tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83894901119246497002024-02-06T21:24:08.560-08:00Gerard's Travel and Astronomy NotesA professional astronomer's journal about astronomy and exotic travelGerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-11837593954517586182015-07-21T12:36:00.001-07:002015-07-22T21:41:20.370-07:00The Pluto-Planet Discussion FAQ<div class="moz-text-html" lang="x-western">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbM1w4ECSWIlxj_3OdyJ5_egjBWC9K2ZcmiK1J830H1p21MseyKFHcIK4hFyq2HxVjqVyUqh2goevZRtQMDji6N16gAexujBtsCJ4kFqAp8_JRu3iyeCoHfZyOTIxsC_hfj0nE3QHNESg/s1600/pluto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbM1w4ECSWIlxj_3OdyJ5_egjBWC9K2ZcmiK1J830H1p21MseyKFHcIK4hFyq2HxVjqVyUqh2goevZRtQMDji6N16gAexujBtsCJ4kFqAp8_JRu3iyeCoHfZyOTIxsC_hfj0nE3QHNESg/s200/pluto.jpg" width="161" /></a></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Introduction</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Given the recent New Horizons flyby of Pluto, it seemed timely to
cook up a FAQ regarding the whole "Pluto-planet" debate. In
anticipation of the flyby, I've been giving a fun public talk on the
topic, following up on people's natural interest
in this distant world, and the ever-present question that always comes
up - invariably first and foremost during Q-and-A. This blog post tries
to encapsulate much of the points of that talk, and some other things
that come up when discussing the word "planet".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">First off, some background information on me that is useful here.
<a href="http://www2.lowell.edu/users/gerard/">I am a astronomer</a> at the <a href="http://www.lowell.edu/">Lowell Observatory</a>, where <a href="http://lowell.edu/history/the-pluto-telescope/">Pluto was discovered</a>
in 1930. As such, I encourage you to take my point of view with a
grain of salt - I can rightfully be accused of
not being entirely unbiased in my opinions. (These are, incidentally,
wholly my own and do not represent an official institutional stance on
this topic. The 'official' opinion of my institution on this topic is
studiously neutral.) The sort of astronomy I focus
on is stellar in nature - any work I've done on planetary science is
more or less at the 'dabbling' level, and I have only minimal formal
training with regards to solar system objects. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">My only standing I have on this subject is an eager interest, and an accident of fate: by chance I happened to be one of the
few astronomers in the room voting on the status of Pluto at that fateful IAU
meeting in Prague in 2006.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-OnqzufJjFE-XVTeikL3PoPE6kxQTDNmkmY4S64DLL8upyuuQ6IrcVoJ5oYmAwEe6DJNzViGhaOdq7beLq_a_iUMup9D3H7d0d1PPdt8p9grnGYryQ3OG4V-4vYju1pvBkO1Orth-mlY/s1600/mason+-+van+belle+-+mcswain+voting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-OnqzufJjFE-XVTeikL3PoPE6kxQTDNmkmY4S64DLL8upyuuQ6IrcVoJ5oYmAwEe6DJNzViGhaOdq7beLq_a_iUMup9D3H7d0d1PPdt8p9grnGYryQ3OG4V-4vYju1pvBkO1Orth-mlY/s640/mason+-+van+belle+-+mcswain+voting.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Dr. Brian Mason, myself, Dr. Ginny McSwain, voting on the Pluto resolutions - none of us are planetary astronomers.</span></td></tr>
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<h3>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Pluto-Planet FAQ</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What is the origin of the word 'planet'?</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> It comes from the ancient Greek meaning "wandering star".</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Isn't 'planet' just a cultural term?</b> Science should lead
culture, not the other way around. The latter case leads to things like
Galileo under house arrest.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>How many planets have there been, by year?</b> It has varied. Between the years
1807 and 1845, the only known asteroids of that time - Ceres, Vesta,
Pallas, and Juno - were considered planets, for a total of 11. Starting
in 1845, the rapid discovery of many more asteroids
resulted in their 'demotion'. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlKXFXxjWW64k1xYzLLI60YSeIExDN9hJb1HuNmJgjQJQH11T0xOA7EUQKLd8PrN0xbRu3ltfelWn58Dr9kz1Wea9q-VAGGGPOQQ0-tXMGqHT0MVDXBqu2J-YdRc6du14Pw74kqW3HSFA/s1600/solarsystem_archives2+-+zoom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="633" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlKXFXxjWW64k1xYzLLI60YSeIExDN9hJb1HuNmJgjQJQH11T0xOA7EUQKLd8PrN0xbRu3ltfelWn58Dr9kz1Wea9q-VAGGGPOQQ0-tXMGqHT0MVDXBqu2J-YdRc6du14Pw74kqW3HSFA/s640/solarsystem_archives2+-+zoom.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">From "A Grammar of Astronomy" (J. Towle, 1826). Can you spot the planets? (Hint: they all are planets, according to this book.)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is the 'IAU'?</b> The International Astronomical Union is an international astronomical standards organization, founded in 1919. It acts as the internationally recognized authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies (stars, planets, asteroids, etc.) and any surface features on them.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhoZmfCEn2CEcUUASkvt7AnHbbqdcdQ4Z4Kf7oCSquEmpWIEuYD8k2PodN841XCN6CefM0w5K9XiXLBgz6BrQE1T1dTwcL20c_4h_Ge_SqX21D7oddU1XUWbN7qv9xGUVLkWja9BzEbPw/s1600/IAU2012_English_Page_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhoZmfCEn2CEcUUASkvt7AnHbbqdcdQ4Z4Kf7oCSquEmpWIEuYD8k2PodN841XCN6CefM0w5K9XiXLBgz6BrQE1T1dTwcL20c_4h_Ge_SqX21D7oddU1XUWbN7qv9xGUVLkWja9BzEbPw/s400/IAU2012_English_Page_3.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A typical IAU resolution (this one from 2012). A great cure for insomnia.</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is the current IAU definition of 'planet'?</b> This originates with <a href="http://www.iau.org/news/pressreleases/detail/iau0603/">IAU Resolution 5A</a>, approved in 2006, and with a number
of moving pieces here, let's boil them down. First, it is a body in
orbit around the Sun. Second, the body has to be in hydrostatic
equilibrium. Third, it must have cleared the neighborhood
around its orbit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is the current IAU definition of a 'dwarf planet'?</b>
Basically, a body that satisfies the first two pieces of the "planet"
definition, but fails to meet the third.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is 'hydrostatic equilibrium'?</b> In layperson's terms, "<b>big
enough to be a ball</b>". Generally, that means if one has piled enough
material onto some random body in space, that its self-gravity pulls it
into a sphere. There's a special case where rapid
rotation of such a body can make it rotationally oblate - see Jupiter,
for example - but that is still 'hydrostatic equilibrium'. Bodies like
asteroids and comets frequently have dog-bone-like shapes and clearly
aren't massive enough to meet this condition.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is 'cleared the neighborhood around its orbit'?</b> Well, to quote one of my planetary scientist colleagues, "Nobody really knows". I have yet to encounter a succinct mathematical
definition of this concept. In layperson's terms, this can be described as, "<b>big enough to
be a bully</b>" - does the object have enough gravity
to completely 'sweep' out the orbit it follows?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Most of the "Big 8" planets fail this portion of the definition at
some level. Just ask the residents of Chelyabinsk as they replace all
the windows in their city - Earth seems to still be working on attaining 'cleared' status. (Mind you, the definition is 'cleared', not 'clearing'.) And close monitoring
of Jupiter seems to indicate good-sized bodies impacting it every decade or so -
most notably (but not most recently) Shoemaker-Levy 9. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyEug7RQ0Eh21sF3h2GGd_mqheyTKCqFAJDUYNw05dNeYT6gSIiHsTuEyI8V0b-lJ8AQ6qAAzIWKtqV2SDh_g' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Warning: orbital clearing in process. Please use sunscreen.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Most of the "Big
8" objects also have known Trojan asteroids, objects that specifically lurk
in the gravitational wells formed by the Sun and that planet - wells that are exactly on the planet's orbit.</span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4X_Na0FXNtZjkDr-Jo70d4I_zE5AEifzSZkS89SyXzheyQA48gLyqOXdwZezL5OIaFaFjILLnLUeZ38dRQY3fTgWVQtUXRfzD6BLKj-1PC0MhtpK3HA5MrMyvX0ljMNSE-OF3RRlDoes/s1600/Minor_Planets_-_Martian_L5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="611" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4X_Na0FXNtZjkDr-Jo70d4I_zE5AEifzSZkS89SyXzheyQA48gLyqOXdwZezL5OIaFaFjILLnLUeZ38dRQY3fTgWVQtUXRfzD6BLKj-1PC0MhtpK3HA5MrMyvX0ljMNSE-OF3RRlDoes/s640/Minor_Planets_-_Martian_L5.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Location of Trojans for Jupiter and Mars. Great neighborhood but no beachfront.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Didn't the IAU vote on this?</b> Well, sort of. We were presented
with Resolution 5A, which has the definition noted above. What the general membership never
had a chance to voice an opinion on - much less vote upon - was
Resolution 5. That resolution was the original wording
of the 'planet' definition, and had been developed by the IAU's own Planet
Definition Committee after two years of study, by unanimous consensus.
It basically contained the 'hydrostatic equilibrium' condition and no ill-defined dynamical arguments. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvwpOL2x8VG1su_JkaoYm2VTT7MDUCAdP_Elsj7b1tZPMrnt6akc_kfdCZIo1VUHTo6te5WCbSIW9pH3KlRgLJqZkHpWWYCtcn5KgXHFaFkVFltDIsUh1RoosgJ57UOu3L8LvKB5o5WKg/s1600/iau+vote+card+imgp1455a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvwpOL2x8VG1su_JkaoYm2VTT7MDUCAdP_Elsj7b1tZPMrnt6akc_kfdCZIo1VUHTo6te5WCbSIW9pH3KlRgLJqZkHpWWYCtcn5KgXHFaFkVFltDIsUh1RoosgJ57UOu3L8LvKB5o5WKg/s400/iau+vote+card+imgp1455a.jpg" width="280" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A bit of history for the dustbin - just like the result.</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What was the strangest question you got after the vote?</b> As we left the meeting hall, <a href="http://www.rocketboom.com/video/rb_06_aug_28.wmv">we were assaulted by the worlds' press</a>, eagerly probing for pithy commentary. They were especially interested in you if you were someone who voted against Resolution 5A. One reporter asked me, "<i>Did you vote for Pluto because it was the American planet?</i>"
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Quite honestly, I had <i>never</i> thought of Pluto in those terms prior to the question - science doesn't really work that way. It was a strange lens through which to view the discovery - it may have happened on our shores, but it's an achievement that was for all of humanity.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Isn't a 'dwarf planet' a kind of planet? It has 'planet' in the phrase.</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> According to the IAU, no, but this represents rather atypical usage of the English language. In general, compound nouns composed of two words (separated by a space, hyphen, or neither) <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_compound#Analyzability_.28transparency.29">typically represent specializations</a> but not exclusions of the meaning at its core.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Strangely, the modifier 'dwarf' is used elsewhere in astronomy - eg. dwarf galaxy, dwarf star. Except, the difference here is that a dwarf galaxy is a <i>kind</i> of galaxy, and a dwarf star is a <i>kind</i> of star.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifOG3PdMvdT3VUqsLewdjdR7F_n4rlEraS4Tj1VVWhGiMRApA4lUkdx1M2O0XPnQznTpAHdjh_d8KJE2aULvVIL6st0fQivDTlGWeLCn3W8s25GWFJ6QV86J_Zwzb28nb8H5P-Ylt12sw/s1600/dwarf+galaxy+98a1342b0c543e17ecd75e8242b5d079.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifOG3PdMvdT3VUqsLewdjdR7F_n4rlEraS4Tj1VVWhGiMRApA4lUkdx1M2O0XPnQznTpAHdjh_d8KJE2aULvVIL6st0fQivDTlGWeLCn3W8s25GWFJ6QV86J_Zwzb28nb8H5P-Ylt12sw/s640/dwarf+galaxy+98a1342b0c543e17ecd75e8242b5d079.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One area of astronomy where size doesn't lead to discrimination.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What was the representation at the IAU meeting?</b> At the time, the
IAU had nearly 10,000 members in its rolls, of which only roughly 2,000
were at the 2006 Prague meeting. Of those, only slightly more than 400
were present and voting during the final
session. Imagine if the selection of a a country's or organization's leadership was restricted to a group of less than 5% of the eligible voters.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqxyjS2Ddbv3vcoylivd8r9i6cskz0jVUVcctxxp72Ttupr2-zvdt2aNccm5IuJPd733ku17Z2jqUddXJTy7ESPv2ndh6viHSXxUeejNsZon1fEBCpbXuoWlHNGgV_8FRAgwcz1lWgB4E/s1600/1024px-Planet_Voting_IAU2006GA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqxyjS2Ddbv3vcoylivd8r9i6cskz0jVUVcctxxp72Ttupr2-zvdt2aNccm5IuJPd733ku17Z2jqUddXJTy7ESPv2ndh6viHSXxUeejNsZon1fEBCpbXuoWlHNGgV_8FRAgwcz1lWgB4E/s640/1024px-Planet_Voting_IAU2006GA.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Lots of empty space in this room.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Of the 2006 voters, how many were astronomers, and how many were
planetary scientists?</b> Unknown exactly, but the vast majority were
astronomers, with no specific expertise in solar system studies.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is the difference between a planetary scientist and an astronomer?</b> A planetary scientist studies bodies in the solar system; an astronomer studies stars, galaxies, and the universe in general. Both use telescopes and their associated instruments; planetary scientists have the additional possibilities (sometimes) enabled by <i>in situ</i> measurements with spacecraft.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>How do planetary scientists feel about the IAU 'definition'?</b> It is clear that many planetary scientists are unhappy with both the process and the result - so many, in fact, that it is remarked upon <a href="http://dps.aas.org/education/what_is_a_planet">on the web site of the American Astronomical Society</a>. You can read an <a href="http://www.boulder.swri.edu/~buie/pluto/iauresponse.html">individual planetary scientist's response here</a>.</span></div>
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</span></div>
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<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What is the IAU definition of 'star'?</b> There is none. As my planetary scientist colleagues have joked, "What if we had our own meeting and defined that word for you astronomers to be whatever we liked?"</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>From the current IAU definition, what is the upper mass of a
planet?</b> It is not specified and is one of the many gaping holes in the definition. It misses one of the more interesting
aspects of the definition of 'planet'. The intersection between planets
and stars - namely, the regime of 'brown dwarfs'
- is important area of current research.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghnzzuh9cC-R7-TnoJeYID2WYe9tBSSZoLp21Kku2YT-cHcxej4avQokfaooA9TormUFTqUw-rLQ0rXpPQ5GxDEc6_IYJJOKStlf3tsdUPStqkEm44tqfvJgSqE6U62dxFHwsqj2KhgCE/s1600/BrownDwarfComparison-pia12462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghnzzuh9cC-R7-TnoJeYID2WYe9tBSSZoLp21Kku2YT-cHcxej4avQokfaooA9TormUFTqUw-rLQ0rXpPQ5GxDEc6_IYJJOKStlf3tsdUPStqkEm44tqfvJgSqE6U62dxFHwsqj2KhgCE/s640/BrownDwarfComparison-pia12462.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Can you identify the stars without a definition? I guess we need to get the IAU on the job.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">How many planets are in the entire universe?</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Eight. Resolution
5A is very specific that a planet must orbit the Sun, and not any other
star.</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcMmFR6jy169syaCOIyIT11bVJqCjuKO5ED6Rmv23-nuz-sUxEdYu3B4Z1gaCTDlO3Yp0-E7zc7oSNQj93MyUPo2rJ-Yiy6idso7KqDRVIzWYSfy1-31HUse58oTHFvkUyCVFvSZPlO38/s1600/forbidden+planet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcMmFR6jy169syaCOIyIT11bVJqCjuKO5ED6Rmv23-nuz-sUxEdYu3B4Z1gaCTDlO3Yp0-E7zc7oSNQj93MyUPo2rJ-Yiy6idso7KqDRVIzWYSfy1-31HUse58oTHFvkUyCVFvSZPlO38/s400/forbidden+planet.jpg" width="290" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Appropriately named: According to the IAU, "Altair IV" in the movie is not a planet.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>By what margin did Resolution 5A pass?</b> No tally was actually taken.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">How do you know if an object has 'cleared its orbital zone'?</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
Omniscience is required: you need to not only be examining the object
in question, but you need to have complete knowledge of the entire
orbital environment of the path it follows. Simply
put, you can't apply the 'Star Trek' test, looking out the window and
say, "Oh, that looks like a planet."</span></span></div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisFM7AbEHDutqluyga_4dn2M8uqMQjAKvI6RkMyKDh9_Y-XKx3-PLbjppf5cAJ9EzuuOIUBo2OA7OygTWRRsO8vT3JAyOZC6USqAPzcnF2MeEl6yijlhk_TyYc6C3gV7YigJUaeoeC3mc/s1600/USS_Enterprise_orbits_M-113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="488" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisFM7AbEHDutqluyga_4dn2M8uqMQjAKvI6RkMyKDh9_Y-XKx3-PLbjppf5cAJ9EzuuOIUBo2OA7OygTWRRsO8vT3JAyOZC6USqAPzcnF2MeEl6yijlhk_TyYc6C3gV7YigJUaeoeC3mc/s640/USS_Enterprise_orbits_M-113.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Sulu: "Captain, I think we're entering orbit around a planet."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Kirk: "What do you mean 'you think'?"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Sulu: "Well, we won't know until we've mapped the entire stellar system."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Kirk: "How long is <i>that</i> going to take?"</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Spock: "With the solar system, it took about 400 years."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Kirk: "Security to the bridge. Set phasers to puree."</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What if you moved the Earth to the Kuiper belt?</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> It would not
have enough time or mass to clear its orbit, and as such, would be demoted to
'dwarf' status under the nomenclature of Resolution 5A.</span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What if you moved Pluto to Earth's orbit?</b> It would develop a tail as its low-temperature volatiles (eg. methane) boiled off.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>What if you moved Earth to Mercury's orbit?</b> It would develop a
tail as its higher-temperature volatiles (eg. water) boiled off.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Both of those sound like a "planet-comet", which is crazy.</b> Actually, the 'hot Jupiter' class of planets found in orbits around other stars are being examined for exactly this sort of behavior by astronomers. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Isn't Pluto's orbit very eccentric?</b> Yes, with a value of
e=0.248; this is only slightly greater than that of Mercury (e=0.206).
