The guys from DeeperBlue.com have put a great story on the Bikini Atoll, its history and its current state.
Read it here and let me know how you like the pics and clips 😉
Category: blog
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USS Saratoga Deck Plans
…those plans are hard to get. The whole story of what happened in the Bikini Atoll in the 50ies is about to fade away and it should be avoided at any cost, as els wise we are doomed to get through it again.
Castle Bravo and the Tzar Bomb were both incredible foolish experiments.
However, here are the plans and I can only recommend to take the trip to Bikini. The USS Saratoga will most probably collapse in the next 5 to 10 years and then there is nothing left as a beacon to remember what happened.
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Decomissioning Liquivision-x1 …and back to Suunto
…after 5 years of service I am a little sad to decommission this device, as it definitely helped me to survive some intense deep dives.
I bought it back in 2010 mainly because of the super bright display. Then I started to love the V-Planner Live and I thought the no-button-design was a great idea.
Looking back the no-button-design is not as good as it sounds. It simply can not be used blind. In a critical situation you start erratically hitting your device to tell it what you want – bad!
The biggest design fault is the charging/upload-interface, which will most likely break over time and burden you with permanent oxidation and a near empty battery if you not charge between every single dive and keep the contacts clean and dry. Trips with no access to electricity have always be scary for me.
Last not least VPM-B/E is still very aggressive compared to most other dive computers of my buddies. Lynn told me: “Kurt, you will end up in the pressure chamber…”. That was after a dive with the same profile, just she was using a stage.
So I am going back to Suunto and use now the new EON Steel. I think it is the only company that still invests in own research as I am getting older and more cautious.
This is the profile of my deepest dive, where I thought: That’s it, I am going to die (there was a strong current down there and we were swept nearly a mile away from the planned exit).
The Fused RGBM generates exactly my dive profiles with more conservative ceilings, so it fits perfectly my style and hopefully keeps me away from the chamber.
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Introducing the Atomic Bikini 2014 Team
I assume most people reading this blog know me and know I am crazy and after all I am telling the Bikini Atoll story for a while now, so you may want to know who are the other crazy people onboard? 🙂
Let us start with…
The Crew
Brian, master guide, master blender and Circus RingleaderI will drill down later on Tec Divng on the MS Windward in detail – it was excellent!
Matthew, master skipper and sunny boy
Edward, a true Bikini Atoll native.His mother was one of the folks that where removed from paradise for the good for mankind…
Mango, Smutje or our master cook during the trip
Aro master good guy for everything elseThe Team
Robert playing with his Battle Drone
Robert (as always – logged in into his Battle Drone)
Robert after drowning his Batte Drone
Peter, my dive buddy
Christian, my 2nd stage buddy, and me on the sun deck killing time and nitrogen saturation…more folks…
Jens and forgot his name
Holger, Christian and Robert (2)
Peter, Barbara and Robert
Robert, Christian and Robert (2)
Forgot his name, Robert and Barbara
Holger, Mr. X, Christian, Jens, Robert (2) and Barbera
Robert, Jens, Mr. X
Christian, Robert (2), Peter, myself
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My new Radioactive Blog
…after 2 years it was about time to move to a new theme. It should be more lightweight and far more responsive as the last one and is a far better vehicle for the upcoming radioactive posts, so welcome to my new radioactive blog!
The image shows the forward christmas tree. of the USS Saratoga. A structure wreck divers will only find on ships engaged in some nuclear testing. The christmas tree was intended to expose various materials to the nuclear bomb and to learn about the effects. You remember playing in the sandbox with plastic soldiers and ignite them with matches? It is basically just the same just bigger 😉
I still have to beg for some patience for the promised content but I have to admit I am still struggling with some nice features I want to have up and running before..
…and I would also highly appreciate your help to get this new WP service in shape!
- Do you like the first impression?
- What about the labeling?
- What about the design?
- What about mobile use?
- Which aspects do you miss?
Please let me know!
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Traveling through Micronesia to the Marshall Islands
To reach Ebeye where the MS Windward was waiting for us, we had to get to Kwajalein the only international airport on the Marshall Islands. I never heard this name before but United did, as they got very nervous when our travel agent bought our tickets. Besides being the largest atoll, the Buchholz Army Airfield on Kwajalein is the military missile test base in the pacific.
