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A Beautiful Commotion

Empty cars and important cargo for the production of copper ore at Freeport McMoRan's Morenci, AZ, mine ascend the slope comfortably in excess of 5% out of Clifton behind a five-pack of diversely-liveried GP38s; audible each and every discrete, gunshot-like exhaust note beating against the surrounding rock faces in a cacophony intrinsic to the roots blown 645 design. At notch 8 engine speed of 900 crankshaft revolutions per minute, each two-stroke 645-cubic inch cylinder ignites 15 times every second. With 16 cylinders apiece, each engine fires off 240 shotgun-like blasts skyward every second. With 5 GP38s humming together in perfect harmony, this consist emits a cool 1,200 individual detonations every second. Now you understand why every second of the madness is so captivating.

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Uploaded on April 7, 2021
Taken on February 16, 2021