A major X-Class solar flare
is headed for Earth. All citizens are encouraged to shelter their kill-bots underneath the nearest plywood dinghy. All humans are, of course, doomed. DOOMED!
Ancient Whale Skull Discovered in Backyard
A 14-16 million year old whale skull was discovered in a backyard in Palos Verdes, California. No word yet if any precious ambergris has been recovered.
Revenge of the Luminiferous Aether
It was a good week for ridiculous dark matter stories on the internet:
- Dark Matter Near Earth Peaks Every March [Scientific American]
- Is a ring of dark matter making the Earth heavier than it should be? [IO9]
Dark matter is a mysterious substance that cosmologists hypothesize fills all of time of space (although it has never actually been observed). See also: Luminiferous Aether, Scrum
Dolphins Will Attack You and Eat Your Kidneys
Attacks by killer dolphins are on the rise in Ireland. It is currently unknown if they are in league with the giant flying squid. If they are, then may God help us all.
Flying Squid Will Kill Us All
The Neon Flying Squid can fly through the air at over 11 meters per second (that’s almost 172 feeters per attwater). It’s coming for you, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Ham Radio Rangers Assemble!
February 14, 7PM Texas DX Society Meeting Night at the Tracy Gee Center.
Program by Tom Campbell KD5TIO, “Forty Meters, Fair Winds, Fireballs, and Failure Investigations: A Summer Well Spent“. Tom Campbell KD5TIO sailed his 31ft sailboat “Solitaire”, from Clear Lake TX, to Cape Canaveral Florida and back this past summer to take part in the ill fated NASA Morpheus Lander flight test campaign. In this presentation Tom covers maritime mobile equipment and operations, Winlink performance at sea, and the navigation failure that led to the loss of the Morpheus Lander. Additional topics include water as a gearbox lubricant, illegal fishing and how to eat the evidence, and bars not to go to in Cocoa Beach. Pre-meeting dinner get together usually starts about 5:30PM at Pappa’s BBQ on S. Gessner.
Fossilized Remains of 80 Whales Found in Chile
A team of scientists has discovered the fossilized remains of more than 80 whales in the Chilean desert. No word yet on whether any precious ambergris has been recovered.
Harvest Moon Regatta
Follow the intrepid crew of HMS Solitaire as they compete in the 2011 Harvest Moon Regatta.
http://bacliffexplorationsociety.org/harvestmoon/
Live updates are expected via ham radio.
HMS Sharktypus Update
Painting continues on the HMS Sharktypus. It is now a terrifying specter with a gaping maw and unholy tentacles. Soon it will be the undisputed master of the sea. DO DOODLY DO!
See the latest photos.
The Bacliff Exploration Society Salutes Epic Open-Boat Journeys
The Bacliff Exploration Society salutes Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton and Royal Navy Captain William Bligh, commanders of two of the most epic open-boat journeys in naval history.
In 1789, after the crew of the HMS Bounty mutinied, Bligh and 18 crew members navigated a 23 ft open boat on a 47-day, 3,618 nautical mile, voyage from Tofua to Timor in the Dutch East Indies. In 1916, after the loss of his ship the HMS Endurance, Shackleton and a crew of five launched a 22-foot lifeboat (the James Caird) from Elephant Island, and sailed 800 miles on the open sea to South Georgia.
See also: Leadership Lessons from Ernest Shackleton (The Art of Manliness), The Voyage of Bounty’s Launch (Mutiny and Romance in the South Seas: A Companion to the Bounty Adventure by Sven Wahlroos), HMS Sharktypus