To get there from Europe, you will start in Guam, hopp through Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae or more or less whole Micronesia.
Guam was new for me. I was not aware that the US day does not start on the east coast, but in Guam. Actually the whole Pacific is more or less US territory and Guam is just a tiny but important border stone to mark and claim it for the rest of the world.So first travel hacking advise:
- Assure you have a valid ESTA waiver and avoid the queue that will form in front of you when leaving the plane. Bypass to the left and safe a lot of time.
Second travel hacking advise:
- Have a national soccer team that recently wiped out Brasil to be processed quick and friendly. The officer was congratulating us and we got moral support in winning the overall championship. Germany was so close in that moment. <grin>
On the way to the hotel the taxi guy asked us if we are Germans or Russians. We explained, those are two totally different countries and we are Germans. He nodded but seemed to disbelieve us which may explain why he asked if Germans and Russians use the same language. …oh boy! Folks from the country of Asia listen: From now on, I will shamelessly ask all of you if you are from China or Japan and regardless of your irrelevant reply my next question will be: but it is the same language, right? <grin>
On the next day we started our island hopping trip from Guam through Micronesia to the Marshall Islands through Chuuk , Pohnpei and Kosrae the sleeping lady in whatever order towards Kwajalein.
Third travel hacking advise:
- Take the risk and insist on checking through your baggage until destination to avoid highly unpleasant and substantial overweight fees! I am personally responsible for better than expected Q3 results from United in 2014! <grin>
Island hopping introduced me to a totally new security procedure allowing me to enjoy flying even more: the full passenger cabin security check!
Some passengers leave the plane, some new will enter, but before the passengers continuing the flight have to take down their baggage from the overhead storage. After this a trained professional assures that no bomb that passed the airport scan is left unattended by looking in the storage and under the seats, then everybody puts back the baggage. There was a astonishing acceptance amongst passengers from all over the world and everybody agreed that we all felt much safer! <grin>
…meanwhile we could visit the pilots cabin and have a chat with the pilots or invite them to help us with some selfies <double grin>
After nearly two days of travel we were approaching the Kwajalein military base and got a little nervous ourselves, knowing that Robert had a battle drone in his hand baggage. However …
Travel hacking advise four:
- Relax on entering Kwajalein, the customs procedure and the transit through the super top secret military base! …as long as you have a national soccer team that recently wiped out Brasil <grin>. The guys where all kind and friendly.
When you arrive you see folks playing golf just beside the runway, when you are escorted through the base you see perfect family houses with lots of green around it and full blown BBQ equipment in front of it. Long haired surfer type folks are strolling on cool bikes through the base, which may explain the drug dogs checking our baggage. Definitely a big boys playground and top secret because:
- I bet US soldiers would sell the soul of their mother to serve there.
- I am sure they do not want to let anybody know how tough this service is.
<grin>
From the base it is just 15 minutes by ferry to Ebeye, the main island of the Marschall Islands where we were picked up to embark the MS Windward, or our home for the next two weeks…
Travel hacking advise five and final summary:
- Schengen procedures (Frankfurt to Zürich)
- International procedures (Switzerland to Japan)
- US procedures (Narita to Guam)
- US protectorate procedures (island hopping)
- US military base procedures (Kwajalein)
- no procedures (Ebeye / Marschall Islands)
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Heavy Metal & Big Numbers – Welzow-Süd
Ever wondered how a 8 billion Euro p.a. money printer could look like? It looks like this and for me quite impressive! this is just a tiny part of a square 54km area that will be farmed until 2042.
Have I mentioned that I love big machines? Those are the largest movable structures built by men. They dwarf everything around them – even good old El Troll would look tiny.
[AFG_gallery id=’8′]
This is the lignite field (brown coal) that feeds Schwarze Pumpe – a well chosen name for a power plant. This farm is 50 million years old. It yields 20 million tons p.a. (one third of Vattenfalls production) representing 12% of the total German lignite-based production. Germany is the leading lignite farmer world wide.
What can not be captured on pictures is the smell of a hell pit that fits well to the CO2 emission that is 3 times higher as the average of other options (gas, coal, oil).
Funny side note: Schwarze Pumpe is probably the most advanced lignite power plant and has a Carbon Capture and Storage unit. It never went in production as the risk of loosing the stored CO2 seemed to high. So we eliminated the ‚risk‘ in favor of just blowing the CO2 into the air – humans ARE strange!
