to post by relocator


A good roof can.

Originally posted by relocator
I don't want to derail the thread but is there a paint that can be used to keep the drones from seeing inside your home?

Thanks but I've already got this aluminum foil hat that works just fine, of course it would be a lot cheaper if Goldman-Sachs didn't manipulate the aluminum market.

reply to post by boomer135


My favorite plane. Cool post!

reply to post by cavtrooper7


Regarding the TR-3B I'd say it's a no, the logistics of a 600ft wide aircraft would be ridiculous. To put it in perspective a Boeing 747 is roughly 230 feet wide. There's a hangar at Kelly AFB that would just be able to fit it in but then the doors are only 250 feet wide so you couldn't get it in there so that's the sort of things you have to look for when people start saying things like 'oh the government has mile long spaceships, because if they spent that much money developing it, I'm sure they would want to keep it out of the rain

Looks lighter, but it could be the lighting. I honestly can't tell because every time I look at a stealth fighter or bomber, it looks different every time. It's like it plays tricks on your eyes like an optical illusion.

Just going through that link from above, found some photos I've never seen before of the antenna. Don't want to get too off topic but I know there was some talk about it some other threads.

media.globenewswire.com...

Also this pic of the back on the ground.

www.northropgrumman.com...

Just through I'd throw that in there.

Edit: Just found this about a new coating contract awarded in 2011, maybe they figured a lighter color would be better to apply?

www.airforce-technology.com...


Edit #2: That pic from the back I don't think is an operational B-2, so whatever it was hiding wouldn't be shown. It's at a museum I guess when I did some digging. Damn it I thought I was onto something!

reply to post by Laxpla



I think we can say with that reference and what zaphod found earlier, its a new paint scheme