View allAll Photos Tagged Refining
Refine your vision !
Photography Service 📷
___
Photo by @refinephoto.id
Product : @jts_id
Model : @handrikonaftali
Australasian Sugar Refining Company complex 1891, 1899 at conversion to apartments in the 1980s.
Designers: Hyndman and Bates.
.
`The site of the factory was included in Section 2B [of the original Port Melbourne survey], which was surveyed into four allotments early in the history of Sandridge. By November 1860 three of these had been purchased by A. Ross, joining William Jones, S.G. Henty and P. Lalor as owners of the section (2)..
.
In February 1890, the Melbourne Tram and Omnibus Company Limited, had stables, offices, land and an omnibus repository on the section.(3) [Most of the present buildings on the site date from 1891, when the Australasian Sugar Refining Company established a refinery.(4)] On the MMBW detail plan dated 1894, the section is labelled 'sugar works' and the configuration of buildings approximately conforms with the present layout. [The refinery was closed in 1894 following its purchase by the Colonial Sugar Refining Company as part of a move to strengthen its monopoly.].
.
[In 1899, Robert Harper and Company Pty Ltd converted the buildings to a starch factory, and various brick additions were constructed to designs by Hyndman and Bates, architects.(5)] When the sewerage was connected in 1899, a plan was drawn by the architects and this closely resembles the 1894 MMBW detail plan configuration. (6) .
.
The buildings .. form the major part of the original factory complex on the site, one of the largest nineteenth century industrial sites in Victoria. The complex as a whole is significant for its large size and range of building types. The dramatic massing and height of the 9 Beach Street buildings gives them additional importance as local landmarks as viewed both from the surrounding streets and the sea..
.
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS.
The former Australasian Sugar Refining Company and Robert Harper starch factory complex can be compared with a number of other large nineteenth century industrial complexes in Melbourne. These include the former Yorkshire Brewery, Wellington Street, Collingwood (from 1876), the former Victoria Brewery, Victoria Parade, East Melbourne (established 1854), the former Kimpton's Flour Mill, Elizabeth Street, Kensington, the Thomas Brunt flour mill and Brockhoff and T.B. Guest biscuit factories complex, Laurens and Munster Streets, North Melbourne (from 1888-9) and the Joshua Bros (now CSR) sugar refinery, Whitehall Street, Yarraville (established 1873). All of these are representative of the development in Victoria of the manufacture of foodstuffs and related raw materials. Of these, the CSR refinery is the most directly comparable in terms of original function and the scale and massing of the buildings. Established significantly earlier than the Port Melbourne refinery, the site is larger and more intact..
.
In the local context, the only other surviving industrial site of comparable scale is the Swallow and Ariell Biscuit Factory complex (q.v.). This complex is of state significance, and is considerably earlier, with parts dating from the 1850s. The predominantly two- and three-storey buildings, however, are of a different type to the former refinery and starch factory buildings..
Allom Lovell and Associates 1995 cite Jacobs Lewis Vines. Port Melbourne Conservation Study:.
Sugar refining began in Greenock in 1765. John Walker began a sugar refinery in Greenock in 1850 followed by the prominent local cooper and shipowner Abram Lyle who, with four partners, purchased the Glebe Sugar Refinery in 1865
Commonwealth Oil Refining Company, Inc. (CORCO) was an oil refinery established in the towns of Peñuelas and Guayanilla in Puerto Rico in the middle of the 20th century. The project started as part of Operation Bootstrap with the first unit being constructed in 1954. The company started operations in 1955 and was finally incorporated on May 19, 1963. Corco represented an investment of $25 million and had the capacity to refine 23,500 barrels (3,740 m3) of oil daily. Hugo David Storer Tavarez was one of the men in charge of the CORCO being established in Puerto Rico.
The refinery is located in an 800-acre (3.2 km2) site, and consists of numerous storage tanks and waste treatment units typical of petroleum refineries. CORCO has been inactive since 1982, and now functions as a terminal for the marine transportation and land-based storage of crude oil and petroleum products.
After the refinery ceased operations, an entity called Desarrollo Integral del Sur (South Integral Development) began developing a long-term plan for the reuse of the terrains and properties.
The following is an account of Lake Hart published in 1947 -
Although for long it has been deserted, Lake Hart, on the lonely mulga plains, has Australia's Prize Salt Deposit.
Standing beside the transcontinental railway, 137 miles [219 kilometres] from Port Augusta, is a 7,000 tons dump of the best quality salt in Australia. Behind it, stretching far northwards, is Lake Hart, the place from which the salt was taken.
In 1931 this was the scene of a thriving industry. Today, it is forgotten in its isolation amid the mulga plains of the north-west. Lake Hart's importance as a salt deposit first became manifest in 1918 when surveyors investigated its entire area. They estimated the yield as three million tons, and defined the lake's area as 61 square miles.
Following these observations, the Sydney firm which owned the deposit - the Commonwealth Salt Refining Company - began preliminary operations with a few men.
Small quantities of salt were harvested and bagged for testing purposes. At this stage no refining plant had been installed, and the salt was sent to Adelaide for refining. The finished product proved so successful that the CSRC immediately launched large-scale operations. They installed a refining plant, and employed more than 50 men. The employees camped at the site and depended for their stores on the Commonwealth Railway's weekly food train.
Salt was harvested by day and refined continuously by shift workers.
Harvesting methods then were slow and cumbersome compared with present day methods. Sweepers first swept the water forward to the elevated catchment pens, each of which was 300 ft long by 150 ft wide.
When the salt had been deposited on the floor, the water was allowed to flow back into the lake, leaving the salt banked in and around the pens. The salt was then swept up and loaded into carrying carts, which were towed to the nearby refining plant.
Driving power for the plant was supplied by a gas producer engine. At first a Crossley type of 35 hp was used, but as production accelerated, a large Hornsby engine of 50 hp was added. These two engines may still be seen among the skeleton plant which remains at the lake.
The first phase of the salt's refining began when it entered the crushers. For Lake Hart salt, this was a very thorough process, due to the crude product's unusual hardness.
From the crushers it was carried into the washing troughs. Here it was scoured free of all foreign matter and, after a series of swillings was passed into the dehydrator.
When this machine had evaporated all water from the now whitened grain, the salt entered its final process - the drying oven.
This machine dried out all moisture and at the same time killed any remaining germ life, before discharging the finished product.
Such refineries were, of course, greatly inferior to present day establishments, such as those on Yorke Peninsula. Here, the sea water itself passes through several evaporation condensers before the salt is extricated for a complicated refining. But with Lake Hart's pure quality salt extensive refining was not necessary.
Few facilities existed to enable workers to negotiate the obstacles of outback industrial settlement. One employee crossed the lake in a flat-bottomed boat to ascertain the salt content on the opposite shore. He sailed across, but had to row 15 miles on the return trip. Today, people of the north-west give him the honour of being Lake Hart's conqueror.
Extreme difficulty was experienced from the late summer downpours which are prevalent in this area. During these storms the lake often became flooded, rendering harvesting impossible. However, the company had prepared for such emergencies. Huge reserve dumps had been heaped in readiness, and refining was not hampered.
For several years Lake Hart yielded 9,000 tons annually. Most of the salt was shipped to Sydney, where it was distributed for edible and industrial uses.
Commercial users throughout Australia were elated with the quality. Housewives discovered that, in actual saltiness, the Lake Hart product was twice as strong as any other.
The biggest asset that the salt had was its freedom from gypsum. This was, and still is, a very rare credential. All other main Australian sources are handicapped by gypsum content, which not only reduces quality, but enforces excessive work and cost during the refining process.
In 1921 the company amalgamated with the Australian Salt Company. The firm experienced great difficulties in obtaining water for refining purposes, its only supplies coming from occasional supply trains. Further, the isolated position created problems in the delivery of the refined product. These difficulties were the chief reasons for the cessation of harvesting in 1931.
Yorke Peninsula refineries were supplying more than enough salt for the State's use, and, although the quality was greatly inferior to that of Lake Hart, it was considered unpayable to continue work on the lake. To Australia, its closing meant a decrease in the quality of salt in use: but the quantity remains plentiful.
Salt is in enormous surplus, not only in Australia, but throughout the world. Our own refinery at Price on Yorke Peninsula, for instance, can supply enough salt in six months to last South Australia for five years.
Ever since closing the Lake Hart plant, the Australian Salt Company has employed a caretaker on the premises. The present caretaker has held his lonely job for seven years. His duties are simple. He records the rise and fall of the lake, and is responsible for the maintenance of the depleted plant.
Much of the plant was removed soon after the work ceased, but the catchment pens, crushers and engines remain in readiness for a reopening of the industry.
Last year it was intended to restart the enterprise, but fate ruled otherwise. Heavy rain swelled the lake to such an extent that plans had to be temporarily abandoned.
