The view from my "office"

[OATEK]

George's River foreshore, Sans Souci, and a hard to discern mass of Jelly Fish from further upstream.

 

[mrs.dr.ron]

Da Nang, Vietnam today.

 

[prozac]

George's River foreshore, Sans Souci, and a hard to discern mass of Jelly Fish from further upstream.
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Bumpbumpbump..bump..bumpbumpbumpbumpbumpbumpbump...bumpbumpbumpbumpbump...bumpbumpbumpbumpbumpbumpbubububmpbump

 

[MARTINE]

You earn 2 credits to your Geology Masters . (that's an elephant stamp, if you are old enough to remember those). Those bored silly with a geology lesson turn away now.

Both the Giant's Causeway (extrusive basalt) and the pillars on the Tasman Peninsula and the Organ Pipes on Mt Wellington (intrusive dolerite) are made from igneous mafic rock - that is, once molten rock (magma) with a relatively low amount of silica.

This web site explains what happens when molten rock of this composition cools (my additions in << >>):

Imagine a huge flow <<or intrusion>> of hot, liquid magma that is settling <<cooling>>. The outer layer is starting to cool and darken in color from orange to black. As it cools, it needs to shrink a bit, as hot materials usually take up more space than cooler ones. Because of this shrinking, the surface of the lava << inside of the lava flow or intrusion>> starts to crack. But this cracking isn’t always random.

In this case, the lava <<intrusive>> starts to crack into regular shapes. Those shapes are forming because of how the lava cools. It starts at different spots called “centers.” If those centers are evenly spaced, the forces that pull inward toward the centers end up creating different chunks of cooling lava that are hexagonal (6-sided), or close to it. The more uniform the material of the lava is (or basically how smooth and well mixed it is), the more evenly those centers pull. That means it is more likely it will cool into hexagonal chunks.


Hexagonal shapes are also 'low energy' and so are favoured as the final cooling product. If the magma had high silica (like a granite) then the strong silica would help bind the rock tightly together and you tend to get big cracks with cooling rather than regular cracks/columns. The ones @kermatu photographed have obviously been weathered a lot after they have been uncovered after forming deep in the crust,so are no longer nice regular hexagonals on the surface.

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There endeth the lesson.

Wonderful
Thank you for that explanation
I have seen all of those places and really appreciate the understanding
PS - I am old enough for animal stamps!

 

[kermatu]

So you scored a rare 'millpond' day! You got right round?

Very lucky to get a rare windless day this Spring. Was still cold though. Around Tasman Island then back up to Pirates Bay. I suspect that doesn't count as right round. Great info in your subsequent post!

 

[RooFlyer]

Very lucky to get a rare windless day this Spring. Was still cold though. Around Tasman Island then back up to Pirates Bay. I suspect that doesn't count as right round. Great info in your subsequent post!

I assume this was Pennicott? You didn't go Pirates Bay to Port Arthur (or VV)?

 

[kermatu]

I assume this was Pennicott? You didn't go Pirates Bay to Port Arthur (or VV)?

Yes. Pirates Bay return (on the water).

 

[Port Power]

This afternoon’s “office”, the Vienna Lounge, Vienna Airport, Austria. I am quite impressed. The food is varied and delicious, there is a hood wine selection, and there is even a separate sleeping area. Full view of the apron and runway, but no planes to photograph right now. I am flying to Oerth via Dubai.

 

[Flashback]

This afternoon’s “office”, the Vienna Lounge, Vienna Airport, Austria. I am quite impressed. The food is varied and delicious, there is a hood wine selection, and there is even a separate sleeping area. Full view of the apron and runway, but no planes to photograph right now. I am flying to Oerth via Dubai.

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Access on an EK ticket?

Looks like no good if flying BA as they use the Sky Lounge.

