View allAll Photos Tagged Contingency
BlasTech
Combined Ordinance System, 1st Model
Secret Project :: Authorization Level: ARC
++ The Emperor is dead ++
++ Initiate Contingency A through XC:1 ++
IEB Expedition fleet maintain firm presence in the Unknown Regions, Contingency Byss is underway. Prepare for any immanent threat. These weapons will be the last shipment until Order is reestablished. The COS-1X will replace your current squad ordinance launchers. They are capable of firing extremely compressed blaster gas as a primary fire mode and a proton missile as a secondary fire mode. The proton missile is more potent than the standard grenade fired from your grenade launchers. an offset scope has been included so Stormtroopers without helmets and officers can effectively operate the weapon.
Prepare for Operation Kingdom Return.
this is for the P90 Piss Around Comp. Surprisingly I was able to use the P90 mag in the right place (sort of)
BAY OF BENGAL (Nov. 13, 2019) Sailors aboard the Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship USS Germantown (LSD 42) man the rails as the ship pulls into Visakhapatnam, India, as part of exercise Tiger Triumph. Germantown, part of Commander, Amphibious Squadron 11, is deployed to the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Toni Burton)
A portrait of dancer Adrienne O'Leary from the Janis Claxton Dance Company performing 'Chaos and Contingency' in the Grand Gallery of National Museum of Scotland. This was part of the 2013 Edinburgh Science Festival Programme.
You can find out more about Janis Claxton's Dance Company, here:
You can see more shots from this event at these links:
My thanks are due to Frances Sutton from Edinburgh Science Festival, Esme Haigh from National Museum of Scotland and Janis Claxton.
PHILIPPINE SEA (Jan. 18, 2019) â A landing craft, utility (LCU) approaches the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) during well deck operations. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel Barker)
CORAL SEA (Aug. 25, 2017) The Henry J. Kaiser-class replenishment oiler USNS Rappahannock (T-AO 204) fuels the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) during a replenishment-at-sea. Bonhomme Richard, flagship of the Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, is operating in the Indo-Asia Pacific region to enhance partnerships and be a ready-response force for any type of contingency. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kyle Carlstrom/Released)
We are lucky to have House Wrens every year in our backyard. This year the pair built a nest in each of two nesting boxes that I hung in different locations. We also had a fairly large contingency of House Sparrows that harassed the little wrens, attempting daily to invade the nesting boxes. Fortunately, the openings of the nesting boxes are too small, so the sparrows didn't succeed in driving the wrens away. They finally settled into the nesting box hanging under a large pine tree and the activity of the wren pair is at a frenzied pace, as they both bring assorted insects to feed their brood and take out the fecal sacs to keep the nest clean. The nestlings are not yet visible but may fledge any day now!
A few things to know about House Wrens: They exhibit site fidelity (meaning if they are successful at rearing young, they return to the same location every year). This is true of some other birds as well. The male, House Wren arrives first in the spring, stakes out his territory, then begins to build the nest, and sings to attract the female. Once she accepts the location he selected, they mate, and she lays her eggs, one a day until she has a clutch of 2-8 eggs. The male feeds her while she is on the nest, although she may leave for brief periods. When the eggs hatch, both wrens feed and care for the young, and when the nestlings are fledged, they will continue to care for them for several more weeks. They will often raise a second or third brood.
*Please note that this was a behavioral study all shot through our window, so that the birds would not be disturbed. There is no editing except to sharpen some of the shots and to crop.
U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew members conduct slingload operations with Airmen at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., May 10, 2012. Both units were preparing for a Marine airpower demonstration at the bases’ open house and air show, which took place May 12 and 13. The CH-53E crew is with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 772 and the Airmen are with the 621st Contingency Response Wing. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Edward Gyokeres)
EAST CHINA SEA (Sept. 21, 2018) Sailors perform a foreign object debris walk-down on the flight deck aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) prior to flight operations. Wasp, flagship of the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group, with embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners and serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Daniel Barker/Released)
Ask any dispatcher about hearing when a train on their territory has gone into the hole. The first question asked to the crew is "How is the air looking? Is it coming back up?"
When that answer is no, the conductor is off for a walk. In the meantime, the DS is making contingency plans for moving traffic. If the territory is single track, then nothing moves until the train in question is ready to roll.
Today, the freight train we were following has went into emergency. Luckily for us, we were just far enough behind him when I heard the emergency radio transmission.
Guessing that he may have a problem, I immediately began braking the train in order to stop prior to passing the next control point. This allows the dispatcher to cross us over and get around the stopped train. Needless to say, the DS was grateful for our proactive action as our train is loaded with UPS and Fedex.
It wasn't long after stopping that a signal popped up allowing us to cross over and use Main One to Archbold. We also received the customary instructions to pass the train in trouble at restricted speed.
As we were passing this monster freight train, I could see a gap approaching meaning the train was in two pieces. This is NEVER a good thing and can indicate one of three possibilities, 2 of which are not good.
The least of all problems is a pull apart, where for some unknown reason a knuckle on one car opens. This is easily rectified by just making the coupling again. In 26 years behind the throttle, this has happened to me just once.
Another cause for a train to be in two pieces is a knuckle failure. This generally occurs when the position of slack in a train is abruptly changed. Sometimes this could be the result of bad decisions by the engineer at the control stand. At other times, it could be a mechanical defect in the knuckle itself. Replacing a knuckle can be a chore and take time.
The absolute worst scenario for a train to be in two pieces is the dreaded drawbar. When a drawbar fails, the one and only option is to set the car out and allow it to be repaired in place at a future time. But when the drawbar fails on the end of the car in the direction of the train's movement, it's a whole new problem.
When this happens, the block truck has to be called. This crew does all sorts of heavy repairs. The truck is outfitted with everything necessary to complete the repair including a crane. If it is after normal work hours or the weekend, the block truck crew has to be called in. This can take time as you can imagine.
This morning is not turning out to be a good one for this crew or the dispatcher. The train is two pieces due to a drawbar. The drawbar occurred on the worst end possible. And yes, it is Saturday. Track two is shut down and the DS now has a single track portion of railroad toralling 25 miles which could last for hours.
I planned on stopping at the gap to drop off a knuckle to the other train's conductor. This would have been a great help to him. When we saw the drawbar missing, our hearts sank. Lucky for all of us, the portion of the train in emergency was able safely pass over the drawbar without derailing. The conductor in the picture is walking up after locating the drawbar underneath his train.
With nothing more to offer the freight train's conductor, we wished him luck and headed east. As an aside, I logged into the computer later that night to check on the train's progress and how things played out. It wasn't good.
The train was still in the same spot where passed it 9 hours earlier. The original crew was on duty for 14 hours and the recrew was maybe looking at a recrew.
Oh, the Dreaded Drawbar!
