October 7, 2018 · 23:45

Spectacular SpaceX Launch

Tonight SpaceX launched a large weather satellite out of Vandenberg just after sunset. We know from experience that this can lead to some truly spectacular views in the Los Angeles area.

Since we’re now in a home at the top of a hill with a decent view to the west (Vandenberg is to our northwest and they’re launching to the south, so the rocket goes directly to the west of us) instead of one at the bottom of a hill (this hill, in fact) with the hill blocking the horizon to the west, I was hoping we would get some decent views. I was not disappointed.

With advance warning of the launch, I decided to try my first FaceBook Live streaming video of the launch. There were lessons learned and things to do better next time, but I think that it turned out pretty well all in all. You can watch it:

HERE

It starts as we’re about a minute or so before launch and in the background you can hear the audio from the SpaceX webcast. You’ll also hear the dulcet tones of me and my gravelly, nasal voice trying to give some sort of running commentary, and occasionally going a bit ape. Did I say that we had “decent” views? Try “spectacular” views!

You can fast forward to about 3:45 to when I first see the rocket coming up over the hill. At 5:05 the first stage shuts down, the stages separate, the second stage lights off and heads south to deliver the satellite to orbit, and the first stage starts puffing clouds of gas from the cold gas control thrusters as it maneuvers. (This whole thing is utterly amazing and colorful and freaked out more than a few people in LA who didn’t know what was going on.)

At 08:20 the first stage re-entry burn starts as the first stage slows and aims for landing back at Vandenberg. (It fell below the hill again after the burn ended so I couldn’t see the landing, but it did occur and was perfect.) From there on I follow the second stage and satellite, which was visible all the way to second stage engine cutoff!

That’s freaking amazing, just astonishing.

Enjoy the video, and if you’re in the LA area, keep an eye on the SpaceX feed (or on my FaceBook and/or Twitter feed) for the next dusk launch.

In ten years I would love to see these things be weekly events. In twenty I would love to see them daily.

We’re spreading off of this planet and becoming a multi-planetary species!

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Filed under Space, Video

October 6, 2018 · 21:49

It Was

I mentioned that yesterday’s photos from my “Over The Edge” rappelling adventure were taken as stills on a GoPro camera while it simultaneously recorded high definition video. What was funny was the last still photo, taken when I was back in the hotel and having my gear removed.

The question was quite literally, “Is that thing still running?”

It was.

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October 5, 2018 · 23:04

Go Pro View – October 5th

It’s been a long, hard, exhausting day in many respects. Some of the exhausting parts have been depressing, some have been terribly sad, some have been frustrating, and some have actually been fun.

It’s called “life,” but today the volume might have been turned up to “11.”

Here are some GoPro pictures from the fun part. The non-profit I work for, Homes 4 Families, is having an “Over The Edge” fundraiser this weekend. (I’ve done this once before.) I will mention that if you’re in LA and this looks like fun and you can make a donation, we still have slots available for tomorrow. (www.Homes4Families.org)

This time there were two differences, one major, one minor. The minor one was that I was wearing a GoPro camera which was set to take a still photo every five seconds. The major one was that our son just happened to be in town today and since H4F’s mission is helping military and veteran families and since Steve is active military, we were able to give him a chance to go OTE with me!

Harnessed up, both the primary rope and the safety rope attached, getting final instructions. We’re TWENTY-SIX STORIES up. It was perfect weather.

Starting to lean back, get the feel of the clutch release, practicing feeding the rope up. Something on the order of 280 to 300 feet of that rope is heavy! And that pool looks very, very small.

Over we go! Just lean back, get into a rhythm with the rope and clutch, and walk down the wall.

Looking north into the eastern San Fernando Valley.

Looking north into the Cahuenga Pass and the 101 Freeway passing by behind us.

Who says, “Don’t look down”? That’s the fun part!

With a mirrored building, a lot of the pictures are various visions of me.

Steve got the hang of it and was motoring down – I was either more clumsy and awkward, taking time to enjoy myself a bit, or both. (Both!)

Getting closer.

Almost down by the trees – well, the trees up on the third floor garage outside of the main lobby. But that’s still 22 down and 4 to go!

There’s the plaza and my support team talking me down.

Terra firma! Death defied once again! And paying for it the rest of the day with some nasty cramps in my legs and the soles of my feet.

The other less corporeal exhaustion we’ll deal with tomorrow.

 

 

 

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Filed under Family, Homes4Families, Photography

October 4, 2018 · 23:36

The Sound Of Cracking Ice

And not in a good way, like when it’s being broken up to go into a blender to make a margarita.

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October 3, 2018 · 23:18

The Rain Missed Us

So far this stream of showers coming off the Pacific has missed our side of the LA area. (For those who haven’t been here, “the LA area” covers more square miles than several of the smaller states, so it’s not that uncommon.) That’s unfortunate, but it did leave some cotton candy skies while I was out in the back yard, serving a shift as Pilot In Command of the BBQ.

Low flying humming bird? High flying crow? Klingon bird of prey during orbital re-entry? It’s all a matter of perspective!