The planets known around the stars HD80606 and HD20782 both have
eccentricities substantially greater than either of these
(more than 0.90).<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSc2nzD5ZpKCMJYy_acs7xCx7uj6LA1B-QLWBl3JOXywQlC5o9uHBunkAQIraDf048UqPgccO2wOUUmZZXtKFsa6HoDwrXiOhppTBgG3_tvvn9_ytEWpgh61PY6bqnetDx6sEJ-h_gL-U/s1600/Kepler5_2013+cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="460" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSc2nzD5ZpKCMJYy_acs7xCx7uj6LA1B-QLWBl3JOXywQlC5o9uHBunkAQIraDf048UqPgccO2wOUUmZZXtKFsa6HoDwrXiOhppTBgG3_tvvn9_ytEWpgh61PY6bqnetDx6sEJ-h_gL-U/s640/Kepler5_2013+cropped.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Wait, where's the "forbidden zone" at the bottom?</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Isn't Pluto smaller than the moons Ganymede and Titan?</b> Yes, as is Mercury.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisWY1LwAWBVjt8A9llikL3fRXol67y8AdQsIca_Y_V2stdAh-ndDanTfs6a4HFmXvTJLYtl9vsEEDadylry5a7_mMQC2bUkjqbJolyjADwuyVxOIALovzsLfEbibTDSdK8o8VnnYuigXE/s1600/Mercury_Globe-MESSENGER_mosaic_centered_at_0degN-0degE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisWY1LwAWBVjt8A9llikL3fRXol67y8AdQsIca_Y_V2stdAh-ndDanTfs6a4HFmXvTJLYtl9vsEEDadylry5a7_mMQC2bUkjqbJolyjADwuyVxOIALovzsLfEbibTDSdK8o8VnnYuigXE/s400/Mercury_Globe-MESSENGER_mosaic_centered_at_0degN-0degE.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mercury. Or is it Earth's Moon? Hard to tell. But still a planet (until the next IAU meeting).</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Wouldn't some consideration of 'gravitational dominance' in its
orbital path be better criterion for a planet, rather than 'cleared'?</b>
Yes, but that wouldn't have achieved the desired aim of demoting Pluto,
as it is the dominant (highest mass) body currently
known in its orbital path.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>A Very Famous Astronomer says to "get over it". Shouldn't you?</b> Typically when people say, "get over it", rather than "here's the science", the facts aren't on their side.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Aren't you being awfully pedantic here?</b> Sure. But it's important to get these sorts of things right. Or at least not really badly wrong, which seems to be increasingly apparent with the IAU's Resolution 5A. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbeFciN5xgzxDBWCYX0m-ScNM73bSN97uUQfDaKMmThVdVVKd4Pr55GQbt_Men_VPADo5n654wq5rLPwwgfNeKiGqVINoNIRkQMUEzTn1Oh24dKeU_yWzQ9vh-njkA6Ehtc3C2HxJJdis/s1600/star+wars+opening+giphy.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbeFciN5xgzxDBWCYX0m-ScNM73bSN97uUQfDaKMmThVdVVKd4Pr55GQbt_Men_VPADo5n654wq5rLPwwgfNeKiGqVINoNIRkQMUEzTn1Oh24dKeU_yWzQ9vh-njkA6Ehtc3C2HxJJdis/s640/star+wars+opening+giphy.gif" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">There are occasionally those situations when you need to know if you're orbiting a planet, and don't have the time to survey the entire system.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Let's put it another way: when NASA goes to Congress and asks for another $700M to fund a <i>New Horizons 2</i> to go to Eris, the response will be, "Meh. It's not a planet." These sorts of scientific missteps can have real-world consequences.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgivWz2IicKbnjYf4j8wx2LZBJdfF80vConybEGw3MGa-g00xRoksIft9IS7U8V5XSaR6wqyR16mdPqBElKvCALfOLC1T8S2X803OUFKyqvE3r0pvxN55cx4hYH_v5JAnvqUA74Ne-MGyU/s1600/RTG_is_installed_to_New_Horizons_for_a_fit_check.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgivWz2IicKbnjYf4j8wx2LZBJdfF80vConybEGw3MGa-g00xRoksIft9IS7U8V5XSaR6wqyR16mdPqBElKvCALfOLC1T8S2X803OUFKyqvE3r0pvxN55cx4hYH_v5JAnvqUA74Ne-MGyU/s640/RTG_is_installed_to_New_Horizons_for_a_fit_check.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One of a kind? Hopefully not.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A Better Way?</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Go with the original IAU Resolution 5</b>, which was essentially "big enough to be a ball". The IAU <i>almost</i> got it right.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qM7_QYhqivsQySOBsFjhlypXN_YxXffHzkcYoQPvZrX0q3vK7O5LJX4j7Uw6zTm2BWTdUXXJddWdSdaDCEHCDaSeZZEDJNEUfrvycKu7g1KB_39Zw6d45VBodQ6wEZXSZAfkR_rKwP0/s1600/iau0601a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2qM7_QYhqivsQySOBsFjhlypXN_YxXffHzkcYoQPvZrX0q3vK7O5LJX4j7Uw6zTm2BWTdUXXJddWdSdaDCEHCDaSeZZEDJNEUfrvycKu7g1KB_39Zw6d45VBodQ6wEZXSZAfkR_rKwP0/s640/iau0601a.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">One big happy family: the solar system illustration from the original IAU Resolution 5 proposal. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">* </span><b style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What's the merit in going with a definition more like the
original Resolution 5?</b><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> The simple criterion of 'hydrostatic equilibrium' has the merit of being simple - and not requiring unreasonable omniscience. Additionally, it groups together things of 'like physics' -
differentiation, atmospheric weathering, geophysics, mountain building,
etc. The word 'planet' is already being used in an exceedingly
broad sense: Earth is far less like Jupiter than Pluto is like Earth. </span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF4yVsrUfWNSdo0KrNebgx3Qe4GNpVsooYsd-rXYH3OlPntPbkIJ-6uEfi-oZ6t145g70mcz2N0_C-HkDMdGypWfNEXG8juAifuspTcCIcdIcAl1mLNHCJYL7DNAKkbN1C24iGdeuTquA/s1600/Jupiter-Earth+Earth-Pluto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF4yVsrUfWNSdo0KrNebgx3Qe4GNpVsooYsd-rXYH3OlPntPbkIJ-6uEfi-oZ6t145g70mcz2N0_C-HkDMdGypWfNEXG8juAifuspTcCIcdIcAl1mLNHCJYL7DNAKkbN1C24iGdeuTquA/s640/Jupiter-Earth+Earth-Pluto.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Worried about relative sizes? Maybe you should be more concerned for Earth than for Pluto.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Won't a Resolution 5-like definition result in 'too many'
planets?</b> Scientific definitions rarely anchor themselves on whether or
not they result in "too many" of a category they are attempting to
define. For example, the periodic table of elements
has well over 100 entries, but such a criticism is never leveled
against it.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The inventory of the solar system would be as follows: 4 terrestrial planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars), 1 'dirt dwarf' (Ceres), 2 gas giants (Jupiter, Saturn), 2 ice giants (Uranus, Neptune), and 4 'ice dwarfs' (Pluto, Haumea, Makemake, Eris), for a total of 13 planets in 5 categories. An additional number of ice dwarfs are likely candidates (Orcus, 2002 MS4, Salacia, Quaoar, 2007 OR10, and Sedna). <b>This debate has never been about just Pluto</b>, but rather, a sensible definition of the word 'planet'. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheads7BMvAVK4OFvw4JHDifH81bM0yQV23RaBdyqxExnq5xNh48uJO-K_zMaMDtm1vCWgAw9mfBPZ_KM5mBECmYmJXomttSQDafU0BS8HNHPl1v1XQT8v_wIqDP0Bfel3tjPiImFaYJtw/s1600/EightTNOs.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheads7BMvAVK4OFvw4JHDifH81bM0yQV23RaBdyqxExnq5xNh48uJO-K_zMaMDtm1vCWgAw9mfBPZ_KM5mBECmYmJXomttSQDafU0BS8HNHPl1v1XQT8v_wIqDP0Bfel3tjPiImFaYJtw/s640/EightTNOs.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Meet the neighbors. Don't worry, they don't bite.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Additionally, use of the word "planet" is now in common parlance with the
burgeoning community of exoplanet exploration. Well over 1,000
confirmed planets around other stars are now known.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIT9DBRkTDAygaeg2f7g-DYlBcVHXTi9IjSI4APZhewFshMHB8Y81ueQvnI5R7ioqJUSDy1EZGSW2FJPsEKlboL-flVmitTiHdGySVIopVwG0Qh6hmL0O0JT7WrkOW1eoFUzA4GLQeZoU/s1600/kepler+orrey+data-1b.0.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="521" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIT9DBRkTDAygaeg2f7g-DYlBcVHXTi9IjSI4APZhewFshMHB8Y81ueQvnI5R7ioqJUSDy1EZGSW2FJPsEKlboL-flVmitTiHdGySVIopVwG0Qh6hmL0O0JT7WrkOW1eoFUzA4GLQeZoU/s640/kepler+orrey+data-1b.0.gif" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" will soon expand to the length of Moby Dick.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Wait, you're still using 'dwarf planet'</b>. Sure, it's just a kind of planet (in spite of the IAU's stance on the phrase). This was the original intent when the phrase was coined by planetary scientists 25 years ago; this is pretty much what the planetary scientists are using in their phrasing nowadays anyway.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">* <b>Still, that's really too many planets. Think of the schoolkids.</b> Don't underestimate the kids. My 3rd grader has learned 50 states and 50 capitals, and all the countries in Africa. If one must, concentrating on just the "Big 8" is the way to go then, noting that there is a host and diversity of dwarfs (which are still 'real' planets).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What is actually more important is <b>teaching kids critical thinking</b> - which, yes, sometimes includes coming up with rational ways to collect and categorize information. In fact, rational categorization is a necessary step in lumping together 'like' things for our simple brains. This sort of learning will give kids the presence of mind and confidence to simply deliver a blank stare to people who like to argue "it's just semantics", "there's been a vote", or (most inanely) "get over it".</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Well, that's all I have to write on the subject (for now). If you've enjoyed this little write-up, <a href="https://twitter.com/percivallowell">shoot us</a> an image of a #PlutoSalute, and think about <a href="http://lowell.edu/donate/">joining the Lowell Observatory family</a>.</span></span></div>
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Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-57152416441897928542015-07-16T22:22:00.002-07:002015-07-16T22:22:44.713-07:00Thoughts on New Horizons<div style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px; margin-bottom: 6px;">
<span style="line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">For my non-astronomer friends: today was a truly epic day in exploration. A grand-piano sized spacecraft, weighing roughly a ton, was launched almost 10 years ago into space on the biggest rocket in the US arsenal. The Atlas V typically puts up birds seven times the mass of New Horizons, and free of that extra weight, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNJNaIoa5Hk">the stack came off the pad faster than anything before it</a>. New Horizons passed our Moon's orbit in only 9 hours at breakneck speed, traveling initially at more than 10 miles per second. A gravitational slingshot past Jupiter also added speed and put the craft on a trajectory towards the distant planet Pluto.</span></div>
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Today this nuclear-battery powered probe, with its seven scientific instruments, after traveling 3 billion miles, successfully shot thru a 'hole' in interplanetary space only 50 miles across, hitting its mark with a timing precision of better than a few minutes. At these blistering speeds, running into even a rice grain-sized bit of debris in the Pluto system would have obliterated the spacecraft. The body-mounted instruments meant the craft could point its cameras or talk to Earth, so it spent its precious hours of closest approach focused on the prize of Pluto and its moons -- and in radio science back here at home.</div>
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After a wrenching wait, the appointed "phone home" time arrived ... and the seconds ticked by as more agonizing wait built up. The tension built up palpably, and when it seemed that one could bear no more delay, the carrier signal - delayed by 4.5 hours of light travel time - perked up on NASA's Deep Space Network, followed by one subsystem "all clear" call after another. A jubilant cheer exploded from us all as we knew the precious cargo of the spacecraft was safe, past the clutter of Pluto's neighborhood, careening even further outwards into interstellar space. Given the great distance of New Horizons in the deep void past the planets, its ability to transmit is hampered, so it'll take a full year and a half to downlink all of the data. It'll be a long wait to get it all, but it also means that every passing day will be a further new revelation on this distant world we have just only begun to glimpse.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmIsBuMtRR_-Xo8djiuMPTfHuRHNIlj0Spf4H0GHXJZThwB7oIWxDIwKhvEosu7S7W5Bn-d1O-VmIbcIgnf3jOaJMOA2kAtNcJ8C5ispQMsWiXRvwK04xbyxxkGj_5ucxKnujVxvU4Ys/s1600/2015-07-14+17.55.49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcmIsBuMtRR_-Xo8djiuMPTfHuRHNIlj0Spf4H0GHXJZThwB7oIWxDIwKhvEosu7S7W5Bn-d1O-VmIbcIgnf3jOaJMOA2kAtNcJ8C5ispQMsWiXRvwK04xbyxxkGj_5ucxKnujVxvU4Ys/s320/2015-07-14+17.55.49.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anxiously awaiting the "phone home"</td></tr>
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This sort of challenge stretches all of us to tackle problems we didn't even know existed, much less their divining their solutions. It expands the horizons of the entire human race, and by pushing back the boundaries of our ignorance, we sharpen the focus we have things we hold dear back here at home. My hope is that my children, your children, and an entire new generation of explorers will be inspired to dare great things because of the grand accomplishments they have witnessed today.</div>
Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-64675598871953295212014-11-27T12:50:00.001-08:002014-11-27T19:53:18.300-08:00Easter Island (Rapa Nui)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="text-align: left;">Southwest corner of the Island: Orongo</span></h3>
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Setting of on our tour, we headed to the southwest corner [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Hanga+Roa,+Isla+de+Pascua,+Valpara%C3%ADso+Region,+Chile/Orongo,+Chile/@-27.1684104,-109.4506691,14z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947fa532c310a17:0x95aabbca2c061a0c!2m2!1d-109.4333!2d-27.15!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947fbd8cf6ad283:0x665e33e8ee6d82d1!2m2!1d-109.443108!2d-27.187435">travel map</a>] of the island, going up the side of the extinct volcano Rana Kao. [Important safety tip for future visitors: we stopped at the national park entrance and I had to pay my entrance fee for the day. It's 30,000 CLP or $60, and they don't take credit cards. My guide, an islander, related with some unhappiness how the money does not stay on the island but goes back to the mainland government, where only a share comes back to Rapa Nui.]</div>
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From a lookout point on the slope of the volcano, we could look back to the north and east:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg__rFScf_lqsgff2o7whq4Q76OdgYv_xGGbWfk0O3KFE6V2j0Lm8il060xWqE03Xmpt768mneFT-KQ29J14tePk5G5XZas5Q5HgHazXJZkFxewJHhX182hGYv96VHYlvM8D3L2wpQ7whg/s1600/DSC_0088-pano.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg__rFScf_lqsgff2o7whq4Q76OdgYv_xGGbWfk0O3KFE6V2j0Lm8il060xWqE03Xmpt768mneFT-KQ29J14tePk5G5XZas5Q5HgHazXJZkFxewJHhX182hGYv96VHYlvM8D3L2wpQ7whg/s1600/DSC_0088-pano.jpg" height="233" width="640" /></a></div>
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That view afforded us a look back at the only town on the island, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanga_Roa">Hanga Roa</a>, with a long stripe stretching from side-to-side in the photo in the way: the airport. Mataveri Airport is noteworthy for its seemingly excessively long runway; the generous length of runway One Zero has a fascinating back story - namely, it was extended at the request of (and funding by) the US Government, as a potential <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_space_shuttle_landing_sites">landing site</a> for NASA's Space Shuttle. </div>
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The shuttle, during a potential "<span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Transoceanic Abort Landing</span>" scenario, would have had the option to put down here on Easter Island. "But wait," you say, "Rapa Nui is nowhere near Kennedy Space Center - would it have really ended up here from a launch in Florida?" Well, no, it wouldn't have - but it could have aborted down to the island when it flew out of <i>California</i>. You see, there was a time when there were desires on the part of NASA - the US Air Force, really - to launch out of Vanderberg AFB, from the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vandenberg_AFB_Space_Launch_Complex_6">Slick Six</a>" launch complex. Why? This would have put the shuttle into a polar orbit - a rather favorable location from which spy satellites could be deployed. In the end, this did not come to pass, but things were very close to turning out this way - a launch was scheduled for October of 1986, and then the Challenger accident happened in February of that year and all the shuttle's plans changed.</div>
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Continuing up to the rim of the volcano, you can look back down into the remains of the caldera. It's strangely reminiscent in appearance to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_Crater">Meteor Crater</a> near Flagstaff, yet wholly different. It's a crater that is volcanic on origin, not meteoritic, and the floor is filled with water. In fact, this latter fact is very important for the historic inhabitants: it's <i>fresh</i> water, collected from rainfall, and is a source of drinking water. My guide told me how his grandmother would come here in years past, before modern water systems were installed, to do laundry and take care of other chores associated with fresh water.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7ke7iXIk6WDk8ahLOasBpmWFuscpY47YYXGEAxRjEdkhie6q3IlLC3Qa0aKslZgmmiyIClKdktHxEyVZ3n87mwRd67jr7LtQI8EbX2Jk9bbUE9NNmbE29xpnfmXsGYtc8RNmZ7qYETU/s1600/DSC_0100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV7ke7iXIk6WDk8ahLOasBpmWFuscpY47YYXGEAxRjEdkhie6q3IlLC3Qa0aKslZgmmiyIClKdktHxEyVZ3n87mwRd67jr7LtQI8EbX2Jk9bbUE9NNmbE29xpnfmXsGYtc8RNmZ7qYETU/s1600/DSC_0100.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Continuing along the rim of the volcano, you arrive at the ceremonial city of Orono. Here the leaders of the twelve tribes that inhabited the island would gather yearly. Each tribe would bring a champion warrior and the 12 champions would embark on a competition to see which tribe would rule for the next year. The champions would climb down a thousand feed down the cliff side, swim a mile across the ocean to the island of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motu_Nui">Motu Nui</a> ("the big island", past <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motu_Iti_(Rapa_Nui)">Motu Iti</a>, "the little island", and past pointed Motu Kao Kao, "the sideways island"), seen here:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguNtppm8bd09V-9E2p5WDfiP2iOd5hqtMsbsF9_rEkSMjgFrpCNRNS658Yapf0GY3RzZTaMGg1p-M3mUJL-uMbbGXJU8SfZKvdSDzpQ271dByDuQdAJ0K05G3LCTTFUZ3FjuwasFichlk/s1600/DSC_0122.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguNtppm8bd09V-9E2p5WDfiP2iOd5hqtMsbsF9_rEkSMjgFrpCNRNS658Yapf0GY3RzZTaMGg1p-M3mUJL-uMbbGXJU8SfZKvdSDzpQ271dByDuQdAJ0K05G3LCTTFUZ3FjuwasFichlk/s1600/DSC_0122.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Up for a swim?</td></tr>
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There the champions would await the return of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sooty_tern">Sooty Terns</a>, who roosted there. The first champion would could sieze an egg of these birds, and return to Orono (via the swim and cliff climb, mind you), presenting the egg to his sponsor and the judges, would win the title of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tangata_manu">tangata manu</a> ("bird-man") for his sponsor, bestowing great power on that sponsor for the next year.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip9_LABjVFdgGvAVnHFYmkEB-14fNy3kXkTcmPARcUpbiiGodlwWHbzopWgXKZh6g6sk45hsZMFE940y5zO9JkEYXj5HOheWdm1603TNnkfaK4mJ2vMdozwqXFlgUweB6ng0Ib0id-8mc/s1600/DSC_0123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip9_LABjVFdgGvAVnHFYmkEB-14fNy3kXkTcmPARcUpbiiGodlwWHbzopWgXKZh6g6sk45hsZMFE940y5zO9JkEYXj5HOheWdm1603TNnkfaK4mJ2vMdozwqXFlgUweB6ng0Ib0id-8mc/s1600/DSC_0123.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of the chief's houses from the cliffside.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFRscUGwPRphyphenhyphenefTVsypFgHX_DOzXPwRw4BFOxfIQ4ta4C2Wk_Dn9gU3kyb9V-4-5ITMptk1aZhfIBZUJ-GoX9YVKbtO4jMdns5VL9ZkqNoDrqyWEqdC8pCCxoNaVNNKEc9oVuxtWQfJs/s1600/DSC_0126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFRscUGwPRphyphenhyphenefTVsypFgHX_DOzXPwRw4BFOxfIQ4ta4C2Wk_Dn9gU3kyb9V-4-5ITMptk1aZhfIBZUJ-GoX9YVKbtO4jMdns5VL9ZkqNoDrqyWEqdC8pCCxoNaVNNKEc9oVuxtWQfJs/s1600/DSC_0126.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The huts had very small entrances, forcing anyone entering to crawl - making it very defensible for the occupants.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHd2BFNWK-fQThHLEKro2xxad30mL2q6suUJk-OJC6UtRCR-pecw_HSwFpoclNNW9Q3QhGeaU68iPdJ1ptI7M2Pu3ck-yKiftbDw5_HnFS2t7a5IVOSe9WI1BjnjAtMkPcClUBGKVgqMg/s1600/DSC_0128-pano.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHd2BFNWK-fQThHLEKro2xxad30mL2q6suUJk-OJC6UtRCR-pecw_HSwFpoclNNW9Q3QhGeaU68iPdJ1ptI7M2Pu3ck-yKiftbDw5_HnFS2t7a5IVOSe9WI1BjnjAtMkPcClUBGKVgqMg/s1600/DSC_0128-pano.jpg" height="146" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A view of the Rana Kao caldera from Orono.</td></tr>
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To the East Coast: Akahanga</h3>
From Orono we went along the coast over to the eastern side of the island [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Orongo,+Chile/-27.14897,-109.3364221/@-27.1721962,-109.393538,14966m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m8!4m7!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947fbd8cf6ad283:0x665e33e8ee6d82d1!2m2!1d-109.443108!2d-27.187435!1m0">travel map</a>] (it's a pretty small island overall - only maybe 10 miles from side to side). The ancient village of Akahana lies here, deserted, and is a good example of how the islanders used to live. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI-3XySO3ilNfvwXmr9p9cviyu6IIPwBsBKHyXVepXL-RMd7Td5Joqe-Y8Ar6shQHHM50AWcQMQuQCSzEr31yXbmyFw8E-wSptmzAJvnDSHfKbGbxnKdanjJwFA8GgvyOgTRCvQaRYsKc/s1600/DSC_0152.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI-3XySO3ilNfvwXmr9p9cviyu6IIPwBsBKHyXVepXL-RMd7Td5Joqe-Y8Ar6shQHHM50AWcQMQuQCSzEr31yXbmyFw8E-wSptmzAJvnDSHfKbGbxnKdanjJwFA8GgvyOgTRCvQaRYsKc/s1600/DSC_0152.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is an example of the remains of a "boathouse", so named because it's shape looks like an upside-down boat.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4XroveQPzmFoZN0A65DVskjkOLRtbftakK-GULoP_WcYis91oBO__lDWrBeIb7bD3SgqmsIAjxiWfLyMtmUs7sw57_ptxjpReHQYUwiU4I9OyEmBHIyJ3eCz1vZ7tubo2oAv8exiVtCY/s1600/DSC_0153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4XroveQPzmFoZN0A65DVskjkOLRtbftakK-GULoP_WcYis91oBO__lDWrBeIb7bD3SgqmsIAjxiWfLyMtmUs7sw57_ptxjpReHQYUwiU4I9OyEmBHIyJ3eCz1vZ7tubo2oAv8exiVtCY/s1600/DSC_0153.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The base rocks of a boathouse had holes ground into the rocks, allowing thick branches to be arced from side to side, forming the frame of the house. The frame was then covered with materials to form the roof.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYZxjhJVVtdpiBaPij4gVbsGeLCqL2_CRUwSHXBx04PeUwGtPhnJIXG1kHVJ7KAf2jFrvvQ7rAflQu6FBxmcDjIOlYpWZ9-K_Wn_7_wyBa-SbvwLFT8Uz_9z4WMcNWTO3FvhpQ6S3gmT4/s1600/DSC_0157.JPG" height="213" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nearby cave was a secure refuge in times of severe weather or warfare.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5AdqZfM8Y9DJqFyxTzj6PfdLDFswAlye0si30zrEtLkYRRJ-eJx0MHj8vz0rte3fUVRwzecXNrUKZrBm2jG-ZULV0Wr1JM5bju_In3AHzTEgLK8kIJ_yBBiuFiQUpSrb0clOv6QaPPtc/s1600/DSC_0159.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5AdqZfM8Y9DJqFyxTzj6PfdLDFswAlye0si30zrEtLkYRRJ-eJx0MHj8vz0rte3fUVRwzecXNrUKZrBm2jG-ZULV0Wr1JM5bju_In3AHzTEgLK8kIJ_yBBiuFiQUpSrb0clOv6QaPPtc/s1600/DSC_0159.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All the boathouses had their doorways facing the platform where the moai were located, so it would be the first thing one would see in the morning. All the <i>moai</i> on the island had been toppled by the end of the 19th century - aside from those seen at the quarry, any erect moai seen now on the island are recent re-erections.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1rm5r0B4aq1xGtR6Zto7VIAwToEgGKMd6FInbpvOJQSQ_ms7Gwx4Dj1lTErq6pCGzGdm-L-YjEX4L2JdN0rcf4rnz4takyw6wMsJxapb18cYqog3G5SD91sWgXr5h_VJkAHmdZA6o7dk/s1600/DSC_0162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1rm5r0B4aq1xGtR6Zto7VIAwToEgGKMd6FInbpvOJQSQ_ms7Gwx4Dj1lTErq6pCGzGdm-L-YjEX4L2JdN0rcf4rnz4takyw6wMsJxapb18cYqog3G5SD91sWgXr5h_VJkAHmdZA6o7dk/s1600/DSC_0162.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A toppled moai, face-down.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOarud8tAckeRKQfYlSiw5zAVgo4y7xA2NvhDxYKZ0pD2LnSdhbxOLOP9NZWxFcLNKFYoMvEthzEj59QT9y_vk49oeFSl2nElu5OLc5Z40QnG54UlKd5M0sIhrLYLLYFVj0t3CI30Soo/s1600/DSC_0170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOarud8tAckeRKQfYlSiw5zAVgo4y7xA2NvhDxYKZ0pD2LnSdhbxOLOP9NZWxFcLNKFYoMvEthzEj59QT9y_vk49oeFSl2nElu5OLc5Z40QnG54UlKd5M0sIhrLYLLYFVj0t3CI30Soo/s1600/DSC_0170.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A closeup of the toppled moai of the village, face-forward (away from the ocean) from the platform.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYu4iyK03-2ZCRrQyl_-Tk2FHteEAk7hF1nbumsYCvpcTCBRfDK_JpHl0JxrerS0wXBN38m1X8CnaCcKWLdTkFi8orLlLP-SQm7a7zOIWLCN0848EXc5KC4LZ7p0hCwNOM7WocrK1qNk/s1600/DSC_0173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoYu4iyK03-2ZCRrQyl_-Tk2FHteEAk7hF1nbumsYCvpcTCBRfDK_JpHl0JxrerS0wXBN38m1X8CnaCcKWLdTkFi8orLlLP-SQm7a7zOIWLCN0848EXc5KC4LZ7p0hCwNOM7WocrK1qNk/s1600/DSC_0173.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Many of the toppled moai had their heads snapped off. My guide told me that one way you can tell if a moai had been erect was if it had eye sockets carved in the head: such carving took place only have the moai was erected in place. In the eye sockets, coral eyes were inset, but only a few relics of this past had ever been found.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br />