SOUTH CHINA SEA (Oct. 9, 2019) A Sikorsky CH-53E "Super Stallion" with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 163 (Reinforced), 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), takes off of the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4) during a vertical replenishment-at-sea. The Marines and Sailors of the 11th MEU are deployed to the 7th Fleet area of operations to support regional stability, reassure partners, and allies, and maintain a presence postured to respond to any crisis ranging from humanitarian assistance to contingency operations.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Sikorsky CH-53E "Super Stallion" is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80 it was developed from the CH-53 "Sea Stallion", mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor and canting the tail rotor 20 degrees. It was built by Sikorsky Aircraft for the United States Marine Corps. The less common MH-53E "Sea Dragon" fills the United States Navy's need for long range minesweeping or Airborne Mine Countermeasures (AMCM) missions, and perform heavy-lift duties for the Navy. Under development is the Sikorsky CH-53K "King Stallion", which has new engines, new composite material rotor blades, and a wider aircraft cabin; this is to replace the CH-53E.
Background
The CH-53 was the product of the U.S. Marines' "Heavy Helicopter Experimental" (HH(X)) competition begun in 1962. Sikorsky's S-65 was selected over Boeing Vertol's modified CH-47 "Chinook" version. The prototype YCH-53A first flew on 14 October 1964. The helicopter was designated CH-53A "Sea Stallion" and delivery of production helicopters began in 1966. The first CH-53As were powered by two General Electric T64-GE-6 turboshaft engines with 2,850 shp (2,125 kW) and had a maximum gross weight of 46,000 lb (20,865 kg) including 20,000 lb (9,072 kg) in payload.
Variants of the original CH-53A "Sea Stallion" include the RH-53A/D, HH-53B/C, CH-53D, CH-53G, and MH-53H/J/M. The RH-53A and RH-53D were used by the US Navy for mine sweeping. The CH-53D included a more powerful version of the General Electric T64 engine, used in all H-53 variants, and external fuel tanks. The CH-53G was a version of the CH-53D produced in West Germany for the German Army.
The US Air Force's HH-53B/C "Super Jolly Green Giant" were for special operations and combat rescue and were first deployed during the Vietnam War. The Air Force's MH-53H/J/M "Pave Low" helicopters were the last of the twin engined H-53s and were equipped with extensive avionics upgrades for all weather operation.
H-53E
In October 1967, the US Marine Corps issued a requirement for a helicopter with a lifting capacity 1.8 times that of the CH-53D that would fit on amphibious warfare ships. The US Navy and US Army were also seeking similar helicopters at the time. Before issue of the requirement Sikorsky had been working on an enhancement to the CH-53D, under the company designation "S-80", featuring a third turboshaft engine and a more powerful rotor system. Sikorsky proposed the S-80 design to the Marines in 1968. The Marines liked the idea since it promised to deliver a good solution quickly, and funded development of a testbed helicopter for evaluation.
In 1970, against pressure by the US Defense Secretary to take the Boeing Vertol XCH-62 being developed for the Army, the Navy and Marines were able to show the Army's helicopter was too large to operate on landing ships and were allowed to pursue their helicopter. Prototype testing investigated the addition of a third engine and a larger rotor system with a seventh blade in the early 1970s. In 1974, the initial YCH-53E first flew.
Changes on the CH-53E also include a stronger transmission and a fuselage stretched 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m). The main rotor blades were changed to a titanium-fiberglass composite. The tail configuration was also changed. The low-mounted symmetrical horizontal tail was replaced by a larger vertical tail and the tail rotor tilted from the vertical to provide some lift in hover while counteracting the main rotor torque. Also added was a new automatic flight control system. The digital flight control system prevented the pilot from overstressing the aircraft.
YCH-53E testing showed that it could lift 17.8 tons (to a 50-foot (15 m) wheel height), and without an external load, could reach 170 knots (310 km/h) at a 56,000 pound gross weight. This led to two preproduction aircraft and a static test article being ordered. At this time the tail was redesigned to include a high-mounted, horizontal surface opposite the rotor with an inboard section perpendicular to the tail rotor then at the strut connection cants 20 degrees to horizontal.
The initial production contract was awarded in 1978, and service introduction followed in February 1981. The first production CH-53E flew in December 1980. The US Navy acquired the CH-53E in small numbers for shipboard resupply. The Marines and Navy acquired a total of 177.
The Navy requested a version of the CH-53E for the airborne mine countermeasures role, designated "MH-53E "Sea Dragon". It has enlarged sponsons to provide substantially greater fuel storage and endurance. It also retained the in-flight refueling probe, and could be fitted with up to seven 300 US gallon (1,136 liter) ferry tanks internally. The MH-53E digital flight-control system includes features specifically designed to help tow minesweeping gear. The prototype MH-53E made its first flight on 23 December 1981. MH-53E was used by the Navy beginning in 1986. The MH-53E is capable of in-flight refueling and can be refueled at hover.
Additionally, a number of MH-53E helicopters were exported to Japan as the S-80-M-1 for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).
The base model CH-53E serves both the US Navy and Marines in the heavy lift transport role. It is capable of lifting heavy equipment including the eight-wheeled LAV-25 Light Armored Vehicle, the M198 155 mm Howitzer with ammunition and crew. The Super Stallion can recover aircraft up to its size, which includes all Marine Corps aircraft except for the KC-130.
The 53E needs 40 maintenance hours per flight hour due to aging parts, lack of available new replacement parts and the extension of the overall airframe lifetime.
CH-53K
Main article: Sikorsky CH-53K "King Stallion"
The US Marine Corps had been planning to upgrade most of their CH-53Es to keep them in service, but this plan stalled. Sikorsky then proposed a new version, originally the CH-53X, and in April 2006, the USMC signed a contract for 156 aircraft as the CH-53K. The Marines are planning to start retiring CH-53Es in 2009 and need new helicopters very quickly.
In August 2007, the USMC increased its order of CH-53Ks to 227. First flight was planned for November 2011 with initial operating capability by 2015.
Although dimensionally similar, the three engine CH-53E "Super Stallion" or Sikorsky S-80 is a much more powerful aircraft than the original Sikorsky S-65 twin engined CH-53A "Sea Stallion". The CH-53E also added a larger main rotor system with a seventh blade.
Design
The CH-53E as designed to transport up to 55 troops or 30,000 lb (13,610 kg) of cargo and can carry external slung loads up to 36,000 lb (16,330 kg). The CH-53E has incorporated the same crash attenuating seats as the MV-22B to increase survivability of passengers but at a cost of reducing its original troop transport capacity.[citation needed] The "Super Stallion" has a cruise speed of 173 mph (278 km/h) and a range of 621 miles (1,000 km). The helicopter is fitted with a forward extendable in-flight refueling probe and it can also hoist hose refuel from a surface ship while in hover mode. It can carry three machine guns: one at the starboard side crew door; one at the port window, just behind the copilot; and one at the tail ramp. The CH-53E also has chaff-flare dispensers.
