#200269 - 04/16/10 02:11 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: NobodySpecial]
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Pooh-Bah
Registered: 11/25/08
Posts: 1918
Loc: Washington, DC
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So America is completely cut off ? There's always the Rio Grande.
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#200271 - 04/16/10 02:40 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Dagny]
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Pooh-Bah
Registered: 11/25/08
Posts: 1918
Loc: Washington, DC
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The best photos I've seen of the volcano - some are gorgeous. Am shocked at how close some peops are getting to the lava. I'd love to see it in person. I'm a volcano nut, once upon a time aspiring geologist. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...ST2010041501422The paralysis that began in London and Paris soon spread to Hong Kong and Tokyo, to Nairobi and Buenos Aires, and to New York and both of the Washington area's international airports. It was, by all accounts, one of the most bizarre acts of nature ever to constrict world travel, and it grounded tens of thousands of passengers internationally. Until the eruption, which began last month, Iceland's long volcanic history was little known beyond trivia games, but as that legacy surfaced Thursday, so did news that the last time the Eyjafjallajokull volcano exploded -- 187 years ago -- the eruptions went on for more than a year. Officials were at a loss to predict how long it would take for the ash to dissipate or for flights to resume. ... the cloud that hung over Europe was so high -- between 20,000 and 36,000 feet -- that it wasn't visible from the ground and health authorities said it posed no immediate danger. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/15/AR2010041500560.html?hpid=artslot
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#200276 - 04/16/10 03:40 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Art_in_FL]
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Member
Registered: 03/03/09
Posts: 197
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Rail, particularly high-speed rail, could replace many airline flights across the country. London to Paris is quicker by train (2hours) than plane already - same goes for most cities in europe less than 500mi apart. By the time you have spent an hour getting out to the airport, an hour or two at checkin, an hour flying and an hour getting into the city center at the other end - a 190mph train is pretty efficient.
Edited by NobodySpecial (04/16/10 03:41 AM)
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#200278 - 04/16/10 03:55 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Art_in_FL]
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Geezer
Registered: 01/21/04
Posts: 5163
Loc: W. WA
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"The ash from the volcano ... was reported to be drifting at 18,000 to 33,000 feet above the earth. At those altitudes, the cloud is directly in the way of commercial airliners but not an immediate health threat to people on the ground..." http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/17/world/europe/17ash.htmlSue
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#200280 - 04/16/10 07:45 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Art_in_FL]
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Veteran
Registered: 09/01/05
Posts: 1474
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I would have no problem at all with an ocean voyage. Catch up on some sleep, do some reading, arrive at your destination rested. You need a couple of days to recover from the the stress of air travel and the time change anyway, so you're not losing that much time. Bring back the ocean liner I say!
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#200281 - 04/16/10 08:00 AM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Susan]
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Veteran
Registered: 09/01/05
Posts: 1474
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Heard an interview on the radio with a scientist from Iceland today. He said the previous eruption of this volcano went on for a year. And isn't there a much larger volcano right next to it thats also a major concern? Just read this on Wiki . Over the past 1,100 years, Eyjafjallajökull has erupted four times: in 920, 1612, between 1821–1823, and in 2010. Each of the first three of these incidents directly preceded a major eruption in the nearby subglacial volcano, Katla.[7] There is so far no evidence that Katla will erupt because of its vicinity to the current eruption in Eyjafjallajökull. Katla, which is a much more active volcano, known for its powerful subglacial eruptions and its large magma chamber, much larger than that of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano system, has still not shown any unusual activity, like expansion of the crust or seismic activity. However, one cannot rule out that possibility, since history has shown that Eyjafjallajökull can be a precursor to additional Katla activity.[8] Some geophysicists in Iceland support the notion that the recent volcanic eruption at Eyjafjallajökull may trigger a second eruption at Katla, which would cause a major flooding event due to melting of glacial ice.
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#200299 - 04/16/10 01:15 PM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Tyber]
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Old Hand
Registered: 06/03/09
Posts: 982
Loc: Norway
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To illustrate some of the consequences of shutting down the air space: All air ambulance or rescue helicopters are grounded. Two incidents have surfaced so far, several more to come:
- A heart problem had to go by supply vessel (12 hour journey) from oil platform to shore, and then by ambulance to hospital. Compare that with a round trip flight time of one hour, i.e. wait for less than half an hour, then less than half an hour flight time that takes you to the top of the hospital.
- A guy with an amputated hand and the only hospital capable of fixing that is on the other side of the country. The regular 8 hour car ride was done in ambulance in 6 hour, which is according to his doctor is "within the time frame for these kind of operations". You have to experience the really bad Norwegian roads to really appreciate what that ambulance driver managed to pull off. (Hint: In the U.S. I use a 60 miles per hour for a conservative estimate of my average speed including breaks and minor traffic delays. In rural parts of Norway, I use 37 miles per hour... (60 km/h).)
Not much we can do about it. Luckily, once you're in the hands of professionals, time of transport is rarely THAT critical. Still, some poor sod is inevitably going to die if this lasts.
Edited by MostlyHarmless (04/16/10 01:22 PM)
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#200373 - 04/17/10 06:36 PM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: Tyber]
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Geezer
Registered: 01/21/04
Posts: 5163
Loc: W. WA
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Rail is far more efficient than any of the other current forms of ground travel. Air travel is for speed, not for fuel conservation. People talk about conservation, but what they really want is speed. According to the Association of American Railroads, a freight train can haul one ton of freight coast to coast (~3,000 miles) on seven gallons of fuel; a semi-truck would take 27 gallons to haul the same weight the same distance. Railroads: Green from the Start An article by UK Parliament shows that Passenger rail (diesel) w/90 people aboard= 182 mpg/per passenger Buses carrying 9 people (avg # per load) = 98 mpg/per passenger Air (long haul) w/300 people = 66 mpg/per passenger Air (short haul) w/100 people = 40 mpg/per passenger UK Passenger Transport: Fuel Consumption Sue
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#200378 - 04/17/10 07:20 PM
Re: UK Airspace Closed - Volcanic Ash Disaster
[Re: NobodySpecial]
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Veteran
Registered: 03/31/06
Posts: 1355
Loc: United Kingdom.
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Yep I'm afraid so. But don't worry, you can phone us still.
_________________________
I don't do dumb & helpless.
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