There is little opportunity for anyone to see Lake Hart. Train tourists can, but as both the East and West bound expresses pass this locality during the night, few see what is Australia's prize salt deposit.
Ref: Advertiser (Adelaide) 6-9-1947 Article by W J Watkins
A digibash of Siege/Earthrise Astrotrain into Armada!Jetfire. Made this one for my pal BobTheDoctor27 a few months back now (plenty of backlog to upload!) since he was fond of some of the Armada toys in his younger days (centuries ago). I’m pretty satisfied with how it came out, and it’s one of the projects that helped refine my technique (between hue shifting into white, which I previously thought difficult, and those Autobot symbols, which weren’t difficult but were rather satisfying). Incidentally, the head is in fact from the original Armada Jetfire toy.
The original image used is from reflector.tfw2005.com, whilst the head is from the galleries on seibertron.com.
We heard of Bob Collard when we drove along the then Gunbarrel Highway in our new VW Kombi, in July 1968. He led what are now commonly known as tag-along tours, from Perth to Alice Springs. Most of the vehicles he led were two wheel drive; 4WDs were a bit rare then.
We accompanied John Arnold, who was taking passengers in his Land Cruiser up the Warburton Road to Giles, Ayers Rock and the Alice.
In order to travel through this area, you were required to have access to a Traeger radio. If you didn't own a radio, you would travel in an organised convoy, or with somebody that did.
Bob Collard was stuck on the northern side of the Blackstone ranges (see shot below), with a number of cars in convoy, playing cricket and waiting for the rains to clear and the mud to harden.
We left Perth when we heard he was able to move on.
We were several days behind him, and the ground was still drying out. We finally got seriously bogged a few miles beyond the Giles Creek crossing, within a sigh of relief of the NT border and the Olgas. We retraced our track 800 miles back to Coolgardie, and crossed the Nullarbor on our way to Canberra.
see below!
Mapped approx by sat. image, the road is in the wrong place!
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Traeger
To all of our faithful Friday Five readers
Westprint Contact information:
Email: info@westprint.com.au
This newsletter is only sent to those who subscribe.
About the Friday Five
This weekly newsletter is designed to be informative and entertaining. Wherever possible we try to acknowledge the source of all information contained in this newsletter. We also try to check for accuracy but being a weekly newsletter this is not always possible. We offer no guarantees for accuracy but we do our best.
Traeger’s Pedal Radio
A chance meeting with a young electrician was to solve one of John Flynn's greatest problems in creating the Flying Doctor Service. Flynn had raised enough money to start the service, he knew he could find suitable doctors and aircraft, but he could not overcome the problem of communication. What was the use of a Flying Doctor if the sick and injured of the outback could not contact him in a hurry? The answer was radio, but radio technology in the 1920's was still very primitive. Flynn needed something that had not yet been invented; a simple sturdy radio transmitter-receiver with an in-built power supply. A device anyone could operate under all conditions.
John Flynn was able to enlist the services of radio enthusiast, George Towns, who helped assemble a bulky and complex outfit to be fitted to the back of a new Dodge buckboard (utility). While in Adelaide preparing for a test trip to the outback, Flynn and one of his experts, Harry Kauper, discovered that the two generators supplied with the radio were totally unsatisfactory. The radio-telephone was to be powered by a generator run from Flynn's car engine, but the generators were unsuitable. Kauper remembered that a young electrician, Alf Traeger, might have a suitable replacement. Flynn hurried to Hannan Brother’s workshop, found Traeger and purchased a 600-volt generator.
The radio worked, and Flynn's trip proved that mobile communication was possible. However, Flynn realised that a complicated radio powered by a car engine and a huge generator would be unsuitable for emergency service. Kauper persuaded him to settle for a less complicated radio using Morse code for communication and much less power to run. But even this type of equipment was not available, and Flynn returned to Traeger for help.
Alfred Hermann Traeger was born in the family home at Glenlee, about 25 kilometres from Nhill in the Wimmera district of Western Victoria. Alf, together with his two older sisters and younger brother, were brought up in the traditional German-based Lutheran manner which probably included a German-speaking teacher at the local school. When aged 12, Alf’s family moved back to the old Traeger farm at Balaclava in South Australia. Alf enrolled at the Adelaide School of Mines where he studied engineering. He eventually became an electrical engineer, winding generators at Hannan’s Garage in Wakefield Street in Adelaide. It was here that he first met John Flynn.
John Flynn was an ideas man. He was a tireless worker with an immense vision of the needs of Outback Australia. He knew people died regularly and needlessly in the outback due to lack of access to doctors. John Flynn had a vision of doctors flying quickly to all isolated parts of Australia to provide what he called a ‘Mantle of Safety’ over the bush. Flynn also knew that any idea of connecting isolated station properties by telephone were totally impractical. The cost of building and maintaining telephone lines could not be justified. John Flynn believed radio was the answer and he sensed that Alf Traeger had the ability, the quiet religious zeal and the youthful enthusiasm to help Flynn develop a suitable radio.
During the next two years Traeger helped Flynn with his experiments. One important step was to develop a radio powered from a 32-volt electric lighting plant. These units were becoming popular with farmers requiring power and many thousands were installed in Australia between 1930 and 1950. The first base station was installed at Alice Springs and smaller outpost radios set up at Hermannsburg and Arltunga. After some minor problems, these sets worked satisfactorily for some years. However, the cumbersome radios with their heavy banks of batteries were only suited to stationary situations and Flynn badly wanted a simple portable radio.
Traeger continued to work on the problem and eventually invented a foot-powered generator, pedalled like a bicycle. Radio historian, Mervyn Eunson, claimed that ‘it was Traeger’s inventive genius, his down-to-earth engineering skills, and his experience in winding electrical armatures which set him apart in Australian history as the solitary individual mastermind behind the creation of the unique pedal wireless generator’. Traeger’s mobile pedal radio was ready to go into production.
Within six months Alf Traeger had arranged for an Adelaide engineer to do the difficult job of machining the pedal generator gears. Alf had also worked tirelessly to build ten ‘baby’ radio sets and the 5CL radio station in Adelaide built a base station to serve what was to be the first of John Flynn’s cluster of outpost radios. By mid-1929 Traeger’s pedal radios were being installed in outlying areas around the much larger mother set or base station installed in the church vestry in Cloncurry.
Traeger spent five months installing ten pedal radios and teaching people to operate the Morse-code system. Learning Morse-code was a time-consuming task and in most cases left to the women of the station. One radio was installed in the Birdsville Hospital and operated by the two nurses in attendance. Birdsville was one of the most isolated towns in the outback but the hospital was usually busy due to the number of drovers using the Birdsville Track and the reliance placed on Birdsville by station people. Unfortunately, the hospital radio failed at a critical time when Sister Maude Gilbert developed peritonitis and eventually died.
Alf Traeger was constantly on the move either installing new radios in the bush or working on new modifications in his Adelaide workshop. He soon found that the sets needed to be built in a metal cabinet because white ants quickly ate the wooden ones. Improvements in radio technology also meant that radios constantly needed modification but one of his most difficult problems was to overcome the difficulty station people had with the use of Morse code.
Morse-code was required because the broadcasting of sound took too much power resulting in the need for a very large power supply and radio unit. Traeger also found that he didn’t have time to teach each individual operator but the use of the correct number of dots and dashes was imperative to understanding messages. Traeger puzzled on this problem for some time before conceiving the idea of building a machine to send the code. His machine was ingeniously simple; use a keyboard similar to a typewriter and link each arm to a device which would send the appropriate signal. This new Morse keyboard was successfully used until sound technology became viable in 1935.
Improvements to radio technology brought sound reception and transmission to outpost radios in 1935. Sound also brought about the ‘Galah’ session which started each morning at 7 o’clock, about the time the galahs started waking from their night’s sleep and started screeching in the gum trees. Each morning Sister Amy Bishop, from the Birdsville Hospital, called women from Clifton Hills, Pandi Pandi, The Bluff, Beetoota, Bedourie and Monkira. Each had the opportunity to discuss the common things of life, a pleasure before denied to them. This simple act of communication broke the isolation and loneliness suffered by people in the bush. The Galah session became an institution throughout Australia; a feature of the outback now replaced by, but not improved upon, by the telephone.
When Australia came into World War 2 families operating Traeger transceivers suddenly found that they could pass on vital information, especially when Japanese planes started bombing Darwin and Broome. Isolated homesteads around the northern coast were able to alert army intelligence about waves of bombers flying overhead. Special radio operators were recruited by Major Basil Hall to undertake secret intelligence work along the northern coast and the islands of the Timor Sea. Many of these men carried with them portable Traeger radios. Both men and radios were required to work in appalling conditions.
The Traeger factory continued to develop and refine radios for the outback. Even when most radios were now battery operated improved pedal radios were built especially for drovers and travellers. Twenty specially modified pedal radios were built for use in Nigeria and Traeger’s first portable hand-held two-way radio was built in.
