n5lp
fugio ergo sum
Mr. Jeff Bezos; some people are criticizing him for the way he spends his money, but it is his money and I am kind of enjoying following some of his projects. Some of them are pretty near me in an area north of Van Horn, Texas. A few months ago I started hearing about the 10,000 year clock that Mr. Bezos has reportedly put more than 40 million dollars into. I went to the Website and saw that the location is in the Sierra Diablo Mountain Range. That range is almost entirely privately owned so it makes it difficult to try to find out where this project is or get a look at it, but, I have an RV.
But first, breakfast at the monthly Artesia fly-in. This thing is getting better and better. First Saturday of every month.
RV-6 builder Tom Benedict at right
"There I was flat on my back at 10,000 feet"
After a leisurely breakfast and chit chat, I headed down toward Van Horn. Over the Guadalupe Mountains I took this photo with my phone and beamed it down to the earthlings. Good 3G coverage out here in the middle of nowhere at 8,500 feet. Sometimes it happens.
This is the Sierra Diablo range from the busy ramp at Van Horn (from another trip). I think these mountains are beautiful. I just did a little research and found they have more complex geology than I had thought. There reportedly are exposures of metamorphic pre-cambrian rock in places.
This is the kind of stuff I had noticed before. Amazing karstic fluting in carbonate rock.
I wasn't sure I would be able to find the project. The only information was that it is in the Sierra Diablo and from photos I saw it was up high. It turns out it was really obvious and I zeroed in pretty quick on the site at a high point around 6,600 feet. Here I am approaching the place for the first time from the north.
Closer up
This is from the southeast and shows some of the karst features of the area and what I presume to be the visitor access down at the bottom of the cliff. Visitors will need to hike up about 1,500 feet from the desert plain below.
I find it challenging to leave a tool in my hangar for a year without it failing due to corrosion or lubrication problems or dust or combinations of those things.
It is a very interesting project from an engineering standpoint. How can you make a device work for 10,000 years with no outside power input or maintenance? The Egyptian pyramids are thought to be around 5,000 years old and they don't have to do much but sit there. This thing has moving parts that need to keep moving without welding themselves together from extended periods of close proximately and little movement. The power source needs to be reliable and simple and the whole device needs to be shielded from the rigors of nature.
I think it is a cool exercise and am really glad I could so easily go down and get a glimpse of what is going on.
The site is at 31º 27.064' N, 104º 54.462' W and I was back home way too early for lunch.
But first, breakfast at the monthly Artesia fly-in. This thing is getting better and better. First Saturday of every month.
RV-6 builder Tom Benedict at right
"There I was flat on my back at 10,000 feet"
After a leisurely breakfast and chit chat, I headed down toward Van Horn. Over the Guadalupe Mountains I took this photo with my phone and beamed it down to the earthlings. Good 3G coverage out here in the middle of nowhere at 8,500 feet. Sometimes it happens.
This is the Sierra Diablo range from the busy ramp at Van Horn (from another trip). I think these mountains are beautiful. I just did a little research and found they have more complex geology than I had thought. There reportedly are exposures of metamorphic pre-cambrian rock in places.
This is the kind of stuff I had noticed before. Amazing karstic fluting in carbonate rock.
I wasn't sure I would be able to find the project. The only information was that it is in the Sierra Diablo and from photos I saw it was up high. It turns out it was really obvious and I zeroed in pretty quick on the site at a high point around 6,600 feet. Here I am approaching the place for the first time from the north.
Closer up
This is from the southeast and shows some of the karst features of the area and what I presume to be the visitor access down at the bottom of the cliff. Visitors will need to hike up about 1,500 feet from the desert plain below.
I find it challenging to leave a tool in my hangar for a year without it failing due to corrosion or lubrication problems or dust or combinations of those things.
It is a very interesting project from an engineering standpoint. How can you make a device work for 10,000 years with no outside power input or maintenance? The Egyptian pyramids are thought to be around 5,000 years old and they don't have to do much but sit there. This thing has moving parts that need to keep moving without welding themselves together from extended periods of close proximately and little movement. The power source needs to be reliable and simple and the whole device needs to be shielded from the rigors of nature.
I think it is a cool exercise and am really glad I could so easily go down and get a glimpse of what is going on.
The site is at 31º 27.064' N, 104º 54.462' W and I was back home way too early for lunch.
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