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40ktY2ua_bZ-aSRJwqmZlwY2AySQwrsiJQKiFU1VlwqjGhIRn271Jh0bBw_yrmwd7DNG1113Li7FWcbqyDp5CCTODk7tlqHCiZ7UPy1ysOO0EeJ1YO9_TWbwdIlykhufmK_YFYDjTXb0/s1600/DSC_0175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi40ktY2ua_bZ-aSRJwqmZlwY2AySQwrsiJQKiFU1VlwqjGhIRn271Jh0bBw_yrmwd7DNG1113Li7FWcbqyDp5CCTODk7tlqHCiZ7UPy1ysOO0EeJ1YO9_TWbwdIlykhufmK_YFYDjTXb0/s1600/DSC_0175.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The seaward side of the platform, showing topped moais here as well.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj04lKXrLrmxkslVDe4S79bHqJHLRgiu0XzV67WQr8DQkOK6xYztJeclz1INtVx8AsL9AGXb3wDEKgXQyXqdp_yVV0RhCPPoA0Hju1nGebQ4A6RxO7SYOIMCXBN3yREEN0AAjT6TcTKNs/s1600/DSC_0183.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj04lKXrLrmxkslVDe4S79bHqJHLRgiu0XzV67WQr8DQkOK6xYztJeclz1INtVx8AsL9AGXb3wDEKgXQyXqdp_yVV0RhCPPoA0Hju1nGebQ4A6RxO7SYOIMCXBN3yREEN0AAjT6TcTKNs/s1600/DSC_0183.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An intact example of a toppled moai, lying on its back.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3>
Off to the Quarry</h3>
</div>
<div>
The numerous moai scattered around the village ruins prompt the question: where did they come from? Out of the side of a mountain, of course. So, from Akahanga, we drove further east to Rano Raraku [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/-27.14897,-109.3364221/Rano+Raraku/@-27.1405979,-109.3182231,5568m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m8!4m7!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947f1ffab35b13f:0xee39ad6e48e01198!2m2!1d-109.286111!2d-27.123889">travel map</a>], the quarry. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7rkRPLE7O_hmOCrGHUMJ8IzsUzbb50ze_9CAIsdxN1EknRrK_kUk-8hSN3jBt0B7nyhkvPKPpj6bs9FubITmkS7FXwoX0E7_CHE2hE9D3vvpM_PWcmXFOiBOvgNaGK4tc7mlHujlj6p4/s1600/DSC_0191.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7rkRPLE7O_hmOCrGHUMJ8IzsUzbb50ze_9CAIsdxN1EknRrK_kUk-8hSN3jBt0B7nyhkvPKPpj6bs9FubITmkS7FXwoX0E7_CHE2hE9D3vvpM_PWcmXFOiBOvgNaGK4tc7mlHujlj6p4/s1600/DSC_0191.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The quarry is center-left on the mountainside. The brown dots on the lower green part of that slope are completed moai, standing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
At the quarry, the stone monoliths that are the moai were mined out of solid rock. It is at the quarry where the all the strangeness and magic that is Rapa Nui hits will the force of a sledge hammer: not a few moai in pieces upon their side, but dozens upon dozens of the somber images stand in place, apparently awaiting a delivery that never happened.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghjB5s12GWHWap7xKmfqGqIkmdfAf35QAEWCmNFWFNzLOwVxUnpPpBnXRxtL_CuQWAF5b4sOpQarcncHqxzusN7je6llLQBNsvDRfJ0CPF9sDiRI2y92Oih4c537TJhCZsohfKXAqGd6k/s1600/DSC_0193b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghjB5s12GWHWap7xKmfqGqIkmdfAf35QAEWCmNFWFNzLOwVxUnpPpBnXRxtL_CuQWAF5b4sOpQarcncHqxzusN7je6llLQBNsvDRfJ0CPF9sDiRI2y92Oih4c537TJhCZsohfKXAqGd6k/s1600/DSC_0193b.JPG" height="173" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
At the quarry, you park, wander past the ever-present tables of souvenir trinkets, check in with the ranger station with your <i>very expensive</i> park entry ticket, and then wander up the path to the quarry.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Rcm-OEzHF5VZ9_WteB9vZwQ-f_RxZ8eEeWmqNu20cjP9pcydI6-H6lfzEz0mt51cFMvsZS4OQnL9H055w-L6RxDyd9gjEjabDv5h_ZYZBUXextPCOMfFEPrYY_l_vjV6Czuod293phA/s1600/DSC_0200b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Rcm-OEzHF5VZ9_WteB9vZwQ-f_RxZ8eEeWmqNu20cjP9pcydI6-H6lfzEz0mt51cFMvsZS4OQnL9H055w-L6RxDyd9gjEjabDv5h_ZYZBUXextPCOMfFEPrYY_l_vjV6Czuod293phA/s1600/DSC_0200b.JPG" height="191" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
And there they are, jutting out of the sloping green hillside. Big moai, not-so-big moai, and then even bigger moai. Further at the bottom of the hillside are toppled moai. Failures during attempted deliveries? It wasn't clear. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxeRvwx-PJgRn-7p7L9whN23p6JIQDtXUMtDEZSTj2ZA88TQPvDCc8pV_9zYW0miMI5kh8RXtVPsMeA23KbwNUq7G_aBT7-Skg6EXCSByi_xqVk1JtpwR4mp1iKkPkk3gBXXQ3Mg9je4Y/s1600/DSC_0202.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxeRvwx-PJgRn-7p7L9whN23p6JIQDtXUMtDEZSTj2ZA88TQPvDCc8pV_9zYW0miMI5kh8RXtVPsMeA23KbwNUq7G_aBT7-Skg6EXCSByi_xqVk1JtpwR4mp1iKkPkk3gBXXQ3Mg9je4Y/s1600/DSC_0202.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Stuck here for hundreds of years, and we still can get pizza delivered here."</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoe-Dqm1DJ8VKwyuNG74Vp9Sb56G8IWBUhQr-C1lKiFNN_ShzfbuT1haf0N_zoKi1Ex5G2XnNY3XN9Y-7u-Pc6fNY8ply4Vu_jAIAFXZQM_HyrUwcdWA0-hilr7lv71dZ32FDITaLDNNM/s1600/DSC_0206.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoe-Dqm1DJ8VKwyuNG74Vp9Sb56G8IWBUhQr-C1lKiFNN_ShzfbuT1haf0N_zoKi1Ex5G2XnNY3XN9Y-7u-Pc6fNY8ply4Vu_jAIAFXZQM_HyrUwcdWA0-hilr7lv71dZ32FDITaLDNNM/s1600/DSC_0206.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not a bad likeness.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The moai were commissioned by rich families and carved out of solid rock; you can see two of these works in various stages of preparation here:</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ylw4ru98Whyo-aPlZoNtT4zFtdYywTwSJg8jA5SIIbs71GBI3Z9NJWdeJEZjfJrBMA2cKThvrHM-oa6qsElcX19pG8wzLTE1H-t74maieDHHWMyVyA10MkBAh7wV2e2weCtA_NsBHs4/s1600/DSC_0210-pano.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ylw4ru98Whyo-aPlZoNtT4zFtdYywTwSJg8jA5SIIbs71GBI3Z9NJWdeJEZjfJrBMA2cKThvrHM-oa6qsElcX19pG8wzLTE1H-t74maieDHHWMyVyA10MkBAh7wV2e2weCtA_NsBHs4/s1600/DSC_0210-pano.jpg" height="191" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Everybody needs a moai - order yours today!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
(If you're keen-eyed, you can see a third on the far right as well.) Around the corner from the quarry, on the east slope of the mountainside (the quarry is on the south), there's a particularly unusual moai:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvn2oscO0ObPGkfLREYzG7-UPZBrTJUclOvGVAOC0AbMji-mbzUHiZMz8YnvsK0e5WRDLil3HjTgBs0gGERJOpy89cDltgmlUCXh0rTKakbC9VZ0xMdGWzHrfSYDf-8g267_xlYFRDWaY/s1600/DSC_0218.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvn2oscO0ObPGkfLREYzG7-UPZBrTJUclOvGVAOC0AbMji-mbzUHiZMz8YnvsK0e5WRDLil3HjTgBs0gGERJOpy89cDltgmlUCXh0rTKakbC9VZ0xMdGWzHrfSYDf-8g267_xlYFRDWaY/s1600/DSC_0218.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
My guide told me that the name of this particular moai translates as "He Who Stares at Stars" (if I remember that correctly). The upward stare of this figure is unique amongst the moai on the island, as is the beard on the chin, and the hand position on the knees. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Coming back around to the quarry, we encounter "El Gigante" - the largest moai ever started. At roughly 75 feet tall, it's a true monster.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7IyYTD7AL9TrIMfV7ia1KZbQaE3izs0cP21uTzTEwooDdnhxTikVzVx0gwdiznut1bafJUtSmz1PmBvEeZ2jciL7i2o7SLjgtVrbbEH5sPilCivRNozOw-VB4M8usHS9_1VmTORSyk4/s1600/DSC_0222.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7IyYTD7AL9TrIMfV7ia1KZbQaE3izs0cP21uTzTEwooDdnhxTikVzVx0gwdiznut1bafJUtSmz1PmBvEeZ2jciL7i2o7SLjgtVrbbEH5sPilCivRNozOw-VB4M8usHS9_1VmTORSyk4/s1600/DSC_0222.JPG" height="400" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Does this mountainside make my butt look big?"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's unclear if the islanders ever intended to move El Gigante - my guide was optimistic that his ancestors would have done so if so inclined, and that the collapse of the overall moai culture precluded that event, not any lack of technical capability. <br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Tongariki: The Postcard Picture Place</h3>
<div>
From the quarry we did the short drive over to Tongariki [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/-27.1269679,-109.2919359/Tongariki,+Chile/@-27.1292432,-109.2855923,1808m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m8!4m7!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947f206d473138f:0x3a3c0f2a0421a18d!2m2!1d-109.276934!2d-27.125772">travel map</a>], which is the place everyone has in mind from the postcards.</div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UCQvhodiQsQ0vReuTgBQLMPo76gevFGaZYRlTKCYo29q0mTnmMkDaukSiZDNQCbUfu_qvQIFEEq4KZ-EYHyUpE1zlyQ8iBHdRDAm-woxA1hx5iE_gYzWeDzIIK4nfaQYxkk-CnUDqps/s1600/DSC_0230.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UCQvhodiQsQ0vReuTgBQLMPo76gevFGaZYRlTKCYo29q0mTnmMkDaukSiZDNQCbUfu_qvQIFEEq4KZ-EYHyUpE1zlyQ8iBHdRDAm-woxA1hx5iE_gYzWeDzIIK4nfaQYxkk-CnUDqps/s1600/DSC_0230.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">15 monoliths, all in a line</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As with most moai, these have their back to the sea. From the side, the somewhat unique dual-tier structure of the platform the moai stand upon can be readily seen:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_7v5pYXXIapV6uU9JA4rLdwe6JEG6bYgj5Mafs_wj5hpNbP8RxDqIuda6n_MyyXhLbENRpJ_NnWRimLkKq7k6BYpeEToCCpR5JeseXJudkx2EWh5jC1sF8mOirQ2qdaP0zhLjqIcOoE/s1600/DSC_0237b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_7v5pYXXIapV6uU9JA4rLdwe6JEG6bYgj5Mafs_wj5hpNbP8RxDqIuda6n_MyyXhLbENRpJ_NnWRimLkKq7k6BYpeEToCCpR5JeseXJudkx2EWh5jC1sF8mOirQ2qdaP0zhLjqIcOoE/s1600/DSC_0237b.JPG" height="198" width="320" /></a></div>
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Also visible is the top nut on the 2nd closest moai. What is interesting about the Tongariki site is its recent reconstruction. As with the other seaside moai, it was completely toppled, and then further destroyed by a tsunami the hit the island in 1960, from an earthquake on the mainland. In the mid-90's, an agreement between the Chileans and the Japanese brought heavy equipment - including a crane - to this site, and was rebuilt (complete with some judicious use of concrete reinforcement). As such, it now stands with an impressive majesty: </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwC0bJRVdK_csd_YttKm0Ka_KCbEFQXAjkJ8lQG-Y8BNg8loW_tu5RvlBpWN_gTyqz8F4dRKTGJl68zwkqs024vgo9MVVk79MlNJw5L6G2ni3bfGPrW0DSEOBMOS5zAiCgjnFvcUwdyLQ/s1600/DSC_0254-pano.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwC0bJRVdK_csd_YttKm0Ka_KCbEFQXAjkJ8lQG-Y8BNg8loW_tu5RvlBpWN_gTyqz8F4dRKTGJl68zwkqs024vgo9MVVk79MlNJw5L6G2ni3bfGPrW0DSEOBMOS5zAiCgjnFvcUwdyLQ/s1600/DSC_0254-pano.jpg" height="182" width="400" /></a></div>
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These moai stand around 20 feet tall each.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhADuccWAmFOcE1re5TXFXwEdYy2HhaDYvo4TVB5n1_eOrSmUTcUJLekk8kwpxxYE-Pa6oXox_d0P57DIS-AiBVdwXKOwLai8I17l6-OoO7cZtN6H1N9NZ7Pd4R-tE1HNfJ9LELCqGfSd4/s1600/DSC_0261b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhADuccWAmFOcE1re5TXFXwEdYy2HhaDYvo4TVB5n1_eOrSmUTcUJLekk8kwpxxYE-Pa6oXox_d0P57DIS-AiBVdwXKOwLai8I17l6-OoO7cZtN6H1N9NZ7Pd4R-tE1HNfJ9LELCqGfSd4/s1600/DSC_0261b.JPG" height="205" width="400" /></a></div>
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A somewhat battered placard on the site commemorates the reconstruction work.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzkUU2BR3u3a4ihFbLHSMe3Y3uZlchDg5isJc1BlOLWyoRRax6NVKwNFGvlCa9cTbs8_gHFHllwKaDx6GR7jUz4R-uTB9qdBszT5afNKDDGvl2mtgpJY2XazyccaylfbBpOZKyi6yCJs/s1600/DSC_0288b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTzkUU2BR3u3a4ihFbLHSMe3Y3uZlchDg5isJc1BlOLWyoRRax6NVKwNFGvlCa9cTbs8_gHFHllwKaDx6GR7jUz4R-uTB9qdBszT5afNKDDGvl2mtgpJY2XazyccaylfbBpOZKyi6yCJs/s1600/DSC_0288b.JPG" height="276" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What do you think the original islanders would have thought of using heavy equipment?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3>
Continuing Around the North Side: Te Pito Kura</h3>
<div>
Leaving Ahu Tongariki, we continued around the perimeter of the island to Te Pito Kura [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Tongariki,+Chile/-27.0819642,-109.3045478/@-27.1122919,-109.2834774,10162m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m8!4m7!1m5!1m1!1s0x9947f206d473138f:0x3a3c0f2a0421a18d!2m2!1d-109.276934!2d-27.125772!1m0">travel map</a>]. At this site is one of the final moai to be erected during the monolith building era, and the largest. Having stood roughly 30 feet tall, this particular statue was reported standing by the earliest European visitors to the island.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkhqo5ikcKTtxnwUSBq12qQJwt2qk93j0r2wqfddFNQC1V4vPzrfkGEjUVFmQ3rdECTrWT5jwVwszWWX01t_L4u9E9Byt8AiKgpTZofm9-5HdbjNOOJY-StlfByGJO9yU5A1SSHMkPDk4/s1600/DSC_0295b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkhqo5ikcKTtxnwUSBq12qQJwt2qk93j0r2wqfddFNQC1V4vPzrfkGEjUVFmQ3rdECTrWT5jwVwszWWX01t_L4u9E9Byt8AiKgpTZofm9-5HdbjNOOJY-StlfByGJO9yU5A1SSHMkPDk4/s1600/DSC_0295b.JPG" height="108" width="400" /></a></div>
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As such, this particular moai - named "Paro", and weighing roughly 80 tons - was toppled at some time after 1838. Just around to the side of this site is another interesting site, which my guide informed me was the <i>real</i> site of Te Pito Kura:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv_fKcxjnT-3ZxptEOmNdxvSDnSTo5pFeYypDRsycLOy7Z3A6nIb43dfRxir5cZtGhSQqwa9yJ51zYomCufEKdAq8HKmA2EEEpt79tliCi0qR8xXT5Da9OEtmbr-soMe0HAEirPOaB_rM/s1600/DSC_0300.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv_fKcxjnT-3ZxptEOmNdxvSDnSTo5pFeYypDRsycLOy7Z3A6nIb43dfRxir5cZtGhSQqwa9yJ51zYomCufEKdAq8HKmA2EEEpt79tliCi0qR8xXT5Da9OEtmbr-soMe0HAEirPOaB_rM/s1600/DSC_0300.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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The large rock in the center was supposedly brought by the first explorers who discovered the island, using the rock as ballast in their ocean-going canoes. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrfeIegp7zTqEtW-B9Gv1LhT295D6OHAWLrOIA-Yew42CT4qatBx3SAeb58UemtagnW_MlFKGbtVD43SK_t4AwcaejTvFqgHY62_otmf94RDlOf6SYwzIfyb2FVyREClNRb2zAtG6yfG0/s1600/DSC_0302.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrfeIegp7zTqEtW-B9Gv1LhT295D6OHAWLrOIA-Yew42CT4qatBx3SAeb58UemtagnW_MlFKGbtVD43SK_t4AwcaejTvFqgHY62_otmf94RDlOf6SYwzIfyb2FVyREClNRb2zAtG6yfG0/s1600/DSC_0302.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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The four rocks around the perimeter allow you to sit by this rock. Since this rock has great power, you can benefit from it if you put your head on the rock: </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDYSkVkEC1KSiO3dhWFErcnwDgTEvLCCWF96Hb98XbCR941qninxahMi95SSr1SpFTOAWECp7BoJUzZq-wPNKWkm2q7XsNQR3St0rhgkoMVSkVFmM9u4Diw5RYkLx3dbhYgqwjkp2BCMM/s1600/DSC_0304.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDYSkVkEC1KSiO3dhWFErcnwDgTEvLCCWF96Hb98XbCR941qninxahMi95SSr1SpFTOAWECp7BoJUzZq-wPNKWkm2q7XsNQR3St0rhgkoMVSkVFmM9u4Diw5RYkLx3dbhYgqwjkp2BCMM/s1600/DSC_0304.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now that's putting your head into it</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3 style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Last Stop on the Tour: Anakena Beach</h3>
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We did the quick drive over to Rapa Nui's picture-perfect beach, Anakena [<a href="https://www.google.com/maps/dir/-27.0819642,-109.3045478/-27.0745552,-109.3245611/@-27.0791944,-109.3170999,2634m/data=!3m1!1e3">travel map</a>]. The cove here has a lovely white-sand beach, replete with palm trees.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlk4ebuWTuBYkJ0h9eFztsl5V4o0HKcCm_vyyr819RquB73-hcICgJVKva0pKApdy7NQdbAIBsnzcEUuEr8EfFO_05eDAIOToJY2ABprBHH0kOCGje0HgXZfSOgMMODlW-wfGIHuE3Mk/s1600/DSC_0312.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzlk4ebuWTuBYkJ0h9eFztsl5V4o0HKcCm_vyyr819RquB73-hcICgJVKva0pKApdy7NQdbAIBsnzcEUuEr8EfFO_05eDAIOToJY2ABprBHH0kOCGje0HgXZfSOgMMODlW-wfGIHuE3Mk/s1600/DSC_0312.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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It believed that the first settlers arrived at this beach first. There is a moai platform here, complete with a number of re-erected moai: </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3W5zXGwGFTf2OTITSMNDhCFRGeg30t3NlRz5YB3x1968Co03Ub1WtnK52tWeykxy4up6Hjpd8fjlgpl_A4S_M5yjadeM9WP8GNI5MwG237L8O7wxram2umdXbW2t7EsUTkyMHDt5Gnk/s1600/DSC_0313.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3W5zXGwGFTf2OTITSMNDhCFRGeg30t3NlRz5YB3x1968Co03Ub1WtnK52tWeykxy4up6Hjpd8fjlgpl_A4S_M5yjadeM9WP8GNI5MwG237L8O7wxram2umdXbW2t7EsUTkyMHDt5Gnk/s1600/DSC_0313.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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These moai are particularly well-preserved, having been toppled face-first into sand; the facial features are still quite sharp with relief:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpEM86iDmU3bzyvvSeIuw3bDxnX9dNIsWD6mBnBK3lW4Scom7eazFZZC0-1ir82AS3fhQBQFOTf_2Wmrk1JPGOnnxsVaH3mIiBD6h_sO75PnXpmbstn-MF7w1TWnavRHCfQV-DZNgB190/s1600/DSC_0317b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpEM86iDmU3bzyvvSeIuw3bDxnX9dNIsWD6mBnBK3lW4Scom7eazFZZC0-1ir82AS3fhQBQFOTf_2Wmrk1JPGOnnxsVaH3mIiBD6h_sO75PnXpmbstn-MF7w1TWnavRHCfQV-DZNgB190/s1600/DSC_0317b.JPG" height="320" width="260" /></a></div>
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Another unique feature of these moai is that they, unlike most of the rest found at the other ocean-side sites, have elaborate decoration on their backsides as well as the front.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqDp5K8IZtwx4r4CgY7OwgWfVNaXhiHqVEkQiACI9Jz-mTCRB1IJblUqx9k6dvhydlEHgwXL3AptN4meszkNG6dqzGPo1be5ZDcMUF28aHbEgQNxywJdCWz8UTdEntldf0fC_TeYkqHY/s1600/DSC_0339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqDp5K8IZtwx4r4CgY7OwgWfVNaXhiHqVEkQiACI9Jz-mTCRB1IJblUqx9k6dvhydlEHgwXL3AptN4meszkNG6dqzGPo1be5ZDcMUF28aHbEgQNxywJdCWz8UTdEntldf0fC_TeYkqHY/s1600/DSC_0339.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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At the beach there are a number of ocean-view cafe huts, which are a perfect place to wrap up the tour with a cool drink.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPaW_vPy9cmaxpKRdCP2qfpXUxeSnd9iIIYalK9IT8-EFZ_r44gtt-e7fiVXlLjKKUvo-mtyXsYHV1xQ4BDY0aO2arrjsPvYnSyzE33sxMAIiXPmIWQVvxFEOnu1ZUq5B9-Vrk_y6tA2g/s1600/IMG_5295.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPaW_vPy9cmaxpKRdCP2qfpXUxeSnd9iIIYalK9IT8-EFZ_r44gtt-e7fiVXlLjKKUvo-mtyXsYHV1xQ4BDY0aO2arrjsPvYnSyzE33sxMAIiXPmIWQVvxFEOnu1ZUq5B9-Vrk_y6tA2g/s1600/IMG_5295.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hopefully the drink comes with a little umbrella in it.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
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</div>
Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-44013318601088319342014-04-25T15:13:00.002-07:002014-04-25T15:13:15.736-07:00May: One Crazy MonthAs much as I was hoping to not be going anywhere during this next month (since next month is <a href="http://coolstars18.net/">Cool Stars 18</a>), the exact opposite has happened. Murphy's Law of Unexpected Travel in full force, I guess. I start off going off to Nashville - a visit to <a href="http://www.vanderbilt.edu/">Vanderbilt</a> for a meeting of the dissertation committee of my grad student, Victor Garcia. The following week it's off to Munich, to take care of some business and visit with the elusive Herr Dr. Kaspar von Braun, when then gives way to three days in Nice for the '<a href="https://www.oca.eu/spip.php?article850">Hanbury Brown Intensity Interferometry</a>' workshop. That trip is followed a week later by going to Ames, Iowa for Lee Anne Willson's retirement symposium, "<a href="http://www.extension.iastate.edu/registration/events/conferences/oldyoung/">Stars: Old, Young, and Variable</a>". The month gets wrapped up with a visit to Santa Fe, for a star party for the Santa Fe Conservancy. <br />
<br />