The Flying Doctor flew on his first mission on 17th May 1928, and soon after so many outback folk were demanding the pedal radio that Traeger could not keep up with the demand. Flynn rejoiced, "At last the dumb Inland speaks", even though it was in the stuttering accents of Morse code keyed by amateur hands, including John Flynn himself.
Fifty years later the Flying Doctor's "Mantle of Safety" woven from radio, aviation and medical care, had covered the remotest parts of the outback. The radios have become compact little units that are used as simply as a telephone but they are the direct descendants from Alf Traeger's
Refine your vision !
Jasa photo produk + editing !
Photography Service 📷
___
Photo by @refinephoto.id
Product : Ultra Boost 3.0
Refining my own technique is proving to be challenging, but it's a start. Thank you, beautiful Teena Silverweb, for being my guinea pig! <3
PS - Reflecting on this pic... I would not have done quite so much with the hair, but as I said... It was an experiment. Teena, I promise to try again as I get better! ;)
See more photos of this, and the Wikipedia article.
Details, quoting from Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum | Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird:
No reconnaissance aircraft in history has operated globally in more hostile airspace or with such complete impunity than the SR-71, the world's fastest jet-propelled aircraft. The Blackbird's performance and operational achievements placed it at the pinnacle of aviation technology developments during the Cold War.
This Blackbird accrued about 2,800 hours of flight time during 24 years of active service with the U.S. Air Force. On its last flight, March 6, 1990, Lt. Col. Ed Yielding and Lt. Col. Joseph Vida set a speed record by flying from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., in 1 hour, 4 minutes, and 20 seconds, averaging 3,418 kilometers (2,124 miles) per hour. At the flight's conclusion, they landed at Washington-Dulles International Airport and turned the airplane over to the Smithsonian.
Transferred from the United States Air Force.
Manufacturer:
Designer:
Date:
1964
Country of Origin:
United States of America
Dimensions:
Overall: 18ft 5 15/16in. x 55ft 7in. x 107ft 5in., 169998.5lb. (5.638m x 16.942m x 32.741m, 77110.8kg)
Other: 18ft 5 15/16in. x 107ft 5in. x 55ft 7in. (5.638m x 32.741m x 16.942m)
Materials:
Titanium
Physical Description:
Twin-engine, two-seat, supersonic strategic reconnaissance aircraft; airframe constructed largley of titanium and its alloys; vertical tail fins are constructed of a composite (laminated plastic-type material) to reduce radar cross-section; Pratt and Whitney J58 (JT11D-20B) turbojet engines feature large inlet shock cones.
Long Description:
No reconnaissance aircraft in history has operated in more hostile airspace or with such complete impunity than the SR-71 Blackbird. It is the fastest aircraft propelled by air-breathing engines. The Blackbird's performance and operational achievements placed it at the pinnacle of aviation technology developments during the Cold War. The airplane was conceived when tensions with communist Eastern Europe reached levels approaching a full-blown crisis in the mid-1950s. U.S. military commanders desperately needed accurate assessments of Soviet worldwide military deployments, particularly near the Iron Curtain. Lockheed Aircraft Corporation's subsonic U-2 (see NASM collection) reconnaissance aircraft was an able platform but the U. S. Air Force recognized that this relatively slow aircraft was already vulnerable to Soviet interceptors. They also understood that the rapid development of surface-to-air missile systems could put U-2 pilots at grave risk. The danger proved reality when a U-2 was shot down by a surface to air missile over the Soviet Union in 1960.
Lockheed's first proposal for a new high speed, high altitude, reconnaissance aircraft, to be capable of avoiding interceptors and missiles, centered on a design propelled by liquid hydrogen. This proved to be impracticable because of considerable fuel consumption. Lockheed then reconfigured the design for conventional fuels. This was feasible and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), already flying the Lockheed U-2, issued a production contract for an aircraft designated the A-12. Lockheed's clandestine 'Skunk Works' division (headed by the gifted design engineer Clarence L. "Kelly" Johnson) designed the A-12 to cruise at Mach 3.2 and fly well above 18,288 m (60,000 feet). To meet these challenging requirements, Lockheed engineers overcame many daunting technical challenges. Flying more than three times the speed of sound generates 316° C (600° F) temperatures on external aircraft surfaces, which are enough to melt conventional aluminum airframes. The design team chose to make the jet's external skin of titanium alloy to which shielded the internal aluminum airframe. Two conventional, but very powerful, afterburning turbine engines propelled this remarkable aircraft. These power plants had to operate across a huge speed envelope in flight, from a takeoff speed of 334 kph (207 mph) to more than 3,540 kph (2,200 mph). To prevent supersonic shock waves from moving inside the engine intake causing flameouts, Johnson's team had to design a complex air intake and bypass system for the engines.
Skunk Works engineers also optimized the A-12 cross-section design to exhibit a low radar profile. Lockheed hoped to achieve this by carefully shaping the airframe to reflect as little transmitted radar energy (radio waves) as possible, and by application of special paint designed to absorb, rather than reflect, those waves. This treatment became one of the first applications of stealth technology, but it never completely met the design goals.
Test pilot Lou Schalk flew the single-seat A-12 on April 24, 1962, after he became airborne accidentally during high-speed taxi trials. The airplane showed great promise but it needed considerable technical refinement before the CIA could fly the first operational sortie on May 31, 1967 - a surveillance flight over North Vietnam. A-12s, flown by CIA pilots, operated as part of the Air Force's 1129th Special Activities Squadron under the "Oxcart" program. While Lockheed continued to refine the A-12, the U. S. Air Force ordered an interceptor version of the aircraft designated the YF-12A. The Skunk Works, however, proposed a "specific mission" version configured to conduct post-nuclear strike reconnaissance. This system evolved into the USAF's familiar SR-71.
Lockheed built fifteen A-12s, including a special two-seat trainer version. Two A-12s were modified to carry a special reconnaissance drone, designated D-21. The modified A-12s were redesignated M-21s. These were designed to take off with the D-21 drone, powered by a Marquart ramjet engine mounted on a pylon between the rudders. The M-21 then hauled the drone aloft and launched it at speeds high enough to ignite the drone's ramjet motor. Lockheed also built three YF-12As but this type never went into production. Two of the YF-12As crashed during testing. Only one survives and is on display at the USAF Museum in Dayton, Ohio. The aft section of one of the "written off" YF-12As which was later used along with an SR-71A static test airframe to manufacture the sole SR-71C trainer. One SR-71 was lent to NASA and designated YF-12C. Including the SR-71C and two SR-71B pilot trainers, Lockheed constructed thirty-two Blackbirds. The first SR-71 flew on December 22, 1964. Because of extreme operational costs, military strategists decided that the more capable USAF SR-71s should replace the CIA's A-12s. These were retired in 1968 after only one year of operational missions, mostly over southeast Asia. The Air Force's 1st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron (part of the 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing) took over the missions, flying the SR-71 beginning in the spring of 1968.
After the Air Force began to operate the SR-71, it acquired the official name Blackbird-- for the special black paint that covered the airplane. This paint was formulated to absorb radar signals, to radiate some of the tremendous airframe heat generated by air friction, and to camouflage the aircraft against the dark sky at high altitudes.
Experience gained from the A-12 program convinced the Air Force that flying the SR-71 safely required two crew members, a pilot and a Reconnaissance Systems Officer (RSO). The RSO operated with the wide array of monitoring and defensive systems installed on the airplane. This equipment included a sophisticated Electronic Counter Measures (ECM) system that could jam most acquisition and targeting radar. In addition to an array of advanced, high-resolution cameras, the aircraft could also carry equipment designed to record the strength, frequency, and wavelength of signals emitted by communications and sensor devices such as radar. The SR-71 was designed to fly deep into hostile territory, avoiding interception with its tremendous speed and high altitude. It could operate safely at a maximum speed of Mach 3.3 at an altitude more than sixteen miles, or 25,908 m (85,000 ft), above the earth. The crew had to wear pressure suits similar to those worn by astronauts. These suits were required to protect the crew in the event of sudden cabin pressure loss while at operating altitudes.
To climb and cruise at supersonic speeds, the Blackbird's Pratt & Whitney J-58 engines were designed to operate continuously in afterburner. While this would appear to dictate high fuel flows, the Blackbird actually achieved its best "gas mileage," in terms of air nautical miles per pound of fuel burned, during the Mach 3+ cruise. A typical Blackbird reconnaissance flight might require several aerial refueling operations from an airborne tanker. Each time the SR-71 refueled, the crew had to descend to the tanker's altitude, usually about 6,000 m to 9,000 m (20,000 to 30,000 ft), and slow the airplane to subsonic speeds. As velocity decreased, so did frictional heat. This cooling effect caused the aircraft's skin panels to shrink considerably, and those covering the fuel tanks contracted so much that fuel leaked, forming a distinctive vapor trail as the tanker topped off the Blackbird. As soon as the tanks were filled, the jet's crew disconnected from the tanker, relit the afterburners, and again climbed to high altitude.