The MH-53E features enlarged side mounted fuel sponsons and is rigged for towing various minesweeping and hunting gear from above the dangerous naval mines. The "Sea Dragon" can be equipped for minesweeping, cargo and passenger transportation, and troop insertion. Its digital flight-control system includes features specifically designed to help towing mine sweeping gear.
Upgrades to the CH-53E have included the Helicopter Night Vision System (HNVS), improved .50 BMG (12.7 mm) GAU-21/A and M3P machine guns, and AAQ-29A forward looking infrared (FLIR) imager.
The CH-53E and the MH-53E are the largest helicopters in the Western world, while the CH-53K now being developed will be even larger. They are fourth in the world to the Russian Mil Mi-26 "Halo" single-rotor helicopter and the enormous, twin transverse rotored Mil V-12 "Homer", which can lift more than 22 tons (20 tonnes) and 44 tons (40 tonnes), respectively and the Mi-26's single-rotor predecessor Mil Mi-6, which has less payload (12 tonnes) but is bigger and has a higher MTOW at 42 tonnes.
PHILIPPINE SEA (March 26, 2018) An F-35B Lightning II, attached to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (31st MEU), prepares to take off from the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1). The Wasp Expeditionary Strike Group, with embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, is operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners, serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency and advance the Up-Gunned ESG concept. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Michael Molina/Released)
ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (Jan. 28, 2021) - Members of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF), Indian Navy (IN) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), along with Patrol Squadron (VP) 5's "Mad Foxes" and VP 8's "Fighting Tigers", pose for a photo at the conclusion of Exercise Sea Dragon. Sea Dragon is an annual multi-lateral anti-submarine warfare exercise that improves the interoperability elements required to effectively and cohesively respond to the defense of a regional contingency in the Indo-Pacific, while continuing to build and strengthen relationships held between nations . As the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed fleet, 7th Fleet employs 50 to 70 ships and submarines across the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. U.S. 7th Fleet routinely operates and interacts with 35 maritime nations while conducting missions to preserve and protect a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Cmdr. Kyle Hooker) 210128-N-IS471-041
** Interested in following U.S. Indo-Pacific Command? Engage and connect with us at www.facebook.com/indopacom | twitter.com/INDOPACOM |
www.instagram.com/indopacom | www.flickr.com/photos/us-pacific-command; | www.youtube.com/user/USPacificCommand | www.pacom.mil/ **
"Protect the President at all cost"
Those were the last orders I received after all this--mess broke out. Simple orders under different circumstances; we had contingency plans for terrorist attacks, nuclear, biological, natural disasters. But we didn't have anything planned for something like this. They made films like this, scientist said that it was illogical, no one was truly prepared. Our protocol was to get the President into one of his many safe houses, that was out of the question he would be in danger regardless of the amount of walls he had. So I suggested we take him to Air Force One until we got a better grasp on the situation. Unfortunately so did a group of militants trying to secure the base. They turned fire on us...allot of good men died protecting the President. In the end, there were only four of us left--and it was all my fault. We didn't have the slightest idea what to do, we were lost. A fellow agent spoke up saying that in the open we were sitting ducks and that we would run a better chance of survival if we moved from place to place instead of waiting for someone to pick us off. Everyone agreed with him, so that's what we did for weeks nothing but running for our lives and foraging for food.
All good things come to an end though. We barricaded ourselves into an old warehouse, everyone was exhausted and starving. Will explained that if we rationed this last bit of food we would still have enough for two or three days, but the President demanded it all. He said it was our duty to give him our food so that he wouldn't perish. No one said a word but the hate and anger was among us all--we decided to just go to bed, we were safe enough. We were wrong...again. The flesh eaters found a way in, there was a large group of them and they went for the first person they seen. That's what we woke too--then my brothers in arm were attacked, we held them off for a while...but there was only so much we could do. I was the last alive, I planned on ending my life but I had no more bullets. So I ran...I ran until I couldn't run anymore. I don't even know where I slept at, maybe I just laid down on the ground and the monsters thought I was dead. I don't know, but what I do know is that I failed my country. I'm looking for redemption.
U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. David Ruehling, with the 621st Contingency Response Wing, waits to marshal a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft at Geronimo Landing Zone during the Joint Readiness Training Center 14-03 field training exercise at Fort Polk, La., Jan. 16, 2014. The training was designed to educate Service members in patient care and aeromedical evacuations in combat environments. (DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Matthew Smith, U.S. Air Force/Released)
Service members unload a U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk from a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III Oct. 30, 2014, during Operation United Assistance. The U.S. Africa Command-led operation provides command and control, logistics, training and engineering support to the U.S. government’s efforts to contain the Ebola virus outbreak in West African nations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Gustavo Gonzalez/Released)
PHILIPPINE SEA (May 26, 2019) The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) launches a harpoon surface-to-surface missile alongside Arleigh-Burke-class Guided Missile Destroyer Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54) as part of the HARPOONEX during Pacific Vanguard (PACVAN). PACVAN is the first of its kind quadrilateral exercise between Australia, Japan, Republic of Korea, and U.S. Naval forces. Focused on improving the capabilities of participating countries to respond together to crisis and contingencies in the region, PACVAN prepares the participating maritime forces to operate as an integrated, capable, and potent allied force ready to respond to a complex maritime environment in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Fire Controlman Aegis 2nd Class Joshua Shafe)
pro Israel contingency
separated
20 feet from the
pro Palestine
contingency
in
ManHatTan
Photography’s new conscience
The ego is at the same time a system of images and a cycle; it is something like a museum, and a unique and irreversible journey through that museum. The ego is a moving fabric made of images and tendencies; the tendencies come from our own substance and the images are provided by the environment. We put ourselves into things, and we place things in ourselves, whereas our true being is independent of them.
Alongside this system of images and tendencies that constitutes our ego there are myriads of other systems of images and tendencies. Some of them are worse or less beautiful than our own, and others are better or more beautiful.
We are like foam ceaselessly renewed on the ocean of existence. But since God has put Himself into this foam, it is destined to become a sea of stars at the time of the final crystallization of spirits.
The tiny system of images must become, when its terrestrial contingency is left behind, a star immortalized in the halo of Divinity. This star can be conceived on various levels; the divine Names are its archetypes; beyond the stars burns the Sun of the Self in its blazing transcendence and in its infinite peace.
Man does not choose; he follows his nature and his vocation, and it is God who chooses.
---
Frithjof Schuon: Light on The Ancient Worlds
Evil Star comes rushing into Lex’s office. He and Lex had a contingency if things were going sour he would be able to be teleported out just like Lex did three years ago. He comes in out of breath and sweaty. Lex is present in the office alongside Calculator as the two are discussing something with a hologram of Iron Heights Prison on the table. As Evil Star approaches them, Calculator shuts off the hologram and his eyes meet Evil Star’s.