Airport Lounges: oneworld Lounges & Airport Lounge Access

Enjoy airport lounge access at nearly 700 airport lounges worldwide through your oneworld Priority tier. Exceptions may apply.

www.oneworld.com

Priority Pass seems to get you in, though.

Vienna Lounge VIE Airport Lounges Terminal 1 Vienna Schwechat | Priority Pass

Vienna Lounge lounge Vienna Schwechat Terminal 1. All the info about the lounge: location, opening hours, conditions and facilities.

prioritypass.com

Definitely looks like one of the better European ones outside a carrier hub.

Funnily enough I've been to Vienna twice but both times have arrived and departed via train.

 

[SYD]

This afternoon’s “office”, the Vienna Lounge, Vienna Airport, Austria. I am quite impressed. The food is varied and delicious, there is a hood wine selection, and there is even a separate sleeping area. Full view of the apron and runway, but no planes to photograph right now. I am flying to Oerth via Dubai.

and auto un-correct is having a field day! My phone has a mind of its own but hasn’t yet taken me to Middle Oerth…

 

[OZDUCK]

Perth Zoo this afternoon.

 

[Port Power]

Showered and watered, I will be boarding the final “office” in an hour. Meantime it is feet up in the Emirates First Class Lounge in Dubai. I must say that I enjoyed the conducted transfer from the air bridge via first class bus to the lounge. (I wasn’t flying in First, but fortunately I exited the aircraft with another couple from my tour who were, courtesy of their QF pilot son.)

Many of you are familiar with this lounge. It’s too huge to photograph everywhere, so this is just the Gate A10 end.

 

[Port Power]

Access on an EK ticket?

Looks like no good if flying BA as they use the Sky Lounge.

Airport Lounges: oneworld Lounges & Airport Lounge Access

Enjoy airport lounge access at nearly 700 airport lounges worldwide through your oneworld Priority tier. Exceptions may apply.

www.oneworld.com

Priority Pass seems to get you in, though.

Vienna Lounge VIE Airport Lounges Terminal 1 Vienna Schwechat | Priority Pass

Vienna Lounge lounge Vienna Schwechat Terminal 1. All the info about the lounge: location, opening hours, conditions and facilities.

prioritypass.com

Definitely looks like one of the better European ones outside a carrier hub.

Funnily enough I've been to Vienna twice but both times have arrived and departed via train.

I was flying on a QF J ticket, but my companions were flying on EK bookings. It was a really nice lounge. Yes, you can buy limited entry for 39€, but the lounge was not crowded. There was another lounge called the “Austrian Lounge”, but I don’t know who it is for.

**My apologies for the typo (hood/good and Perth). It was too late to edit once I noticed my mistake. Typed on my small iPhone keyboard is my excuse.

 

[OATEK]

I was flying on a QF J ticket, but my companions were flying on EK bookings. It was a really nice lounge. Yes, you can buy limited entry for 39€, but the lounge was not crowded. There was another lounge called the “Austrian Lounge”, but I don’t know who it is for.

**My apologies for the typo (hood/good and Perth). It was too late to edit once I noticed my mistake. Typed on my small iPhone keyboard is my excuse.

Don't worry, we nearly all suffer from fat finger syndrome at some time or other!

 

[Cossie]

Our Lizzie is back after a long winter. The larger photo was taken through the fly screen. Max is going to be happy, he can sit and look at her for hours.
She uses the drains as a subway to get around the back yard.

 

[prozac]

Our Lizzie is back after a long winter. The larger photo was taken through the fly screen. Max is going to be happy, he can sit and look at her for hours.
She uses the drains as a subway to get around the back yard.

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Looks in the peak of health.

 

[wannabeinvestmentbanker]

Back to schlepping the golden triangle with Mel and bne this week after the bright lights of nyc

 

[kermatu]

Disney Wonder departing Hobart. From this afternoon's office.

 

[drron]

Sunset over the wonderful coal mines of Halong Bay.

 

[Beano]

Some may recognise this.