Air Force pilots flew the SR-71 from Kadena AB, Japan, throughout its operational career but other bases hosted Blackbird operations, too. The 9th SRW occasionally deployed from Beale AFB, California, to other locations to carryout operational missions. Cuban missions were flown directly from Beale. The SR-71 did not begin to operate in Europe until 1974, and then only temporarily. In 1982, when the U.S. Air Force based two aircraft at Royal Air Force Base Mildenhall to fly monitoring mission in Eastern Europe.
When the SR-71 became operational, orbiting reconnaissance satellites had already replaced manned aircraft to gather intelligence from sites deep within Soviet territory. Satellites could not cover every geopolitical hotspot so the Blackbird remained a vital tool for global intelligence gathering. On many occasions, pilots and RSOs flying the SR-71 provided information that proved vital in formulating successful U. S. foreign policy. Blackbird crews provided important intelligence about the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the Israeli invasion of Lebanon and its aftermath, and pre- and post-strike imagery of the 1986 raid conducted by American air forces on Libya. In 1987, Kadena-based SR-71 crews flew a number of missions over the Persian Gulf, revealing Iranian Silkworm missile batteries that threatened commercial shipping and American escort vessels.
As the performance of space-based surveillance systems grew, along with the effectiveness of ground-based air defense networks, the Air Force started to lose enthusiasm for the expensive program and the 9th SRW ceased SR-71 operations in January 1990. Despite protests by military leaders, Congress revived the program in 1995. Continued wrangling over operating budgets, however, soon led to final termination. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration retained two SR-71As and the one SR-71B for high-speed research projects and flew these airplanes until 1999.
On March 6, 1990, the service career of one Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird ended with a record-setting flight. This special airplane bore Air Force serial number 64-17972. Lt. Col. Ed Yeilding and his RSO, Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Vida, flew this aircraft from Los Angeles to Washington D.C. in 1 hour, 4 minutes, and 20 seconds, averaging a speed of 3,418 kph (2,124 mph). At the conclusion of the flight, '972 landed at Dulles International Airport and taxied into the custody of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. At that time, Lt. Col. Vida had logged 1,392.7 hours of flight time in Blackbirds, more than that of any other crewman.
This particular SR-71 was also flown by Tom Alison, a former National Air and Space Museum's Chief of Collections Management. Flying with Detachment 1 at Kadena Air Force Base, Okinawa, Alison logged more than a dozen '972 operational sorties. The aircraft spent twenty-four years in active Air Force service and accrued a total of 2,801.1 hours of flight time.
Wingspan: 55'7"
Length: 107'5"
Height: 18'6"
Weight: 170,000 Lbs
Reference and Further Reading:
Crickmore, Paul F. Lockheed SR-71: The Secret Missions Exposed. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 1996.
Francillon, Rene J. Lockheed Aircraft Since 1913. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 1987.
Johnson, Clarence L. Kelly: More Than My Share of It All. Washington D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1985.
Miller, Jay. Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works. Leicester, U.K.: Midland Counties Publishing Ltd., 1995.
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird curatorial file, Aeronautics Division, National Air and Space Museum.
DAD, 11-11-01
A JAC Refine S7 photographed at a JAC dealer in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China.
This Refine S7 is the largest SUV in the JAC range.
Available in 5 or 7 seats version.
Powered by a 1.5 Turbo 174hp gas engine.
Sold for 99.800 to 168.800 RMB (about €12.800-21.600 or US $14.900-25.200).
It was launched in June 2017.
If sales were quite good in 2017 (14.539 units in 7 months), the 1st half-year 2018 wasn't : only 2.938 units.
Article
Robert J. Arrotta--The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps
Share Email
Photo by Charles J. Schneider, courtesy of Joanne Schneider
Description: Robert J. Arrotta .Author: Beth Crumley
“Close air support was considered the most important mission of Marine aviation, and the Marine Corps focused the lion’s share of its aviation effort on refining and developing its close air support capabilities. As the senior aviator in the Marine Corps [Major General Keith B. McCutcheon] put it just months before the siege of Khe Sanh, ‘Marine aviation is a tactical air arm. Its sole mission is to provide support to ground forces.’ ”
—LtCol Shawn P. Callahan,
“Close Air Support and the Battle for Khe Sanh”
Marine Corps History Division, 2009
At no time would Major General Keith B. McCutcheon’s words about the importance of close air support ring truer than during the siege of Khe Sanh Combat Base and the surrounding, strategically important hills during the Vietnam War.
By December 1967, the North Vietnamese presence around Khe Sanh Combat Base had grown considerably. The 304 and 325C divisions had crossed into South Vietnam and were approaching from the west. To the east was the 320th Division, operating near the Rockpile, as well as an enemy regiment and an additional battalion whose mission it was to prevent movement along Route 9.
This buildup in enemy strength was monitored closely by Lieutenant General Robert E. Cushman Jr., the commanding general of III Marine Amphibious Force. By 9 Dec., 3d Battalion, 26th Marine Regiment was diverted from another mission and sent to Khe Sanh. Elements of the battalion strengthened key hilltop outposts. Company K, 3/26 was positioned atop Hill 861 and immediately began patrolling west of Khe Sanh.
Farther to the west was Hill 881S. The highest of the surrounding hills, it was key to Khe Sanh Combat Base defense. Khe Sanh was dependent upon resupply and reinforcement by air. Should the NVA hold the hill, aircraft taking off or landing from the west would be extremely vulnerable to enemy fire. The mission of holding the hill fell to the men of “India” Co, 3d Bn, 26th Marines. Among them was Corporal Robert J. Arrotta, who, during the 77-day siege, would earn the title “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps.”
In 1967, Arrotta had finished a disappointing freshman year in college when he received his draft notice. He volunteered for service in the Marine Corps, telling his family, “If I am going to go to Vietnam, I want to go with the best.” He arrived in country 15 Aug. 1967, assigned as a radio operator to Headquarters and Service Co, 3/26. He began training as a tactical air controller.
The North Vietnamese Army had launched a series of assaults against Marine positions in and around the Leatherneck Square area, a roughly square piece of ground bordered by Con Thien and Gio Linh to the north and Cam Lo and Dong Ha to the south. By the end of August, 3d Bn was ordered to Con Thien. Enemy ground activity in the area had increased significantly. It was there, during Operation Kingfisher, that Arrotta had his first real taste of combat. Hit hard in heavy fighting with the 812th NVA Regiment, 3d Bn sustained more than 240 casualties, including 56 killed in action. Arrotta later wrote about his experience:
“On 10 September I was with Mike Company when the battalion was attacked … by an entire NVA regiment. No medevacs could get into my landing zone because of overwhelming enemy firepower. I spent the night in the LZ with the battalion’s most seriously wounded and all of the dead that were able to be brought to the LZ. The next morning we had to retrieve the dead that couldn’t be brought to the LZ. … To carry these bodies and put them on waiting helicopters was the hardest thing I had to do in my life.”
Badly mauled, 3/26 moved to Camp Evans to rebuild. During that time Arrotta received additional training that would make him a legend on Hill 881S. During the heavy fighting near Con Thien, the battalion had lost its forward air controllers. In late September a CH-46 pilot, First Lieutenant John Root, was assigned to 3/26 to serve as a forward air controller. Root used the extended time at Camp Evans for training the radio operators in the fundamentals of bringing in close air support, aiding Marines on the ground. In late 1967, when the battalion deployed to Khe Sanh, Arrotta and his best friend, Cpl Terry L. Smith, both radio operators, were assigned to Hill 881S.
On 20 Jan. 1968, Captain William Dabney, commanding officer of India Co, 3/26, conducted a reconnaissance-in-force up Hill 881N. India Co engaged an entire NVA battalion moving south. The siege of Khe Sanh and the surrounding hills had begun. Both the combat base and the hills were completely dependent on resupply by air and close air support to keep enemy forces at bay.
A few days into the siege, the forward air controller on 881S was hit by shrapnel from an incoming mortar and was medically evacuated. Dabney later stated:
“At about the same time, the weather socked in, and it was several days before [we] could bring in helicopters. When it did clear, we got the radio batteries we needed to talk to the close air support aircraft but no new forward air controller. When I remarked on the lack of a FAC, Bob [Corporal Robert J. Arrotta] told me he could handle it. I had nothing to lose, plenty of targets, and all the CAS aircraft we could use, so I stood by and watched as he ran the first few missions—flawlessly. I was impressed not only with his technical knowledge but also with his demeanor as a corporal giving instructions to officers through the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was assertive and unfailingly professional.”