Evil Star: “You did not tell me the entire Justice League would be present, Luthor! You told me only Green Lantern would show up and that I would be able to finish what I started three years ago!”
Evil Star’s eyes start glowing red and he balls his fist, only to be stopped by Calculator of all people.
Kuttler: “Easy there, big guy. Your mission might not have been a success, but ours was.”
Evil Star’s eyes start to go back to normal and he first takes a look at Calculator which then shifts to Luthor in a confused way.
Evil Star: “What is he talking about?”
“The Injustice League was sent there to steal a rare form of Kryptonite with a silver glow to it. Your personal mission was to kill the Green Lantern and settle the score. That was not the real mission however.”
Evil Star: “Explain. Now.”
“You were just a distraction. You see, we suspected that Batman had gotten word about my plans of bringing together a group of supervillains. To make sure my plans would stay a secret, I needed a distraction. I needed to make sure Batman and the League thought either they defeated this group of supervillains, or that I had nothing to do with it. Since I never got a visit from the League, my plan worked.”
Evil Star: “I was just a distraction?! Me?! The destroyer of worlds was a distraction?!”
“For the greater good. Because of your distraction, the Flash wasn’t present in his hometown, Central City. Located in Central City is Iron Heights Prison which houses some of the most dangerous criminals this country has ever seen. An associate of mine who goes by the Key managed to slip into Iron Heights with the Flash gone and freed two contacts of Calculator here who were willing to join my Legion. Giganta and Weather Wizard. They will be of great assistance to our cause, all thanks to you, my friend.”
Evil Star looks perplexed. He feels betrayed. Used by someone he considered kind and helpful to his cause.
“The mission overall was a success, and you are free to leave now. Enjoy destroying worlds and Green Lanterns.”
Evil Star: “No. You don’t just get to use me, Luthor. I want something in return for what you made me do. I want in on your Legion. Let me be a part of this, and I can assure you that with the right team members, I will destroy Green Lantern, and the rest of his puny Justice League.”
Lex notices Calculator wants to speak up to the supervillain but he raises his hand, indicating he’ll take care of this.
“Meet me back here in thirty minutes and we’ll discuss your place on my Legion. Fair enough?”
Evil Star grunts. “Fair enough.”
Evil Star turns around and leaves the office. As soon as he’s out the door, Calculator turns towards Lex.
Kuttler: “He doesn’t fit in our plan at all, Lex. How are you going to fix this?”
“Relax, Kuttler. I’ve already taken precautions on this. Have Sinestro and Ivy come to me asap.”
Thirty minutes pass by and Evil Star makes his way back to Luthor’s office. He thinks to himself, with these resources and better people, I can make the Green Lanterns suffer. Take out the entire Justice League as well, and when that’s done I’ll be able to destroy this puny world. And I’ll make sure Luthor goes down with it. He enters the office and there sits Lex alone at a table near the window. A kettle and two cups are on the table as well, shining in the light of the moon.
“Ah, right on time. Please, take a seat. And take off your helmet. Get comfortable.”
Evil Star does exactly that and places his helmet next to him on the table. He keeps staring at Luthor while Luthor in turn keeps looking at the moon. Evil Star’s eyes turn red again and he slams his fist on the table.
Evil Star: “Well? Are we getting to it?”
Lex looks away from the moon and looks at Evil Star. He’s not afraid of red eyes. He’s seen them often enough.
“Talks like these shouldn’t be rushed. We should take our time to evaluate your potential position on this team. Cup of tea?”
It sounds more like a command than a question. Evil Star looks at the kettle and back at Lex, giving him a single nod. Lex pours some tea into the cups on the table and raises his.
“To new opportunities.”
Evil Star takes his cup and meets Lex’s.
“To the Legion.”
Evil Star takes a sip of the tea and puts the cup down.
Evil Star: “Now. Where shall we s- st-.”
At that point Evil Star starts to cough and he starts gasping for air. His eyes are tearing up as his eyes turn red. Not from any kind of energy, but from the small veins popping as he’s suffocating. He manages to speak a single word.
Evil Star: “H- H- How?”
As Evil Star collapses to the ground, Lex stands up and walks over to him. He sees Evil Star looking at him with wide eyes, still gasping for air.
“You see, Evil Star. You were never intended on joining my Legion of Doom. You just wouldn’t fit in. Now of course, I know what you can do and all, and I’d like to keep this planet whole if you don’t mind. I knew that if you were rejected you would seek revenge. What better revenge for a planet killer than to destroy the planet? I don’t think so.”
Lex kneels down next to Evil Star as foam is coming out of his mouth.
“I heard you were indestructible. Guess what I heard was wrong. A good friend of mine told me that you had one weakness. Something called the Starheart. Sinestro was really kind in giving me that information.”
Evil Star’s eyes widen further upon hearing that name.
“Then I had Black Manta, a master scavenger, find a piece of the Starheart. Believe me, it wasn’t an easy find. You know how much I had to pay the man? Absurd! With that piece of the Starheart, Doctor Pamela Isley, a genius when it comes to poisons and toxins, and myself managed to turn it into a poison, which I casually slipped into your cup right before your arrival.”
Lex keeps watching as Evil Star’s gasps for breath go slower and slower.
“You are able to destroy entire planets, but you’re not even able to handle a cup of tea. Now that’s not someone who I need on my Legion. Consider your application denied, Evil Star.”
And with that Evil Star draws his last breath. Lex stands up leaving the lifeless body next to the table. He exits his office where Mercy Graves and Calculator are waiting for him. Lex motions for Mercy to go inside and clean the mess up while he and Calculator walk down the hall.
Kuttler: “How did it go?”
“All according to plan. Make sure to give Ivy a potted plant as a thank you gift.”
Kuttler: “I’ll keep it in mind. So what’s our next objective.”
Lex smirks.
“Time to go to war.”
THE END
A General Purpose Machine Gunner(GPMG) from The 1st Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (1PWRR) during Exercise Bavarian Charger.
The exercise was the first of three large contingency operation exercises being undertaken by 20th Armoured Brigade between May – October 2013.
The aim of this exercise is to train the 5 Rifles, The Queens Dragoon Guards (QDG) Battle Groups and 1 Logistic Support Regiment in combined arms manoeuvre.
The exercise is split into 3 main phases. The first phase consists of a two week live firing exercise in Grafenwoer, Southern Germany, that enables the units and soldiers to refine their skills with their equipment and weapons. Training is constructed to develop skills from the individual level through to the Battlegroup level and culminates in a final attack that sees the use of helicopters, tanks, artillery and infantry combined.
The second phase will see all the exercising units transition from Grafenwoer to Hohnfels, some 100 km further south and simulates the kind of movements that are undertaken when moving an Armed force into hostile territory.
