Rufus Redbeard

Child of Apollo,
rockets, spacecraft, astronomy, electronics, history,
beard sadly no longer red

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@TamithaSkov 🇳🇿 here, & of course it's pouring with rain across most of the country. Either we have angered the gods, or it's winter. The deep south of the South Island might get lucky tonight and see Aurora Australis, but where I am it's 🌧️🌧️☁️
☹️

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@beauti_animals Melbourne, Australia, looking up the Yarra river

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@infoglobalmsg @TurgayEvren1 I see the difference
Here is a Van cat in the Kedı Evı at Van
This one has two blue eyes

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@RachelVT42 3 in NZ
Ngauruhoe, Mt Doom in Lord of the Rings
Ruapehu, highest point in the North Island
Taupo supervolcano, the lake is in its crater, its Oruanui eruption was the largest eruption in the last 70k years, Hatepe eruption the largest in the last 5k years
All 📷by my wife

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@istanblue_3460 We were in the east of Türkiye last year on Conquest Day.
Here is:
A Van cat
Hoşap Çay Evı with Hoşap castle in the background
The Turkish flag flying proudly on Akdamar Island in Lake Van
All taken that day
I❤️🇹🇷

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@tmro @PhotonEmpress @SpaceflightNow Holy moly!
The most important thing is to ensure that all personnel are accounted for & are ok
The pad will be rebuilt
What a hell of a shame for Blue

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@ErinIshimoticha Indeed
What the hell else was going to happen when Starship landed on the water & tipped over?
Tons of liquid CH4+tons of liquid O2 mixed together = big boom!
If its gonna survive landing it needs a tower to catch it
It has to either fly back to Boca or they build a tower in 🇦🇺

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@ErinIshimoticha What vicious reactions you got! there are some extremists out there
FWIW, I, a 🇳🇿, cringed at the chanting.
The regime in the US has so devalued the US brand, & chanting like that makes me think of MAGA idiocy.
Hold tight,🤞the GOP lose the House at midterms & 🍊🤡impeached

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@nzwarrior77 @LewisHoldenNZ The 'fuel' is free
Your bill pays the costs of generating power & getting it to your house
Put solar on your house, ~$10k, +batteries & inverter (~$5k) & go off grid
Is it free power?
no, you've paid $15k for power for 20 yrs, +$ for new batteries per 5 yrs
It might be worth it

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@nzwarrior77 @LewisHoldenNZ NZ is running out of gas because Jacinda stopped exploration
Huntly can run on NZ coal, but the original plant is near end of life & mines are closed
Thermal plants are more expensive to operate, you have to buy fuel. Water, wind, geothermal steam,& sunshine are free

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@nzwarrior77 @LewisHoldenNZ Hydro $$$ to build, high power & long lasting (100 years)
Solar cheap to build, but shorter lifespan, 25 years & smaller capacity, wind is similar
Retail power price is a mix of all this + plant renewal, transmission & distribution costs
Home solar might be your answer

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@Phantom2Phlyer I had "The Man in the Hot Seat" by Doddy Hay, part of "3 Great Air Stories". Doddy was a tester at Martin-Baker too. If the internet is to be believed Doddy is still alive (104), so multiple ejections, including a zero/zero test, are the key to a long life.

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@DJSnM Similar case from real history
HMS Prince of Wales still had nearly 100 dockyard technicians on board, frantically working on the ship's main guns, while she engaged in battle with Bismarck.

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@RaukawaDiver I think you're safe, there's only been 1 civil nuke ship, NS Savannah.
just saying hybrid isn't new
Battery elec is probably not feasible in Cook Strait
Kaitaki has 23MW shaft output power, needing about 140Mhr of battery capacity, as big as 20-30 containers, at a guess

[Aseel Swaid @aseelswaid9]

Turkey's countryside

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@bayagima @SimeonBrownMP Engineers at the gentailers should be looking at what can be done as cost effective upgrades to increase output (=return on investment)
The plant generates more power (=$) after an upgrade, so it's worthwhile if it pays the cost back over a defined time period (e.g. 10 years)

[Rufus Redbeard @RufusRedbeard]

@bayagima @SimeonBrownMP Channelling E P Giddens (Canty Uni Eng school, 1983)
Pelton wheel for high head, low flow
Kaplan turbine for low head, high flow
Francis turbine for everything in between
as I remember, but me elec engr & it was long ago...
I'm sure designs have improved A Lot over time