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A Locomotive in the Pasture

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(@kent-mcmillan)
Posts: 11419
Topic starter
 

So this afternoon I was out setting three boundary markers in the trees at the far side of the pasture seen behind the GPS receiver in the photo below.

It was near 5:00PM when I heard the sound of a diesel locomotive very near. There was a rail line about 900 ft. North of where I was, but this was very close by and from the opposite direction, which didn't make any particular sense.

I looked around and saw nothing, but the locomotive sound was louder and closer. Then I saw the first white truck approaching. The sound got louder as it crawled along the fence line and the two others that I now saw behind it followed.

Sometime about then I realized they were Vibroseis trucks and the locomotive sounds were coming from the extra-heavy-duty Diesel engines they were carrying to drive the shakers on their beds. Just about the time I was wondering how the setup of the total station would fare, the trio stopped and went seismic. It was like a trip to California.

 
Posted : February 23, 2013 10:38 pm
(@derek-g-graham-ols-olip)
Posts: 2060
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Kent-

Thank you for revealing another piece of equipment seen in The Republic.

Does it have significant application in 'settling' any questions about the "0.04' questions that may arise ?

Cheers,

Derek

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 6:09 am
(@holy-cow)
Posts: 25292
 

More Dangerous than NASCAR for Spectators

Put two locomotives in a pasture and have them crash together for the spectators amusement AND DEATH.

http://www.unmuseum.org/crash.htm

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 7:17 am
(@dougie)
Posts: 7889
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Was it like a Mad Dog Cyclone...

[flash width=420 height=315] http://www.youtube.com/v/_KwvQ5lfA2k?version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0 [/flash]

😉
Dougie

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 8:59 am
(@deleted-user)
Posts: 8349
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Dang...

I was hoping for a painting of an abandoned locomotive in a pasture...:-(

You sure get out in the middle of nowhere. B-)

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 9:38 am
(@dave-ingram)
Posts: 2142
 

This one is almost in a pasture

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 10:14 am
(@kent-mcmillan)
Posts: 11419
Topic starter
 

Dang...

> You sure get out in the middle of nowhere.

Middle of nowhere? That's pretty in the middle of everything, right between Houston and San Antonio, surrounded by Czechs and Germans.

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 10:32 am
(@kent-mcmillan)
Posts: 11419
Topic starter
 

A 4000ssi in the Pasture

> A 4000ssi sighting is a treat. Fine instruments.

Yes, here's a diagram showing the scatter of five different solutions for the control point over which the antenna is set up. The solutions were from separate 45-minute sessions processed via OPUS-RS

The magnitudes of the 2D residuals:

[pre]
GPS Vector Residual Summary
(FeetUS)

From To N E
1Day054a 1 0.008 0.001
1Day054b 1 0.003 -0.005
1Day054c 1 0.002 0.013
1Day142a 1 0.013 0.002
1Day142b 1 -0.027 -0.021
[/pre]

Day142 was in 2012 and Day054 was yesterday. So a bit more than nine months separated them.

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 3:08 pm
(@kent-mcmillan)
Posts: 11419
Topic starter
 

A 4000ssi in the Pasture

> I am always tempted to break out the TI4100 just for grins sometime.

Well, if you can get an NAD83 position with an uncertainty of about 2mm (sigma) in N and E components using it as the observations logged with the 4000ssi receiver did, please post a report. :>

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 6:27 pm
(@nate-the-surveyor)
Posts: 10522
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This one is out to pasture

 
Posted : February 24, 2013 6:54 pm