It wasn’t long before the Marines of India and Mike companies began calling Bob Arrotta “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps” for the vast amount of firepower he could bring down upon the enemy. First Lt Richard Dworsky, Weapons Platoon, I/3/26, recalled: “Bob and a couple of others looked like Energizer bunnies moving around and coordinating multiple air and fire support missions. It was dangerous, but always needed, work. … The hardest part was trying to keep all the fire support in order to prevent midair collisions.”
Despite the skill of the young corporal, there was at least one close call. Both Dabney and Arrotta trusted the close air support skills of Marine Corps pilots. As a rule, however, they usually ran both Air Force and Navy flights on targets two or more kilometers from the hill. Early on during the siege, an Air Force pilot dropped his ordnance without being “cleared hot” by Cpl Arrotta. As Dabney and Arrotta stood together on the hill, someone shouted a warning. The two Marines looked over their shoulders to see the aircraft coming right at them on the hill.
“Just as we caught sight of him, four bombs dropped from under his wings, and we dove for the bottom of the trench with Arrotta calling, ‘Abort! Abort!’ on the radio. Too late. Dust, shrapnel, tree stumps flying all over the place, both of us—and many others—were deaf for hours. Had he been accurate, we’d have lost perhaps 100 Marines. I lost my cool instead,” Dabney remembered.
In February, Arrotta suffered a loss that would impact the rest of his life. In a recording made on Hill 881S he stated, “I grew up a lot today. My best friend died in my arms.”
Cpl Terry Smith was in a bunker with Arrotta when a helicopter approached the landing zone where the North Vietnamese had registered heavy mortars. Approaching the hill without prior notice, the helicopter’s mission was to pick up resupply nets that had been dropped the previous week. The two young Marines usually took turns running out to the landing zone to attach the external slings to the “birds.” Enemy mortars registered on the hill were lethal.
“We could usually hear the [mortar] tube pop, and we had about 25 seconds from pop to impact, so it was vital to get the birds out in 20 seconds maximum, then take cover,” Dabney explained. Realizing the danger to the helicopter crew, Arrotta attempted to contact the pilot by radio, but was unsuccessful. Smith prevented Arrotta from leaving the safety of the bunker and ran across open ground, signaling to the helicopter to take off immediately. As the helicopter took off and before Smith could take cover, he was hit by shrapnel from the incoming mortar rounds.
Many years later Arrotta wrote, “I held onto Terry and yelled and screamed into the radio for the helicopter to come back and pick Terry up. The chopper returned and the corpsman and I picked Terry up and threw him on the chopper while the mortars were impacting all around us. … I don’t believe there has been one day in the last thirty years that I haven’t thought about that horrible day. I remember how helpless I felt and how it should have been me lying there dying, and not Terry.”
Dworsky noted the toll that day took on the young corporal. “I was wounded late in February and had to go to the small hill [where Mike Company was] to get medevacked. Bob and I carried another wounded Marine to the LZ. We all got out, although [we] took quite a bit of fire on the way. I asked Bob … why he went to the new LZ especially since they already had another team there. He told me that he didn’t want the wounded and dead to be alone. He believed that it was part of his duty as a Marine to perform that simple act of faith. He never was satisfied that he could do enough to help.”
Years later, Colonel Dabney, who was awarded the Navy Cross for his leadership on Hill 881S, commented on the service of Arrotta. “During the Siege of Khe Sanh, an operation called Niagara was in place. Essentially, it required that any close air support aircraft returning from aborted missions in the general area check in with the Khe Sanh Direct Air Support Center [DASC] before pickling [dropping] their ordnance.
“Since it was the end of the monsoon season and there were many bombing missions along the DMZ [Demilitarized Zone] and in North Vietnam that had to be aborted because of bad weather, plenty of aircraft with all sorts of ordnance [was available almost] every day. The base at Khe Sanh itself was in a bowl, so [they] couldn’t use [that ordnance] unless they had an airborne forward air controller, so they’d often pass them off to us … sitting atop a 3,000-foot hill, we didn’t need an airborne FAC, and we always had plenty of targets.
“Several times we got two or three flights of bombers passed off to us simultaneously. Bob got quite adept at ‘stacking’ them based upon how much fuel they had left and using them based on the ordnance they were carrying. Sounds simple, I guess, but under fire, without prior notice, it took superb organizational skills to both manage the air assets and direct the marking rounds our mortars fired to designate the targets for the bomber pilots.
“Bob did all of that in his head, sometimes juggling as many as three flights at once. My input was simply to tell him what targets to hit. He’d take it from there, stack the flights, range the mortar marking rounds and run the bombers in. In effect, he was his own DASC.”
In his 77 days on Hill 881S, Cpl Robert Arrotta had the tactical call sign of “India 14,” identifying him as the close air support representative of the company. During this long siege, he directed some 300 close air support missions, all resupply of the hill by helicopters, and in coordination with the helicopter support team, all medical evacuations.
Arrotta left the Republic of Vietnam in the autumn of 1968. During his tour he was awarded a Bronze Star medal, as well as a Navy Commendation Medal.
The latter’s citation states: “Assigned to Company I, Third Battalion, Twenty-Sixth Marines as a Forward Air Controller while that unit was located on Hill 881 South during the siege of the Khe Sanh Combat Base, he repeatedly distinguished himself by his courage and composure under fire. On numerous occasions, he fearlessly exposed himself to enemy artillery and mortar fire in order to direct Marine tactical air strikes on hostile positions and coordinate vitally needed helicopter resupply and medical evacuation missions. As a result of his diligent and tireless efforts, the combat effectiveness of his unit was greatly enhanced.”
Years later, still carrying the emotional wounds of Vietnam, Arrotta wanted to be close to a Marine Corps base, and in 1980, he moved to Southern California.
“It was at that time I realized the effect helicopters had on me. All sorts of military aircraft fly up and down this coastal community. But it’s always the Hueys, or the sound of their rotors, that causes me to flash back to Vietnam. I stop whatever I am doing and stare at the sky, waiting to see the ‘bird’ and remembering.”
In 2006, Major William C. Hendricks, assigned to the Air Officer Department, Marine Aviation and Weapons Tactics Squadron 1 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., invited Arrotta to speak to the Air Officer Course. Arrotta agreed and suggested that former Sergeant Glenn Prentice, an artillery forward observer, also be included. The presentation, which included a series of photographs depicting life on 881S and the critical role played by close air support in their survival, was successful, and they were invited to speak to numerous classes.
Arrotta was extremely proud of his continued service to the Marine Corps, and, in addition to his work at MCAS Yuma, he addressed a number of fixed-wing and helicopter squadrons prior to their deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. To those in the audience, Arrotta “knew what it was like. Having him speak to us tied together the legend of the Marine brotherhood.”
Robert J. Arrotta died unexpectedly in November 2009, at the age of 64. He had been scheduled to speak at MCAS Yuma in April. Instead, prior to a brief given by Glenn Prentice, Maj Thomas Campbell asked everyone in attendance to take a few moments to reflect on the service and sacrifice of “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps.”
Col John Root said, “Bob was almost relaxed on 881S even as he was dealing with mortar fire, small arms and sniper fire, trying to get helos in and wounded out. He was very composed and a highly professional Marine who lived up to the highest traditions of the Marine Corps.”
Staff Sergeant Nathan Jacobson, who met Arrotta at MCAS Yuma, said simply, “He was a living legend, an inspiration, a real man who did amazing things. I was humbled to be in the same room as Robert J. Arrotta.”
First Lt Richard Dworsky, who also served with India Co, said, “Bob was honored by the love of the people who attended his funeral. All were veterans and Khe Sanh survivors. There was a flow in how Bob lived his life and how he viewed the Marine Corps. Duty, honor and teamwork were bigger than the individual.”
Saturday, the Big day, After this comes arrange the tools for usage, charge all batteries, gather the notes, purchase the tickets. refine the game plan, Inflate the Imagination. I used the new display today, refined the adjustments to mimic the I-Mac . the smiles bigger ! Enjoy!
An interesting image as it shows the decorative hoardings surrounding "Shell Corner" in London during construction and the use the site hoardings were put to. The sweep of posters, frames and lettering was used to sell Shell 'Motor Spirit" or petrol (gasoline) and the company commissioned one of the best contemporary graphic designers and artists, Edward McKnight Kauffer, to design the scheme. It shows the refining of petrol and its uses.
McKnight Kauffer was at the time relatively early in his long and celebrated career having only a few years earlier received his first major commissions from Frank Pick at London's Underground, a major influence in the development of British graphic design, advertising and the industrial arts. Shell, from the 1920s and into the 1930s, were one of the other major companies to embrace high standards of design and advertising latterly under the control of Jack Beddington. Lovely as it is to see posters in "the real" I can only wonder what colours these hoardings used to catch the eye!