So, it's a simple bit of bookkeeping to figure out that my average speed - for the entire month of May, 24/7 - will be about 28 miles per hour. Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-40030311015407751932012-01-05T09:15:00.000-08:002012-01-05T09:48:35.811-08:00New Digs!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToTxVTom27j2O2K6okpWXKQ2ifVMb3t8ot7yBNjGzq6VjsLDyaQ1pirdCqEBfu7O67ulHp-AxX_V1fOTz4E5Ymcy5Jzy5ozzqOQ7fN6gdmR5j7BqqFKmUCTgzxd0XafGlhOx1StVpFQc/s1600/DSC_0444.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img alt="" border="0" height="133" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694199504213986226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjToTxVTom27j2O2K6okpWXKQ2ifVMb3t8ot7yBNjGzq6VjsLDyaQ1pirdCqEBfu7O67ulHp-AxX_V1fOTz4E5Ymcy5Jzy5ozzqOQ7fN6gdmR5j7BqqFKmUCTgzxd0XafGlhOx1StVpFQc/s200/DSC_0444.JPG" style="float: right; height: 214px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; width: 320px;" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lowell Observatory's Hall 42", located at</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Anderson Mesa near Flagstaff, AZ</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So, it has been a while since I've posted to my blog, and there have been some big changes. In the intervening time, I've taken a new job back in the US at <a href="http://www.lowell.edu/">Lowell Observatory</a>. This has meant a relocation back to the states, and my family and I are now new residents of the lovely town of Flagstaff, Arizona.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEDJcjVVxaFWHixkLWdC-mjmFANVDqLFXIzaXNwuiYURvUiBvgHJNAhEsbSrn4ZMyb7qFMYYgCFVCwgF28LH5Jbqo8nnEPUtCtdBrLKL7O_3z3vh4cPxNtQq2lLlhhPl74ZNfhac_obM/s1600/NOI.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEDJcjVVxaFWHixkLWdC-mjmFANVDqLFXIzaXNwuiYURvUiBvgHJNAhEsbSrn4ZMyb7qFMYYgCFVCwgF28LH5Jbqo8nnEPUtCtdBrLKL7O_3z3vh4cPxNtQq2lLlhhPl74ZNfhac_obM/s200/NOI.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">An aerial view of the NOI & Anderson Mesa</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgYHuJsYDtcpkUlIQHHcMhNKCzZui9dWiZDHtDze-QGrNMg8OjItWeMABr_iX_aAev97t3ylVU9R-0BmY3Ancvxppfk850wkV9h7sUDw_QJsRds8dFTMP_wnynx1Jr2jD_Yb3YpGwl38M/s1600/DSC_0053-pano.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="115" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgYHuJsYDtcpkUlIQHHcMhNKCzZui9dWiZDHtDze-QGrNMg8OjItWeMABr_iX_aAev97t3ylVU9R-0BmY3Ancvxppfk850wkV9h7sUDw_QJsRds8dFTMP_wnynx1Jr2jD_Yb3YpGwl38M/s400/DSC_0053-pano.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In the end, there's little difference between this and rocket science:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">it's all about the plumbing</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Lowell is an interesting place for me, because it means that I have the opportunity to work on the <a href="http://www.lowell.edu/research_telescopes_noi.php">Navy Optical Interferometer</a> (NOI), a large telescope array located on <a href="http://maps.google.com/?ll=35.095339,-111.533921&spn=0.010832,0.010418&hnear=1541+W+Daydream+Dr,+Flagstaff,+Arizona+86001&t=w&z=17&vpsrc=6">Anderson Mesa</a> near Flagstaff. The NOI currently operates baselines in the visible up to 80m in length, which means resolving stars down to ~1mas in size is fairly straightforward; an ongoing upgrade means its longest 437m baselines will be open in ~12-24 months, with a corresponding increase in angular resolution.</span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-32210615761219762012009-02-02T23:01:00.001-08:002009-02-02T23:12:05.205-08:00Countdown to Kepler & Terra Nova<span style="float: right;font-family:verdana;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPNLafvDiQXNEW-xN0jSGkz58Ss0ZHuskSefgcTqHDvr1FYWV8zQAxTNoWgVZeHo1VfhQ4iOYZriKPnKUrySNmTD1QSsQSCFgZ8r6LIjXriaX5WecASLngJedf2-AziSNFqhi7XqPyos/s1600-h/Kepler-FOV.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 195px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPNLafvDiQXNEW-xN0jSGkz58Ss0ZHuskSefgcTqHDvr1FYWV8zQAxTNoWgVZeHo1VfhQ4iOYZriKPnKUrySNmTD1QSsQSCFgZ8r6LIjXriaX5WecASLngJedf2-AziSNFqhi7XqPyos/s320/Kepler-FOV.jpg" title="You'd think all of this real estate would be listed on Zillow.com" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298462944606168034" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Kepler field of view,<br />straddling the Summer<br />Triangle (Altair, Vega, Deneb).</span></span><span style="font-family:verdana;"> On March 6th, at 3:48 UTC, a Delta II launch vehicle will rise off the ground at Cape Canaveral's pad 17B, riding a fountain of fire being belched from its RS-27A main engine and 6 GEM-40 solids strapped to its sides like oversized fireworks. Three additional GEM-40 solid rockets get an air start about 2 minutes into flight, and burns of the Delta K second stage and Star 48B third stage will loft the </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/" mce_href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/">Kepler spacecraft</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> into </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/sci/design/orbit.html" mce_href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/sci/design/orbit.html">an orbit</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> around the sun, drifting away from the Earth at slow rate over the following years. After the roaring earthquake-in-a-thunderstorm ride to that orbit, </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_Mission" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler_Mission">Kepler</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> will settle into the deep interplanetary quiet - an ever waking, watchful sentinel, on the lookout.</span><p style="font-family: verdana;"></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">During its long stare, Kepler will seek - and find - planets like Earth: the size of Earth, orbiting stars similar to our Sun, separated from their host stars at distances similar to the Earth-Sun system. Places where liquid water are thought to be likely, where life can flourish. Terra Nova.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Kepler will do so by looking with its large, unblinking eye, at a huge, heavenly (literally) host of stars - initially, about 200 thousand - taking a digital picture and measuring the brightness of each of those stars once every few minutes. The exact same field of stars, for 4 long years (and even longer if a mission extension comes to pass). If one of those stars happens to be Sun-like, if it happens to have an Earth-like planet, if that planet happens to be in a Earth-like orbit (about 93 million miles from its host star), if that orbit happens to pass between us and that star, and if Kepler is looking during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_transit" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_transit">transit event</a>, then a detection might occur. Stare long enough, the planet's orbit will swing it around for a second transit, establishing the duration of the orbit - and then later, a third: confirmation. A lot of if's - and the mission design attempt to solve that: look at a lot of stars, with a regular rate, for a very long time - four years or more, in fact. Each one of the "if's" I mentioned has a small likelihood of success associated with it, but if you beat enough targets, for long enough, against those small probabilities, one can still come up with non-zero discovery rates.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Assuming the rocket doesn't blow up on launch (yet another 'if' - but the Delta II's are about as resoundingly reliable as they come), and if the satellite functions properly, what is the expected haul of planets? This is difficult to say, actually - astronomers don't have much information on how common Earth-like planets are - this is a major motivation for the mission. But, if current models are true (they are, every <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_moon" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_moon">blue moon</a>), the expectation is that <a href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/sci/basis/results.html" mce_href="http://kepler.nasa.gov/sci/basis/results.html">roughly 50 Earth-like objects will be found</a>, in addition to a large number of bigger objects (such as Neptune-sized objects).</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Currently there's a similar smaller scale mission, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corot_%28space_mission%29" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corot_(space_mission)">CoRoT</a>, flown by the French space agency <a href="http://www.cnes.fr/" mce_href="http://www.cnes.fr/">CNES</a>, which in turn was predated by an even smaller scale mission, <a href="http://www.astro.ubc.ca/MOST/index.html" mce_href="http://www.astro.ubc.ca/MOST/index.html">MOST</a>, flown by the <a href="http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/index.html" mce_href="http://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/index.html">Canadian Space Agency</a>. CoRoT just celebrated <a href="http://www.cnes.fr/web/CNES-en/7097-a-busy-2-years-in-space-for-corot.php" mce_href="http://www.cnes.fr/web/CNES-en/7097-a-busy-2-years-in-space-for-corot.php">its 2nd year anniversary</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microvariability_and_Oscillations_of_STars_telescope" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microvariability_and_Oscillations_of_STars_telescope">MOST</a> has been orbiting since mid-2003. Both CoRoT and MOST can detect large-ish planets (giant gas bags like Neptune and Jupiter) - particularly if the host star is smaller than our sun - but Kepler's scope (roughly a factor of 10 larger than CoRoT) allowed it to be designed specficially for the goal of finding distinctly Earth-like planets. It's an exciting prospect - one more step on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copernican_revolution" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copernican_revolution">Copernican Revolution</a> started over 400 years ago, one that will not only expand the frontiers of our scientific knowledge, but one that will distinctly impact humanity's sense of its place in the universe.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">* :)</p>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-2768587636202033852009-02-01T19:43:00.000-08:002009-02-01T20:30:33.658-08:00Observing Challenges<span style="float: right;font-family:verdana;" ><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYzKspsgixvPHt07bOs130RelOaXONeyXbrdqTcJjWOck5Z1zrDT4dnimMWE9SrhFL1CCUG9Z7bvrCJAW0mKFd85-OjKTXccUE0m9ts5O0t-oHli3hikQMdEF2gFLqcaxq3an-wjt9hk4/s1600-h/IMG_3686.JPG" title="Do you think we get a discount for buying in bulk?"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 264px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYzKspsgixvPHt07bOs130RelOaXONeyXbrdqTcJjWOck5Z1zrDT4dnimMWE9SrhFL1CCUG9Z7bvrCJAW0mKFd85-OjKTXccUE0m9ts5O0t-oHli3hikQMdEF2gFLqcaxq3an-wjt9hk4/s320/IMG_3686.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298050039457107314" border="0" /></a><br /><center><span style="font-style: italic;">Four little telescopes, all in a row</span><br /></center><br /><br /></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">So I am, once again, at the </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&z=18&ll=-24.627279,-70.403996&spn=0.002477,0.003455&t=k&om=1" mce_href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&z=18&ll=-24.627279,-70.403996&spn=0.002477,0.003455&t=k&om=1">Paranal Observatory</a><span style="font-family:verdana;">, observing with the Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). VLTI uses multiple telescopes to synthesize a single, larger telescope - one of a size that is far beyond what is practical to build by itself. For example, we are able to configure our telescopes to act like a telescope more than 100-m in diameter - something that would be nice to have but is not economically feasible. </span><p style="font-family:verdana;">We are in the process of commissioning a new instrument for VLTI called PRIMA - I'll save you the pain of what the acronym means and cut to the practical impact of it: PRIMA allows us to observe two objects simultaneously. It effectively lets the VLTI behave like an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_interferometer" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronomical_interferometer">interferometer</a>, times two. This setup lets us do a couple of tricks - first, it will allow us to look at things fainter than we normally can, by using one of the two channels to lock up the optics on a bright star, while the second channel stares at something dim. Second, PRIMA will let us measure the angle between those two objects to an unprecedented level of accuracy, something south of 100 microarcseconds.</p><p face="verdana"><br /><span style="float: right;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYgOTGzcQGZb890WFT0qJU_i3PjcGZzrC4_26IslnKLN2dcPemmyyC5fnGSHMjclxsiM6w1gbx9MJk6gcC2i0zNcDZ8k62iqXivQVUn_dTW_WtNpDj7gqvg3RI06zyB97jb9SbdYk17s/s1600-h/IMG_3719.JPG" title="Yes, this *is* a night job"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 243px; height: 123px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYgOTGzcQGZb890WFT0qJU_i3PjcGZzrC4_26IslnKLN2dcPemmyyC5fnGSHMjclxsiM6w1gbx9MJk6gcC2i0zNcDZ8k62iqXivQVUn_dTW_WtNpDj7gqvg3RI06zyB97jb9SbdYk17s/s320/IMG_3719.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298050145306482098" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><center style="font-style: italic;">Twilight - getting ready to observe</center></span> Hmmm... a microarcsecond: this is a pretty daunting science-type term. How small is such a measure? Well, let's put it this way: if you & your friend are standing on opposite sides of a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soccer_pitch" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soccer_pitch">soccer pitch</a> (or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_football" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_football">football field</a>) - about 100 meters - it's the angle subtended by the apparent distance that one of his hairs grows in a second, as viewed by you.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Pretty cool, huh? But here's the catch: VLTI is a rather complicated beast, and PRIMA makes it all that much worse. So, we shipped PRIMA out to the site last August, and we've been working to get it functioning ever since. It'd been expected that there would be an extended period of commissioning to shake out all the bugs (think of it as a test flight regime for a new aircraft), but some times the observing runs associated with commissioning can be a challenge when new & exciting optomechanical system do new & exciting - and unexpected - things. So at times we're left scratching our heads. ("Huh? The star separator did what?")</p><p style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="float: right;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPhQPut6SFaCP8cCdhJVFiEowkn1rzPws-2_NYQiTeqMJ1du_85iThT9jbJ3rN878sfybhblXsvF5IyYz2QtCXQppHRhkdbUYOStYZBeedWFt7ry2gXSuC3m3P31Nb17eBXrXTJqpnBeI/s1600-h/IMG_3738.JPG" title="How can we *possibly* look up at the sky, see this, and not demand for full-service transportation to these places? NOW?"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 91px; height: 182px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPhQPut6SFaCP8cCdhJVFiEowkn1rzPws-2_NYQiTeqMJ1du_85iThT9jbJ3rN878sfybhblXsvF5IyYz2QtCXQppHRhkdbUYOStYZBeedWFt7ry2gXSuC3m3P31Nb17eBXrXTJqpnBeI/s320/IMG_3738.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298050265460934354" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The moon and Venus in conjunction</span></span> This particular observing run has been like that. We fix one thing and something else breaks or misbehaves. It's currently day 4 of 10 - and things overall are only getting better - but it's turning into a long haul. We'll be ready for the bus in a week! However, as we like to say (and first attributed to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einstein" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einstein">Albert Einstein</a>), if we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be research...</p><p style="font-family: verdana;">[nb. tip 'o the hat to <a href="http://tips.blogdoctor.me/2007/10/tips-on-pictures-in-blogger.html">The Blog Doctor</a> for tips on image posting in Blogger.]<br /></p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">* :)</p>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-7637796848543780582009-01-28T18:18:00.000-08:002009-01-28T18:23:44.987-08:00Separated at Birth?<p style="font-family: verdana;">Working in the field of astronomy, there are many and wondrous things that one often encounters during the course of one's travels. In many cases, the sights are sufficiently novel as to leave one scrambling to place them in context in an inadequately rich cultural backdrop. This is, of course, ever-so-true for the images that astronomers pluck out of the sky <a href="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/" mce_href="http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ ">each and every day</a>.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">Telescopes are often located at the very extremes of the earth (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubble_telescope" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubble_telescope">and beyond</a>). These locations are generally selected for environments that are as benign as possible - but not from the point of view of their human operators: these considerations are purely driven by the needs of the machines. Locales that are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atacama_Desert" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atacama_Desert">very dry</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dome_C" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dome_C">cold</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauna_Kea" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauna_Kea">high atop mountains</a> figure prominently on the wish list for sites for observatories. These locations often have staggering vistas associated with them - stark landscapes that seem to have been ripped off the surface of the moon, rather than having anything to do with Mother Earth.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">And finally, the telescopes themselves often defy convenient categorization, being objects of purpose-built wonderment that have lines that curve and swoop in unfamiliar ways. These machines are often reflections of their times (for example, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Wilson_Observatory" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Wilson_Observatory">100" Hooker telescope</a> looks a lot like other large things of its era - battleships!) - the fingerprints of the technologies out of which they were born are all over them, even if they themselves look nothing like the more conventional applications of that technology. Think of what would have happened if Andy Warhol had been locked in a Dunkin' Donuts kitchen and told produce some art. It'd be something wacky & cool & unexpected, but you know it'd have a certain familiarity because it'd be deep fried and covered in powdered sugar, too.</p><p style="font-family: verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJWfiLJvxflWp0oMjkNIUms-Sr8DptLqWiUsaEqS4p-4qKlgtyCOjL-hbRE6l1SFYyqUfldG5pMR7FO5ysS4BexmEfF1ra-4ROMr7Y80x6os4gmaiKzVbhpkahFHCu1ACj_JRUqCvCOA/s1600-h/smIMG_0492.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 131px; height: 159px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJWfiLJvxflWp0oMjkNIUms-Sr8DptLqWiUsaEqS4p-4qKlgtyCOjL-hbRE6l1SFYyqUfldG5pMR7FO5ysS4BexmEfF1ra-4ROMr7Y80x6os4gmaiKzVbhpkahFHCu1ACj_JRUqCvCOA/s320/smIMG_0492.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296534791924703378" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ziCFFiQ8W6iR_UFCvDrDbGwcNv6yvxOWKjI0OfZKGLJec_tT7W-bWkv1PC6LaaS5TFjXR0YXh-a8NDsLBZAc0KSKipZHROWnI-KtNjfOLeTB9hOjNTl4p5uPf9Xhvwb_XV3oZSL_HEI/s1600-h/Marvin_(HHGG).jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 92px; height: 152px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ziCFFiQ8W6iR_UFCvDrDbGwcNv6yvxOWKjI0OfZKGLJec_tT7W-bWkv1PC6LaaS5TFjXR0YXh-a8NDsLBZAc0KSKipZHROWnI-KtNjfOLeTB9hOjNTl4p5uPf9Xhvwb_XV3oZSL_HEI/s320/Marvin_(HHGG).jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296535067187205554" border="0" /></a>Having recently come back to ESO's Paranal Observatory to use the VLTI, I sometimes reflect upon these things as I wander around outside on the observing deck. On the deck are the 4 outsized domes for the UTs (the cleverly named 'Unit Telescopes'), the VLTI building, and the 4 AT telescopes (the also cleverly named 'Auxiliary Telescopes'). The ATs are specifically designed to be used with the VLTI, and as such, rank high on my list of personally important astronomical glass. The ATs are interesting little telescopes<sup>1</sup>, designed to be compact and can even be <a href="http://gerardstravelnotes.blogspot.com/2008/01/holy-moving-telescopes-batman.html" mce_href="http://gerardstravelnotes.blogspot.com/2008/01/holy-moving-telescopes-batman.html">driven around like futuristic street cars</a>. The flat white finish could easily have been designed by Apple, like some outsized iPod (is it too late to trademark the term iTelescope?), but recently I have discovered an even closer cultural link for them.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">It's something that nagged at me for some time - that "I've seen this before" feeling that I couldn't put my finger on. And then it hit me: the ATs could easily be mistaken for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_the_Paranoid_Android" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_the_Paranoid_Android">Marvin</a>, the oppressively depressed robot from Douglas Adam's ever-so-delightful <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy">Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy</a> (at least, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker%27s_Guide_to_the_Galaxy_%28film%29" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy_(film)">the movie version</a>). The resemblance is striking - so much so, it gives me pause: did any of the film's producers visit Paranal before filming? Where did that Marvin design come from, anyway? And using <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000614/" mce_href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000614/">Alan Rickman</a>'s voice in the movie for Marvin - it's just like when Rickman was in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095016/" mce_href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095016/">Die Hard</a>, and they blow up the place, which of course is what happened to <a href="http://gerardstravelnotes.blogspot.com/2008/10/paranal-residencia.html" mce_href="http://gerardstravelnotes.blogspot.com/2008/10/paranal-residencia.html">Paranal</a> in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0830515/" mce_href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0830515/">Quantum of Solace</a>. Coincidence? I think not.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;"><sup>1</sup>"Little" being a relative term - at 1.8m (71") in size, they're small only next to the 8.2m UTs.</p> <p style="font-family: verdana;">* :)</p>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-65408994796504814122009-01-23T00:50:00.000-08:002009-01-23T00:52:35.732-08:00Crisis at ESO!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3wm62IKYVMcsGfItD3uJ9UA2beyCru1gqzVruIGwo4ACQNbHrf2a-s_ky23XTlZE2hfDCS4t9UFN0pCYkM9WIVkkUBIt2M_4i2bPSdYk0Mj8ZpnXXu6YLyX7UdO3DjOWyoYS3QVcNCvM/s1600-h/smESO+coffee+-+out+of+order.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 226px; height: 169px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3wm62IKYVMcsGfItD3uJ9UA2beyCru1gqzVruIGwo4ACQNbHrf2a-s_ky23XTlZE2hfDCS4t9UFN0pCYkM9WIVkkUBIt2M_4i2bPSdYk0Mj8ZpnXXu6YLyX7UdO3DjOWyoYS3QVcNCvM/s320/smESO+coffee+-+out+of+order.JPG" alt="Didn't I see this on a Space:1999 episode?" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294409157296361554" border="0" /></a><br />Wow, talk about an alarmist headline. But it's true! Why? There is a machine at ESO, a magic machine, one that single-handedly fuels the engine of astronomical discovery. I have often remarked that it is the single most important machine at the facility. What is it? Tucked away in the heart of the ESO cafeteria, sitting atop a shiny stainless steel countertop that has been devoted to it alone, like an altar, is the ESO espresso machine.<br /><br />Its sheer size and glittering controls are sure to elicit a mouth-dropping expression of wonderment from the newcomer. ESO veterans know to make a beeline every morn immediately upon arrival at work for this cathedral of caffination and pay homage to its wonderous powers of brewing and steaming. Wizened oldtimers of the institute remark that its prodigious mind-enhancing output - estimated to be well in excess of 30,000 cups of black, liquid lightning a year - has single-handedly led to more discoveries than any comparable device in the modern world.<br /><br />But alas, this morning, a mournful sign hung like a rude stoplight on the front of the machine. "Out of order," was its tale of woe. Progress today at ESO? Perhaps not. Perhaps the ephemeral mysteries of the universe will hide yet one more day behind the mists of uncertainty, with no minds coffee-sharpened like razors to cut away at the fog that hides discovery. But, "a technician has been called", the sign goes on to read - so there is hope for yet more insight will eventually come in seeking the secrets of the universe...<br /><br />* :)Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-33749180295567984952009-01-22T06:55:00.001-08:002009-01-22T06:56:32.756-08:00Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe ... with MS Project?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pAtdl9Fh7OBL_lCiJ1kAhZtPzof5Tibp0TUmJ45YB9NWW6AzbyYQiIU7eVYsq0K5xCZIVRVqbvXSUUDJxt5JM-6bAk6gJhNZICmFkgaMUBXDaDLV2lUVDxc09WHFu1I_TsCd5V0tg6Q/s1600-h/PRIMA-Testbed.