- It represents nearly 1% of the german electricity production (7% of the German lignite based electricity).
- It produces 14 TWh p.a. ( a quarter of Vattenfalls production which is 55TWh).
- It yields 8 billion € p.a. with 350 employees (that is a nice ratio).
Sources:
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Verzasca Bungee Jump (Golden Eye Stunt)
Anatomy of a Bungee Jump
You need a kick by jumping down to hell with life insurance?
Well, you are most probably considering the right move!Do it! It is definitely something that will remain on your life time mental media top ten! You will be able to recall it anytime and it will help you to put minor daily problems into the right context.
…I never considered Bungee jumping for myself. I already had 10 sky dives some 20 years ago and was fully aware that it is much tougher to jump from a comprehensible non-abstract height.
However, you may also have friends who really know you and therefore ask if you would join a Bungee jumping trip.
Some weeks before
You argue a little against it, because you are so f* rationale, responsible and because it really makes no sense. After a short resistance of some few arguments I accepted – of-course!Some days before
This is the ugly time! You will start to google. You will look up youtube.com. You are f*! 🙂 Every single bit of information will be used by your brain to punish you.You will be surprised by the creativity of your brain to create new “Final Destination” movies in your head – buen sueños!
Arrival
You are now in the mood of somebody who is sentenced to death. The only thing you can control now is to keep some dignity…
You are also happy to end this f* sh* as soon as possible.In case you have chosen Verzasca as your guillotine you will drive for 20 minutes through serpentines.
Without any warning you will face the full structure and realize the craziness of your decision.
However, now you can not get out of this assignment – uncontrolled laugh within the group of you joined may be a reaction… It is to late now to get out of this sh* 🙂
1st version – real-time:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl4zdR-5Chk
Waiting for your sentence to death
You have accepted your death, you line in, you watch others, you increase your doubts, you wait…
It is now your turn
Finally, let’s do it. You look down (you really should). You look forward (they tell you: it feels like superman when you look forward). You jump!1st Second
Hey cool! It is really like superman! 🙂 (that is because you still have a horizontal position and look towards the horizon and have no feedback on your downside vector)
Yeahaaaaa…2nd Second
Uhm…
…aaaa…3rd Second
The Superman drive may be broken! F*! (you are now heading down and you see where you will hit the ground)
…aaaooohhhh…4 Second
The Superman drive IS broken! I am F*!
…AAAAAA…5 Second
I am much to fast! This is not the plan! Where is the f* bungee?
…OOOHHHAAANOOO…6 Second
…after all I knew it… I am the first with a bungee rupture! F*!!!
…NOAAARGH…7 Second
*#!##%*!*8 Second
(the bungee fully kicks in and slows you down smoothly)2nd version – slow motion:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMNRoV0t__c
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On photographing Leopards
Wildlife photography = waiting in the wild…
Back in 2007 where I had my first wildlife experience in Namibia I instantly fell in love with wildlife photograph. Etosha was a great experience but there where no leopard sightings. I was also lucky to meet Arnoud Quanjer – a real wildlife addict. He told me, if I am looking for leopards, I have to go to Sabi Sands.
Well five years later I had the chance, time, (little more) knowledge and equipment to go for it:
Shoot a leopard photo worthy to be on the cover page of National Geographic!
I know it is so foolish, but we all need goals, right?
I want to pull out three pictures and a short movie to show how f* hard it is to get even close to it…
Prequel: I already had some nice leopard shots, but the pinnacle of my expectation was at Londolozi. It is plain simple the best place on Earth to get leopard pictures.
I started to stalk leopards… reading: waiting and cursing the weather and light condition.
There was a female leopard watching over her prey. An impala kill up in the tree. There are plenty of opportunities for action and good shoots around this plot, as there are plenty of competitors around
The picture below is my pray. The female leopard guarding her prey. I was patient. spent hours in front of her – waiting! Meanwhile getting nice but boring photos. Have I mentioned it was cloudy?
An then an action! Some vultures came to close and I got this picture:
…even without the sunlight it would have been not so bad – but: for whatever reason (it is just 4 minutes after the previous picture) the camera was on ISO 10000. Nice, but noisy…
Here is the footage around the waiting. It is really highly condensed.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMAs-r37CUk
Kydroon 