The hoardings also show the contractors for the building, the steelworks and the lifts - the latter being Waygood-Otis who were major suppliers of both lifts and escalators to London Underground. I'm sure the building was, or still is, 61 Aldwych at the corner of Kingsway now part of the LSE.
This graphic shows the seismic stations used in the initial “1st hour” automatic analysis. Human analyst are now reviewing data from all CTBTO stations to refine the analysis.
*Please read*
Throughout this project, there's been a distillation process. A subtle but sure refining of what it is I'm trying to do, and what it is I'm trying to see. I've always said that the book itself was never intended for anything greater than for me to end up with an awesome coffee table book for my house, and if anyone else wanted to join in along the way they could. With that in mind, whilst the photos have been about others, I've always allowed myself a hint of selfishness in my goals for the idea.
And as the project winds on, on what appears to be a three year treck, things change, it become fluid, adapts to the variances in me, in the people, and in the way I see them. My focus once defined but with a little breadth, I think draws closer with every shoot I do, and with every new person I speak to about it all. On a more personal note however, one of the things I'm finding difficult to deal with is how my own personal path affects the images. Inevitable obviously, but these photographs are meant to be about the people in them, not some means to vent my own teenage angst.
And it is here, that I reach a crossroads...
Of the poeple I've photographed lately, I've felt more challenged and more questioned. Whether this is a personal vulnerability or a mark of the greater perception of my recent sitters I'm not sure. Yet I've had everything from one person sit through my pitch so to speak, and then ask questions for an hour that cut concisely through all the patter and peeled back the lid on the real drive behind it all, and then told me to have more courage in what I'm doing. I've had one person who I so dearly wanted, who I was sure was a certainty who listened and blew the idea right out the water. I've had another sceptical of the idea of the project, but not of me, and yet another who's been more able than anyone I've ever met to question and make me doubt who I am as a photographer, and yet still give me the OK to shoot, confident in the ability to show you guys something real about them.
So the truth is, I'm getting questioned about all this, even by the people sitting for the photos. Mia here is one such source of confusion. Mia's someone I click with, and who I can happily talk all day to about pretty much anything. Mia here, is an artist. Not one of those 'I make pretty pictures, sell them in batches of 25 and call myself an artist, and by the way I do gift cards too' artists, but the real deal. Someone who lives and breathes through things creative. She sees coffee cups in the sink and something about how they're laid out will catch her eye, she dresses with more style than you can shake a stick at, can make something visually wonderful from any bloody medium you want (and I do mean any) and somehow just seems to find a way to question, visually, philosophically or aesthetically pretty much anything you can think of, either with fine based argument or just through gut feeling. She can, quite frankly, unpick and unravel anything and everything about what I do, and that in itself is a deeply, deeply admirable thing to see.
And hell man, it scares me. Never before have I shot someone like this and actually been left with no clue as to what I see, she sees or anyone else sees. I'm left in a tailspin. It's both a good thing and a terifying thing. Yet there's one thing that pleases me more, and it occured to me over the last three days since I finished this shot trying to think of what to type that could even vaguely do justice to someone quite this cool, and that's that with a fresh eye, and some removal from the photos, I come back and I see what I started to photograph just over a year ago.
I see beauty. I see nothing obvious, but the pursuit of trying to photograph the tiny little things that become special and loved about someone. I see the hidden gems, the secret little things that make you catch your breath. I see leans of the shoulders that only the lucky men (or women) know, I see the look that could mean anything, but means just one thing to those lucky enough to know. I see simplicity and elegance, I see everything and nothing. I see someone, something, somethings even, that someone out there has fallen for, and just a tiny, tiny slice of explanation of that to you, and me, the viewer.
What I see is a distillation. What I see is someone who has and possibly will continue to, challenge me and my photography, and I see her photographed in a way, completely unbeknown to me, as purely as the original concept.
Amongst a flight of ups and downs, I see some elegance fighting through the clouds.
The Rock Island refinery located four miles south of Duncan was built in the 1920’s by Rock Island Railroad and it operated the Site from the 1920s until 1944. From 1944 to 1947, the U.S Department of Defense operated the site. The current refinery facility was built in 1947 by the Sun Petroleum Products Company and reportedly operated under the name of Sunray/DX.
The subsequent owners of the Site included Sun Oil (1960 to 1980) and the TOSCO Corporation (1980 to 1983.) TOSCO stopped operations in July 1983 and sold the refinery in June 1986 to Alpha Oil Company and others.
This sign was for sale on eBay.
Interesting what you can find in Toronto's back alleyways. This Volvo mini truck looks like it's designed for rugged off road travel. The second Laplander (or the same one twice) so far that I have found in Toronto
My Blog entry on using the film
Possibly a civilian version of a Volvo c303 or c202 or Valp or Laplander?
I'm liking this inexpensive Shanghai GP3 film now that I have developed a roll correctly, Downside of cheap backing paper and a curl with enough springiness to act as leaf springs for the above truck can be dealt with.
This is from August 2006.
Arriving at a Mortgage Company near Worcester for a re-finance closing...back when refinance of mortgages still existed.
The occasion is gone, but I am not gone at all.
The look is fab, though not current.
It is sexy hot and racy and VERY catwalk!
The heels are by Gucci, the top by BabyPhat, the purse by Oroton.
The make up by Jamie Austin
Currently, I am trying to refine this Upright Ondae by determining what the ideal needle length for the tree is. While some of this can be arrived at by just choosing what looks good, I think a compromise has to be made between appearance and the fact that in my experience, this cork bark pine needs to have needles a little on the long side to thrive. Just how long is the question.
To see the 3-D, use red/cyan glasses.
To read the QR code in the picture, use your smart phone and a scanner app. To find out more about QR codes, go to www.fredtruck.com, choose the Articles menu item, and select the Seals option.
______________________________________
Also, check out my video on YouTube, Milk Bottle Reliquary. You will find it here:
This just in! I’ve just published an article detailing what my method of making Anaglyphs might mean in art and information science.
Click on this: www.fredtruck.com/anaglyphs/Anaglyphs.htm
Sometimes this process feels like a slot machine, except that you happen to be pulling the lever upward.
Actually, the odds of "winning" are much better in this case.
Work in progress:
Refining the details on cast feet
(on the left is a refined foot. At the sanding stage, more refining on the surface takes place)
'Dea Vivente' dolls: deavivente.com
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries during and after the Second World War. The Spitfire was built in many variants, using several wing configurations, and was produced in greater numbers than any other British aircraft. It was also the only British fighter to be in continuous production throughout the war. The Spitfire continues to be a popular aircraft, with approximately 55 Spitfires being airworthy, while many more are static exhibits in aviation museums all over the world.
The Spitfire was designed as a short-range, high-performance interceptor aircraft by R. J. Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works (which operated as a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong from 1928). In accordance with its role as an interceptor, Mitchell designed the Spitfire's distinctive elliptical wing to have the thinnest possible cross-section; this thin wing enabled the Spitfire to have a higher top speed than several contemporary fighters, including the Hawker Hurricane. Mitchell continued to refine the design until his death from cancer in 1937, whereupon his colleague Joseph Smith took over as chief designer, overseeing the development of the Spitfire through its multitude of variants.
During the Battle of Britain (July–October 1940), the Spitfire was perceived by the public to be the RAF fighter, though the more numerous Hawker Hurricane shouldered a greater proportion of the burden against the Luftwaffe. However, because of its higher performance, Spitfire units had a lower attrition rate and a higher victory-to-loss ratio than those flying Hurricanes.
After the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire superseded the Hurricane to become the backbone of RAF Fighter Command, and saw action in the European, Mediterranean, Pacific and the South-East Asian theatres. Much loved by its pilots, the Spitfire served in several roles, including interceptor, photo-reconnaissance, fighter-bomber and trainer, and it continued to serve in these roles until the 1950s. The Seafire was a carrier-based adaptation of the Spitfire which served in the Fleet Air Arm from 1942 through to the mid-1950s. Although the original airframe was designed to be powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine producing 1,030 hp (768 kW), it was strong enough and adaptable enough to use increasingly powerful Merlin and, in later marks, Rolls-Royce Griffon engines producing up to 2,340 hp (1,745 kW); as a consequence of this the Spitfire's performance and capabilities improved, sometimes dramatically, over the course of its life.
Mk V (Types 331, 349 & 352)
Spitfire LF.Mk VB, BL479, flown by Group Captain M.W.S Robinson, station commander of RAF Northolt, August 1943. This Spitfire has the wide bladed Rotol propeller, the internal armoured windscreen and "clipped" wings.
Late in 1940, the RAF predicted that the advent of the pressurised Junkers Ju 86P bomber series over Britain would be the start of a new sustained high altitude bombing offensive by the Luftwaffe, in which case development was put in hand for a pressurised version of the Spitfire, with a new version of the Merlin (the Mk VI). It would take some time to develop the new fighter and an emergency stop-gap measure was needed as soon as possible: this was the Mk V.