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Filed under Photography, Weather

October 3, 2018 · 00:03

Invaders THROUGH The Mycelium

Actually, I think they’re probably there to EAT the mycelium. From underneath.

I hate gophers!

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October 1, 2018 · 21:44

Sunset From Anthony’s Deck

Meet your neighbors. Make friends.

The urban legend says that no one in LA knows ANY of their neighbors. This has a grain of truth to it – there were people who lived across the street from us for 27 years at the old house and I don’t know that I ever said two words to them and I most certainly didn’t know their names. On the other hand, the other five or six closest houses to us on the street as well as the folks who lived on the other side of the wall in the back were all at least casual acquaintances. We knew their names, we knew their dogs, if they were going out of town for the weekend we would keep an eye on their place and bring their trash cans up from the curb, and they would do the same for us.

Since we moved in May I’ve met several of our neighbors and I go out of my way to say hello, introduce myself, find out who they are, invite them over if they see the telescopes out in the front yard, and so on.

Tonight that paid off.

There are the remnants of a “small” hurricane to the south of us, streaming lots of moisture across Baja and into Arizona at the moment. That stream of rain and thunderstorms is shifting over us, so I figured there might be a decent sunset to look at. Fortunately, it came just as halftime started (where my beloved KC Chiefs were beating the Broncos to go 4-0) so I grabbed my camera and went out.

As I’ve mentioned, we’re at the top of the hill, on the side of the street where our back yard drops off to the east. To our west, there are a bunch of trees and lots of power lines.

Things were starting to look colorful – but trees, neighbors’ houses, etc. I wandered down the hill a couple of houses.

Back to the west, with all of these layers of clouds and the sun setting through the layers to the west, there were some interesting spots of color floating in a sky full of darker clouds.

As the sun started to get to the horizon and peek out from under the last layer of clouds…

…the colors started to get vivid near the horizon. But still, trees, antennas, neighbors’ houses. Better, not spectacular.

The pinkish mid-layers got even more pronounced.

One of the neighboring wives came out to leave and saw me, asked what I was taking pictures of. I told her – she called for her husband to come out. I had previously met Anthony and he told me I should come with him. They live on the other side of the street with the hill dropping away and giving a clear view to the west, and they’ve got a deck so that it’s a particularly spectacular view.

Down below in the gloaming are the West Hills Baseball fields where we spent so many hours with all of our kids. The central hill there we always called Castle Peak, primarily because it’s surrounded by Castle Peak Park.

Meet your neighbors. Make friends. One of them, like Anthony, might like sunsets just as much as you do, and they might have a great view of the western horizon.

 

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Filed under Castle Willett, Los Angeles, Photography, Weather

September 30, 2018 · 23:32

Someplace Special – September 30th

Anaheim, California

In the decades when it was primarily known as the sole location of the original Disneyland (let’s be real, it’s still pretty much known for that) it was called “The Happiest Place On Earth.” I’ve been to Disneyland a few times over the years but it’s really not my sort of entertainment – this place, also in Anaheim, does it for me.

I became an Angels fan when I moved to California in 1974 to go to school at UC Irvine. Coincidentally, this panorama was taken three years ago when they had a “UCI Night” and gave out Angels/UCI hats. (You can see someone wearing on on the right side of the picture.) I went with my daughter, who is also a UCI alum. (“Zot! Zot! Zot!”)

We have a lot of family memories at Anaheim Stadium, from times I went there when the team was terrible (before the kids were born) to the times we went there for the MLB All-Star Game. We’ve seen playoff games there, we’ve gone to many a home opener, I’ve gone on dates there, I’ve taken infants only a month old there.

Today was the last game of the regular season and that closes out the 2018 campaign for the Angels. For the third year in a row we have a losing season and have missed the playoffs, and it’s been nine years since we’ve won a playoff game and sixteen years since our one and only World Series championship.

The other thing that happened this year is that we didn’t make it to a single game. I can’t verify it, but that may very well be the first time in the 44 years that I’ve lived out there that I didn’t get to an Angels game. In fact, I didn’t get to any games at all this year for the Angels, Dodgers, or anyone else.

That right there may symbolize my 2018 in a single fact as much as anything.

But, as with the Boys of Summer, spring will arrive and hope will truly spring eternal. There’s always next year…

 

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Filed under LA Angels, Panorama, Photography, Sports

September 29, 2018 · 23:59

What’s The Collective Noun?

Driving home from the hangar, heading back into LA from Ventura County. Almost sunset. I’m in the #2 lane, coming up on a car carrier in the #3 lane. No biggie.

Wait, what kind of car is that, the black one on the bottom? A Tesla? No, not just a Tesla, but one of the brand new Model 3’s I believe?

And not just that one I realize! The sliver one on top, also. And the others!

Six of them! A half dozen!

So, just what is the collective noun for a half dozen brand new Teslas?

A Jolt?

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September 28, 2018 · 22:34

No Clouds, Extra Gradient

No clouds tonight, “clear and a million” as they say.

With nothing floating up there to turn pink and orange and purple it must have been a boring sunset, right?

Well — I prefer the term “subtle” to “boring.” What we lacked in splendor we made up in gradient.

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