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 190px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pAtdl9Fh7OBL_lCiJ1kAhZtPzof5Tibp0TUmJ45YB9NWW6AzbyYQiIU7eVYsq0K5xCZIVRVqbvXSUUDJxt5JM-6bAk6gJhNZICmFkgaMUBXDaDLV2lUVDxc09WHFu1I_TsCd5V0tg6Q/s320/PRIMA-Testbed.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294132026596308290" border="0" /></a><br /><p>Yes kids, here I am today, digging away in search of the next Rosetta Stone that will explain the latest round of interstellar mysteries, slogging it out with ... Microsoft Project?<img src="http://www.cosmicdiary.org/blogs/eso/gerard_van_belle/wp-includes/js/tinymce/plugins/wordpress/img/trans.gif" mce_src="http://www.cosmicdiary.org/blogs/eso/gerard_van_belle/wp-includes/js/tinymce/plugins/wordpress/img/trans.gif" alt="" class="mceWPmore mceItemNoResize" title="More..." /></p> <p>Welcome to the era of Big Science. Actually, that era has been going on for quite some time - probably the best early example of the über-project is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_project" mce_href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_project">Manhattan Project</a>. For me, the engineering projects I've worked on have been small-ish teams - typically a dozen or so people - but even that requires careful choreography at times. That's where necessary evils such as MS Project rear their ugly heads.</p> <p>For example, next week, I'll be going to Chile to ESO's Paranal observatory to work on the <a href="http://obswww.unige.ch/Instruments/PRIMA/" mce_href="http://obswww.unige.ch/Instruments/PRIMA/">PRIMA Instrument</a>. During that time, there will be about a dozen people, all tinkering around with different aspects of the same instrument. What's to keep one person's change not appearing as an effect that someone else thought they did? Choreography. More precisely, "careful management of project personnel and instrumention resources" - basically, making sure we're not stepping on each other's toes. This is MS Project comes in: I tell it who's going to be there, and what bits of laboratory are available, and then list all of the tasks that we'd like to do over the 10 days that we'll be there. Each task has people and bits of lab tied to it, and a preferred order in which it gets done relative to the other tasks. MS Project, being told that, makes sure the order is followed and that nobody is being bookkept to do 20 hours of work in a single day. (We like to keep it to more like, oh, 16 hours a day.) At least in theory this is what Project does - in practice I've found it to be an arbitrary and capricious beast, no amenable to taming.</p> <p>Think of it as being the sole teacher in a schoolyard during recess when one shiny new slide has been installed - on a merry-go-round - next to a lake. You have a rusty old whistle that only works half the time, and you're trying to make sure that everyone get a turn, and that no kids bump their heads, shoot off the spinning slide into each other, or get wet. Ok, stupid analogy. But can <i>you</i> think of a better one?</p> <p>* :)</p>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-1910892073671717432009-01-20T13:25:00.000-08:002009-01-20T13:34:50.402-08:00Working on the Very Large Telescope Interferometer<span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" ><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdmvFp2DHummOezy2Yroqu9UjwIaGq2qOw1WIVZOJrCnaRADtfWTKeuwUUc-IAeHq1JUKFu8WKubLC313niP_WMkbEj0CPKRLjtxYlmKqulvjVUgpuVfXv5MlkitTEEJC5jyDitK1g0eA/s1600-h/IMG_7292.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 242px; height: 181px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdmvFp2DHummOezy2Yroqu9UjwIaGq2qOw1WIVZOJrCnaRADtfWTKeuwUUc-IAeHq1JUKFu8WKubLC313niP_WMkbEj0CPKRLjtxYlmKqulvjVUgpuVfXv5MlkitTEEJC5jyDitK1g0eA/s320/IMG_7292.JPG" alt="You have to be a bit of a magician for this job" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5293490719401477090" border="0" /></a></span><span style=";font-family:verdana;font-size:100%;" >Hi, my name is Gerard van Belle - I'm an astronomer working on ESO's Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI), a facility that uses all of the telescopes at ESO's Paranal Observatory together as one single, massive telescope. I describe this frequently as "a lot of smoke and mirrors - but mostly mirrors".</span> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The VLTI has a laboratory underground, surrounded above ground by the telescopes of Paranal. Each telescope can collect light and send it to the lab, where - after some careful control - the various light beams are recombined to synthesize that single, large telescope.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Installation of new instruments for the VLTI requires a lot of time downstairs in the lab. For my job at ESO, I'm helping to develop the PRIMA (Phase-Referenced Imaging & Microarcsecond Astrometry) instrument for the VLTI.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;">"Interferometry" is, even to veteran astronomers, a strange, fascinating - and sometimes scary - concept. I'll try to gently take my readers on a tour through this peculiar landscape, highlighting the important ideas and interesting results.</span></p> <p style="font-family:verdana;"><span style="font-size:100%;">* :)</span></p>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-48073322381254108692009-01-19T04:53:00.000-08:002009-01-19T04:55:45.526-08:00Blogging along....So I've been <a href="http://www.cosmicdiary.org/blogs/eso/gerard_van_belle/">recruited to post</a> to the <a href="http://www.cosmicdiary.org/">Cosmic Diary blog</a>, and will be doing so, mirroring my posts here on my own private blog as well. I'm a little less than thrilled with how the CD blog is working out - posts tend to disappear into a black hole after a short life on the front page as one of the 5 most recent posts. So posting my content here as well as there will give it the most mileage.Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-53511762418482454662008-10-24T22:59:00.001-07:002008-10-30T02:28:55.151-07:00The Paranal Residencia - Destination for James Bond in Quantum of Solace<a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjiI0x5nWQGjdG0b74b8CSiFe0dYoA2Rm7Oxf5pIYd0mQ2m1QwUN2RL-J12KG0Dkh85D4Z-cNPS1Ucvn0iMscKUaeMpgp95gWaziaOgstdE8X4jfmwJKyQpAntBhTYAd9nYAqpN_pbUis/s1600-h/parnal_view.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 128px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjiI0x5nWQGjdG0b74b8CSiFe0dYoA2Rm7Oxf5pIYd0mQ2m1QwUN2RL-J12KG0Dkh85D4Z-cNPS1Ucvn0iMscKUaeMpgp95gWaziaOgstdE8X4jfmwJKyQpAntBhTYAd9nYAqpN_pbUis/s400/parnal_view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260979735724555602" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Recently the base camp of the ESO observatory in Cerro Paranal was used as a set for the upcoming James Bond film, </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.007.com/">Quantum of Solace</a><span style="font-family:verdana;">. As such I thought it might be interesting for people to have an in-depth look at the location.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Wikipedia has details on </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_of_Solace">the movie</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> , </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranal_Observatory">the observatory</a><span style="font-family:verdana;">, and </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESO_Hotel">the Residencia</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> itself; the IMDB entry is </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0830515/">also available</a><span style="font-family:verdana;">. Also of interest is <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=k&om=1&ll=-24.640128,-70.388294&spn=0.003013,0.007725&z=18">the Google Maps view</a>; you can follow the road on the map to the north and west to the telescopes themselves.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">THIS JUST IN: ESO has issued </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/press-rel/pr-2008/pr-38-08.html">a press release</a><span style="font-family: verdana;"> about the upcoming movie release.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hekNEoxER3YZMcYcOOQmSqmzk6UkVeIZJAoZJ5OT3JAdETkBfOo6GOL0WryO8NnXL8xGY9VBX_u5GdltAlAMO43mPDH_nzDRewWs4gc368gdNNNh_jT1mNpOE55pS9O9T9Zn1wmsax4/s1600-h/summit_pano1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 113px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hekNEoxER3YZMcYcOOQmSqmzk6UkVeIZJAoZJ5OT3JAdETkBfOo6GOL0WryO8NnXL8xGY9VBX_u5GdltAlAMO43mPDH_nzDRewWs4gc368gdNNNh_jT1mNpOE55pS9O9T9Zn1wmsax4/s400/summit_pano1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260972467864581554" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">A view of the Residencia from the summit of Cerro Paranal.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzbntjVAyAjl7YY13khOmCgHp-Ne_ctvsnkHhaoeW_1fyvn04MyVlNzrkNYoIdRHCMlGgWAnJm3Ic_885OMJkmOf4HSmRDpnXgxKpMd6PMJXR1bnarUjNNElIQ8Il119LdFcZN-tfVpQQ/s1600-h/view+from+summit_pano1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzbntjVAyAjl7YY13khOmCgHp-Ne_ctvsnkHhaoeW_1fyvn04MyVlNzrkNYoIdRHCMlGgWAnJm3Ic_885OMJkmOf4HSmRDpnXgxKpMd6PMJXR1bnarUjNNElIQ8Il119LdFcZN-tfVpQQ/s400/view+from+summit_pano1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260968369119063426" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Close-up of the view of the Residencia from the summit.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMYDNoB3Nui5FP78AJynxmRkpqB_N5PqSMi5r-TeJP1QG1GKo-ieZnpe50Rvs3GipmutU5E9A9Gi7OhpepLYfJulHML2Mq7cM7vNOo2-1BSewLztQB04xGTv2iux3r9FQRgtAgggWUL8/s1600-h/IMG_0620.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZMYDNoB3Nui5FP78AJynxmRkpqB_N5PqSMi5r-TeJP1QG1GKo-ieZnpe50Rvs3GipmutU5E9A9Gi7OhpepLYfJulHML2Mq7cM7vNOo2-1BSewLztQB04xGTv2iux3r9FQRgtAgggWUL8/s400/IMG_0620.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5261290305830331058" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">From the outside, there is a ramp that lead down into the Residencia. Since the facility is built into a hillside, and you're entering it from the uphill side, there's the impression that there's nothing there except for this strange dome.</span><br /><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiraG9Si7N708-nxJpbXJ1sbvX58QtCUj6g1h54wiqD2M8sPx3Gk745YymbRACfLIcYpIxvyMSLDupO0Tx9FPNOY9OlSfpf4YrrMuAxK1WSRCIR7eeIoSE3N9fZhAiUdDhlxkmeUXGf3oE/s1600-h/residencia_lobby_pano1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 173px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiraG9Si7N708-nxJpbXJ1sbvX58QtCUj6g1h54wiqD2M8sPx3Gk745YymbRACfLIcYpIxvyMSLDupO0Tx9FPNOY9OlSfpf4YrrMuAxK1WSRCIR7eeIoSE3N9fZhAiUdDhlxkmeUXGf3oE/s400/residencia_lobby_pano1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260970731079131250" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Inside the Residencia, the lobby has a large, domed atrium with a swimming pool at its center. The lobby is one level up from the pool and overlooks the greenery of the atrium and the pool.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjxfQjOhDTBazs0MXQeznPWuQcwi4V2yCWoiKg_FYkPTa8UOZJrp8eR5RF-tXk0ERPPGSRwrcI4E5-vzEooOLxrVpWwbO_kJ2y_voHY19JZYApXdVmcibpvYWrR0H-7bgdIificd0rLiI/s1600-h/IMG_0622.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjxfQjOhDTBazs0MXQeznPWuQcwi4V2yCWoiKg_FYkPTa8UOZJrp8eR5RF-tXk0ERPPGSRwrcI4E5-vzEooOLxrVpWwbO_kJ2y_voHY19JZYApXdVmcibpvYWrR0H-7bgdIificd0rLiI/s400/IMG_0622.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5261290297860696818" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Since the whole Paranal area is one that is highly sensitive to light pollution due to the proximity of the telescopes, the domed ceiling, seen above, is configured to let in light during the day, but at night...</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ33t8PON998XfoAy_phnue_ldJquzsGYD4gm-M-FKJsgXoHfC-TjJNpGeuwpyLr9pGlMocEn0BuxhtU1qY5qh_0zL3rx5SQMbenzZz-gQ40FI83rnmxLPtkuSqOcB_15L9FyXdNCg2Gs/s1600-h/IMG_0627.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ33t8PON998XfoAy_phnue_ldJquzsGYD4gm-M-FKJsgXoHfC-TjJNpGeuwpyLr9pGlMocEn0BuxhtU1qY5qh_0zL3rx5SQMbenzZz-gQ40FI83rnmxLPtkuSqOcB_15L9FyXdNCg2Gs/s400/IMG_0627.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5261290294717523762" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">... the ceiling curtain spreads open and seals the light inside the translucent dome.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvy7Pk6UxhjvxJIpbGLD6P3C0q3pporBOeNeFAirKZJEaz5-K196olVItG7Q7m5LYyDYM2ygFi1Eb4B5nfYePqGRB5gSMWXpu3djOZZrDrCw3DLFhyphenhyphenEq2cJEtGGNOus1ggmfQ1k6raltQ/s1600-h/Copy+of+IMG_7512.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvy7Pk6UxhjvxJIpbGLD6P3C0q3pporBOeNeFAirKZJEaz5-K196olVItG7Q7m5LYyDYM2ygFi1Eb4B5nfYePqGRB5gSMWXpu3djOZZrDrCw3DLFhyphenhyphenEq2cJEtGGNOus1ggmfQ1k6raltQ/s400/Copy+of+IMG_7512.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260968369131006242" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Inside the lobby atrium. The Residencia is truly an oasis in the middle of a very bleak desert and represents a welcome retreat from the surrounding desolation.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDLWABQJKaTj8IBixt16TWj0pZmSApVqS9TKMOTxC-jNFvv7Q1HdulDR7AZ-ibcv9pEGgi5R3oJ0ZvdU3TUjZySesr6eVnf3oeYTz9woqiRz83ROj1h7FwEdeGc4Ld3WT5E1rdhnnvrEQ/s1600-h/IMG_0504.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDLWABQJKaTj8IBixt16TWj0pZmSApVqS9TKMOTxC-jNFvv7Q1HdulDR7AZ-ibcv9pEGgi5R3oJ0ZvdU3TUjZySesr6eVnf3oeYTz9woqiRz83ROj1h7FwEdeGc4Ld3WT5E1rdhnnvrEQ/s400/IMG_0504.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260970748779622066" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The secondary lobby down by the rooms.</span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj65vS_9dgFjG-mhAGfovN1xsPL3Apvs0AvkkXXd-no54sK3VzedUWzLT6vG1snzKkUXHc3ppkX5OBsDBQAPLhaJLts_x77_N2PCiTzCaZqrLdydbenEeeEO-By3N6EfTYIuUVm1NSCSf8/s1600-h/residencia_lobby_pano2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 140px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj65vS_9dgFjG-mhAGfovN1xsPL3Apvs0AvkkXXd-no54sK3VzedUWzLT6vG1snzKkUXHc3ppkX5OBsDBQAPLhaJLts_x77_N2PCiTzCaZqrLdydbenEeeEO-By3N6EfTYIuUVm1NSCSf8/s400/residencia_lobby_pano2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260970728378295890" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Another view of the lobby. To the right is the dining room, open 24/7 for hungry astronomers.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhpKz2mZ3VbwaSwyn19tR9zCwzVJfACRzP-v1KMoT2jUo7bDQxofbEaTIiCo7PM7bmqeav8_5NdoDLK65-cdTEOot_xLKJML5Qww4d3rndzTBYquwC5NlL1n5csLlMjOVeYwhQ912kGjE/s1600-h/pano_swimming_pool_work.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 237px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhpKz2mZ3VbwaSwyn19tR9zCwzVJfACRzP-v1KMoT2jUo7bDQxofbEaTIiCo7PM7bmqeav8_5NdoDLK65-cdTEOot_xLKJML5Qww4d3rndzTBYquwC5NlL1n5csLlMjOVeYwhQ912kGjE/s400/pano_swimming_pool_work.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260968384313244498" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The swimming pool at the base of the lobby recently was resurfaced - here you can see the work in progress.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwIxV9ATRwuXKZbhO2VfStEIeQWcm21JQ4edbArXWPNETzKl7bwxUU5l1SMWDcbrlNTeTuWLNZFlKum-LrBCUFFcjpx_nawzm2gPwAqC4f9nhyKeqBILCYOa9jRxs4pzpOuJn7-oGFso0/s1600-h/IMG_0552.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwIxV9ATRwuXKZbhO2VfStEIeQWcm21JQ4edbArXWPNETzKl7bwxUU5l1SMWDcbrlNTeTuWLNZFlKum-LrBCUFFcjpx_nawzm2gPwAqC4f9nhyKeqBILCYOa9jRxs4pzpOuJn7-oGFso0/s400/IMG_0552.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260968364459843842" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">A view of the summit from the Residencia.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNEjkxuQeiPPtLQWnFpb4elwpnCxzMotthTUx_STRpTBPjE9xgkhwpsdnrfjWjhUmG4lgS2_UXo1196bMASF0Qezmx9YTkEthjiYjKXrKAWwI46FGN2b1uJRirOi15L4Sv04lOie1iRl0/s1600-h/IMG_0509.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNEjkxuQeiPPtLQWnFpb4elwpnCxzMotthTUx_STRpTBPjE9xgkhwpsdnrfjWjhUmG4lgS2_UXo1196bMASF0Qezmx9YTkEthjiYjKXrKAWwI46FGN2b1uJRirOi15L4Sv04lOie1iRl0/s400/IMG_0509.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260970743493204258" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">One of the original proposal views of the Residencia project.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv1qu7FjcOMn6rMrD3gH3xKldPXAiDH7-sMmhfaUTQkg2CAckzZV5COYzamng30F60Sr_0HI8lBv8ce_ePoW-GVAjv9gTRtbXSTPrKmXdmuRqS4aBqyTiNr8egAniZK6v5n7XwHgLOIeA/s1600-h/IMG_0512.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv1qu7FjcOMn6rMrD3gH3xKldPXAiDH7-sMmhfaUTQkg2CAckzZV5COYzamng30F60Sr_0HI8lBv8ce_ePoW-GVAjv9gTRtbXSTPrKmXdmuRqS4aBqyTiNr8egAniZK6v5n7XwHgLOIeA/s400/IMG_0512.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260970740546852706" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The bridge that crossed the interior atrium was apparently deleted from the final design: now the walkway from the entrance follows along the wall to the lobby. Pity.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKrnrDKw4vOEK2jvm9hquEmRXkQo3XpdzPHFoZ6s0Dhe8OFBNeCPusRDAu0fr3Qi1f74qOWWwNSWSqiV8OCia6hVljb7eBrlYPb8wMcWKqniU4puisxkQrNqfitdeI5bzZAhNyyXwh2rE/s1600-h/IMG_0513.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKrnrDKw4vOEK2jvm9hquEmRXkQo3XpdzPHFoZ6s0Dhe8OFBNeCPusRDAu0fr3Qi1f74qOWWwNSWSqiV8OCia6hVljb7eBrlYPb8wMcWKqniU4puisxkQrNqfitdeI5bzZAhNyyXwh2rE/s400/IMG_0513.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260968378969114434" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Cross-sectional views of the proposal showing the multiple floors of the Residencia.</span><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyah_tufjolZpRkkpg_Hg9l1H4lThc9HO19K91k6HHsx_cthuCcCEjQRUxcQ21pI7nRDtH-gP65LisqxxpJBg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">A movie that strolls from the outside into the Residencia.</span><br /><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy1RuFBRK9DcNHWnOqfnw9KVRMHRKnQmp0nSsEa-IAZb2ACKSYRtLBDphnivmcnWBcrYhnnXndXSQFYjyg8ng' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Sauntering from one's room into the Residencia lobby and onto the dining room.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3jtDG1L8YrWXaIl1y3LyftmYy_GPkOis7JGwFfvYTx_ppgCGy2w1N06A4t064ZBjWgQNpmdrDuZvUM0GK5Fn4SxAZx_-E4iYa8uEMjwXE0UJwRChlXB5ZfD_fpkzOrx-dGwwFzEAihoU/s1600-h/IMG_7616.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3jtDG1L8YrWXaIl1y3LyftmYy_GPkOis7JGwFfvYTx_ppgCGy2w1N06A4t064ZBjWgQNpmdrDuZvUM0GK5Fn4SxAZx_-E4iYa8uEMjwXE0UJwRChlXB5ZfD_fpkzOrx-dGwwFzEAihoU/s400/IMG_7616.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260972467279496034" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">On the wall in the lobby - proof that James Bond was here!<br /><br /><br /></span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-16195301019604694702008-08-06T17:54:00.000-07:002008-08-07T12:52:53.379-07:00The PRIMA Big Bang<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxhTNUoQMiFOmO6KK3pR6F0tjHyxu0SFzRESDcRrLozZu1NCZMNpCTWK_DgAq0yhMWSgHyBcyvvwsiEntBW1w' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">Had a pleasantly boring flight from Santiago to Antofagasto, with the exception of a amazingly picturesque departure out of the clouds when leaving Santiago - we climbed ever so gradually out of the mist, skimming along the cloud tops at breakneck speed. The video above captures it nicely.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglDlTDhlMrCNTd8CblT8CU9cVk_pkdo8RSO5Qw0rwb8vLyGfKDFp_gZOQMZOk0-uUQwBLj8mZshwyvmxHCsR0dbU87Hp2nD08aFrZaLisJ-BVzkLBPJUK0mcfarWNIj79xRkIR6scqTKE/s1600-h/IMG_7322.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglDlTDhlMrCNTd8CblT8CU9cVk_pkdo8RSO5Qw0rwb8vLyGfKDFp_gZOQMZOk0-uUQwBLj8mZshwyvmxHCsR0dbU87Hp2nD08aFrZaLisJ-BVzkLBPJUK0mcfarWNIj79xRkIR6scqTKE/s400/IMG_7322.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231736696456712466" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family: verdana;">Atop </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=k&om=1&ll=-24.63356,-70.395627&spn=0.020168,0.02974&z=15">the mountain</a><span style="font-family: verdana;">, I found one of the Auxiliary Telescopes at the far south station, looking like it was ready to go further than its rails allowed.</span><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2uxhFW7niatYLBe4ZVP1-WJgu9v7iklEmi5v5R5yVoMoXMTGFkS6BtbJEU9wv3AX49Yec0tJ3wfmAgImO-JFlZF4T0jpFCX5vtxeiGmqW4tbj8hhFHgLRHvhgIn2kFw2kwxrkMm8D43U/s1600-h/IMG_7304.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2uxhFW7niatYLBe4ZVP1-WJgu9v7iklEmi5v5R5yVoMoXMTGFkS6BtbJEU9wv3AX49Yec0tJ3wfmAgImO-JFlZF4T0jpFCX5vtxeiGmqW4tbj8hhFHgLRHvhgIn2kFw2kwxrkMm8D43U/s400/IMG_7304.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231736695993164834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">Also atop the mountain was the current schedule, which has had tasks crossed off as they proceed. So far, so good - things are on schedule.</span><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5eCIkr-_Q5auMxWrMNYN9Yvb8QkoSUD4QcIO50G3de8nzL7O1qjfywMLtzHVOSTNP847ASo9KE4ivu3wjZ6hTEObChDvu2wUVa06SrqppRwn9-t9mpJuxvfFjm05i-ZNU8cjHXnrs_mw/s1600-h/IMG_7293.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5eCIkr-_Q5auMxWrMNYN9Yvb8QkoSUD4QcIO50G3de8nzL7O1qjfywMLtzHVOSTNP847ASo9KE4ivu3wjZ6hTEObChDvu2wUVa06SrqppRwn9-t9mpJuxvfFjm05i-ZNU8cjHXnrs_mw/s400/IMG_7293.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231736692651643314" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">One of the talents you must have as a black-belt interferometrist is to be able to pluck light out of the air!</span><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOt4gez8LM35oFmIvRD4U2mSmtUlkFWQVKa6ZjnSNNjoxoORFI7I-zvemw13iUlxRL4j4arUh_YZ9EsObQJaUe5NAT2g9FbSZZP4trNy8VG8e0WGiC9CoRQRH3VfbTHAjcGAiOf6hLkQc/s1600-h/IMG_7332.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOt4gez8LM35oFmIvRD4U2mSmtUlkFWQVKa6ZjnSNNjoxoORFI7I-zvemw13iUlxRL4j4arUh_YZ9EsObQJaUe5NAT2g9FbSZZP4trNy8VG8e0WGiC9CoRQRH3VfbTHAjcGAiOf6hLkQc/s400/IMG_7332.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231736698405920690" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">What's funny is that, if I were a movie director with a very limited budget, filming some B-grade sci-fi flick, I'd probably come up with some prop that looks just like the optics above - I'd claim it was the starship drive or something like that.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgovd7tsYd-kfE42x7DoTTt4YuntuNJM50ikDxqS_HFkswz82_FlKxz14Zbn9hBJeBsc70jUd16hGqqZbznOpgH9fqOHrPZ4QoUC-zVeszRLS8DlSZGKxfO76dANW1_Dj4RXhf68eYRw/s1600-h/IMG_7343.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgovd7tsYd-kfE42x7DoTTt4YuntuNJM50ikDxqS_HFkswz82_FlKxz14Zbn9hBJeBsc70jUd16hGqqZbznOpgH9fqOHrPZ4QoUC-zVeszRLS8DlSZGKxfO76dANW1_Dj4RXhf68eYRw/s400/IMG_7343.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231737164550123778" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">Much of the work to be done on the optics is not accessible from the sides, because of the overwhelming clutter in the lab. Hence, the platform above the table is necessary for tinkering with the glass. Clearly I'm thrilled with another trip up top.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkjFvCiEMPRKsYc95-_q-VgUSAUDdejSQUCdqKF7l8uUG7Vbw83XhyJxiUHwiepZAnIiIh5hj_SHfdHN8IwGHhqhTctdpsm2gqXyOY5OH96YQ5omM4OvVMS1eZak8OWCO-WNpxTU0dcxE/s1600-h/IMG_7334.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkjFvCiEMPRKsYc95-_q-VgUSAUDdejSQUCdqKF7l8uUG7Vbw83XhyJxiUHwiepZAnIiIh5hj_SHfdHN8IwGHhqhTctdpsm2gqXyOY5OH96YQ5omM4OvVMS1eZak8OWCO-WNpxTU0dcxE/s400/IMG_7334.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231736697373311986" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">You see, once you're up top, to do the necessary work, a certain amount of gymnastics is necessary.</span><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjw_nQDPr_jFlVnk8cRwvQ3jkly4oi3I09PnzBn3BVA2qc08jlTQWajAc7XRP8cbZ1GqZD60AO4hKbV8K-XBQDXKI8ynuDZZ_EJopokde7VVEy1EyfweKjwEDX1pmq64RiSgdCB5ASA2Q/s1600-h/IMG_7337.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjw_nQDPr_jFlVnk8cRwvQ3jkly4oi3I09PnzBn3BVA2qc08jlTQWajAc7XRP8cbZ1GqZD60AO4hKbV8K-XBQDXKI8ynuDZZ_EJopokde7VVEy1EyfweKjwEDX1pmq64RiSgdCB5ASA2Q/s400/IMG_7337.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231737164035119090" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">Here's another view of the work.