The basic Mk V was a Mk I with the Merlin 45 series engine. This engine delivered 1,440 hp (1,074 kW) at take-off, and incorporated a new single-speed single-stage supercharger design. Improvements to the carburettor also allowed the Spitfire to use zero gravity manoeuvres without any problems with fuel flow. Several Mk I and Mk II airframes were converted to Mk V standard by Supermarine and started equipping fighter units from early 1941. The majority of the Mk Vs were built at Castle Bromwich.
The VB became the main production version of the Mark Vs. Along with the new Merlin 45 series the B wing was fitted as standard. As production progressed changes were incorporated, some of which became standard on all later Spitfires. Production started with several Mk IBs which were converted to Mk VBs by Supermarine. Starting in early 1941 the round section exhaust stacks were changed to a "fishtail" type, marginally increasing exhaust thrust. Some late production VBs and VCs were fitted with six shorter exhaust stacks per side, similar to those of Spitfire IXs and Seafire IIIs; this was originally stipulated as applying specifically to VB(trop)s. After some initial problems with the original Mk I size oil coolers, a bigger oil cooler was fitted under the port wing; this could be recognised by a deeper housing with a circular entry. From mid-1941 alloy covered ailerons became a universal fitting.
Spitfire VC(trop), fitted with Vokes filters and "disc" wheels, of 417 Squadron RCAF in Tunisia in 1943.
A constant flow of modifications were made as production progressed. A "blown" cockpit hood, manufactured by Malcolm, was introduced in an effort to further increase the pilot's head-room and visibility. Many mid to late production VBs - and all VCs - used the modified, improved windscreen assembly with the integral bullet resistant centre panel and flat side screens introduced with the Mk III. Because the rear frame of this windscreen was taller than that of the earlier model the cockpit hoods were not interchangeable and could be distinguished by the wider rear framing on the hood used with the late-style windscreen.
Different propeller types were fitted, according to where the Spitfire V was built: Supermarine and Westland manufactured VBs and VCs used 10 ft 9 in (3.28 m) diameter, 3 bladed de Havilland constant speed units, with narrow metal blades, while Castle Bromwich manufactured VBs and VCs were fitted with a wide bladed Rotol constant speed propeller of either 10 ft 9 in (3.28 m) diameter, with metal blades, or (on late production Spitfires) 10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) diameter, with broader, "Jablo" (compressed wood) blades. The Rotol spinners were longer and more pointed than the de Havilland leading to a 3.5 in (8.9 cm) increase in overall length. The Rotol propellers allowed a modest speed increase over 20,000 ft (6,100 m) and an increase in the service ceiling. A large number of Spitfire VBs were fitted with "gun heater intensifier" systems on the exhaust stacks. These piped additional heated air into the gun bays. There was a short tubular intake on the front of the first stack and a narrow pipe led into the engine cowling from the rear exhaust.
The VB series were the first Spitfires able to carry a range of specially designed "slipper" drop tanks which were fitted underneath the wing centre-section. Small hooks were fitted, just forward of the inboard flaps: when the tank was released these hooks caught the trailing edge of the tank, swinging it clear of the fuselage.
With the advent of the superb Focke Wulf Fw 190 in August 1941 the Spitfire was for the first time truly outclassed, hastening the development of the "interim" Mk IX. In an effort to counter this threat, especially at lower altitudes, the VB was the first production version of the Spitfire to use "clipped" wingtips as an option, reducing the wingspan to 32 ft 2 in (9.8 m).The clipped wings increased the roll rate and airspeed at lower altitudes. Several different versions of the Merlin 45/50 family were used, including the Merlin 45M which had a smaller "cropped" supercharger impeller and boost increased to +18 lb. This engine produced 1,585 hp (1,182 kW) at 2,750 ft (838 m), increasing the L.F VB's maximum rate of climb to 4720 ft/min (21.6 m/s) at 2,000 ft (610 m).
VB Trop of 40 Squadron SAAF fitted with the "streamlined" version of the Aboukir filter, a broad-bladed, 10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) diameter Rotol propeller, and clipped wings.
The Mk VB(trop) (or type 352) could be identified by the large Vokes air filter fitted under the nose; the reduced speed of the air to the supercharger had a detrimental effect on the performance of the aircraft, reducing the top speed by 8 mph (13 km/h) and the climb rate by 600 ft/min (3.04 m/s), but the decreased performance was considered acceptable. This variant was also fitted with a larger oil tank and desert survival gear behind the pilot's seat. A new "desert" camouflage scheme was applied. Many VB(trop)s were modified by 103 MU (Maintenance Unit-RAF depots in which factory fresh aircraft were brought up to service standards before being delivered to squadrons) at Aboukir, Egypt by replacing the Vokes filter with locally manufactured "Aboukir" filters, which were lighter and more streamlined. Two designs of these filters can be identified in photos: one had a bulky, squared off filter housing while the other was more streamlined. These aircraft were usually fitted with the wide blade Rotol propeller and clipped wings.
Triumph Spitfire Mk I Roadster
The Triumph Spitfire is a small English two-seat sports car, introduced at the London Motor Show in 1962.[3] The vehicle was based on a design produced for Standard-Triumph in 1957 by Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti. The platform for the car was largely based upon the chassis, engine, and running gear of the Triumph Herald saloon, and was manufactured at the Standard-Triumph works at Canley, in Coventry. As was typical for cars of this era, the bodywork was fitted onto a separate structural chassis, but for the Spitfire, which was designed as an open top or convertible sports car from the outset, the ladder chassis was reinforced for additional rigidity by the use of structural components within the bodywork. The Spitfire was provided with a manual hood for weather protection, the design improving to a folding hood for later models. Factory-manufactured hard-tops were also available.
The Triumph Spitfire was originally devised by Standard-Triumph to compete in the small sports car market that had opened up with the introduction of the Austin-Healey Sprite. The Sprite had used the basic drive train of the Austin A30/35 in a light body to make up a budget sports car; Triumph's idea was to use the mechanicals from their small saloon, the Herald, to underpin the new project. Triumph had one advantage, however; where the Austin A30 range was of unitary construction, the Herald featured a separate chassis. It was Triumph's intention to cut that chassis down and clothe it in a sports body, saving the costs of developing a completely new chassis / body unit.
Italian designer Michelotti—who had already penned the Herald—was commissioned for the new project, and came up with a traditional, swooping body. Wind-up windows were provided (in contrast to the Sprite/Midget, which still featured sidescreens, also called curtains, at that time), as well as a single-piece front end which tilted forwards to offer unrivaled access to the engine. At the dawn of the 1960s, however, Standard-Triumph was in deep financial trouble, and unable to put the new car into production; it was not until the company was taken over by the Leyland organization funds became available and the car was launched. Leyland officials, taking stock of their new acquisition, found Michelotti's prototype hiding under a dust sheet in a corner of the factory and rapidly approved it for production.
Spitfire 4 or Mark I (1962-1964)
Overview:
Production1962–1964
45,753 made
Powertrain:
Engine1,147 cc (1.1 l) I4
Transmission4-speed manual with optional overdrive on top and third from 1963 onwards
Dimensions:
Curb weight1,568 lb (711 kg) (unladen U.K.-spec)
The production car changed little from the prototype, although the full-width rear bumper was dropped in favour of two part-bumpers curving round each corner, with overriders. Mechanicals were basically stock Herald. The engine was an 1,147 cc (1.1 l) 4-cylinder with a pushrod OHV cylinder head and 2 valves per cylinder, mildly tuned for the Spitfire, fed by twin SU carburettors. Also from the Herald came the rack and pinion steering and coil-and-wishbone front suspension up front, and at the rear a single transverse-leaf swing axle arrangement. This ended up being the most controversial part of the car: it was known to "tuck in" and cause violent over steer if pushed too hard, even in the staid Herald. In the sportier Spitfire (and later the 6-cylinder Triumph GT6 and Triumph Vitesse) it led to severe criticism. The body was bolted to a much-modified Herald chassis, the outer rails and the rear outriggers having been removed; little of the original Herald chassis design was left, and the Spitfire used structural outer sills to stiffen its body tub.
The Spitfire was an inexpensive small sports car and as such had very basic trim, including rubber mats and a large plastic steering wheel. These early cars were referred to both as "Triumph Spitfire Mark I" and "Spitfire 4", not to be confused with the later Spitfire Mark IV.
In UK specification the in-line four produced 63 bhp (47 kW) at 5750 rpm, and 67 lb·ft (91 N·m)of torque at 3500 rpm. This gave a top speed of 92 mph (148 km/h), and would achieve 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 17.3 seconds. Average fuel consumption was 31mpg.
For 1964 an overdrive option was added to the 4-speed manual gearbox to give more relaxed cruising. Wire wheels and a hard top were also available.
