midendian

midendian, 2 days ago to planespotting

Early morning adventure out to Travis AFB to catch NASA 926 departing after an overnight on its way back to Texas from a mission in Hawaii. Had never seen a WB-57 flying before. Not great pics since they used the more remote runway but still fun. Also US Navy E-6B departing before it (unrelated). #planespotting @JetTip

NASA 926 WB-57 departing Travis Air Force Base/SUU. Imaging pod on nose. Planform view.
NASA 926 WB-57 departing Travis Air Force Base/SUU. Distant view from port rear with NASA logo on tail visible.

midendian, 18 days ago to SanFrancisco

fun afternoon at the Bay Model in Sausalito. the pumps weren’t running today so it was a bit more post-apocalyptic than intended. https://www.spn.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/Bay-Model-Visitor-Center/The-Bay-Model-Journey/ #SanFrancisco

Photo of the interior of a large wooden building containing the hydrological model of a vast watershed; from the middle foreground a signpost says FOSTER CITY, broken in two, the first part dangling precariously as if the dream of suburban living has finally faded into distant memory.
Photo of the interior of a large wooden building containing the hydrological model of a vast watershed; in the foreground a dilapidated rendering of the Golden Gate Bridge is threaded by an enormous green monster (toy).
Photo of blue sky quickly being obscured by an aggressive marine fog; a red bridge is barely visible in the center, under no threat from the monster of a green hills to the right.

midendian, 1 month ago to random

I think my takeaway from this is that I should de-rate my trust in other people’s air purifiers as the room CO2 concentration goes up. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-47777-5

midendian, 1 month ago to SanFrancisco

some hands-on radio engineering going on atop @SutroTower this afternoon. #SanFrancisco #SutroTower #KiteHill

Close-up of enormous red radio tower covered in antennas, with a gondola hanging from each side, one containing two humans.

midendian, 1 month ago to Oakland

#SilentSunday #oakland

midendian, 1 month ago to random

A decade ago this week, I learned that they open the Trinity test site to the public twice a year and I was underemployed so convinced @mct to go on a roadtrip why not. The Trinity site was interesting but the real treat was stopping at the VLA the day before. I was just starting to dabble in signal processing and one of the tour guides was working on their FPGAs—I learned a lot. Also the weather was incredible. #verylargearray #newmexico https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=80321933%40N00&sort=date-taken-desc&text=&view_all=1&min_taken_date=1396335600&max_taken_date=1397631599

Very Large Array radio dishes in dry grassland with two pairs of train tracks extending to the horizon
Very Large Array radio dish portrait with dramatic stormy and blue sky behind.
Large red railroad machine with rotatable wheels for moving VLA dishes, contrasted with dry grassland and dramatic stormy skies

midendian, 2 months ago to random

the internet has gotten very dumb but somehow I can still watch an hour on fixing test card generators from forty years ago so not all is lost. https://youtu.be/4XWZ4RnHk4g

midendian, 2 months ago to random

another lovely one-runway day at SFO.

midendian, 3 months ago to Birds

two weeks into the new year. no airplanes of note this weekend but some good birds.

#birds #sanfranciscobay #oakland

Snowy egret skimming San Francisco bay.
A white swimming bird (some kind of loon?) slurping up a fish in San Francisco Bay.
A yellow full moon rising over the Oakland hills, partly obscured by radio antennas and squished a bit from atmospheric refraction. East Bay city lights in the foreground.

midendian, 3 months ago to random

So they’re just proposing to build pre-car Main Street neighborhoods but with no permitting processes, as if we didn’t just do that a century ago and discovered it gets complicated quickly. Typical “if we could just start from scratch we’d do it so much better” attitude you see at every software org. https://sfyimby.com/2024/02/yimby-interview-with-california-forever.html

midendian, 3 months ago to random

“good morning everyone, hope you enjoyed your breakfast. we’re going to spend the fifteenth hour of this flight trying to land at SFO.”

midendian, 3 months ago to SanFrancisco

watching the clouds move in. #sanfrancisco #birds

Raven looking at the Golden Gate Bridge from the headlands
Boiling clouds on the horizon above the golden gate with green hills in shadow in the foreground

midendian, 4 months ago to SanFrancisco

quiet parrot.

cc @suldrew #parrot #parakeet #sanfrancisco

cute green parakeet with red head sitting on a power line

midendian, 4 months ago to planespotting

big photo dump on flickr of less-interesting extra-nerdy airport stuff if you think you might be in to that sort of thing. https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id=80321933%40N00&sort=date-taken-desc&text=&min_upload_date=1704182400&view_all=1 #planespotting #avgeek

EVA Air pax and Cargo waiting to depart KSFO.
Swimming bird with yellow beak and green eyes
United 737 departing with United 777 landing in the background and Air New Zealand lining up for approach

midendian, 4 months ago to random

this must be what it’s like for normies trying to listen to air traffic control

midendian, 5 months ago to Oakland

lovely blanket of fog on the bay this morning.

#oakland #photography #infrared

midendian, 5 months ago to random

happy almost-solstice

midendian, 5 months ago to planespotting

weekend airplanes. air quality has been a bit grim lately but the winter light is still lovely.

#planespotting #aviation @JetTip

United 757 and A320 in the latest livery landing in parallel with a United 787 in the Unitednental livery in the foreground.
Kalitta 747 freighter at sunset with an orange Oakland skyline in the background. Paint includes the yellow DHL tail.
ITA Airways A350 in striking metallic blue livery with green-white-red tail accelerating past the San Francisco skyline at sunset.

midendian, 5 months ago to SanFrancisco

it's very-long-range-telephotography season in San Francisco again. here's the Point Reyes lighthouse in near-infrared from Grandview Park, about 55 km / 34 miles away.

#sanfrancisco #photography #infrared

midendian, 5 months ago to random

Vaguely-threatening vegetable. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/asparagus-farms-california_n_7029836

midendian, 5 months ago to random

went to my “want to go” map to add a pin for the original El Torito of bootable CD-ROM fame and realized I’ve already eaten there several times without realizing it. it appears to be a much better restaurant now.

https://nondeterministic.computer/@mjg59/111516285779147860

midendian, 6 months ago to random

"that ain't no crow bar... this is a crow bar."

midendian, 6 months ago to SanFrancisco

#sanfrancisco 🎇

midendian, 6 months ago to random

Didn’t get a pic before it turned off its lights and siren but I am cracking up at the concept of an armored Honda Odyssey.

midendian, 6 months ago to Birds

didn't bring the right camera body for birds but still enjoyed watching all the turns hunt near SFO this morning (plus a cute willet). lots of new birds this time of year along the bay. #birds

Turn skidding along the water taking flight
Turn taking flight with a small fish
Willet (brown-grey bird with long beak and oddly mammalian face) standing on a rock