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Tagged With "Observatory"

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Re: Lunar Eclipse at Lowell Observatory, Arizona

Roderick Simpson ·
In Calgary this time the Supermoon was obscured by super clouds. However, the sky was clear in April and I took this from my bedroom window.
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Travel Rob ·
Your piece will serve inspiration for many future trips,I'm sure of that.I had no clue as the extent of Eiffel's work but I now want to see several of them in person. This serves as an example of why TravelGumbo is so different and needed
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

WorkerBee ·
PHeymont, Your post reminded me that I had seen a pre-fabricated church designed by Eiffel in Baja, Mexico. It is in the small town of Santa Rosalia and still in use. There is more info here .
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Mac ·
Absolutely fascinating, thank you. And I thought that UK's Isambard Kingdom Brunel was prolific!
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Paul Heymont ·
Brunel has fascinated me since reading a book on the Great Eastern, an unlucky ship he designed. Perhaps someday I can find time to post about his work...unless I hear a volunteer? Thanks!
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

PortMoresby ·
I'm personally acquainted with one of Brunel's railway bridges, the Gatehampton Bridge over the Thames in Berkshire, England. I was advised by my Thames Path guidebook that I was approaching it. There was a strategically placed bench in a meadow where I sat, had a snack and looked at it from a distance for a bit before walking under it. Not at all knowledgeable, or even much interested, in bridges I tried to get at least a glimpse of what the guide meant when it said "one of Brunel's Great...
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Re: The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Paul Heymont ·
T&N, you make an interesting point about the air circulation and coolness of Eiffel's building. These days we are constantly reading about advances in "green design," intended to reduce excess energy use. Ironic how well some of those principles of making life bearable were known so long ago by those who didn't have the option of mechanical air-conditioning! Another example is in today's blog about Gaudi's Casa Battlo in Barcelona, which uses an open well through the center of the...
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Re: 'Uncomfortable memory' tour faces Barcelona slave history

DrFumblefinger ·
It is good that a people face up to and learn from the past. We must learn from the lessons of history, but I do hope this will not become a "self-flagellation" exercise. At the end of the 18th century, everyone had slaves. Every people, every race, every culture, every country participated in the buying, selling and owning of other people. It was the norm. Fortunately, with a few rare exceptions, modern society has become enlightened and the rights of individuals is now a central focus of...
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Re: 'Uncomfortable memory' tour faces Barcelona slave history

Paul Heymont ·
'Presentism' is always a danger for historians, but in this case, there's a real issue of interest based on the late-in-the-day entry into slave-owning by the later Catalan grandees; they went into it when all European countries had already abolished it, and when it had been abolished in many colonial areas. Sadly, not Cuba, Brazil, or, at the beginning of that period, the United States. One of the reasons it's important to consider these past things is because they do enter into the...
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Re: 'Uncomfortable memory' tour faces Barcelona slave history

GarryRF ·
Slavery is just part of a long cruel history. Wherever there is chance to make money, people of any race or creed will gladly join in. Even the African warlords who sold the "prisoners" to the slave ships played their parts in this piece of history. Even today fortunes are made by sending young men to die in the name of "Defence". Money has no morals.
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Re: Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles (Where Gumbo Was #212)

DrFumblefinger ·
An amazingly clear day when you visited. Many days you can't see more than a few miles because of LA's infamous smog.
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Re: Gallery: The Roof of Hawaii. An amazing sunset on Mauna Kea!

DrFumblefinger ·
Folks should not underestimate how very cold and windy it gets up there, especially when its dark. You'll want your full winter clothes here -- gloves, parka, hat. Beautiful photos, Dr.Y. Brings back many special memories!
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Re: Gallery: The Roof of Hawaii. An amazing sunset on Mauna Kea!

Travel Rob ·
What an amazing place! Your photos look like they were taken from a plane!
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Re: Gallery: The Roof of Hawaii. An amazing sunset on Mauna Kea!

Paul Heymont ·
Now I wish we'd taken time away from the volcanoes to go up there!
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Re: Gallery: The Roof of Hawaii. An amazing sunset on Mauna Kea!