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9X6gxVod7vmYy1lNioLTHGcB4U8N3s-Culh4AygmKLTNwf00QAIRenxsrjRFFudtg2iT-RVH2fymCPLsyw9fby4i8YhJUVAlY19W_tLksI86MTc8zMJ90ge5vGdbEVqEg4NGcaoF7yM0/s1600-h/IMG_7359.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9X6gxVod7vmYy1lNioLTHGcB4U8N3s-Culh4AygmKLTNwf00QAIRenxsrjRFFudtg2iT-RVH2fymCPLsyw9fby4i8YhJUVAlY19W_tLksI86MTc8zMJ90ge5vGdbEVqEg4NGcaoF7yM0/s400/IMG_7359.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5231737160497973314" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;">And here is the actual heart of the system - one of the two beam combiners that takes light from the two telescopes and puts it back together. </span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-17872658713559335612008-06-18T18:10:00.000-07:002008-06-18T19:47:35.058-07:00Boston<span style="font-family:verdana;">Recently I had the pleasure of being in Boston for the "Transiting Planets" IAU Symposium. This was a surpassingly interesting scientific forum, but also a good opportunity to catch up with a few of my friends.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbfleS8OZb4se-OeQ-_Cztrpp-rhOaBPlc5Xor-NcMaS0eeh7bb6o6KFKJKbZJoEUOkZvMKEInacyuDrAjJhi7ZdA7SoaTKjhnMHm1CIdvlBsAmgIIQ0X8uj5EFJWDYhn_mgvnNZX-YQ/s1600-h/IMG_4762+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHbfleS8OZb4se-OeQ-_Cztrpp-rhOaBPlc5Xor-NcMaS0eeh7bb6o6KFKJKbZJoEUOkZvMKEInacyuDrAjJhi7ZdA7SoaTKjhnMHm1CIdvlBsAmgIIQ0X8uj5EFJWDYhn_mgvnNZX-YQ/s400/IMG_4762+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213408818036549922" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">David with one of his favorite color movies.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnalhmf-6Rbq5PDCto7SoSnwizHP3O7DLz_YUvEYxqFwINx5S8JFcuFACHEahOEmGEO3yoy0GbAzy6Tbw1ot61jqHfLfwzg2BtpTFBkuzATHI-LrvaNDfR8Wb6wGKAkZV_bbSENjgydqk/s1600-h/IMG_4842+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnalhmf-6Rbq5PDCto7SoSnwizHP3O7DLz_YUvEYxqFwINx5S8JFcuFACHEahOEmGEO3yoy0GbAzy6Tbw1ot61jqHfLfwzg2BtpTFBkuzATHI-LrvaNDfR8Wb6wGKAkZV_bbSENjgydqk/s400/IMG_4842+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213411647540543378" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">David and Kaspar aboard the USS Constitution.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfhV_LQOW6Nu6ccYNICIojGxVM3Vs6BisH01SwXemq9T0lMGiWB-79WPb7yiE6bidsUeJLyNcqAe6Me6qsHMw-TBYCEjLcp-yTqyz-syAbfEGVk1RODzT6TKddJcgjfYyRDmNWh6L5zmM/s1600-h/IMG_4862+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfhV_LQOW6Nu6ccYNICIojGxVM3Vs6BisH01SwXemq9T0lMGiWB-79WPb7yiE6bidsUeJLyNcqAe6Me6qsHMw-TBYCEjLcp-yTqyz-syAbfEGVk1RODzT6TKddJcgjfYyRDmNWh6L5zmM/s400/IMG_4862+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213411655975476018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">David risked Teresa's wrath and went to the Union Oyster House without her.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhucDQRR0Dsv-4ZoFZvjT5fXPy8grhonB4mNXinirfd_poSMN4Xin7xL7dbtuFabgGBhCs375MHdGWbBxaUNvdZHOB8JO2pffjqgkSGXUn9o9xZi6Y4RuoBcz55vntVwLZ3nqZswQaubNU/s1600-h/IMG_4765+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhucDQRR0Dsv-4ZoFZvjT5fXPy8grhonB4mNXinirfd_poSMN4Xin7xL7dbtuFabgGBhCs375MHdGWbBxaUNvdZHOB8JO2pffjqgkSGXUn9o9xZi6Y4RuoBcz55vntVwLZ3nqZswQaubNU/s400/IMG_4765+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213408825952907026" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Our globe-trotting pal Jaymie Matthews arrived just in time (as usual!)<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9FQBeUnJ1kR4kQMpVk-VnCaxZ94HRJQ-P1au5-ChDhT8FRSDYkZplGIEdvrP-prY_9FRSxW4rl5RSiKc7M3ms3ibiSRjFI7OmnhoRBDI9tCi7Xr70Woouwr81T5YpmdIDGjBAqrU8DJQ/s1600-h/IMG_4778+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9FQBeUnJ1kR4kQMpVk-VnCaxZ94HRJQ-P1au5-ChDhT8FRSDYkZplGIEdvrP-prY_9FRSxW4rl5RSiKc7M3ms3ibiSRjFI7OmnhoRBDI9tCi7Xr70Woouwr81T5YpmdIDGjBAqrU8DJQ/s400/IMG_4778+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213408834976641762" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">David, Kaspar and myself get caught up on some science projects.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uHc8a1UuIXSrHu5oGXnTA9fKO2tKnDIicuk9y3GENClZ5QuS9RYkDZCzKpE-RyiGo4Lh7FLdFefU3kxiYZOm90W-S4xXvURAuwUd01zfGyB3LC05F6ZnLgK8uwcwvzn7xe2KZgpfJIE/s1600-h/IMG_4792+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1uHc8a1UuIXSrHu5oGXnTA9fKO2tKnDIicuk9y3GENClZ5QuS9RYkDZCzKpE-RyiGo4Lh7FLdFefU3kxiYZOm90W-S4xXvURAuwUd01zfGyB3LC05F6ZnLgK8uwcwvzn7xe2KZgpfJIE/s400/IMG_4792+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213408840809491650" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">I hate to say it, but Boston is full of dead people.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikHBkGpMsKAaKV-111ivSrwRo2XOJ_CTz09EEvp-IdPzQU5Jhil_iAHwMtXNSNoxwGJJmluu7WsT2gFVd1A0dT4vziyB1srqgHY7hNFhBukcIzxCWQjy_TrYaoJTvA6aooUJWryw3KWio/s1600-h/IMG_4812+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikHBkGpMsKAaKV-111ivSrwRo2XOJ_CTz09EEvp-IdPzQU5Jhil_iAHwMtXNSNoxwGJJmluu7WsT2gFVd1A0dT4vziyB1srqgHY7hNFhBukcIzxCWQjy_TrYaoJTvA6aooUJWryw3KWio/s400/IMG_4812+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213408857951680546" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">"Just like Columbus..."<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1P9Rk0hO21b0Y37gTt4JDQOLoCYCN8vyBEwOZY9hYYRJElisN-oYZplrK3YhG6SrFE115rtyWHwSL8ER5ohPsqTqFHCIFJ3BFppJhP4B9F5JvJHGRmtEzdKDpJ-V3tJh1dLyC7v03vNQ/s1600-h/IMG_4865+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1P9Rk0hO21b0Y37gTt4JDQOLoCYCN8vyBEwOZY9hYYRJElisN-oYZplrK3YhG6SrFE115rtyWHwSL8ER5ohPsqTqFHCIFJ3BFppJhP4B9F5JvJHGRmtEzdKDpJ-V3tJh1dLyC7v03vNQ/s400/IMG_4865+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213411666313656178" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Jeroen Bouwman and Giovanna Tinetti put in some heroic measures for their latest paper (submitted after a few all-nighters during the conference).<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge_l-VZSHg63rzD-pV4sYiQA3IDFJdzNtG_A92kQ6NRCqBoalah5zErotWfolsD_2_S4B9l02a3A8hQZnl4xBs98tXZKRIjOG8aEGUk-DSHqtu3IpPdB6Vjl0ttEReM626sGveqDTOBUM/s1600-h/IMG_4888+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge_l-VZSHg63rzD-pV4sYiQA3IDFJdzNtG_A92kQ6NRCqBoalah5zErotWfolsD_2_S4B9l02a3A8hQZnl4xBs98tXZKRIjOG8aEGUk-DSHqtu3IpPdB6Vjl0ttEReM626sGveqDTOBUM/s400/IMG_4888+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213413563816201666" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">The conference banquet was at the Barking Crab.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBdjJrr9ZEpsIrBXeVFV6NvWjhMtYdp3vZVRfHpDV0EZt_5lEYhCAHHjaM_LodXIBChTO4-U6vu7m2QJ7ARogIuAnsxNAjLf2WEOnox2g7TiGG55Ty4AVjNhncTW4vRAi5KHkKQyYDLxo/s1600-h/IMG_4890+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBdjJrr9ZEpsIrBXeVFV6NvWjhMtYdp3vZVRfHpDV0EZt_5lEYhCAHHjaM_LodXIBChTO4-U6vu7m2QJ7ARogIuAnsxNAjLf2WEOnox2g7TiGG55Ty4AVjNhncTW4vRAi5KHkKQyYDLxo/s400/IMG_4890+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213413569773977362" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Stephan Kane and I enjoyed our lobster.<br /><br /></span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKFr99A9ZjI73ywVPHuccvCw56EYthtGQtoEyVSBndL6PUdBj9injxu_3rLGR6aBGumT77O-cy8VkcTFYKEr2qDhecPg_1JWi1rQS9kQs5NAtrmnzZU5ksUSuIxgPbT3HP685myJlrmD0/s1600-h/IMG_4895+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKFr99A9ZjI73ywVPHuccvCw56EYthtGQtoEyVSBndL6PUdBj9injxu_3rLGR6aBGumT77O-cy8VkcTFYKEr2qDhecPg_1JWi1rQS9kQs5NAtrmnzZU5ksUSuIxgPbT3HP685myJlrmD0/s400/IMG_4895+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213413574829411474" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Dawn, David and I made a complete mess with the grub.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb6pGKP0vnUYeSUm3XgnBAe4HpGe_GvZws44NqH-VczptMdc8nVetY-kG4p4ayBj6pyX4lMSyFH_g5LCTz_G4kceF_TVbn56dGuild4H0QvcNulPP-4NFQiGOd6RjNJk_-afHTFY6waXQ/s1600-h/IMG_4874+copy.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb6pGKP0vnUYeSUm3XgnBAe4HpGe_GvZws44NqH-VczptMdc8nVetY-kG4p4ayBj6pyX4lMSyFH_g5LCTz_G4kceF_TVbn56dGuild4H0QvcNulPP-4NFQiGOd6RjNJk_-afHTFY6waXQ/s400/IMG_4874+copy.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213417925473392754" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">Fun at the Barking Crab.</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWGZpr3V1daFvB3mEWCkSj-hNbEzhVny1kcgsJNhImbjSKJq2H41gOQZ91qCowYmQLg53p_NMxNcrsm8KIzFAs8E9ER8IjRHpTqJl367EymKIw_58rHqlqTpvuu-8jRv4rghVLdfGad8/s1600-h/IMG_4880+copy.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWGZpr3V1daFvB3mEWCkSj-hNbEzhVny1kcgsJNhImbjSKJq2H41gOQZ91qCowYmQLg53p_NMxNcrsm8KIzFAs8E9ER8IjRHpTqJl367EymKIw_58rHqlqTpvuu-8jRv4rghVLdfGad8/s400/IMG_4880+copy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5213411684719313810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">One of the conference organizers, Dimitar Sasselov, enjoyed his lobster too.</span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-59750826114109682792008-04-15T10:49:00.000-07:002008-04-20T23:21:27.911-07:00Vienna<span style="font-family:verdana;">I was kindly invited to the University of Vienna to visit Josef Hron and his group, to give a colloquium on observations of supergiant stars that I've collected over the years with the Palomar Testbed Interferometer. My talk went well, and I was able to build on some very interesting professional contacts with the Vienna group.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8Q8ZdproQJk9tlPlWhyphenhyphen7ZBj_-rkNMpctkHm-AzMz6tZMwTf7oNRJR37LCkIpyJbqzBS2QcAS915v8bSrR_WL2Mr0mcL9vdkQGWthW4LKUxLxsp7NpwF7HgYuJPp_Ur34y_krTiwH7R8/s1600-h/IMG_3092.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8Q8ZdproQJk9tlPlWhyphenhyphen7ZBj_-rkNMpctkHm-AzMz6tZMwTf7oNRJR37LCkIpyJbqzBS2QcAS915v8bSrR_WL2Mr0mcL9vdkQGWthW4LKUxLxsp7NpwF7HgYuJPp_Ur34y_krTiwH7R8/s400/IMG_3092.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532639047221346" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >The branches hanging outside of the tavern indicates that the wine is in season.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ZBGG1RQGl0wFW1TiDa_5KMzOGT_5_cFxFE2WK82LzqFT9NYQOdMoRRfm63GX6kI8HoN7OkIL-COv6exijV05uulwNfOlAswPOAvLc7IYDaYHSe9ebssDN8IYB3i05tGqKLyhWpD6bwc/s1600-h/IMG_3077.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3ZBGG1RQGl0wFW1TiDa_5KMzOGT_5_cFxFE2WK82LzqFT9NYQOdMoRRfm63GX6kI8HoN7OkIL-COv6exijV05uulwNfOlAswPOAvLc7IYDaYHSe9ebssDN8IYB3i05tGqKLyhWpD6bwc/s400/IMG_3077.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532935399964802" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >At the Vienna Observatory.</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">I had a quick visit - only a couple of days. However, the second morning found me with a couple of hours free, so I journeyed into town to visit the museum of that most famous and most favorite of Viennese sons - no, not Mozart. And not Ah-nold, either. I mean that towering giant of 20th century psychology: Sigmund Freud.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGAi2SlxSWXYwaRV_pSRxmALQbnsr6xnpQy7TTz43Gxm1LBT4UEKfF0l5mpJXi7IONh6sPNRR7UiKTKus3tSZ-3w2FOt-4ZEKABA6MbCShgudo7wOfkNe_sRmSx-QiFbrvuvdKYf3-j8/s1600-h/IMG_3113.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJGAi2SlxSWXYwaRV_pSRxmALQbnsr6xnpQy7TTz43Gxm1LBT4UEKfF0l5mpJXi7IONh6sPNRR7UiKTKus3tSZ-3w2FOt-4ZEKABA6MbCShgudo7wOfkNe_sRmSx-QiFbrvuvdKYf3-j8/s400/IMG_3113.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532037751799794" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Should I have brought my mother?</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The museum was the apartment he lived in, conducting most of his professional life in Vienna (didn't know that) before being exiled to London in 1938 (didn't know that) and passing away in 1939 (didn't know that). Many other things I didn't know prior to my visit: he was a contemporary of Einstein and had the occasion to meet him (remarking in a later letter, "I knew as much physics as he knew psychology, so we had a very pleasant conversation."), avidly followed archeology and collected Egyptian artifacts, had children and grandchildren, some of whom went into psychoanalysis themselves, and was rarely seen (or even photographed) without a cigar. Died of cancer, unfortunately. All in all, the museum was very interesting and taught me a great deal about the life & times of Dr. Freud. My only criticism was that it was a little thin on taking about his work - I still have no idea what his major accomplishments were, professionally, aside from the background noise of random culturual references that have seeped into my subconscious. (Freud would have a field day with that comment, I'm sure.)</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPSpgW7aA13RGJY4iW30dlpa-hE24YcNaAE0v76t3xjTrSjcOxdb8xj0xlN8bWglwcWsQeWLydHQncHVa8zcCGQU7lnybg7x4dkY_Z7xs944VtAAmTyEaoGJOceEV12-y1bk22Vo347GI/s1600-h/IMG_3123.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPSpgW7aA13RGJY4iW30dlpa-hE24YcNaAE0v76t3xjTrSjcOxdb8xj0xlN8bWglwcWsQeWLydHQncHVa8zcCGQU7lnybg7x4dkY_Z7xs944VtAAmTyEaoGJOceEV12-y1bk22Vo347GI/s400/IMG_3123.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532042046767106" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Can you believe this? In the museum gift shop, a Freud snow globe - complete with couch!</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5yKLIudlOn8dcRIhs5GXav7aVCpSkshQs9o4yGHR8J9iOgMAeBM8Gb7uXE3aCTFov3NqhLxqqT37NmEFF4Gm1p-MuOAsq-O_4fNDqidNYUTi3ZZfWRIL404urpbzRyHC_6iCMAP5ibn8/s1600-h/IMG_3172.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5yKLIudlOn8dcRIhs5GXav7aVCpSkshQs9o4yGHR8J9iOgMAeBM8Gb7uXE3aCTFov3NqhLxqqT37NmEFF4Gm1p-MuOAsq-O_4fNDqidNYUTi3ZZfWRIL404urpbzRyHC_6iCMAP5ibn8/s400/IMG_3172.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532639047221330" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Found on the train. Even the Euro2008 cup is Freudian apparently. Must have something to do with the balls.</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">How does one top a visit to something like the Freud museum? By visiting the private, invitation-only collection of the Wien Sternwarte. (Ok, if you ask nicely, they'll pretty much let anyone in, but this sounds better.) They have an astonishing collection of astronomical instruments dating back one, two, even three to four hundred years - but even more astonishing is their collection of antique manuscripts. Original, first editions of manuscripts from Kepler, Copernicus, Galileo - even artifacts that /predate/ those individuals can be found in their fireproof safes. To see these books in person, to even hold them, was coming to touch directly the astronomer's equivalent of the Rosetta Stone.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKf6siGpaAl90WUfdx6pxaNSwZFdUYHEuDekCbTtxdkfds_z-1hOSF_uq_o5_XKr0WJlk5eaJOeq_a_raNtL5OXAGsOzcnh8OsnlMdj4rZoUW5uX1vNQ8toYJC7bTCDGkdf58d7Zsaxd4/s1600-h/IMG_3158.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKf6siGpaAl90WUfdx6pxaNSwZFdUYHEuDekCbTtxdkfds_z-1hOSF_uq_o5_XKr0WJlk5eaJOeq_a_raNtL5OXAGsOzcnh8OsnlMdj4rZoUW5uX1vNQ8toYJC7bTCDGkdf58d7Zsaxd4/s400/IMG_3158.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532634752254018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >A first edition of Copernicus's De Revolutionieus - the book that started the Scientific Revolution, despite being "the book nobody read" (a myth debunked by Owen Gingerich).</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0hX_Morr_JWhuWDjObinsZhq9ku2C4pYV6Ar3MTh0h8I7s9L162uY5NadTi1jn3JGb-kjpYn-gM_-6GEFds2DxMfvYP_h2EY0vY4OB3ztUEurTBdF8pZ4s6ccSRJbnm2I5jFDFid7UHk/s1600-h/IMG_3144.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0hX_Morr_JWhuWDjObinsZhq9ku2C4pYV6Ar3MTh0h8I7s9L162uY5NadTi1jn3JGb-kjpYn-gM_-6GEFds2DxMfvYP_h2EY0vY4OB3ztUEurTBdF8pZ4s6ccSRJbnm2I5jFDFid7UHk/s400/IMG_3144.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532042046767122" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Title page for De Revolutionieus. The inscription in Greek warns, effectively, "Those who do not know math should not read further." The handwritten note below the title remarks that the copy was given to the university as, basically, tuition for a student. Discoloration of the lower half of the pages was due to a spilled oil lamp.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFcXi3BoGTKQM15MjU2RF1gJC8kQF-bGiVJqamxUBYYodx4CZggAR6OTPEn0ODH4jEsM4s8mUo9cCWkwWsS5KwcHIlr3AOP9MtO7_zPXysWd0y65vRh8xDrUThX8q-iTEh7ovtpQKM5f8/s1600-h/IMG_3146.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFcXi3BoGTKQM15MjU2RF1gJC8kQF-bGiVJqamxUBYYodx4CZggAR6OTPEn0ODH4jEsM4s8mUo9cCWkwWsS5KwcHIlr3AOP9MtO7_zPXysWd0y65vRh8xDrUThX8q-iTEh7ovtpQKM5f8/s400/IMG_3146.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532046341734434" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >The heliocentric system shown in its full glory. On the right hand page is seen margin notes, seen frequently in manuscripts from that time.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCU4jabgLuW-xuhhyk3XLvbKGCgWYf1mFtWStwb48nyXO18fsDCNdSh03V6eRUHdbdpCs0dcgJdDj0epfLWT8AwbFYJXGAovKtuf45p8Fgefy9wp07Y-AYdGfK8WmG_pE2gbeAdWa08Y/s1600-h/IMG_3151.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCU4jabgLuW-xuhhyk3XLvbKGCgWYf1mFtWStwb48nyXO18fsDCNdSh03V6eRUHdbdpCs0dcgJdDj0epfLWT8AwbFYJXGAovKtuf45p8Fgefy9wp07Y-AYdGfK8WmG_pE2gbeAdWa08Y/s400/IMG_3151.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532046341734450" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >A textbook by Puerbach that predates the Copernican manuscript by decades, to the mid-15th century, which instructs the reader on the geocentric system. Copernicus apparently had Puerbach, or at least this textbook, for instruction as a student of astronomy early on.</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">All in all, a tremendously successful visit to Vienna. Had a lovely time, met wonderful people, enjoyed delightful local cuisine, discovered interesting things about the cultural background of the world I live in, and had compelling, personal interactions with the scientific tapestry that defines my career. Couldn't wish for more in a visit!</span><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_hRIzy_YiPTWyak215BWbQckAy4xH5N_2oq9i-ViQeiWs5T62phPPXzzpubI6RHuqbg_DmjE_pdiJXipAaL8LvXeSSYaWYjkzahtMO1GURfxydOcbv4fAUFBOaShtYRI4_NQ9jENVFg/s1600-h/IMG_3128.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_hRIzy_YiPTWyak215BWbQckAy4xH5N_2oq9i-ViQeiWs5T62phPPXzzpubI6RHuqbg_DmjE_pdiJXipAaL8LvXeSSYaWYjkzahtMO1GURfxydOcbv4fAUFBOaShtYRI4_NQ9jENVFg/s400/IMG_3128.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5189532643342188658" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Only in Vienna could one find a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falco_%28musician%29">Falco</a> tribute band!</span><br /></div>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-36854054285844222702008-04-11T07:44:00.001-07:002008-04-20T23:16:31.387-07:00Arlington, VA<span style="font-family:verdana;">On March 26th I traveled back to the US to sit on an unnamed federal government review panel (confidentiality rules prohibit me identifying it - it's like secret spy stuff!) It was quite an interesting experience returning to the United States for the very first time since our Big Move to Munich. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDq_Wp4WfV1xZ8Xtf8naIHSYfb0Cq-b30JqG6mwij9T55UeVHkLUD1ZORLz4NV6QPDG2gmTx8hzkzBIuy1xLNgA8150dFMjtnpMcd6zDSVwdXeTTQDAvrv5hfXJVFcv0_1Uyxr9pHXl4/s1600-h/pano_airplane.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQDq_Wp4WfV1xZ8Xtf8naIHSYfb0Cq-b30JqG6mwij9T55UeVHkLUD1ZORLz4NV6QPDG2gmTx8hzkzBIuy1xLNgA8150dFMjtnpMcd6zDSVwdXeTTQDAvrv5hfXJVFcv0_1Uyxr9pHXl4/s400/pano_airplane.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999231241033842" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Our trusty steed, ready to depart Munich.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFN5x2bRyCzDS8d2K9YmOxsDEOk4Gy8ry6_pEHOUNorknHngjwWIGIXIi55GAf8pDWmK8OAaqndlXIY6Ac0WX2SGhx9OEbvFecXT8A_b315B3wv-QK5wWNUBht588SjKae86Z2H_dTgLg/s1600-h/IMG_2958.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFN5x2bRyCzDS8d2K9YmOxsDEOk4Gy8ry6_pEHOUNorknHngjwWIGIXIi55GAf8pDWmK8OAaqndlXIY6Ac0WX2SGhx9OEbvFecXT8A_b315B3wv-QK5wWNUBht588SjKae86Z2H_dTgLg/s400/IMG_2958.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187998909118486482" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Almost done with the ~8 hour flight!</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG36JAxWualyF3hDQf0wiA1Ahi8U9lIeI_YCZEkpT2BaCsbo_1W-CYaSRZ1NNzqbCprlZaB1pgzWufUiIKBZt5kf2hD8D0lsaTQhSG9G_sLp71rJ0MFR5sC_CoYCIFKQrbZpEs5s1yVBo/s1600-h/IMG_2962.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG36JAxWualyF3hDQf0wiA1Ahi8U9lIeI_YCZEkpT2BaCsbo_1W-CYaSRZ1NNzqbCprlZaB1pgzWufUiIKBZt5kf2hD8D0lsaTQhSG9G_sLp71rJ0MFR5sC_CoYCIFKQrbZpEs5s1yVBo/s400/IMG_2962.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187998913413453794" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Some of my airplane reading. Anyone see anything wrong with this pronouncement of "unacceptable behavior"? (Hint: try replacing 'atheism' with, say, 'Buddahism', or 'women's rights'.)<br /><br /></span></span></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">It's been over 6 months, and it was interesting to see how my perceptions had shifted ever so slightly. I must admit to a pulse of warm pride entering the passport queue under the "Welcome to the United States" sign. This was quickly doused by the 20 minute wait, but such is life.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQvFkBRakCL0F-sXVxm3trQ9pTvk-tJv0op_bc6Zp6vsy5MqB8SokCE9cAHCzyCD1uEVA__KF9vcbHr_alh-23obLkgF8F9L-bedkELfOTDvi9HuCW3HTD2lY2eUfwSubvQgdl2zZD-s/s1600-h/IMG_2975.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQvFkBRakCL0F-sXVxm3trQ9pTvk-tJv0op_bc6Zp6vsy5MqB8SokCE9cAHCzyCD1uEVA__KF9vcbHr_alh-23obLkgF8F9L-bedkELfOTDvi9HuCW3HTD2lY2eUfwSubvQgdl2zZD-s/s400/IMG_2975.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187998917708421106" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Mmmmm.... really good beer. Don't get me started on how I can't find a really good beer in Germany.</span><br /></span></div><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">During my visit I was able to visit my old pals, Steve and Carrie Haase. This was the first time I saw their son Christopher, who is about 6 months old. Christopher is a wonderful kid - clear proof that genetics works (and that he is the fortunate recipient of Carrie's).</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlACRW-mI7Z7ILwa-O_Gl3k8Lhr6bip2VoBYZr5gPScXvjRmiZSQcRZW3eaR2DOvXQ5CwJn9E6Ob3DICGcrasuX3zXWKBI8_6DcM4HfzGLREU1rtaMabxSx7Dn_Xy4Xk0m3TYowZlI5E/s1600-h/IMG_2977.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlACRW-mI7Z7ILwa-O_Gl3k8Lhr6bip2VoBYZr5gPScXvjRmiZSQcRZW3eaR2DOvXQ5CwJn9E6Ob3DICGcrasuX3zXWKBI8_6DcM4HfzGLREU1rtaMabxSx7Dn_Xy4Xk0m3TYowZlI5E/s400/IMG_2977.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187998917708421122" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >"Just call me babe magnet."</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXUR6-nD_iGGNu8adJ8bxN-oOTPt0V9st2r7spIsrhaof273CMpG1GNoViHdkIfsHBmgj6T2cIrLu2o4WwEAXwOFhMa5l-IVMFbXnhz48ycgMXqQ1Q7vsu1ilJkwbX24kejfWC17hwNKg/s1600-h/IMG_2987.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXUR6-nD_iGGNu8adJ8bxN-oOTPt0V9st2r7spIsrhaof273CMpG1GNoViHdkIfsHBmgj6T2cIrLu2o4WwEAXwOFhMa5l-IVMFbXnhz48ycgMXqQ1Q7vsu1ilJkwbX24kejfWC17hwNKg/s400/IMG_2987.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187998922003388434" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Yes, those are sweet potatoes in the ice tray. Special mother trick passed down through the Garner line.<br /><br /></span></span></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">One of the ulterior motives in making the trip was to indulge in some much-desired shopping for those things we can't seem to find in Germany. Some of you may be saying, "suck it up, find different things in Germany to like" - and you're altogether correct to do so - but it's hard to resist the opportunity to bring back a load of some good home cookin' to help ease our transition into Bavarian living.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFDOAUmzJauuTC-0-9wIoexfehucQkoDqNGAaLL0zbesXiU3MGh6mXM6tnCfyo5DuESrbYputJdla3zP_M357NdlJOGpflZnubKfQ4mgCENb686xo4B1B2_SUmkBzVdPtU3sCP7C3AWA/s1600-h/IMG_2989.