The third, and final phase is designed to test the planning and execution of combined arms manoeuvre operations in a hostile environment. The units will execute orders based on the delivery of Brigade Orders to defeat the enemy within the scenario.
2100 personnel with upto 768 vehicles ranging from Landrover, to Tanks to Apache helicopters are being exercised from 20th Armoured Brigade whose Headquarters are based in Sennelager, Germany. Approximately 500 personnel are required to support those training to ensure that supplies are maintained, vehicles are fixed and soldiers fed.
NOTE TO DESKS:
MoD release authorised handout images.
All images remain crown copyright.
Photo credit to read - Cpl Wes Calder RLC
Email: wescalder@mediaops.army.mod.uk
richardwatt@mediaops.army.mod.uk
shanewilkinson@mediaops.army.mod.uk
Richard Watt - 07836 515306
Shane Wilkinson - 07901 590723
-------------------------------------------------------
© Crown Copyright 2014
Photographer: Cpl Wes Calder RLC
Image 45158228.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk
Use of this image is subject to the terms and conditions of the MoD News Licence at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk/fotoweb/20121001_Crown_copyrigh...
For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence
Follow us:
A C-17 Globemaster III pilot assigned to the 437th Airlift Wing dons his headphones at North Auxiliary Airfield in North, S.C., Feb. 12, 2019. The pilot took part in exercise Crescent Moon, an annual training event, aimed at maintaining the readiness of Transportation Command and Air Mobility Command contingency response efforts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Joshua Maund)
STS-126 Pilot Eric Boe holds a Contingency Water Container (CWC) on the Middeck (MDDK) of the orbiter Endeavour. Image was taken during Expedition 18 / STS-126 joint operations.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: s126e007957
Date: November 17, 2008
Recently I tried a new 35mm film in my newly purchased Nikon F3 camera. There were several things that attracted me to this film:
1. It is a very fine grain C41 colour film originally produced by Eastman Kodak for industrial aerial photography.
2. Each roll of 36 exposures is hand-rolled into the film cannister, and this always leads to the possibility of some imperfections such as minor light leaks. But this is the wonderful thing about the contingencies of film photography.
When I show you some of my photographs, I think you will agree that the colour rendition is superb with an excellent dynamic range.
This is indeed a film that pairs perfectly with the Nikon F3.
AERO 100 35mm film is distributed in Australia by Walkens House of Film.
walkens.com.au/products/aero-100-35mm
AERO 100 - Kodak Aerocolor IV 2460 |
The panel discusses contingency plans in the event of energy systems breakdowns.
For more information, including audio and video files, go to csis.org/event/preparing-unthinkable-joint-crisis-leaders...
U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Zachary Brunk, a landing support specialist with Combat Logistics Battalion 11, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), captures images while riding in an MV-22 Osprey during a fly-over of Wake Island in the Pacific Ocean, May 23, 2019. The Marines and Sailors of the 11th MEU are deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations to support regional stability, reassure partners and allies, and maintain a presence postured to respond to any crisis ranging from humanitarian assistance to contingency operations (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Dalton S. Swanbeck)
U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Gabriel Materas, 144th Fighter Wing crew chief from Fresno Air National Guard Base, California, fuels a United Kingdom Royal Air Force Lockheed Martin C-130J "Super Hercules" during Red Flag-Alaska 18-3 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, Aug. 13, 2018. In RF-A 18-3 U.S. Army and Navy aviators in addition to Air Force Airmen are expected to fly, maintain and support more than 100 aircraft from more than a dozen units during this iteration of the exercise.
Another portrait of Adrienne O'Leary from the Janis Claxton Dance Company performing 'Chaos and Contingency' in the Grand Gallery of National Museum of Scotland on Saturday.
This event was part of the Edinburgh Science Festival.
You can find out more about this year's science festival here:
You can find out more about Janis Claxton's Dance Company, here:
You can see more shots from this event at these links:
My thanks are due to Frances Sutton from Edinburgh Science Festival, Esme Haigh from National Museum of Scotland and Janis Claxton.
SOUTH CHINA SEA (Oct. 3, 2014) Aviation Boatswain's Mate Airman Nathan Hailey, from Atlanta, Georgia, launches an MV-22 Osprey, assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) Aviation Combat Element (ACE), from the flight deck of amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) while underway to participate in Amphibious Landing Exercise (PHIBLEX) 2015. PHIBLEX is an annual, bilateral training exercise conducted by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, U.S. Marines and Navy to strengthen interoperability across a range of capabilities to include disaster relief and contingency operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dustin Knight/Released)
It was foggy out this morning and M took A to school (and little M to go walk) so I rode the motorcycle and got a few shots on the way to work. I had a contingency plan for fog (since I didn't have much time). I love the way fog mutes and isolates scenes, but I don't get that many chances to shoot in it, so I'm happy I had 5 extra minutes this morning.
I knew I wanted these trees on Raab road since they are trimmed to avoid the powerlines and the trimming makes them look awkward and strange (in a good way), but the powerlines always ruin the shot (which wouldn't exist if it were not for the power lines... hmmm). I also got a shot out of the bedroom window (in case the fog lifted before I left.) and a few in the cemetery on Raab.
Two Lockheed Martin F-35B "Lightning II's" with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 211 “Wake Island Avengers,” 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, taxi the runway after landing at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev., July 5. A total of 10 aircraft and more than 250 Marines with VMFA-211 will participate in Red Flag 17-3, a realistic combat training exercise hosted by the U.S. Air Force to assess the squadron’s ability to deploy and support contingency operations using the F-35B. Red Flag 17-3 begins July 10 and ends July 28.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Lockheed Martin F-35 "Lightning II" is a family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather, stealth, fifth-generation, multirole combat aircraft, designed for ground-attack and air-superiority missions. It is built by Lockheed Martin and many subcontractors, including Northrop Grumman, Pratt & Whitney, and BAE Systems.
The F-35 has three main models: the conventional takeoff and landing F-35A (CTOL), the short take-off and vertical-landing F-35B (STOVL), and the catapult-assisted take-off but arrested recovery, carrier-based F-35C (CATOBAR). The F-35 descends from the Lockheed Martin X-35, the design that was awarded the "Joint Strike Fighter" (JSF) program over the competing Boeing X-32. The official Lightning II name has proven deeply unpopular and USAF pilots have nicknamed it Panther, instead.
The United States principally funds F-35 development, with additional funding from other NATO members and close U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Australia, Canada, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, and formerly Turkey. These funders generally receive subcontracts to manufacture components for the aircraft; for example, Turkey was the sole supplier of several F-35 parts until its removal from the program in July 2019. Several other countries have ordered, or are considering ordering, the aircraft.