Dr.Y ·
Originally Posted by Travel Rob: What an amazing place! Your photos look like they were taken from a plane! Yes, the summit is actually 40 percent above the Earth's atmosphere!
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ET, Call Home: A visit to the Arecibo Observatory

Paul Heymont ·
On our recent visit to Puerto Rico, we took an unplanned side trip to what might be called ET’s phone booth—a vast radio telescope at the Arecibo Observatory that “listens” to space both for astronomical information and any...
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Travel to Where "Your Shadow Always Has Company"

Paul Heymont ·
Well, you can't actually visit the planet Kepler 16b; it's not even in our solar system. But graphic artists at the National Aeronautical and Space Agency (NASA) have made up dream travel posters for several "exoplanets" (planets that orbit other...
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Griffith Observatory, Los Angeles (Where Gumbo Was #212)

Travel Rob ·
Gumbo was found at the famous Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. Learn more and see the incredible views.
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Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (Where Gumbo was #210)

DrFumblefinger ·
Gumbo was visiting the Jantar Mantar in Jaipur, India. An 18th century royal observatory with a most fascinating collection of instruments used to observe and measure the sun, stars, earth's rotation and such. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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Lunar Eclipse at Lowell Observatory, Arizona

Lestertheinvestor ·
  The full eclipse, viewed through telescope   We dropped by the Lowell Observatory just to see about their hours, when we learned of the full lunar eclipse the following day, and with a super moon and a blood moon, this was going to be a...
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Gallery: The Roof of Hawaii. An amazing sunset on Mauna Kea!

Dr.Y ·
Standing at an altitude of 4,205 meters (13,796 ft) above sea level, Mauna Kea mountain on the Big Island of Hawaii is the highest point in the Pacific Basin and the highest island-mountain in the world!  According to the Hawaii tourism guild,...
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'Uncomfortable memory' tour faces Barcelona slave history

Paul Heymont ·
Barcelona, and other cities, confront the 'uncomfortable memory' of slave-built fortunes that paid for many of their famous sights.
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Re: ET, Call Home: A visit to the Arecibo Observatory

Racing_snake ·
Enjoyed your account, thanks for that. I've known about the Observatory for a long time but one thing that baffled me a bit was the apparent grubbiness of the dish? It looks like algal or mossy growth on the tiles from photos I've seen or is it just staining caused by rain? I sort of expected they'd have to keep it gleaming? )
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Re: ET, Call Home: A visit to the Arecibo Observatory

Paul Heymont ·
Maintenance is always an issue on outdoor equipment (hence the special shoes worn by those who go out to adjust and clean the bowl) but shiny is not actually needed for radio (as opposed to optical) telescopes. Not really sure for optical either, but this is an antenna for radio emissions, not for reflecting light.
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Re: ET, Call Home: A visit to the Arecibo Observatory

Racing_snake ·
Sure, thanks for that, but I just sort of expected they might keep it clean anyway. Still, it's their dish and I guess they know what they're doing. )
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Re: Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (Where Gumbo was #210)

GarryRF ·
We all like to think astronomy this accurate belongs in modern day equipment. This illustrates the brilliance of mathematicians and astrologers from hundreds of years ago. Amazing find DrF !
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Re: Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (Where Gumbo was #210)

PortMoresby ·
Remarkable!
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Re: Jantar Mantar, Jaipur (Where Gumbo was #210)

Marilyn Jones ·
I visited when I was in Jaipur. Thanks for the memories!!
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The Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico: A Sad Ending

Samantha ·
Samantha and her husband visited the Arecibo Observatory and the world's largest single-aperture telescope. A sad ending, though, years later.
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"Astro-Tourism" takes off in Chilean desert

Paul Heymont ·
A new form of tourism, traveling to places with sufficiently clear night skies for astronomy, has developed in recent years, and one of its hottest spots is the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, which has unpolluted clear dry air and no nearby cities.
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The "Eiffel Tour" Only Starts with the Tour Eiffel

Paul Heymont ·
Everyone knows the Eiffel Tower, or Tour Eiffel. You could probably draw a pretty accurate sketch without even looking. And quite a few folks know that that Gustave Eiffel, who designed and built it, also provided the iron skeleton that keeps the Statue of Liberty standing in New York Harbor.
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