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdFDOAUmzJauuTC-0-9wIoexfehucQkoDqNGAaLL0zbesXiU3MGh6mXM6tnCfyo5DuESrbYputJdla3zP_M357NdlJOGpflZnubKfQ4mgCENb686xo4B1B2_SUmkBzVdPtU3sCP7C3AWA/s400/IMG_2989.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999115276916770" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >For some reason, I can't find a good bagel in Germany.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, I had a protracted and intimate visit of both a local Safeway and local Target store, and also took the opportunity to beat the bushes for uniquely American comfort food: Arby's. (McDonald's, Starbucks, and even Burger King don't qualify, having invaded the Older Continent some time ago. Plus, they're by and large just plain icky.) </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiuHAI9yKV1gt8IZNjDpkmMjXJOFnFYhCHiMtdOQLnSc7M2IwFiIbXsZw8mN6GhPn3nMIR-L5zLGaCvRPewfAhL_FWS6ei_jQPlZibvzTC2ly4JTCoanEx461OwvIGUTXioxCyTdXF_ts/s1600-h/IMG_2995.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiuHAI9yKV1gt8IZNjDpkmMjXJOFnFYhCHiMtdOQLnSc7M2IwFiIbXsZw8mN6GhPn3nMIR-L5zLGaCvRPewfAhL_FWS6ei_jQPlZibvzTC2ly4JTCoanEx461OwvIGUTXioxCyTdXF_ts/s400/IMG_2995.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999119571884082" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Shopping!</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkUAujb3Pig4WCIq5_TPQQcD27-SkJRU-5J_wPjCfC558ehHeHm3F8IUEKD9VlrFkaeL_TgFQZXTSSSCUvtETK-3Y0dBUoJQ5mgzj1b2GVmvLjwwT65wjNNFHLRSSVCrNKs-arXdh9_pY/s1600-h/IMG_2998.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkUAujb3Pig4WCIq5_TPQQcD27-SkJRU-5J_wPjCfC558ehHeHm3F8IUEKD9VlrFkaeL_TgFQZXTSSSCUvtETK-3Y0dBUoJQ5mgzj1b2GVmvLjwwT65wjNNFHLRSSVCrNKs-arXdh9_pY/s400/IMG_2998.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999123866851394" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Suitcase #1: Goldfish, Peanut Butter Crunch, cookie mix. Doritos were included just to fill out the bag.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Zl3ijaOaPJv6yP5xj8W3a1gH8tSkJGCPPu_S4grCGjh9uRMqUGSdsVyRfH495I7IuIhmLUJoG2jePHibMoV2MpBlY1bs36jizoTRcBIf_5t4FsvpOjvZRAVhxd-OCSt39CwhJzxZ5Uk/s1600-h/IMG_2999.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Zl3ijaOaPJv6yP5xj8W3a1gH8tSkJGCPPu_S4grCGjh9uRMqUGSdsVyRfH495I7IuIhmLUJoG2jePHibMoV2MpBlY1bs36jizoTRcBIf_5t4FsvpOjvZRAVhxd-OCSt39CwhJzxZ5Uk/s400/IMG_2999.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999128161818706" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Suitcase #2: Peanut butter, laundry.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Alas, my time in the US was far too short, and my experience with United for the return was *far* too nasty. Since I'm now a resident of Germany, and primarily flying Lufthansa, I'm switching from being a loyal member of United's frequent flier club to being one of Lufthansa's. But, since it's one big happy friggin' Star Alliance family, it's no big deal, right?</span><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KJ9-dZ19-R8LkZgeasHc2-9zavrsWvtUTmSj1FG-2yD-HQbQ8Kpw7A3y9bt9TtcFMVCStDywYfRTlPc1JbbPtFtYwZLT9P24GF2_avxb0-j3azk7xZk7qprDhCnncZlGr2H5ImvA3Fk/s1600-h/pano_airplane2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1KJ9-dZ19-R8LkZgeasHc2-9zavrsWvtUTmSj1FG-2yD-HQbQ8Kpw7A3y9bt9TtcFMVCStDywYfRTlPc1JbbPtFtYwZLT9P24GF2_avxb0-j3azk7xZk7qprDhCnncZlGr2H5ImvA3Fk/s400/pano_airplane2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999239830968450" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >My evil United 777.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Uh, that'd be a big fat no, sportsfans. I checked in, waving around the magic Gold Premiere Executive United card (gives average Magic User Astronomers a +8 on their Charisma, and a +12 on their Save Versus Economy Class roll) and I was told I couldn't get into the much envied Economy Plus seating class (you know, the one designed like you actually /have/ legs and a lower torso in general) since I wasn't Premiere Executive or even (gasp!) a lowly Premiere member. I continued to swing the card around like a scythe, hoping it could cut through the check-in agent's stony faced recitation of the positively bizzare rule, and had to resort of shameless, effusive charm instead. Thus, I ended up with a seat in Economy Plus, having the $80 dollar fee promoting me from plain vanilla Economy waived, but trapped in a dreaded middle seat - no window, no aisle available, she said. Check at the gate.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg563SxhYvMYlaDpYAuXWZ2yUog8CJqMeXE5knKmrvchL_pX932XE_ybY3Q9b6B2X9gy65sBlqm8H_aqSZ3vDfnQTT6wFAkzMxc_qDlmrnFgTO75hwMcT2i4IJqIeJXS8Lr6zLjtXyBEgI/s1600-h/IMG_3009.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg563SxhYvMYlaDpYAuXWZ2yUog8CJqMeXE5knKmrvchL_pX932XE_ybY3Q9b6B2X9gy65sBlqm8H_aqSZ3vDfnQTT6wFAkzMxc_qDlmrnFgTO75hwMcT2i4IJqIeJXS8Lr6zLjtXyBEgI/s400/IMG_3009.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187999132456786018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:verdana;" >Waiting to board, thinking very nasty thoughts about a very nasty gate agent.</span></span><br /><br /></div><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">The gate proved to be a problem, being staffed by what appeared to be a demon from the 5th or 6th level of hell, cleverly disguised as a pitchfork-voiced middle aged woman from the local area. She informed me that yes, they had an aisle or even a window seat available, but she'd have to charge me that $80. To move me - from Economy Plus to Economy Plus. She also took it upon herself to strenously reiterate the aforementioned Bizzare Rule - that I wasn't Premiere Executive even though I had my Magic Clubmember Card proof to the contrary.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Anyway, to make a long story long, upon takeoff (seated, sandwiched between a family & a businessman in a middle seat), I noticed there were two seats all by themselves, available right next to us in Economy Plus. That prompted me to violate one of the sixteen hundred invoilate FAA Rules of Flight and I moved my behind into one of those seats before the seatbelt light went out. A good outcome, but one that made me curse the Demon Gate Agent all the more.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">So, here is my Message to United: remember, remember, remember that I have a choice with whom I fly. In fact, having moved to Germany and making the switch to a new carrier, I am sitting on the crux of a choice to stick with Star Alliance or not. If you, United, feel for some reason that your membership in Star Alliance is worth something - and want us to feel the same way - then accord the members of your partner airlines the considerations they've earned by seeing altogether way too much of the inside of a flying round sardine can. More importantly, don't take it upon to disenfranchise your current flying club members (my card does say "Expires in Feb 2009") because we've decided to start dating your sibling instead of you. It's all too tempting to look much more closely at SkyTeam or OneWorld at this particular juncture.</span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-43219945105794384522008-04-09T12:57:00.000-07:002008-09-01T04:12:56.957-07:00Blue Dots Team in Paris<div style="text-align: center;font-family:verdana;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family:verdana;">I had the pleasant occasion to travel to Paris for a two-day meeting at Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, for the "<a href="http://www.blue-dots.net/">Blue Dots Team</a>", an effort to build community support for space mission aimed at directly detecting terrestrial planets orbiting nearby stars.</span><br /></div><br /></div><div style="font-family: verdana; text-align: center; font-style: italic;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd9LF-NLtJ0x5sHtGOzpWd_SXCE7GAhWekbM1-eu1YZlK3MpvXqlRPrzC0lo4Tj-0m9wtnKNL-51FZCd-vU6LktVZ1ufPUeujpLNUhzAfbVuo7YGS_c2Xev_so80tjTh4QPx1w1MzjWnQ/s1600-h/IMG_2682.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd9LF-NLtJ0x5sHtGOzpWd_SXCE7GAhWekbM1-eu1YZlK3MpvXqlRPrzC0lo4Tj-0m9wtnKNL-51FZCd-vU6LktVZ1ufPUeujpLNUhzAfbVuo7YGS_c2Xev_so80tjTh4QPx1w1MzjWnQ/s400/IMG_2682.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187337673133463426" border="0" /></a>My former boss & mentor, Chas Beichman, discussing the SIM space mission.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic; font-family: verdana;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUM42seUNeZN_C9wmkeYBIihQyRrv-57ieyLzr3OqnkoTChXvhdVVpbCoJqV2yCQtWIujTnBD1MmEH4zm6qpZZ3gPCQyFWKphaZDnp0rnNvV-z2EUItB2eHiV53rGppNOg4W7tHa5tWY/s1600-h/IMG_2697.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUM42seUNeZN_C9wmkeYBIihQyRrv-57ieyLzr3OqnkoTChXvhdVVpbCoJqV2yCQtWIujTnBD1MmEH4zm6qpZZ3gPCQyFWKphaZDnp0rnNvV-z2EUItB2eHiV53rGppNOg4W7tHa5tWY/s400/IMG_2697.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187337686018365346" border="0" /></a>Also present was Giovanna Tinetti, exoplant atmospheres expert extraordinare. Notice the contrast between fashion sense (left) and lack thereof (right).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy_s7O-5dLMDrlo65zVgOp523b4cnMiW83Mfdz0capBSd1h73zd-aciewhvxaXhF7GBuu_w89fkzgEqXHcV3mGfHnJStIngmzhVgwEKkRPO7S-JYGs-2U4Ku1Ro5Pqv2KX6irJxDm2iNA/s1600-h/IMG_2692.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy_s7O-5dLMDrlo65zVgOp523b4cnMiW83Mfdz0capBSd1h73zd-aciewhvxaXhF7GBuu_w89fkzgEqXHcV3mGfHnJStIngmzhVgwEKkRPO7S-JYGs-2U4Ku1Ro5Pqv2KX6irJxDm2iNA/s400/IMG_2692.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187337681723398034" border="0" /></a>Such an auspicious kickoff deserved a toast!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4BqXuFtxA_7GRSgQmaGeYvPrbGU4HCWOg2gXrOrj5t-uSMykjw6xq06bOEIijEKEu7EsebVnTyws6igZtWdubATuD5DI5RhzmMEz6Z5ZUOwMnqUIg_ssEkshV7TIixcvdhjwSrueaT-0/s1600-h/IMG_2698.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4BqXuFtxA_7GRSgQmaGeYvPrbGU4HCWOg2gXrOrj5t-uSMykjw6xq06bOEIijEKEu7EsebVnTyws6igZtWdubATuD5DI5RhzmMEz6Z5ZUOwMnqUIg_ssEkshV7TIixcvdhjwSrueaT-0/s400/IMG_2698.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187337690313332658" border="0" /></a>An appropriately named cafe for our BDT dinner.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7TF7JNiGFRWeb8Gv8ioOlpfBtyoKcjAMmnS1RbVvyyQJQXmVJPQkKoycZH2-R8PwADYs1YHwIYVCoHgWwpd70hafqHNy8kgaExyIT2n8As9HYbtLvZ4j0mUhRIbqhMNqXHB_XfSYj7V8/s1600-h/IMG_2701.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7TF7JNiGFRWeb8Gv8ioOlpfBtyoKcjAMmnS1RbVvyyQJQXmVJPQkKoycZH2-R8PwADYs1YHwIYVCoHgWwpd70hafqHNy8kgaExyIT2n8As9HYbtLvZ4j0mUhRIbqhMNqXHB_XfSYj7V8/s400/IMG_2701.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187337694608299970" border="0" /></a><br />French cafe culture does not seem to have suffered from the smoking ban - indeed, as long as there's French wine, how could it?<br /><br /><br /></div>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-85605528765848882862008-01-18T10:46:00.000-08:002008-01-18T13:29:44.061-08:00Holy Moving Telescopes, BatmanOn Monday we moved one of the VLTI auxiliary telescopes, number 4 ("AT#4"), from the observing platform atop Cerro Paranal down to the base camp, where a large assembly hall is located. The hall is useful for implementing modifications to the telescopes in an enclosed environment.<br /><br />The ATs are designed to be self-mobile atop the platform, but need a special truck to get down to the base camp. As such, we had to drive AT#4 from its current location to a spot where we could lift it onto a truck and take it off the summit.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw44nIXkKqYoS4libCA7dLbOQrxD4tNFJdlT9axPvVxnRIc0tulLJ0HcSlTyHGf8cvkpZ4h4TLqmNaaSfVdzw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />Needless to say, it is an impressive thing to see a 30-ton telescope lumbering down the rails. There are spots on the platforms where the rails make a 90 degree turn, which is no problem - the wheel trucks on the telescope base can be rotated to switch onto the intersecting rails.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw6RksrW1e30xRfGvDwQog3SpZ2Xoe3Qam6J_FbC4Rhnfr4G1q9DaKrfpsnwbO35xd3AtFrB7OGctB1xpbpHg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />We did the switch once to go from the "G" set of telescope stations, and once again the "J" set of stations were reached.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy7quSnz_6xVQX3wn31BxI49KnlhesJuu4HzQR3K2ptY07W_vN-9OC41eOPs3-6cE-CO20W6y11pRiEbcHEYw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />At the "J" line of telescopes stations, AT#4 was then driven to a spot where it could be lifted up and a truck trailer backed beneath it.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzHgYiswIDn8zdtYKFlEt_Le0dn2XJ5ccgkkeqPuNX_qXNE6TYlRGxF6wGw3TZYq6c3hpmSnaT8wJ2faMxNxw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />How do you lift a 30-ton telescope? Very carefully!<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dz9WueixXscPZKolGHdVpKvUXG7LoVBK77_ABEM4So3l7so7OlS0RNH0b0roCf7KEN2YKe1wHvgvfk8y4eiZQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />Once the telescope was on the truck trailer, it was driven down to the base camp.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxY87Qy06kVJODSii730_l5HznvJbrlCCKBTYTu9qn5mId6LX3tRrLJ5C0eJDMxbrNMCSGSYqZ25LzEe88aig' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />Arriving outside the assembly hall, the telescope was lowered (once again - very carefully!) onto a set of rails identical to the ones at the summit, and then driven into the hall under its own steam once again.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy2hiomdUKzHwzSsKnUgA2iAOpPh4hy9SSuifUE1yRYP7HLk6pX7mP2l5iTuvKDiBhO-VF7Sysl8iAy62tOKg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />All in all, the operation took about 8 hours, and went very smoothly. The team handling the activity were all very professional - industrious, careful, with a great deal of attention to detail.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4ISNcTtd77-DjuCT7CZUCWxI4ii11ssVqW_THSMJpW9DRY8d9D2Hx-eSv0lgJySoQxb8-vDyDeMjIYUgfiofVgrCSkLlHrtwj2YCjWZXyF3iBZTpay-5iyUqqcK4UdS9uMejsRTBoaM/s1600-h/pano_AT_assy_hall_2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4ISNcTtd77-DjuCT7CZUCWxI4ii11ssVqW_THSMJpW9DRY8d9D2Hx-eSv0lgJySoQxb8-vDyDeMjIYUgfiofVgrCSkLlHrtwj2YCjWZXyF3iBZTpay-5iyUqqcK4UdS9uMejsRTBoaM/s400/pano_AT_assy_hall_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5156900146463731970" border="0" /></a>I have to say, the whole day was extremely impressive to me - after working a number of years on designs for the Keck Interferometer that involved moving apertures, and battling deeply entrenched attitudes about optical telescopes not being able to be moved, it was very gratifying to me personally to see exactly that sort of thing in action. True, the transport to the base camp was extremely manpower intensive, but the station-to-station relocation was rather perfunctory.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA26eoWAZa5VYtcH1qz1spv_rSljE_ELsAQx4-uRBFzlNkCqGM-ytC63zNrXl7cQHXUjIZK047yQYi1RHUuRfx1BfT9CuJsCMiCyi_r1Yd3-GQD_XMZDxcK-81QI0BHUrUGGChG3PKc44/s1600-h/Copy+of+IMG_1296.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA26eoWAZa5VYtcH1qz1spv_rSljE_ELsAQx4-uRBFzlNkCqGM-ytC63zNrXl7cQHXUjIZK047yQYi1RHUuRfx1BfT9CuJsCMiCyi_r1Yd3-GQD_XMZDxcK-81QI0BHUrUGGChG3PKc44/s400/Copy+of+IMG_1296.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5156927041548939538" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Nice hard hat, eh?</span></span><br /></div>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-28639085003170284692008-01-14T14:22:00.000-08:002008-01-15T12:22:16.396-08:00Into the Interferometry Lab<div style="text-align: left;">On my second day up at the summit, we had the opportunity to go into the interferometry lab. It's a veritable playground of optomechanics, as if someone had hopped up a class of 9-year-olds on birthday cake and let them loose in a Newport or New Focus warehouse.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEichgI7NKsACOvDhEkGOSJEfUqdim1IZueBOaeqCrN1l_gePlP4X9UFMQlMXDLmnqR7DjJIeFHioc7qbe7HY9aK7TgLaIPmPp0BYq2yjkM5PfNdaCUSYri4EvM6LXCWJF7zhEGHz2DOVFA/s1600-h/IMG_0877.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEichgI7NKsACOvDhEkGOSJEfUqdim1IZueBOaeqCrN1l_gePlP4X9UFMQlMXDLmnqR7DjJIeFHioc7qbe7HY9aK7TgLaIPmPp0BYq2yjkM5PfNdaCUSYri4EvM6LXCWJF7zhEGHz2DOVFA/s400/IMG_0877.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155465094810923090" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;" >The control room building, viewed just below the summit.</span></span><br /></div></div><br />There are many different parts to the lab, so I'll try to walk you through them as I did. The lab itself is more or less in the center of the summit observing platform, with a small building atop it. You enter the lab by going in this building and then down some stairs - the subterranean location helps out with temperature stability.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuWpCRj1l-bq6wm24NJxQAHxo4kWJTdbk0PepxtDdcETM-lmY1_KyVHEJc90xZqurmvgcELBtn-pErsh7X-BQg5IKEgYH0vNk0AEG4fOVGjMPq2mndGri41Fmay91kX96wmrRnDyRjr-4/s1600-h/IMG_0881.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuWpCRj1l-bq6wm24NJxQAHxo4kWJTdbk0PepxtDdcETM-lmY1_KyVHEJc90xZqurmvgcELBtn-pErsh7X-BQg5IKEgYH0vNk0AEG4fOVGjMPq2mndGri41Fmay91kX96wmrRnDyRjr-4/s400/IMG_0881.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155465807775494242" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;" >The laser metrology table.<br /><br /></span></span></div>First off, there is an outer set of rooms for electronics and optics that don't need to be in the lab where the starlight is - anything that can be isolated from that is one less source of heat and or background light. For example, there is an area for laser metrology. The metrology is used in the lab, but is generated outside the lab and then shunted into the lab via tiny fibers of light. Laser metrology is a device that allows you to measure distances to very precise levels - in this case, around 10 nanometers (about 1/2000 the thickness of a human hair). This is necessary to monitor misalignments in the system.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGdurS5OKupuwX3q_G5d-Ci6WOXtz1uFFR9LV0QsT7IDWP9-Cc8HAwqlM8jqJMptUa5ux0NXuYK80ZpmyUP7ZjcmZQ5chlaB-bN9YT15bDmGtrQgzH59BMmfnGprl4j1C2srcUKlzUw4/s1600-h/IMG_0884.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGdurS5OKupuwX3q_G5d-Ci6WOXtz1uFFR9LV0QsT7IDWP9-Cc8HAwqlM8jqJMptUa5ux0NXuYK80ZpmyUP7ZjcmZQ5chlaB-bN9YT15bDmGtrQgzH59BMmfnGprl4j1C2srcUKlzUw4/s400/IMG_0884.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155467538647314546" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Cryogenic controllers for the VLTI.</span></span><br /></div><br />Also in the outer lab are the controllers for the cryogenic detectors. The computer chips that the starlight falls onto and thereby detect the light do so by measuring electronics jogged loose by that light. However, heat energy will also jog loose electronics, so the detector chips need to be cooled, typically to liquid nitrogen temperatures (77 Kelvin, about -320.44°F).<br /><div style="text-align: center;"> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOGxj5R6BPllXskbx3sPrIramypKgm6TzqgHGBsPg-Zqz7fj8PR2ZPxV_jn_Vc9mN-bY25EvbeZ_zlKtYpSVucOJ34VbRu_1KhtxMgcWNxTgXTn0kmsgd3fJ4DAq6Rju3tNPHo9h1cqBw/s1600-h/IMG_0890.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOGxj5R6BPllXskbx3sPrIramypKgm6TzqgHGBsPg-Zqz7fj8PR2ZPxV_jn_Vc9mN-bY25EvbeZ_zlKtYpSVucOJ34VbRu_1KhtxMgcWNxTgXTn0kmsgd3fJ4DAq6Rju3tNPHo9h1cqBw/s400/IMG_0890.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155467547237249154" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Two VLTI delay lines.</span></span><br /></div><br />From the outer lab, we went through the inner lab and then into the delay line tunnel. To get an interferometer to work, you need the light from each telescope to arrive at the detector at exactly the same time. For light, distance equals time - the further it has to go, the longer it takes to get there - and since no other such 'battery' exists to store light to make it wait for delivery, you build 'delay lines'. These are effectively optical trombones that slide in & out to a particular location, which means the light on that line will arrive at the back end of the system on time.<br /><br />Such delay lines need to work to a precision ~10 nanometers, so more metrology is used here.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIucrm4a7qX0TY4M5hB624CdZA7WQ-sytlnKGdqbu_RA8L_2PHwZHFDYo0gbX_oSa0fg1QymwpVnqCMaoimOaMY1aIe-Ulst9mrQJf6gsg0ushu4VUWP0u1rhzV6wgbk3AAWemGkzS5E4/s1600-h/pano_VLTI_lab_2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIucrm4a7qX0TY4M5hB624CdZA7WQ-sytlnKGdqbu_RA8L_2PHwZHFDYo0gbX_oSa0fg1QymwpVnqCMaoimOaMY1aIe-Ulst9mrQJf6gsg0ushu4VUWP0u1rhzV6wgbk3AAWemGkzS5E4/s400/pano_VLTI_lab_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155468831432470754" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Part of the VLTI switchyard.</span></span><br /></div><br />The VLTI is configurable in a variety of ways, as far as which telescopes feed the system on the front end, and which cameras look at the light on the back end, so an optical switchyard helps route the light from the delay lines to the cameras.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH82080k3ijL9scY9a8P3kCOeWtmyJLkviI_kuX0b_ITLPfcU_wAnBTaPSHFPasK7Ty8PWq23ngVRBrzpc5PE5EvAILSaQOjuKOtZkEzmehjswPd9WCjDQ_zR4uj8pkQgOcRApTzL6aSQ/s1600-h/pano_VLTI_lab_3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH82080k3ijL9scY9a8P3kCOeWtmyJLkviI_kuX0b_ITLPfcU_wAnBTaPSHFPasK7Ty8PWq23ngVRBrzpc5PE5EvAILSaQOjuKOtZkEzmehjswPd9WCjDQ_zR4uj8pkQgOcRApTzL6aSQ/s400/pano_VLTI_lab_3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155468835727438066" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The interferometry laboratory.</span></span><br /></div><br />The interferometer lab is where the light really gets played with: here the starlight beams from multiple telescopes can be joined together, or "interfered" (hence the name), thereby synthesizing a larger telescope. This is what all the fuss is about: the effective spatial resolution (the amount of detail you can see on the sky) is far greater than one gets with a conventional telescope.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvLN51FW6c7m15DWnoYVnbjXZ0EodsNRwQwY0JmmufVgtLUebRT1NYFqFwB1kWAOx0oqqYTlxdHAQJrHxtuTyqLigcWsbYDGDWX4ncIYir6K6qIDAbYHm-t1-c4UNxH0Ky9tbHDUp0hQ/s1600-h/IMG_0919.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvLN51FW6c7m15DWnoYVnbjXZ0EodsNRwQwY0JmmufVgtLUebRT1NYFqFwB1kWAOx0oqqYTlxdHAQJrHxtuTyqLigcWsbYDGDWX4ncIYir6K6qIDAbYHm-t1-c4UNxH0Ky9tbHDUp0hQ/s400/IMG_0919.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155467568712085666" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The FINTO fringe tracker.</span></span><br /></div><br />Now, accomplishing this doesn't come for free, so some tools need to be brought to bear on the starlight. Basically, your enemy (well, one of them, besides yourself) is the atmosphere. It conspires to slosh the starlight around such that you cannot properly interfere the light. One of the ways it does that is by changing the delay that each telescope sees, so that the fringes - the product of the interference - move around. One can compensate for that by finding the fringe, and then locking onto it with a tracker before it moves away. Once done, you can follow the fringe around as the atmosphere whacks it back & forth.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFF1BPrQCPfb5xebSf3j1Kwilq6hlq43kv9JGekun4JWZHYIXR-tz9Zyr6ffJfPtQhZo0oeReJ0Hj5vW16wBdQusv3fPGH8BPr43NrtwqdPAyMjAl5eQp7_h817SQ8dvqv-5fVP5paBI/s1600-h/IMG_0916.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFF1BPrQCPfb5xebSf3j1Kwilq6hlq43kv9JGekun4JWZHYIXR-tz9Zyr6ffJfPtQhZo0oeReJ0Hj5vW16wBdQusv3fPGH8BPr43NrtwqdPAyMjAl5eQp7_h817SQ8dvqv-5fVP5paBI/s400/IMG_0916.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155467560122151058" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Feed optics for the IRIS tip-tilt tracker.</span></span><br /></div><br />However, in addition to an error in delay, the atmosphere also trys to move the light around on the sky - essentially, the familiar twinkling in the stars that we see with our own eyes at night. So, a tip-tilt tracker is also needed to follow the light around.