Russian Tu-160 Blackjack
The Tupolev Tu-160 (NATO reporting name Blackjack) is a supersonic, variable-geometry heavy bomber designed by the Soviet Union. The Tu-160 is the heaviest combat aircraft ever built. The aircraft is similar to the B-1 Lancer, but 430mph (692 km/h) faster than the Lancer, and possesses greater range and payload capabilities. Produced 10 years later than the B-1, it flies at 10,000 ft (3,048 m) lower maximum altitude.
Its pilots call the Tu-160 the “White Swanâ€Â, due to the surprising maneuverability and antiflash white finish of the aircraft.
Wildfire, Big Sur, California, 2000
A wildfire encroaches on a tree in California’s still wild Big Sur. Strict zoning laws and a limited water supply ensure that the area has not become overly populated, and nature, too, has done her part to keep developers away: In 1997 a fire raged in the Santa Lucia Range for three weeks. Big Sur naturalist John Smiley calls the wildfires simply “another type of weather.”
photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-of-the-day
Two Giant Galaxy Clusters Collide
Tags:APOD, Science!, Space, Wallpaper
Explanation: What happens when two of the largest objects in the universe collide? No one was quite sure, but the answer is giving clues to the nature of mysterious dark matter. In the case of MACSJ0025.4-1222, two huge clusters of galaxies have been found slowly colliding over hundreds of millions of years, and the result has been imaged by both the Hubble Space Telescope in visible light and the Chandra Space Telescope in X-ray light. Once the above visible image was recorded, the location and gravitational lens distortions of more distant galaxies by the newly combined galaxy cluster allowed astronomers to computationally determine what happened to the clusters’ dark matter. The result indicates that this huge collision has caused the dark matter in the clusters to become partly separated from the normal matter, confirming earlier speculation. In the above combined image, dark matter is shown as the diffuse purple hue, while a smoothed depiction of the X-ray hot normal matter is shown in pink. MACSJ0025 contains hundreds of galaxies, spans about three million light years, and lies nearly six billion light years away (redshift 0.59) toward the constellation of Monster Whale (Cetus).
antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html
Imperator-class star destroyer
“The hull number of the star destroyer Entor (CVS 1049) indicates either that in excess of a thousand star destroyers of this class have been built, or that this is the 1049th built by its particular shipyard. According to the reports of Rebel Alliance historian Arhul Hextrophon (in The Imperial Sourcebook) the Galactic Empire has a about three to five dozen or so destroyers in an average sector group fleet, of which there is at least one for each of the Empire’s thousands of sectors. This indicates that the local territorial fleets alone account for tens of thousands of star destroyers galaxy-wide. It should be noted that though Hextrophon’s reports have proven to be error-prone on many occasions; they consistently tend towards gross underestimates of Imperial naval and military strengths. The true number of star destroyers is probably much greater than the values he implies. In addition to the vessels assigned to particular sectors, there must be uncounted numbers attached to Imperial High Command and elite roving forces such as those of some Grand Moffs, and higher officials such as Lord Darth Vader.” -Dr Curtis Saxton
Parallax View
Parallax
Parallax causes the reflection of the sun in the water to appear directly behind the street light, even though it appears much higher than the light in the sky. The location of the virtual image is below the surface of the water and thus simultaneously offers a different vantage point of the street light, which appears to be shifted relative to the stationary, background sun.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Picture_of_the_day/September_2008
A Map of the Internet’s Black Holes
This map was commissioned by Reporters Without Borders, which also publishes a World Ranking of press freedom. As the list of the 15 internet-restricting countries (followed by their ranking on said list) indicates, internet censorship is a strong indicator of press censorship in general:
1. Maldives (144)
2. Tunisia (148)
3. Belarus (151)
4. Libya (152)
5. Syria (153)
6. Vietnam (155)
7. Uzbekistan (158)
8. Nepal (159)
9. Saudi Arabia (161)
10. Iran (162)
11. China (163)
12. Myanmar/Burma (164)
13. Cuba (165)
14. Turkmenistan (167)
15. North Korea (168 and very last on the list)
strangemaps.wordpress.com/2007/08/31/170-a-map-of-the-internets-black-holes/
Cool Blog: strangemaps.wordpress.com/
Dr. Strange
Tags:Comic Books, Fantasy - Science Fiction, Wallpaper
Wandjina Spaceman
In the Kimberley, a remote region in Northwestern Australia, there was a Wandjina Art Period that dates from as far back as 40,000 B.C.E. to about 2000 B.C.E.
www.flickr.com/photos/30435614@N02/2865471704
Catostylus species jellyfish
photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/enlarge/jellyfish-split-level-doubilet_pod_image.html
Command Ships
Tags:Fantasy - Science Fiction, Sexy, Star Wars
“According to The STAR WARS Sourcebook there were four Executor-class vessels in service in the time immediately following the Battle of Yavin in A New Hope. By the time of the Battle of Endor, four years later, their success had led the Imperial Navy to construct many more, acting as standard command vessels throughout the Galactic Empire. Piloting a stolen shuttle to Endor, Han Solo was unsurprised to see the Executor in orbit, acting as the command station for processing security clearances for passage through the deflector shield protecting the new Death Star. When Luke Skywalker announced that Vader was present, Solo responded “Now don’t get jittery Luke; there are a lot of command ships.†Clearly the Executor’s siblings were relatively abundant by that time, or at least no longer rare. Most were probably put to use as flagships for Grand Admirals, Grand Moffs and important Moffs. For instance, the Black Sword Fleet near Farlax sector was led by three Executor-class command ships.” – Dr Curtis Saxton
Definition of the bigger boat…
…you know, the one we need.
flickr.com/photos/7590040%40N07/2858200625/
Flagellum
I wonder what a Type III secretion system is.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Picture_of_the_day
Flagellum
A flagellum is a long, slender projection from the cell body, whose function is to propel an organism. The depicted type is found in bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella, and rotates like a propeller when the bacterium swims.
Hummer HX Concept Vehicle
Tonka Truck anyone?
Found here: www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2008/112_0801_hummer_hx_concept/index.html
Snake River Mountain Sheep (female)
In this species of sheep, both males and females are equipped with horns. The males horns will actually thicken and curl with age. The females not so much. Photo was taken from a jet boat in the Hells Canyon area of the Snake River in Idaho.
A new hope
Tags:Fantasy - Science Fiction, Humor
Luke for president!
Pink Floyd’s Wright dead at 65
Pink Floyd’s Wright dead at 65
2 hours ago
LONDON (AFP) †Pink Floyd founding member and keyboard player Richard Wright died Monday at the age of 65 after battling cancer, his spokesman said.
Wright wrote and sang several numbers from classic albums of the British progressive rock band, including “Dark Side of the Moon” and “Wish You Were Here.”
“The family of Richard Wright, founder member of Pink Floyd, announce with great sadness, that Richard died today after a short struggle with cancer,” said the spokesman.
“The family have asked that their privacy is respected at this difficult time.”
afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jlDHFCb9mkGhBkJvEUzVeG9Fn-lw
Mountain Sheep lambs
Taken in the Hell’s Canyon from a jet boat on the Snake River. Once labeled endangered, these sheep have increased in numbers to the point where they are no longer on the list. However, contact with domestic sheep in the canyon often results in their contracting diseases which have detrimental effects the birth rate of these wild animals.
Government getaway vehicles?
This was taken from Google Earth, maybe 20 miles north of Las Vegas in the desert. There was a long desolate road leading to these circles. Even further up the road were triangle and circle designs in the dirt, almost like they’re trying to communicate with something from space…