As the largest and most expensive military program ever, the F-35 became the subject of much scrutiny and criticism in the U.S. and in other countries. In 2013 and 2014, critics argued that the plane was "plagued with design flaws", with many blaming the procurement process in which Lockheed was allowed "to design, test, and produce the F-35 all at the same time," instead of identifying and fixing "defects before firing up its production line". By 2014, the program was "$163 billion over budget [and] seven years behind schedule". Critics also contend that the program's high sunk costs and political momentum make it "too big to kill".
The F-35 first flew on 15 December 2006. In July 2015, the United States Marines declared its first squadron of F-35B fighters ready for deployment. However, the DOD-based durability testing indicated the service life of early-production F-35B aircraft is well under the expected 8,000 flight hours, and may be as low as 2,100 flight hours. Lot 9 and later aircraft include design changes but service life testing has yet to occur. The U.S. Air Force declared its first squadron of F-35As ready for deployment in August 2016. The U.S. Navy declared its first F-35Cs ready in February 2019. In 2018, the F-35 made its combat debut with the Israeli Air Force.
The U.S. stated plan is to buy 2,663 F-35s, which will provide the bulk of the crewed tactical airpower of the U.S. Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps in coming decades. Deliveries of the F-35 for the U.S. military are scheduled until 2037 with a projected service life up to 2070.
Development
F-35 development started in 1992 with the origins of the "Joint Strike Fighter" (JSF) program and was to culminate in full production by 2018. The X-35 first flew on 24 October 2000 and the F-35A on 15 December 2006.
The F-35 was developed to replace most US fighter jets with the variants of a single design that would be common to all branches of the military. It was developed in co-operation with a number of foreign partners, and, unlike the F-22 "Raptor", intended to be available for export. Three variants were designed: the F-35A (CTOL), the F-35B (STOVL), and the F-35C (CATOBAR). Despite being intended to share most of their parts to reduce costs and improve maintenance logistics, by 2017, the effective commonality was only 20%. The program received considerable criticism for cost overruns during development and for the total projected cost of the program over the lifetime of the jets.
By 2017, the program was expected to cost $406.5 billion over its lifetime (i.e. until 2070) for acquisition of the jets, and an additional $1.1 trillion for operations and maintenance. A number of design deficiencies were alleged, such as: carrying a small internal payload; performance inferior to the aircraft being replaced, particularly the F-16; lack of safety in relying on a single engine; and flaws such as the vulnerability of the fuel tank to fire and the propensity for transonic roll-off (wing drop). The possible obsolescence of stealth technology was also criticized.
Design
Overview
Although several experimental designs have been developed since the 1960s, such as the unsuccessful Rockwell XFV-12, the F-35B is to be the first operational supersonic STOVL stealth fighter. The single-engine F-35 resembles the larger twin-engined Lockheed Martin F-22 "Raptor", drawing design elements from it. The exhaust duct design was inspired by the General Dynamics Model 200, proposed for a 1972 supersonic VTOL fighter requirement for the Sea Control Ship.
Lockheed Martin has suggested that the F-35 could replace the USAF's F-15C/D fighters in the air-superiority role and the F-15E "Strike Eagle" in the ground-attack role. It has also stated the F-35 is intended to have close- and long-range air-to-air capability second only to that of the F-22 "Raptor", and that the F-35 has an advantage over the F-22 in basing flexibility and possesses "advanced sensors and information fusion".
Testifying before the House Appropriations Committee on 25 March 2009, acquisition deputy to the assistant secretary of the Air Force, Lt. Gen. Mark D. "Shack" Shackelford, stated that the F-35 is designed to be America's "premier surface-to-air missile killer, and is uniquely equipped for this mission with cutting-edge processing power, synthetic aperture radar integration techniques, and advanced target recognition".
Improvements
Ostensible improvements over past-generation fighter aircraft include:
Durable, low-maintenance stealth technology, using structural fiber mat instead of the high-maintenance coatings of legacy stealth platforms.
Integrated avionics and sensor fusion that combine information from off- and on-board sensors to increase the pilot's situational awareness and improve target identification and weapon delivery, and to relay information quickly to other command and control (C2) nodes.
High-speed data networking including IEEE 1394b and Fibre Channel (Fibre Channel is also used on Boeing's "Super Hornet".
The Autonomic Logistics Global Sustainment, Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), and Computerized maintenance management system to help ensure the aircraft can remain operational with minimal maintenance manpower The Pentagon has moved to open up the competitive bidding by other companies. This was after Lockheed Martin stated that instead of costing 20% less than the F-16 per flight hour, the F-35 would actually cost 12% more. Though the ALGS is intended to reduce maintenance costs, the company disagrees with including the cost of this system in the aircraft ownership calculations. The USMC has implemented a workaround for a cyber vulnerability in the system. The ALIS system currently requires a shipping-container load of servers to run, but Lockheed is working on a more portable version to support the Marines' expeditionary operations.
Electro-hydrostatic actuators run by a power-by-wire flight-control system.
A modern and updated flight simulator, which may be used for a greater fraction of pilot training to reduce the costly flight hours of the actual aircraft.
Lightweight, powerful lithium-ion batteries to provide power to run the control surfaces in an emergency.
Structural composites in the F-35 are 35% of the airframe weight (up from 25% in the F-22). The majority of these are bismaleimide and composite epoxy materials. The F-35 will be the first mass-produced aircraft to include structural nanocomposites, namely carbon nanotube-reinforced epoxy. Experience of the F-22's problems with corrosion led to the F-35 using a gap filler that causes less galvanic corrosion to the airframe's skin, designed with fewer gaps requiring filler and implementing better drainage. The relatively short 35-foot wingspan of the A and B variants is set by the F-35B's requirement to fit inside the Navy's current amphibious assault ship parking area and elevators; the F-35C's longer wing is considered to be more fuel efficient.
Costs
A U.S. Navy study found that the F-35 will cost 30 to 40% more to maintain than current jet fighters, not accounting for inflation over the F-35's operational lifetime. A Pentagon study concluded a $1 trillion maintenance cost for the entire fleet over its lifespan, not accounting for inflation. The F-35 program office found that as of January 2014, costs for the F-35 fleet over a 53-year lifecycle was $857 billion. Costs for the fighter have been dropping and accounted for the 22 percent life cycle drop since 2010. Lockheed stated that by 2019, pricing for the fifth-generation aircraft will be less than fourth-generation fighters. An F-35A in 2019 is expected to cost $85 million per unit complete with engines and full mission systems, inflation adjusted from $75 million in December 2013.
Approaching the USS Midway (CV-41) from astern in the Gulf of Oman in February 1981. Note the huge overhang of the angled flight deck on the port side.
USS Midway (CVB/CVA/CV-41) was an aircraft carrier of the US Navy, the lead ship of her class, and the first to be commissioned after the end of WWII. Active in Operation Desert Storm, she is now a museum ship in San Diego, CA. She is the only remaining aircraft carrier of the WWII era that is not an Essex-class ship.