Text regarding the Supermarine Spitfire aeroplane and Triumph Spitfire Roadster has been taken from excerpts of Wikipedia articles on each model.
The Supermarine Spitfire Mk VB aircraft and 1962 Triumph Spitfire Mk I road car have been modelled in Lego miniland-scale for Flickr LUGNuts' 79th Build Challenge, - 'LUGNuts goes Wingnuts, ' - featuring automotive vehicles named after, inspired by, or with some relationship to aircraft.
Refining my post processing efforts... I don't like the glow around some of the railing, but I recognize that. I embrace my disdain, and endeavor to improve.
Commonwealth Oil Refining Company, Inc. (CORCO) was an oil refinery established in the towns of Peñuelas and Guayanilla in Puerto Rico in the middle of the 20th century. The project started as part of Operation Bootstrap with the first unit being constructed in 1954. The company started operations in 1955 and was finally incorporated on May 19, 1963. Corco represented an investment of $25 million and had the capacity to refine 23,500 barrels (3,740 m3) of oil daily. Hugo David Storer Tavarez was one of the men in charge of the CORCO being established in Puerto Rico.
The refinery is located in an 800-acre (3.2 km2) site, and consists of numerous storage tanks and waste treatment units typical of petroleum refineries. CORCO has been inactive since 1982, and now functions as a terminal for the marine transportation and land-based storage of crude oil and petroleum products.
After the refinery ceased operations, an entity called Desarrollo Integral del Sur (South Integral Development) began developing a long-term plan for the reuse of the terrains and properties.
The following is an account of Lake Hart published in 1947 -
Although for long it has been deserted, Lake Hart, on the lonely mulga plains, has Australia's Prize Salt Deposit.
Standing beside the transcontinental railway, 137 miles [219 kilometres] from Port Augusta, is a 7,000 tons dump of the best quality salt in Australia. Behind it, stretching far northwards, is Lake Hart, the place from which the salt was taken.
In 1931 this was the scene of a thriving industry. Today, it is forgotten in its isolation amid the mulga plains of the north-west. Lake Hart's importance as a salt deposit first became manifest in 1918 when surveyors investigated its entire area. They estimated the yield as three million tons, and defined the lake's area as 61 square miles.
Following these observations, the Sydney firm which owned the deposit - the Commonwealth Salt Refining Company - began preliminary operations with a few men.
Small quantities of salt were harvested and bagged for testing purposes. At this stage no refining plant had been installed, and the salt was sent to Adelaide for refining. The finished product proved so successful that the CSRC immediately launched large-scale operations. They installed a refining plant, and employed more than 50 men. The employees camped at the site and depended for their stores on the Commonwealth Railway's weekly food train.
Salt was harvested by day and refined continuously by shift workers.
Harvesting methods then were slow and cumbersome compared with present day methods. Sweepers first swept the water forward to the elevated catchment pens, each of which was 300 ft long by 150 ft wide.
When the salt had been deposited on the floor, the water was allowed to flow back into the lake, leaving the salt banked in and around the pens. The salt was then swept up and loaded into carrying carts, which were towed to the nearby refining plant.
Driving power for the plant was supplied by a gas producer engine. At first a Crossley type of 35 hp was used, but as production accelerated, a large Hornsby engine of 50 hp was added. These two engines may still be seen among the skeleton plant which remains at the lake.
The first phase of the salt's refining began when it entered the crushers. For Lake Hart salt, this was a very thorough process, due to the crude product's unusual hardness.
From the crushers it was carried into the washing troughs. Here it was scoured free of all foreign matter and, after a series of swillings was passed into the dehydrator.
When this machine had evaporated all water from the now whitened grain, the salt entered its final process - the drying oven.
This machine dried out all moisture and at the same time killed any remaining germ life, before discharging the finished product.
Such refineries were, of course, greatly inferior to present day establishments, such as those on Yorke Peninsula. Here, the sea water itself passes through several evaporation condensers before the salt is extricated for a complicated refining. But with Lake Hart's pure quality salt extensive refining was not necessary.
Few facilities existed to enable workers to negotiate the obstacles of outback industrial settlement. One employee crossed the lake in a flat-bottomed boat to ascertain the salt content on the opposite shore. He sailed across, but had to row 15 miles on the return trip. Today, people of the north-west give him the honour of being Lake Hart's conqueror.
Extreme difficulty was experienced from the late summer downpours which are prevalent in this area. During these storms the lake often became flooded, rendering harvesting impossible. However, the company had prepared for such emergencies. Huge reserve dumps had been heaped in readiness, and refining was not hampered.
For several years Lake Hart yielded 9,000 tons annually. Most of the salt was shipped to Sydney, where it was distributed for edible and industrial uses.
Commercial users throughout Australia were elated with the quality. Housewives discovered that, in actual saltiness, the Lake Hart product was twice as strong as any other.
The biggest asset that the salt had was its freedom from gypsum. This was, and still is, a very rare credential. All other main Australian sources are handicapped by gypsum content, which not only reduces quality, but enforces excessive work and cost during the refining process.
In 1921 the company amalgamated with the Australian Salt Company. The firm experienced great difficulties in obtaining water for refining purposes, its only supplies coming from occasional supply trains. Further, the isolated position created problems in the delivery of the refined product. These difficulties were the chief reasons for the cessation of harvesting in 1931.
Yorke Peninsula refineries were supplying more than enough salt for the State's use, and, although the quality was greatly inferior to that of Lake Hart, it was considered unpayable to continue work on the lake. To Australia, its closing meant a decrease in the quality of salt in use: but the quantity remains plentiful.
Salt is in enormous surplus, not only in Australia, but throughout the world. Our own refinery at Price on Yorke Peninsula, for instance, can supply enough salt in six months to last South Australia for five years.
Ever since closing the Lake Hart plant, the Australian Salt Company has employed a caretaker on the premises. The present caretaker has held his lonely job for seven years. His duties are simple. He records the rise and fall of the lake, and is responsible for the maintenance of the depleted plant.
Much of the plant was removed soon after the work ceased, but the catchment pens, crushers and engines remain in readiness for a reopening of the industry.
Last year it was intended to restart the enterprise, but fate ruled otherwise. Heavy rain swelled the lake to such an extent that plans had to be temporarily abandoned.
There is little opportunity for anyone to see Lake Hart. Train tourists can, but as both the East and West bound expresses pass this locality during the night, few see what is Australia's prize salt deposit.
Ref: Advertiser (Adelaide) 6-9-1947 Article by W J Watkins
295/366: Refining Rains
Yesterday morning we had some substantial refining rains. It poured, large noisy raindrops… raindrops you could hear bouncing off the neighborhood rooftops. A cleansing, refining rain.. the kind that feels so good because it had been so long since the last purge. The creeks filled, the water holes came to life and the animals thanked a God and I ventured out to Stone Creek Park in Flower Mound. I had never seen the creek running so fast, so swiftly and so powerfully… it was a wonder to photography… the water appears like fog when using a long exposure technique because of the vast power and authority, it was a dynamic site to see.
Photo taken with my Nikon D810 and Lee Filters CP and Big Stopper for an exposure time of 106 seconds at f/8, ISO 100 – 14mm.
© Cathy Neth
Portfolio | thedook.com |
365 Photo Project | thedook.com/365 |
Follow me on Facebook | www.facebook.com/cnethphotography |
Location: Queensland, Australia
Description: Son of a Lutheran pastor, Johannes was born at Gorizia, then a part of Austria on 11 September 1861. He was educated in Switzerland and obtained his knowledge of chemistry at the federal polytechnic school at Zurich. He travelled in Russia and for a period was chemist in a sugar-mill in Bohemia.
Meeting Dr Mueller of Gayndah, Queensland, he decided to emigrate to Australia and arrived in Brisbane early in 1885. He married Kate Terry in 1886 and they had two sons and three daughters. In 1887 he became chief chemist and mill manager for the Colonial Sugar Refining Company at Homebush, Mackay, and early in 1897 was appointed chemist in the Queensland Department of Agriculture.
For about 35 years he advised the Department on a multiplicity of problems relating to agriculture in Queensland, and drafted many bills for the government relating among other things to fertilizers, stock foods, pure seeds and the destruction of pests. He also made scientific investigations into the Prickly Pear problem, the use of dipping fluids, and the provision of phosphatic licks for stock. He was elected a fellow of the Institute of Chemistry in 1905. In September 1931 he retired from the Agriculture Department and died on 3 July 1933. He was survived by his wife and children.
(Information taken from: Australian Dictionary of Biography, 2006, retrieved 11 February 2009)
View this page at the State Library of Queensland hdl.handle.net/10462/deriv/96856
Information about State Library of Queensland’s collection: www.slq.qld.gov.au/resources/picture-queensland
You are free to use this image without permission. Please attribute State Library of Queensland.