Have you ever wondered what happens to large commercial ships once they’ve become too old to operate? Unlike the Navy (who likes to sink their ships to make artificial reefs), commercial ships are usually sold for scrap. When this happens, the ships make their way to places like Alang, India.
In Alang, ships meet their doom when they are beached. When the ship is emptied of cargo and important equipment, the vessel is placed on a direct course for the beach while at high tide. Once ashore, the workers at Alang dismantle the ship to recycle all the steel and other valuable materials for scrap.
While the operation is very efficient, the Red Cross and environmentalists around the world complain about the ship breaking practices there in Alang. For starter, there is no full-service hospital within 30 miles from the beach (though the Red Cross operates a medical response facility there). Secondly, while these ships are empty of cargo and supplies, pollutants still find their way into the shores as the ships are taken apart.
Despite the current issues surrounding the town and the practice, it is an impressive operation. Below are three items that demonstrate the process and scale of the operations in Alang. The first is an aerial view of the Alang ship-breaking facility. In this photo, you can see at least 70 vessels that are currently beached.
The second is a video of a ship that is being beached. As you can see from the video, the vessel is empty, with the bulbus bow of the vessel riding high out of the water.
Lastly, here is a close-up aerial shot of one of the ships that has already been partially stripped down.
As you know, I love my trains. I also love storms. Here is a video showing what happens when you mix the two together. From my understanding of this video, this tornado occurred in Illinois back in 2008. There was no way for the train to avoid the powerful storm as it crossed its path. The end result is predictable.
While watching the video, look at the upper right- and left-hand corners. You can see how conditions change real quick by the way the trees suddenly wave out of control. Very impressive!
With Spring Break coming up, and soon to be followed by Summer vacation, have you started making your plans as to where to stay? A weekend at a hotel would be nice, or maybe a week in a timeshare. But have you considered vacation rentals?
Instead of having to put up with a lot of people wandering the halls in the middle of the night (like at hotels) or restricted dates or sales pitches (like at timeshares), vacation rentals is like a home away from home. Only you have access to your place of stay, and you can find locations around the world on whatever dates you want to travel.
Not sure if you have heard this song yet, but I find it to be great. It is an upbeat, positive song with a great musical score (that, and Michael has a good voice). The video is funny as well and features his real-life girlfriend as the love interest on screen. So sit back and enjoy the smooth tones of what people are starting to call the next Frank Sinatra.
A friend of mine brought this to my attention today, and I get a kick out of it each and every time I watch it. As you know, “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” is a major hit for Beyonce with an energetic beat and sexy video. However, she is not the only one that has a music video for this song. I introduce you to … THE PIGS!
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But for you purists out there, or if you want to compare the two songs and videos against each other, here is Beyonce’s version.
The Mayon Volcano, located on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, is on the verge of erupting again. Last night, she spewed out ash and lava rolled down her steep slopes. Due to this recent activity, the local authorities have called for an evacuation as they prepare for a major eruption. Her last major eruption was in 2008.
In doing some research on this volcano, I came across an amateur video filmed earlier today. In the video, you can clearly see where the fresh lava cleared the green ground cover on her slope, as well as fresh ash continuing to drift away from the volcano’s crater. If you look closely at the foreground of the video, the soil is rich and dark, a typical trait of soil made from historic lava flows. His distance from the volcano should give you a good perspective of how far lava can flow from the volcano, and why the local authorities are anxious to move as many of the residents away from the potential threat.
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UPDATE: Here is a video from later that night. Just at twilight, the volcano started to ooze lava down the already charred slope. If you look closely, you can see how fast the lava is traveling by watching the the very bright segment of the flow. Impressive amateur video by the camera operator.
Today is Veterans Day, the day we set aside to remember the end of World War I (Armistice Day) as well as all the brave men and women who put their lives on the line to defend our nation and liberty around the world. Many television stations and news channels ran special programming today to mark the holiday. One channel was running the old series “Victory at Sea” in honor of today.
If you have never heard of “Victory at Sea,” I must say you are missing out. Aired in 1952, the series pieced together hours of war footage from World War II filmed by those Allies and Axis nations alike. While the series focused on the US Navy primarily, it also aired footage of land and air battles as well.
One of my favorite pieces was the “Design for Peace” episode. For over 10 minutes, a montage of “welcome home” scenes are pieced together, showing sailors pulling into port and being greeted by their wives and loved ones. It continues with the parade of forces from all branches from all countries. As the video jumps from nation to nation, the orchestra soundtrack changes to match the music style from the nation being presented.
The series is currently for sale, but is also shown on television from time to time. Some of the series can even be found on YouTube, such as the segment below. As you will experience with this clip, the producers did a fantastic job of weaving video, audio, instrumental, and narrative together into a perfect presentation that draws in the viewer and places them in the scenes. This craftsmanship is what led the series to win an Emmy in 1954.
As you watch, remember the men and women who sacrificed themselves in defense of liberty. Many gave some … some gave all. Remember this, on this Veterans Day as well as every day of the year.
As I mentioned in my article last night, I enjoy preseason since we see trick plays that we would otherwise not see during the season. This was true last night during the first quarter when Titan rookie punter AJ Trapasso faked a hand-off and ran the ball in for a touchdown. The execution was so smoothe that, even during slow-motion replay, it is hard to follow the ball during the exchange.