Midway was laid down 27 October 1943 by Newport News Shipbuilding Co., Newport News, VA. Her revolutionary hull design was based on what would have been the Montana-class battleships and gave her superior maneuverability over all previous carriers. On 17 August 1980, Midway relieved Constellation to begin another Indian Ocean deployment and to complement the Dwight D Eisenhower (CVN-69) task group still on contingency duty in the Arabian Sea. Midway spent a total of 118 days in the Indian Ocean during 1980/81. On 25 March 1986, the final carrier launching of a Fleet F-4S Phantom II took place off Midway during flight operations in the East China Sea.
Midway was decommissioned at NAS North Island on 11 April 1992 in a ceremony in which the main speaker was then-Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney. On 30 September 2003, Midway moved from the Navy Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility, Bremerton, WA en route to San Diego, CA for use as a museum and memorial. She was opened to the public on 7 June 2004. In its first year of operation, the museum doubled attendance projections by welcoming 879,281 guests aboard. Visitors may tour the ship's flight deck, hangar bay, mess hall, bridge, primary flight control area, enlisted and junior officer quarters, sickbay, and portions of the engine rooms. Additionally, several restored aircraft are on display in the hangar and on the flight deck. Self-guided audio tours are provided with admission. Events and meetings are held on board as well. Five to six evening events are held aboard Midway every week. Midway now books events three years in advance.
SCORE San Felipe 250 [Baja, Mexico]
Contingency Row - Downtown on the Malecon
FRIDAY, February 26, 2016
Pictured are two soldiers of 1PWRR ascending stairs during house clearing drills.
Soldiers from the 1st Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (1 PWRR), conduct house clearance and contact drills within the Urban Defence Training Area (UDTA) of Sennelager Training Centre.
The 1st Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment (1 PWRR) is the very high readiness Armoured Infantry Battalion, as part of 20 Armoured Infantry Brigade. Known in the larger Army as a Reaction Force, 1 PWRR will provide a force that will undertake short notice contingency tasks and provide the Army’s conventional deterrence for Defence.
1 PWRR is trained and equipped to undertake the full spectrum of intervention tasks and provide the initial basis for any future lengthy operation. In essence, 1 PWRR will be the tip of the spear.
It is an armoured infantry battalion, known as the Armoured Tigers and is made up of three Warrior companies, a Fire Support Company and Headquarters Company.
As armoured infantry, the majority of our soldiers are mounted in Warrior Infantry Fighting Vehicles. This heavy, metal beast is powered by a 17-litre engine and packs a fearsome punch with its 30mm Rarden cannon and 7.62mm chain gun.
-------------------------------------------------------
© Crown Copyright 2014
Photographer: Mr Dominic King
Image 45163286.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk
Use of this image is subject to the terms and conditions of the MoD News Licence at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk/fotoweb/20121001_Crown_copyrigh...
For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence
Follow us:
The guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG 105), left, receives fuel from the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) during a fueling-at-sea (FAS) in the Philippine Sea April 12, 2018. The Wasp and its expeditionary strike group (ESG) are operating in the Indo-Pacific region to enhance interoperability with partners, serve as a ready-response force for any type of contingency and advance the up-gunned ESG concept. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Taylor King)www.dvids.hub.net
A Marine with 1st Recon Battalion, 1st Marine Division, participates in sniper training as part of Exercise Iron Fist 2015 aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Jan. 27, 2015. Exercise Iron Fist is an annual bilateral training exercise between U.S. and Japanese military forces that builds their combined ability to conduct amphibious and land-based contingency operations.
I'm seriously sick to my stomach. I just read this article about all these beautiful horses that died in a horrendous fire. It's hard to believe the facility didn't have a contingency plan or that the CHP will not let people with their animals through when trying to escape during mandatory evacuations. It seems to me that conscience. morality and ethics have left the building when it comes to ANIMALS and their care. They are dependent on people for their food, water and survival. It is unfathomable to me, that anyone who owns a horse, dog or cat, could willingly leave them behind in a locked building or training facility to burn to death. It, to me is tantamount to murder and excuses to the contrary or justifications for their abandonment is just that: an exculpatory attempt that fails.
These are living, breathing and beautiful creatures who deserve life and the preservation of life when "owned" or considered "property" by any person and should be just as valuable as anyone else told to evacuate.
www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-horses-deaths-update-20...
My thoughts and prayers go to Trainer Martine Bellocq who suffered 2nd and 3rd degree burns attempting to save horses.
Breyer Foal, ASMUS horses, Photographed in the Regent Horse-Barn by Ken Haseltine (www.regentminiatures.com).
Visit: www.myfarrah.com.
Farrah is on facebook www.facebook.com/FLFawcett. On Tumblr at; farrahlenifawcett.tumblr.com. Join Farrah on Instagram at www.instagram.com/farrahlfawcett. On pinterest at www.pinterest.com/myfarrah/
Photo/Graphic Layout & web sites ncruz.com & myfarrah.com by www.stevemckinnis.com.
Timer, 3 seconds, desk light diffused through a tissue. The arm on the table was less pose than pause. Compositionally, it’s about containment, how much space a face can fill before it stops feeling like one.
One of 14 F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 18th Agressor Squadron takes off from Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, shortly after sunrise Jan. 17, 2015, in transit to Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, and Andersen Air Force Base, Guam to participate in the CENTURY ALOHA and COPE NORTH exercises. More than 150 maintainers will keep the Agressors in the air during the exercises, which are meant to prepare U.S. Airmen, Sailors and Marines along with coalition partners in the Pacific theater of operations for contingency operations if the need arises. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Karen J. Tomasik/Released)
From www.artic.edu/artexplorer/search.php?tab=2&resource=65:
Will the apples fall off the table? Explore the tension between stability and imbalance in this late still life by Cezanne.
Many of Paul Cézanne's late still lifes depict complex arrangements whose artificial character underscores the artist's role as contriver. They are, however, very different from the seventeenth-century Dutch prototypes to which they are sometimes compared. Cézanne never aimed at illusionism, and his still-life compositions can be anthropomorphic, expressive of psychological tension, in ways never dreamt of by his Baroque predecessors.
The Basket of Apples exemplifies this effect. The theatrical tilt of the basket implies that the apples on the tabletop have rolled out of it; yet the way they huddle and nestle in the crumpled napkin suggests that they possess independent minds. The biscuits on a plate are carefully stacked, but they too seem animate, as if straining to take in the drama unfolding before them. The bottle—slightly askew and off center, teasingly close to stabilizing union with the picture's upper edge—presides over the scene like a dark sentinel. Poised between resolution and imbalance, sensation and ponderation, The Basket of Apples makes tangible the complex eye-mind interplay that determines visual experience.
Cézanne's grave attentiveness to this dynamic gives his art a philosophical cast, but the pleasures afforded by his robust color chords, lively touch, and sure compositional instincts make it seductive. Here, his considered juxtapositions of autumnal hues, like the resolutely disjointed table edges and intentionally "unfinished" contours, draw attention to the deliberative nature of art-making.
