Google Earth Astro Challenge - for when the weather's bad...

[sheeny (Al)]

I've just been having a play on Google Earth (yep, the weather is ordinary!) and thought an interesting thread might be to share google earth views of sites that are significant to space / astronomy.

To start things off here's a few locations I've had a look at on Google Earth:

Korolev: There are 2 locations by this name in Russia (in google earth). I have no idea if these are space related, but entered the name and had a look. There is some interesting triangular markings on the ground at the location in the Province of Volgograd - zoom out to see. Not enough resolution in google earth yet to see much else though. The location in the Province of Rostov just looks rural.

Parkes CSIRO Radio Telescope: Resolution is disappointing. There are a multitude of inaccurate markers for the radio telescope in google earth. This exact name is the best one to use (some put it in Parkes itself).

Coonabarabran: I found this the easiest way to find the telescopes in the Warrumbungles. Look for the white blob(s) just WNW of town. Resolution is disappointing. a search for Siding Spring doesn't work anyway.

Kennedy Space Center: Wow! Heaps of detail and it's big! Zoom out and pan around and zoom back in on launch pads, etc. Definitely worth a look.

Edwards Air Force Base: Reasonable detail here. Shuttle landing strips are visible to the north east of the base. Zoom out and pan around to check it out.

Baikonur Cosmodrome: Looks derelict and barren. Evidence of ruins, and significant activity and isolated pockets of heavy industry scattered around the area. Hard to identify a launch pad though. North of Baikonur town. For more info on Baikonur have a look at http://www.russianspaceweb.com/baikonur.html.

Undarra, Australia: The earthly equivalent of lunar rilles. Collapse lava tubes show up as bright green oases in meandering lines. Also associated volcanic craters. Zoom out and find a "rille" (collapsed lava tube) just south of the airstrip.

Woomera, Australia: Airstrips and a "base" of some sort NNW from Woomera Township. Interesting clearings along the sides of the highway and eastern side of the gully north of Woomera.

If you've had a look at some interesting terrestrial craters or astro/space locations why not share?

Al.

[sheeny (Al)]

Here's another one:

Tanegashima Space Center - one of Jaxa's launch facilities. Best way to find is to enter "Tanega-shima" then pan down to the SE coast and find Osaki and Takesaki. According to the Jaxa web site their facility includes both these localities. (Google earth lists these names but won't find them in the search!?) Zoom in on Osaki.

Al.

[sheeny (Al)]

OK, now that I've found some info about Baikonur I realise the launch pads aren't so hard to find. I think they are just more spread out than KSC and they blend in to the ground better. Attached is a crop of the view of the R7 launch pad where Yuri Gagarin was launched from.

Al.

[Dennis]

Nice work Al - very interesting stuff.

Cheers

Dennis

[Omaroo (Chris Malikoff)]

Originally Posted by sheeny

OK, now that I've found some info about Baikonur I realise the launch pads aren't so hard to find. I think they are just more spread out than KSC and they blend in to the ground better. Attached is a crop of the view of the R7 launch pad where Yuri Gagarin was launched from.

Al.

Yep Al - just look for flame trenches.

Well done!

[sheeny (Al)]

FYI the Woomera Rocket Range is NW from Woomera at Koolymilka.

Al.

[Gargoyle_Steve (Steve)]

I have the NASA facility on the East coast of Florida in the US (inc launch pads 39 A and B) saved on my pc at home. You can follow the "road" from the launch pads back to the service building, etc. Wonderful area to meander around.

[Lee]

Google Earth is amazing - where I was based in the Middle East was considered quite sensitive - yet you can see every little road and hut on the base with google earth - even count the aircraft on the ground......

[okiscopey (Mike)]

How about the world's LARGEST single-aperture RADIO TELESCOPE - Arecibo in Puerto Rica?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecibo_Observatory

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

Here are 2 very interesting sites you may find facinating.

1. Tunguska - site of the 1908 Meteor explosion which flattened 80 million trees over 2,150 square kilometers. (don't use 'Tunguska' in the search window. The town of Tunguska was moved after the event)

How to find:
60*54'06.96"N
101*55'44.94"E

And 'AREA 51' The site of whatever!

How to find
37*14'36.27"N
115*48'41.16"W

Here are pics of the 2 locations.

1. Tunguska
2. Area 51

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

Now that you have zoomed in on Area 51, go a few miles North and you will see the censored buildings! (covered up by green dots!)

Must be where the Aliens live

37*38'52.18"N
115*47'54.35W

[okiscopey (Mike)]

Another Google Earth location and some interesting reading for a rainy night - the Royal Greenwich Observatory.

Pluto was demoted once, but poor old Greenwich Observatory has been done-in twice!

Firstly, the RGO headquarters was moved from Greenwich (London) to Herstmonceaux (Sussex) in the 1950's, moved again to Cambridge (UK), and closed in 1998. Well, at least Pluto didn't actually disappear.

The second demotion came with the adoption of WGS84 and GPS positioning ... now the prime meridian runs 102.5 metres to the east of the 'zero degrees' originally defined by the Airy Transit Circle.

Is nothing sacred?

A personal view of the RGO disaster:
http://personales.ya.com/ejmills/ast...s/rgo/rgo.html

Standard RGO blurb:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_O...tory_Greenwich

[Lee]

*Apparently* you can see details within Area 51 in Nevada too..... Probably not enough detail to see Neil Armstrongs footprints though! hehe

[sheeny (Al)]

Just having a play this afternoon...

Stonehenge: Just enter stonehenge as a single word and it'll get you there... and anything else and you'll be touring the bed and breakfasts anywhere but where the real stonehenge is (e.g. Armidale NSW!) Good detail, but you'll need to zoom in from the default view.

Woodhenge: This just picks a street in suburbia somewhere in England.

Uxmal: This should be an archeoastronomical site in Mexico, but the resolution is too poor to tell.

Machu Picchu: In Peru. It's a couple of ridges to the west from the Google Earth marker. Actual position 13°09'10.17"S 72°31'43.44"W. Check out the road leading up to it! Good detail.

Knowth: Knowth is another megalithic site in Ireland. The web results of the search obviously pick up the locations of various parts of the Knowth complex but the resolution is not up to the task!

Newgrange: This is another meglithic site in the Boyne valley in Ireland. Again the resolution is inadequate, though a blob on the screen seems to match the location of the major mound.

Al.

[sheeny (Al)]

Here's India's Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

Hmmm... I'm just wondering how difficult it would be to find North Korea's missile launch site from data on the web...

Al.

[sheeny (Al)]

Well there wasn't much of challenge in that...

Korea's missile Launch facility...

http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/dprk/facility/nodong.htm

Al.

[sheeny (Al)]

Originally Posted by okiscopey

How about the world's LARGEST single-aperture RADIO TELESCOPE - Arecibo in Puerto Rica?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecibo_Observatory

That's pretty cool! Lots of detail there!

Al.

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

And the Australian 'Man of the Desert'.

He is about 2k long!!!

29*31'58.98"S
137*28'01.28"E
Eye Altitude - approx 6.5k

[sheeny (Al)]

Originally Posted by ballaratdragons

And the Australian 'Man of the Desert'.

He is about 2k long!!!

29*31'58.98"S
137*28'01.28"E
Eye Altitude - approx 6.5k

Hmmm... a spear in the left hand? I can't make out the right hand...

Very cool though! GPS art at it's best!

Al.

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

Yep Al, his left hand has a Woomera and spear. I think his right arm is just pointing, like he's taking aim

Interesting how the green bushes grow where his fishing tackle is