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJ4uFyV1Xm3VkxVchSZsCnVo1iO2ZJd3uhG8s66TiNex8nGf1mV6G0OJy_-wz1-uVBqvZcq4J0CHFSgoMEAgdhqc2auOzFFlYZGnylin2rxEzWOIQcmlxhfV2Prc2voNjXQlgG3Nio6M/s1600-h/IMG_0925.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJ4uFyV1Xm3VkxVchSZsCnVo1iO2ZJd3uhG8s66TiNex8nGf1mV6G0OJy_-wz1-uVBqvZcq4J0CHFSgoMEAgdhqc2auOzFFlYZGnylin2rxEzWOIQcmlxhfV2Prc2voNjXQlgG3Nio6M/s400/IMG_0925.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155467577302020274" border="0" /></a><span style=";font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">Part - about 1/3 - of the AMBER science camera.</span></span><br /></div><br />If one has been successful with all of that, and you get a stabilized fringe out the back end, you can pipe the starlight into a science camera, which dices up the light in a more expansive way to tease out some of the details of the star you're looking at.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqcfXMctwQgKH7ABipZ-XJwtseFekGB2Fnup4im4UIqAjadrPUojCQfu1zfX9AsARoNoEqnSKdW1dzjYg-y4JL41Lye_9UHdtToMyVl6y5makrXaAD15WLspgHZ_sXbA0Fk8I7Me8Jlo8/s1600-h/IMG_0934.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqcfXMctwQgKH7ABipZ-XJwtseFekGB2Fnup4im4UIqAjadrPUojCQfu1zfX9AsARoNoEqnSKdW1dzjYg-y4JL41Lye_9UHdtToMyVl6y5makrXaAD15WLspgHZ_sXbA0Fk8I7Me8Jlo8/s400/IMG_0934.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155468822842536130" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">The VLTI at sunset, with 3 ATs ready to feed AMBER.<br /><br /></span></span><div style="text-align: left;">Next up: How do you move a 30-ton telescope? Very carefully!<br /></div></div>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-7446780892313847452008-01-12T09:28:00.001-08:002008-01-15T12:21:34.339-08:00Up to the Summit<div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUx23HvKo4FgpRV606taa20qH0xuKiij9Le_bpK1rAPWbLythfMH2Boib9BR0a5LOenKUrGRjwi87u_J5A2bMPLu9QuxPyKv1EwAzQ0YMRMYUusb1tZp50li5OlOZqhx4g8UTjV0wI-ZA/s1600-h/pano_VLTI_3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUx23HvKo4FgpRV606taa20qH0xuKiij9Le_bpK1rAPWbLythfMH2Boib9BR0a5LOenKUrGRjwi87u_J5A2bMPLu9QuxPyKv1EwAzQ0YMRMYUusb1tZp50li5OlOZqhx4g8UTjV0wI-ZA/s400/pano_VLTI_3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154643695200464882" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The 4 ATs at sunset.<br /><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">The whole purpose of the trip, of course, is to be on site up at the summit. After getting settled at the residence, I went up the hill to poke around. I arrived at the summit right around sunset, when everyone was getting ready to get started observing for the night. A quick stop in the control building, and I was then up the stairs to the observing platform.</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqEhKBFACArUyAsC68XB7sSWHTGIPm4tos_Hx9RKP1oyD8gttMvyAx35y_nPfRiavpM33Ya7UMU-TDKASfotyzOnNjxolLReM4aYjuTWNjYr_boeZGqJtEdUqEiLsnKyN0pQ5_l5Cth0s/s1600-h/pano_VLTI_2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqEhKBFACArUyAsC68XB7sSWHTGIPm4tos_Hx9RKP1oyD8gttMvyAx35y_nPfRiavpM33Ya7UMU-TDKASfotyzOnNjxolLReM4aYjuTWNjYr_boeZGqJtEdUqEiLsnKyN0pQ5_l5Cth0s/s400/pano_VLTI_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154647122584367106" border="0" /></a><span style=";font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">4 UTs and 4 ATs. 2 ATs are open to the sky, for feeding the<br />MIDI instrument. Note person in the middle of the photo for scale.<br /><br /></span></span></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">The platform was created by shaving about 100 feet off of the top of the mountain, thereby creating a large flat spot upon which the facility could be built. When I say "shaving", what I really mean of course is "using large amounts of high explosive". This is readily apparent from </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&t=k&om=1&ll=-24.627552,-70.403996&spn=0.002297,0.005021&z=18">the view from above</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> courtesy Google Maps.</span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZ4ADOvZCG0cd4pB9fLmlURgMxcqGcybHxRukM82KTr_0EJGJLWe8iWf29lSg1GOuEwihcjAcn42-1v-nUjggWZPXjZ0QaC3OGf3YkVPX0C6iCdkM4hOhdV790zvlINX6X6rCeBeSKb4/s1600-h/IMG_0825.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZ4ADOvZCG0cd4pB9fLmlURgMxcqGcybHxRukM82KTr_0EJGJLWe8iWf29lSg1GOuEwihcjAcn42-1v-nUjggWZPXjZ0QaC3OGf3YkVPX0C6iCdkM4hOhdV790zvlINX6X6rCeBeSKb4/s400/IMG_0825.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154648909290762258" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >AT#4, with UT#1 and #2 behind.<br /><br /></span></div><span style="font-family:verdana;">The summit is dominated by the four large "unit telescopes", or UTs, with four smaller "auxiliary telescopes", or ATs, sited between them. (Yes, this naming convention is both breathtakingly unimaginative, and confusing to boot.)<br /><br />The UTs are 8-m class telescopes, with the ATs clocking in at 1.8-m each. The ATs are interesting in that they can be moved during the day between various stations, which is useful since they are exclusively for use by the interferometer. </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMcXxXzhvKxbQrJDup9hKbDS_96s9POGMv-FL2wCbkbsYdML-LKeJAw_xhMBd-1khv0VSzI4grU8DiF6l9NuAikqMsAPMeAgpB2IzdZ2dvzhhayD3dSDcHdJ_T65wyYDTbxrkll8fRY5U/s1600-h/IMG_0789.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMcXxXzhvKxbQrJDup9hKbDS_96s9POGMv-FL2wCbkbsYdML-LKeJAw_xhMBd-1khv0VSzI4grU8DiF6l9NuAikqMsAPMeAgpB2IzdZ2dvzhhayD3dSDcHdJ_T65wyYDTbxrkll8fRY5U/s400/IMG_0789.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154650412529315890" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">The UTs can also be used with the interferometer, although are so utilized less frequently, given the expense of the telescope time, and their utility as single-aperture instruments. (The ATs remind me of </span><a style="font-family: verdana;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Marvin_%28HHGG%29.jpg">Marvin</a><span style="font-family:verdana;"> in the movie version of Hichhiker's Guide, particularly with their clamshell domes closed.)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Stephanie tells me that I "look in my element" in pictures from the summit. :)</span><br /><br /><a style="font-family: verdana;" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjozsGQoQuzTLI-gwqRup8eEdE18knp5bNBtdhdyCzei1pzoIsFSOumUJGtJHeGb6CxM6hs_sFvSDV3XANf8ptB88ZFqrm43uN5nLIeFQuxzDSogIdgVLMsYK5pGM2exRRKKO-sH1OKJpw/s1600-h/pano_VLTI_control_1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjozsGQoQuzTLI-gwqRup8eEdE18knp5bNBtdhdyCzei1pzoIsFSOumUJGtJHeGb6CxM6hs_sFvSDV3XANf8ptB88ZFqrm43uN5nLIeFQuxzDSogIdgVLMsYK5pGM2exRRKKO-sH1OKJpw/s400/pano_VLTI_control_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154651327357349954" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:verdana;">One of the other spots at the summit worth noting is the control room. The control room is actually one single, large control room for the whole facility: all the UTs are controlled from there, as is the interferometer. Pictured above is the station for the interferometer; the UTs have essentially idential stations peppered throughout the room. (This is a whole heck of a lot of LCD screens.)<br /><br />The other spot of interest is the interferometer laboratory, which we will look at in the next post.<br /></span>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-23330676873267476782008-01-11T06:41:00.000-08:002008-01-15T06:02:53.847-08:00Continuing on to Paranal<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNdJuvgBBbQwupv942BI26iO1M2QtUd8ZVy3JAC9hGdJ8MAVyUPjkyDYT6ktZfAGeMMX1ZFtAHb-6xLzpFPCu1DO4lqR1sxihGUHilKFt2UnHpshVpd1uEd3DYCyH-maUPkDz85Pa18M/s1600-h/IMG_0684.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsNdJuvgBBbQwupv942BI26iO1M2QtUd8ZVy3JAC9hGdJ8MAVyUPjkyDYT6ktZfAGeMMX1ZFtAHb-6xLzpFPCu1DO4lqR1sxihGUHilKFt2UnHpshVpd1uEd3DYCyH-maUPkDz85Pa18M/s200/IMG_0684.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154317333520543522" border="0" /></a>Morning came all too early - a 5am pickup from the ESO Guesthouse. However, it was, as with my arrival, all very well run: a taxi showed up right on cue, took us to the airport, and after the usual circus of check-in and security endemic to all the world's major airport nowdays, we were off in a LAN Chile airlines A320.<br /><br />The flight up was uneventful; I had a window seat on the right side of the airplane and should have been able to see the summit of Cerro Paranal before we arrived in Antofagasto, but the slant angle of the early morning sunlight prevented any such sightseeing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJrYS5RddWiMkJV94MC8nCSpNCuXgQ5HPxTkXsUb-YViOuBU_CkpKVB7Wt_Wv0lH76sM32VcbOJVZVWcggN2fbMqygWXXS2Q_3a22vZrqtZtuiCiPmyplpJdjCeoFrFuJ6SUkqGxOTUQU/s1600-h/IMG_0695.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJrYS5RddWiMkJV94MC8nCSpNCuXgQ5HPxTkXsUb-YViOuBU_CkpKVB7Wt_Wv0lH76sM32VcbOJVZVWcggN2fbMqygWXXS2Q_3a22vZrqtZtuiCiPmyplpJdjCeoFrFuJ6SUkqGxOTUQU/s200/IMG_0695.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154317638463221554" border="0" /></a>Another gentleman with an ESO logo sign greeted us upon our arrival (I was traveling with another astronomer who had stayed at the guest house, David King, a seasoned Paranal veteran who was acting as my de facto observatory spirit guide by then) and we boarded an ESO bus.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_JtUgyC5DXX31yoLIfLbTKcR5mF8cc1zg4eHQPIdWNi9MpPtRuJl7jCIYfjeqE_4S-k7rphDW87-zhn8iscB1xfoVybTVRZICCwGEkQH-02sbmTGeFHL7PaLkhjOkRg79VvKahHLGUE/s1600-h/IMG_0696.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX_JtUgyC5DXX31yoLIfLbTKcR5mF8cc1zg4eHQPIdWNi9MpPtRuJl7jCIYfjeqE_4S-k7rphDW87-zhn8iscB1xfoVybTVRZICCwGEkQH-02sbmTGeFHL7PaLkhjOkRg79VvKahHLGUE/s200/IMG_0696.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154317977765637954" border="0" /></a>We drove through Antofagasto, had a quick stop at the ESO office there to pick up some others bound for the summit, and we were then off to the mountain. Paranal is about 120 km south of the city, on roads that were quite unfinished at times, so it took more than two hours to make the drive. Fortunately the bus is quite comfortable - the seats are very plush, and the windows are large but well curtained against the harsh sun, so it was easy to sightsee, read, or just nap.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin8I_2uVh4HSuby0mp31g5l8vmJ9GWp4JdJtxb5d2qlWrKVvQoVCaxXLtUhGbne9UtG6Z6HYIDM9oj-WID9nQdU9D2ujimwIQ6Uo8iDFZCkm-srcdvQ5uwMymmoK1uMJqW_-L6B0Sbs1A/s1600-h/IMG_0733.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin8I_2uVh4HSuby0mp31g5l8vmJ9GWp4JdJtxb5d2qlWrKVvQoVCaxXLtUhGbne9UtG6Z6HYIDM9oj-WID9nQdU9D2ujimwIQ6Uo8iDFZCkm-srcdvQ5uwMymmoK1uMJqW_-L6B0Sbs1A/s200/IMG_0733.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154318785219489634" border="0" /></a>The area surrounding Antofagasto is, well, almost utterly barren. This region was chosen for the observatory given its almost total lack of precipitation, and the landscape wears that fact like a badge everywhere you look. "What's over here? Oh, dirt. And this direction? Oh, more dirt," one might find oneself thinking.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq8c4il9Q1UQRS_t1yjiHMvXjBQ9XB2Y8TvLuaDRvnt_V-799uJp7zUULfQPighp2JNWdHyjcFctOgQ2Z1ERcz20GmjnKDXV-pxOCVHr20voOuCMU0PR2nd1iHrmqk69iQajpomh86gLI/s1600-h/IMG_0738.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq8c4il9Q1UQRS_t1yjiHMvXjBQ9XB2Y8TvLuaDRvnt_V-799uJp7zUULfQPighp2JNWdHyjcFctOgQ2Z1ERcz20GmjnKDXV-pxOCVHr20voOuCMU0PR2nd1iHrmqk69iQajpomh86gLI/s200/IMG_0738.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154319266255826802" border="0" /></a>After that long drive, we arrived at the base camp, some 2km short of the summit, and checked in with security there, receiving visitor's badges - credit card looking things with a magnetic strip & bar code, good for door access and meals. The base camp includes lots of logistics sorts of facilities for support of the operation, plus the residence, where the staff stay during their time at Paranal. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYfRcxQzVZQBWLTRLYf_KZSlnoZuTppV2j_MPnDt_ZilY1R70-zf5gsmG5M3s97Bga0w_rfkSSJaXVLA6lAckJw0QnopEB-a52RkzYk1WNLYuxuWt6Xigg7psoYMrXejtuaguezPCV60/s1600-h/IMG_0757.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYfRcxQzVZQBWLTRLYf_KZSlnoZuTppV2j_MPnDt_ZilY1R70-zf5gsmG5M3s97Bga0w_rfkSSJaXVLA6lAckJw0QnopEB-a52RkzYk1WNLYuxuWt6Xigg7psoYMrXejtuaguezPCV60/s200/IMG_0757.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154319876141182850" border="0" /></a>Off in the distance looms the silvery domes of the VLT summit.<br /><br />The residence is quite interesting - the whole area is a barren wasteland, and the residence itself gives away no other impression from the outside, but inside, it is a small oasis of greenery. There are dorm-like rooms, a pool, a cafeteria, and nice garden areas throughout. It was a good place to stop for a while, kick up your heels, and have a nice cup of coffee.<br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwUTy78Uwy8VoaoUDuuE-9sxDdKesprdjOmxS9fxDagiPbvsmlf2MdOEXQzwNLnDHrG1xcw3ItDRwFI2TsTHA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><span style=";font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">Check out this cool video of entering the ESO residence.</span></span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmSvTxk_GZGD-7CQWr8JJxLInBTC2amDwpe9KtKZ36HY6QrLSs8R4B74AmZjDClSnLFquGE6kZSC9KRXgd16rTaX7Ol3WH9nO5bOZ_MidxaLJq9MFIv_mhwfxF-vORie58vS3yiwScOEE/s1600-h/pano_residence_1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmSvTxk_GZGD-7CQWr8JJxLInBTC2amDwpe9KtKZ36HY6QrLSs8R4B74AmZjDClSnLFquGE6kZSC9KRXgd16rTaX7Ol3WH9nO5bOZ_MidxaLJq9MFIv_mhwfxF-vORie58vS3yiwScOEE/s400/pano_residence_1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154320567630917522" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjETkhBTWXKInK14d0KOVNMi-mCsGiOynzZzEQh3rSpmSqH7MgtfTCrLedKdRjZZlvZwNR9Xn2VmAwZH8bhEC4jGTovT7fXalbQP9BBwgQ1MyX4P2pIJLiI-9rA7i9Qd7SrXyXh3vXqWjM/s1600-h/pano_residence_2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjETkhBTWXKInK14d0KOVNMi-mCsGiOynzZzEQh3rSpmSqH7MgtfTCrLedKdRjZZlvZwNR9Xn2VmAwZH8bhEC4jGTovT7fXalbQP9BBwgQ1MyX4P2pIJLiI-9rA7i9Qd7SrXyXh3vXqWjM/s400/pano_residence_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5154324205468217250" border="0" /></a>Now, one has to step back and really be awestruck by how impressive this operation is - the observatory has its own powerplant, some of the most advanced technology telescopes in the world, its own fire brigade, even a 100 room hotel complete with solarium and pool, all at the very end of the Earth. Indeed, if the Earth were flat they'd have figured out a way to hang it on scaffolding over the edge to get a better view of the stars beneath.<br /><br />Next post: going to the summit!Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8389490111924649700.post-51965750363978678382008-01-10T11:45:00.000-08:002008-01-12T05:09:02.656-08:00Chilean Trip #1 - Travel to SantiagoHi all-<br /><br />I haven't been posting regularly <a href="http://stephsmunichmadness.blogspot.com/">like Stephanie</a> but I wanted to share a few of my experiences and observations on my trip(s) down to Chile. Technically this current trip is not my first - I came down here in 1999 for the Opening Symposium of the VLT - but its my first as instrument scientist at ESO.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP12qGB9TwTMX3t2Difxnh1iS9ZLELBnLmL8u3ohKT8j8ttyB8xId-AU-Mn-41ATaMdG81Z5nLUk9fyGke1io32Z-b-bqzi1eJ_RxaHaa_I-DP3870ZXNMFwre8EsP4mqNcEoAUaCRj3M/s1600-h/IMG_0642.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP12qGB9TwTMX3t2Difxnh1iS9ZLELBnLmL8u3ohKT8j8ttyB8xId-AU-Mn-41ATaMdG81Z5nLUk9fyGke1io32Z-b-bqzi1eJ_RxaHaa_I-DP3870ZXNMFwre8EsP4mqNcEoAUaCRj3M/s200/IMG_0642.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153941154514955906" border="0" /></a><br />I departed the Munich airport around 7 in the evening on a Swiss flight, and switched planes in Zurich, boarding an Airbus 340-313. These are nice, spiffy new airplanes, but ...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25klp0BnyIWYWj-1eSOGK6IGZ2Mcb1dalWZojgsYxPw2efx8h-vC3eaaqS9p4IYfj6MjOnP3OeboM1ATggf5DimWgz6B27QjGb2EAtCM61mMCjOSQVr3Xy_eVjMvlo6oWkxHVJp6jAX4/s1600-h/IMG_0646.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25klp0BnyIWYWj-1eSOGK6IGZ2Mcb1dalWZojgsYxPw2efx8h-vC3eaaqS9p4IYfj6MjOnP3OeboM1ATggf5DimWgz6B27QjGb2EAtCM61mMCjOSQVr3Xy_eVjMvlo6oWkxHVJp6jAX4/s200/IMG_0646.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153942249731616402" border="0" /></a><br />... within 10 minutes of takeoff I had crashed the seatback in-flight entertainment system. Luckily it had a timeout reboot and came back alive after being hung a few minutes. (Thereby enabling me to watch 'Rush Hour 3', another fine contribution to world cinema from Hollywood.)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL-QQiD01-ob8tl8nXr4qNUv6vf1LoDYQoN5h49UfHSk-csAB4fkwNCZ_3rS0LxqL811kGNi-p_3w6m4VL1-DTHbtXN2Y57KBkf3ey3jYkLCMfVUjHLStP8f0lNSlQjVkk7k8MWhAzV0g/s1600-h/IMG_0655.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL-QQiD01-ob8tl8nXr4qNUv6vf1LoDYQoN5h49UfHSk-csAB4fkwNCZ_3rS0LxqL811kGNi-p_3w6m4VL1-DTHbtXN2Y57KBkf3ey3jYkLCMfVUjHLStP8f0lNSlQjVkk7k8MWhAzV0g/s200/IMG_0655.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153942949811285666" border="0" /></a><br />The flight had a brief stopover in <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&time=&date=&ttype=&q=sao+paolo,+brazil&ie=UTF8&ll=-23.513626,-46.639709&spn=1.186217,2.570801&z=9&iwloc=addr&om=1">Sao Paulo, Brazil</a>, and then continued on to Santiago, flying over the Andes mountains (seen above). It's pretty impressive when the captain announces the beginning of the descent for landing and you're still clearly over some very tall - and close - mountain peaks.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinQ3PkW46WEZnehFKYQyrmfjYqPWBnd-RGZQ6hRzyIiwyzcTurN16Jp9BqjlIh5uOddh8T__uiGhMnxmP7yIec4VHP58oQayUGDl2L07Ui-eB3H-ESkNaBvEoWcIzfopGZpWeLNoaCNWk/s1600-h/IMG_0657.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinQ3PkW46WEZnehFKYQyrmfjYqPWBnd-RGZQ6hRzyIiwyzcTurN16Jp9BqjlIh5uOddh8T__uiGhMnxmP7yIec4VHP58oQayUGDl2L07Ui-eB3H-ESkNaBvEoWcIzfopGZpWeLNoaCNWk/s200/IMG_0657.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153943692840627890" border="0" /></a><br />One neat feature of the seat-back system is that it can show some outside view cameras - including one that looks forward for a "pilot's eye view". They actually switched this off for the approach & landing in Sao Paulo, but left it on for Santiago.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi30GfqlyJd8B2JGNKUC8Xo0ylcZcXQmlaQSbRwUwZ2_Aa7s_KO3WB1xW6lTpAhu5f3Sv1oEDAWreyi4ku6V8fErmgAl1eP5vX4e5aupgAtGNCb_F53oDR3gOtQE_nkx5Gq5xIFdNrr5DM/s1600-h/IMG_0661.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi30GfqlyJd8B2JGNKUC8Xo0ylcZcXQmlaQSbRwUwZ2_Aa7s_KO3WB1xW6lTpAhu5f3Sv1oEDAWreyi4ku6V8fErmgAl1eP5vX4e5aupgAtGNCb_F53oDR3gOtQE_nkx5Gq5xIFdNrr5DM/s200/IMG_0661.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153944096567553730" border="0" /></a><br />Our trusty steed on the ground in Santiago.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6Qngu0g0RUWdQ3ADhdlkd4GA0VPKbLCOksOE0KzJAfft4vaELG39oyiGoeb3j4mprrFWW39RFD6sTMwOINK0HpJ0B8ueTZZDuydhnQJZT-WsCvhsvvpb40Nx_vNUgqzLaAiSeNyS6AA/s1600-h/IMG_0662.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt6Qngu0g0RUWdQ3ADhdlkd4GA0VPKbLCOksOE0KzJAfft4vaELG39oyiGoeb3j4mprrFWW39RFD6sTMwOINK0HpJ0B8ueTZZDuydhnQJZT-WsCvhsvvpb40Nx_vNUgqzLaAiSeNyS6AA/s200/IMG_0662.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153944311315918546" border="0" /></a><br />Upon leaving the plane, the first thing Americans have to do is cough up $100 for entry into the country. It's rooted in the Diplomatic School of Thought titled "Screw us and we'll screw you" - apparently this fee is charged purely because the US charges Chileans to enter the US, and to drive the point home, it's called a "Reciprocity Fee". Mind you, Euros were not accepted, but thankfully Mastercard was, since I've retired my greenbacks some time ago.<br /><br />Once done, there's the standard song & dance of passport control, baggage claim, and then customs.<br /><br />ESO has a pretty slick operation: you exit customs, and there's a kind gentleman waiting for you with a big blue ESO logo sign in his hand, and he grabs your bags and whisks you off to a taxi, where he equally expeditiously whisks you off to the ESO Guesthouse.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcxl60quqfoAVUpyxrxX4zN085MoCTCh7Mc6GAfpNEgi7BTIFolzXuscYVDSNTvE7kviDZJfaB9Imep6itABMhOgN5kGOEticIPt3iJ-T7Z8R30lPnCx0QSH_V8112BzaH_B-hezR5uo/s1600-h/IMG_0667.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcxl60quqfoAVUpyxrxX4zN085MoCTCh7Mc6GAfpNEgi7BTIFolzXuscYVDSNTvE7kviDZJfaB9Imep6itABMhOgN5kGOEticIPt3iJ-T7Z8R30lPnCx0QSH_V8112BzaH_B-hezR5uo/s200/IMG_0667.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153945028575456994" border="0" /></a><br />The guesthouse is a calm oasis of greenery and pleasantry in what appeared to me to be at least one branch of Embassy Row for Santiago. The staff checked me in, urged a hot lunch on me, and helped me settle quickly.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEVh7lKZUQrFsUttkFIaRlUDvSoCg-fEpYd9QOdQ-2aMvvVnaLrDoAUsCS5dy4R8LW95zXgXz7pF369yvweggtZ83-ekNH6MQQXMqGadWwoOl1wxtTFG4bnryJ0VNhiBAH-QL10VCbTbg/s1600-h/IMG_0669.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEVh7lKZUQrFsUttkFIaRlUDvSoCg-fEpYd9QOdQ-2aMvvVnaLrDoAUsCS5dy4R8LW95zXgXz7pF369yvweggtZ83-ekNH6MQQXMqGadWwoOl1wxtTFG4bnryJ0VNhiBAH-QL10VCbTbg/s200/IMG_0669.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153946196806561522" border="0" /></a><br />One of my gross oversights (of many) in preparing for the trip was forgetting to pack any shorts, which were keenly given the 90 degree weather in Santiago. It is, after all, summer in the southern hemisphere (as any astronomer should know). However, the guesthouse staff gave me surefooted directions to the nearest mall, which gave me an opportunity to stroll the streets of Santiago. I found it to be, in places, very similar to our former home in southern California, with a few notable exceptions (eg. some of the houses, particularly those associated with a consulate, had much more of a fortress look with nasty sharp fencing, etc.)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qPsk6HlRmXiHs3RjdPuJLu8H7C4oP2xpg2oJGPFKunqAM9TeZNshwhW_A7Nt9MwMNP6yYOQmgUI5aXRUHU7MsQ_E4oSU1rMEbZY_F7IB1F6_LLDBvwfBDT2qNO6RgUYHb1g2J_Y622U/s1600-h/IMG_0674.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2qPsk6HlRmXiHs3RjdPuJLu8H7C4oP2xpg2oJGPFKunqAM9TeZNshwhW_A7Nt9MwMNP6yYOQmgUI5aXRUHU7MsQ_E4oSU1rMEbZY_F7IB1F6_LLDBvwfBDT2qNO6RgUYHb1g2J_Y622U/s200/IMG_0674.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153947008555380482" border="0" /></a><br />There was also some impressive scenery specific to the city, such as this barracks(?) with a lumberingly large flag undulating like a sail in the wind.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaINDE1jctiEQFdreufiCswB9wHcTAc_sKjmluMWB0i1rNZm5yNjQ1AQLtd-nLD_FdwJ5zG4MTF1uORbfsKPZ_jgqX657NbceNLW0parxSWQveRMQQM7c7LKlU5VqeSmKgNtG5DM9hwZ0/s1600-h/IMG_0678.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaINDE1jctiEQFdreufiCswB9wHcTAc_sKjmluMWB0i1rNZm5yNjQ1AQLtd-nLD_FdwJ5zG4MTF1uORbfsKPZ_jgqX657NbceNLW0parxSWQveRMQQM7c7LKlU5VqeSmKgNtG5DM9hwZ0/s200/IMG_0678.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153947596965900050" border="0" /></a><br />The mall resembled quite familiar territory, with a heavy American influence clearly felt, like the mailed iron fist of a medieval knight attempting needlepoint - a task that is simply incapable of subtlety. Familiar brands abounded: McDonalds, Calvin Klein, Gotcha, even Dunkin Donuts(!) In such a blizzard of commercialism, I could not but succeed in my quest to purchase shorts, and now have two pair to my name.<br /><br />I returned to the guest house to observe that institution's time-honored tradition of Pisco Sours at 6:45pm, followed by a delightful dinner (poached salmon) and delightful conversation on the veranda afterwards. A quick night of sleep left me refreshed and ready to continue onto Antofagasta and Paranal the next day.<br /><br /><a href="http://stephsmunichmadness.blogspot.com/"> </a>Gerardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15774370139393954353noreply@blogger.com0