Cézanne's determination to recognize the provisional nature of perception derives from Impressionism, but his stress on the tension between optical sensation and aesthetic transformation sets him apart. In his mature work, he found beauty of a new kind in the inherently charged dialogue between contingency and contemplation, thereby facilitating the more radical break with realistic representation effected by the Cubists and other modernists in the early twentieth century.
An examination of Cezanne's dynamic composition of fruit and objects in this still life from the mid-1890s.
Paul Cezanne spent most of his working life in and around the southern French city of Aix-en-Provence and, partially as a result of his self-imposed isolation, was for many years all but unknown in Paris. In 1895, he was persuaded by the dealer Ambroise Vollard to have a one-man show in Paris. The exhibition, held at Vollard's popular gallery, was not an important financial success, but it had a profound effect on the history of French art. It was the first time in nearly twenty years that French artists who had heard about this painter from Provence could actually see his work. Basket of Apples was among the paintings selected by Cezanne and Vollard for inclusion in this exhibition. Like several of the other paintings in the exhibition, it was signed, most probably at the insistence of Vollard, who felt that an unsigned painting might be considered unfinished and, hence, would fail to sell. Cezanne grudgingly complied, and, for that reason, the paintings in the Vollard exhibition are among the few the artist actually signed.
Basket of Apples is among Cezanne's "baroque" still lifes painted in the late 1880's and 1890's. Its pictorial structure derives from seventeenth-century Dutch still lifes. Like the Dutch artists, Cezanne sought to establish a dynamic, asymmetrical arrangement of objects that are held in place only by the painter's compositional skills. Yet, where such an effect of imbalance was merely a compositional device of the Dutch painters, it was an essential element of Cezanne's conception of the still life. Cezanne recognized the fact that the artist is not bound to represent real objects in real space. He was able, therefore, to impart to everything a strength and relative position that could not possibly be duplicated in an actual studio arrangement.
Here, the basket filled with apples tilts improbably on a small base or stand, its contents held in check only by a bottle and a cloth, in whose complex, craggy folds lie many other pieces of fruit. The table, like virtually every one in a Cezanne still life, has four edges that cannot be aligned to form an exact rectangle. At the raised upper right corner of the table, the artist created a latticed "log-cabin" of the French pastry called dents de loup, contrasting the informal and unstable arrangement of the circular apples on the table with the architectonic stack of cookies. Both arrangements vie for dominance around the central form of the bottle, which, with its own silhouette shifting from left to right, acts as an anchor for a composition in endless flux. Thus, the balance that Cezanne achieved is a purely pictorial one: the actual arrangement of objects he painted in his studio could never have possessed the dynamism and tension with which it is endowed in Basket of Apples.
soft window light of early spring. berlin.
many say this place makes the best coffee in town. they focus on their coffee so much that there is hardly any place to sit. put ten people in it and it is already overcrowded.
leica m4
leitz wetzlar summaron 35mm f3.5
kodak tri-x 400 in ilford ilfotec lc29 1+19
A British Warrior Armoured Infantry Fighting vehicle patrolling down the live firing range in Grafenwöhr, Germany.
Exercise BAVARIAN CHARGER was the first of three large contingency operation exercises being undertaken by 20th Armoured Brigade between May – October 2013. Contingency Operations training is known as Hybrid Foundation Training or HFT.
The aim of this exercise was to train the 5 Rifles, The Queens Dragoon Guards (QDG) Battle Groups and 1 Logistic Support Regiment in combined arms manoeuvre.
-------------------------------------------------------
© Crown Copyright 2013
Photographer: Cpl Wes Calder RLC
Image 45155715.jpg from www.defenceimages.mod.uk
This image is available for high resolution download at www.defenceimagery.mod.uk subject to the terms and conditions of the Open Government License at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/. Search for image number 45155715.jpg
For latest news visit www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-defence
Follow us:
The panel discusses contingency plans in the event of energy systems breakdowns.
For more information, including audio and video files, go to csis.org/event/preparing-unthinkable-joint-crisis-leaders...
And I mean this literally.
I took my son to the Great Forest Park Balloon Race's "Glow" in the park last night. We took Ron and Pam with us, since this was like a late present for my son's birthday, and the fact that there would be some great photo ops.
Well, the plans were good, but the execution was disastrous. To start with, they do not have anywhere near enough parking to cover the crowd of what I am guessing was 60-70 thousand people. Now I could be off by a bit, but we entered the park around 6 pm and I dropped Ron, Pam and Aden near the Jewel Box, relatively close to the 'glow', so they would not have to wait to find a spot to park, or would not have to walk as far. HUGE mistake.
I drove through the park at an average speed of 0.1 miles per hour (that is on the generous side, i promise) and circled one parking area inside over 3 times. There was no way out, Once you were inside, you were stuck moving one direction. I finally decided to cut through the grass in one spot to get outta there. Finally at around 7 pm I pulled back out of the park onto a major road. I drove one and a half miles in the next 33 minutes to find a parking spot over a mile away from the event (Barnes Jewish Hospital - South Garage Entrance).
I walked to the glow, where massive crowds had gathered, trying to find the rest of my party. After much wandering, and not much picture taking, I went up the the Jewel Box area where I had dropped them off. No luck.
So back to the balloon glow. Now, if you have never been to one of these, after dark the only time you can really see anything is when this siren goes off, and all the balloons just the hot flames into the balloons to light them up. Once that is done, everything is impossible to see. It is like being in a bright room and shutting off the lights. Still no luck.
So as they start to deflate the balloons, I headed back to the Jewel Box. (Guy thing says "go back to where you dropped them" and this time it paid off. I finally spotted my friends and my son. We made the mile and a half walk back to the car and left. My son said he had a good time, I just regret that I was not able to spend it with him. I had almost reached the point of panic when I found them.
I know he was in good hands, but their transportation was me. If you ever decide to attend an event like this, just do me a favor and make sure you plan much better than I did, and make sure you have a contingency plan in case things go awry.
Happy Balloon Glow.
Without passion, there can be no spirituality. Without spirituality, there is no soul. Give me soul.
🎨 Original Artwork
Oil on Stretched Canvas 30x24
Rock-n-Soul Angels
"Send Me An Angel" Scorpions Accoustica
www.youtube.com/watch?v=53ZQ8cIE_6Q
￦A￦
The Hippie Angel just may have gotten her "soul" on as the man on the moon blows a kiss.
This piece was loosely based on a dream about an Angel that I had when I was around seventeen years old. Fast forward to 2016, this is my interpretation.
To me:
"[I would never find inner peace outside myself or until I could release my fears that were holding me back from a heavenly life.
One cannot find love or peace with the contingency of another person, a location, or an ideal situation. Peace and love originates internally within oneself or not at all.]"