#fuel transport tank

[vamosysgps]

Fuel Level Sensor: Keeping Your Tanks in Check.

In the world of fuel management, precision is paramount. Whether you run a fleet of vehicles, manage industrial machinery, or oversee fuel storage tanks, knowing your exact fuel levels is essential for efficiency, cost control, and even environmental responsibility.

This is where a fuel sensor for trucks steps in as an unsung hero, quietly ensuring that your tanks are always in check.

In this blog, we’ll explore the vital role of Fuel Level Sensors and how they contribute to smooth operations in various industries.

Fuel Level Sensors 101

A Fuel Level Sensor is a device that does exactly what its name suggests — it measures the level of fuel in a tank. However, it’s more than just a measuring tool; it’s a game-changer for anyone who relies on fuel to keep their operations running. Here’s how it works:

Real-Time Measurements: Fuel Level Sensors provide real-time data on the fuel level within a tank, ensuring that you have an accurate and up-to-date view of your fuel reserves.

Versatility: These fuel sensors are adaptable and can be used in various settings, from vehicles and generators to industrial machinery and storage tanks.

Continuous Monitoring: With Fuel Level Sensors in place, you can continuously monitor your fuel levels without manual checks, eliminating guesswork and human error.

Benefits of Fuel Level Sensors

Cost Control: Knowing your precise fuel levels allows for better budgeting and cost control. You can reduce over-purchasing and minimize the risk of running out of fuel at critical times.

Preventative Maintenance: GPS Fuel Level Sensor can trigger alerts when levels drop below a certain point, ensuring that you schedule refueling or maintenance before any problems arise.

Efficiency: Fuel-efficient operations are environmentally responsible and financially beneficial. These sensors help optimize fuel usage, reducing waste and emissions.

Environmental Responsibility: By minimizing fuel waste and emissions, you contribute to a greener and more sustainable future.

Real-World Applications

Fuel Level Sensors have a broad range of applications across industries:

Fleet Management: In the transportation industry, these fuel sensor gps tracker help fleet managers keep vehicles on the road efficiently and safely.

Agriculture: Farmers use Fuel Level Sensors to monitor fuel levels in tractors and machinery, ensuring uninterrupted work in the fields.

Construction: Construction companies rely on these sensors to keep heavy equipment fueled and operational on job sites.

Industrial Operations: Manufacturers and industries with large machinery use fuel tank sensor to maintain fuel supply for uninterrupted production.

Installation and Integration

Installing Fuel Level Sensors is typically straightforward, and they can be integrated into your existing fuel management systems or connected to IoT platforms for remote monitoring.

Conclusion

In a world where efficiency, cost control, and environmental responsibility are paramount, Fuel Level Sensors are indispensable tools.

They provide accurate and real-time information that can make all the difference in ensuring your operations run smoothly and responsibly.

Whether you’re managing a fleet, operating machinery, or storing fuel, a Fuel Level Sensor for gps tracking can be your trusted ally in keeping your tanks in check. Embrace this technology, and watch your operations thrive.

[usafphantom2]

Legendary Pilot Bob Pardo, Who Pushed A Damaged F-4 With His F-4 Over Vietnam, Has Died

December 20, 2023 Military Aviation

Bob Pardo

Bob Pardo in a 2017 photo by Senior Airman Ridge Shan. In the background, Pardo's Push in an artwork by S.W. Ferguson.

Bob Pardo passed away earlier this month at the age of 89. With his Phantom, he pushed a crippled F-4 outside the enemy airspace in one of the most heroic missions in the history of military aviation, known as “Pardo’s Push”.

“Pardo’s Push” is the name of an incredible maneuver carried out during the Air War over North Vietnam that, over the years, has become the symbol of heroism and a demonstration of courage and contempt for danger.

March 10, 1967.

Captain Bob Pardo is flying in an F-4C with Weapon Systems Officer 1st Lt Steve Wayne. Their wingman is the F-4C flown by Captain Earl Aman with Weapon Systems Officer 1st Lt Robert Houghton. The two Phantoms of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, based at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, are assigned the task to attack a steel mill in North Vietnam north of the capital Hanoi.

During the approach to the target, both F-4 is hit multiple times by enemy’s anti-aircraft fire. The North Vietnamese flak causes significant damage to Capt. Aman’s aircraft whose fuel tank begins to leak fuel forcing the crew to abort the mission. While hit too, Pardo’s F-4 is able to continue its mission.

On their egress route, at 20,000 feet, Aman and Houghton determine that they do not have enough fuel to reach a tanker or Laos, where they could eject and avoid capture. Although his F-4 is still efficient and has enough fuel to reach a tanker, Pardo decides to remain with his wingman.

At a certain point, while still inside North Vietnamese airspace, Aman’s Phantom flames out. To save Aman and Houghton, Pardo decides to do something he believes no one has ever done before: he attempts to push the other F-4 to Laos.

Initially, Pardo tries to push the other F-4 by gently making contact with the drag chute compartment. However, turbulence interferes with the maneuver and after several failed attempts, Pardo opts for an extreme solution: he instructs Aman to lower his tailhook, then he positions his F-4 behind the other Phantom leaning his windscreen against the tailhook. The contact is made but the “solution” is quite unstable and, as a consequence of turbulence, Pardo needs to reposition his F-4 every 15 to 30 seconds. Nevertheless, the push works and rate of descent of Aman’s Phantom is considerably reduced.

As if the situation was not complicate enough, Pardo’s F-4 suffers an engine fire, forcing him to shut it down.

Try for a second to visualize the situation: a flame-out F-4 is somehow pushed by means of its tailhook by another F-4 powered by a single engine. In enemy airspace. Incredible.

Ezoic

Pardo pushes Aman’s F-4 for another 10 minutes until his Phantom runs out of fuel too. With both planes safely inside Laotian airspace, at an altitude of about 6,000 feet, the aircrews of both F-4s ejects (they will be rescued by SAR helicopters and evade capture).

Although he saved another aircrew, Pardo was initially reprimanded for not saving his own F-4. Until 1989, when the episode was re-examinated and both Pardo and Wayne were awarded the Silver Star.

Retired Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Bob Pardo poses in front of a static display model of an F-4 Phantom II, one of the many fighter aircraft he has flown, at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., Dec. 12, 2017. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Ridge Shan)

Pardo and Aman both continued serving and retired from the U.S. Air Force in the rank of lieutenant colonel. Years later, after learning that Aman had lost his voice and mobility because of Lou Gehrig’s disease, created the Earl Aman Foundation that raised enough money to buy Aman a voice synthesizer, a motorized wheelchair, and a computer. The foundation later contributed to raise funds to pay for a van, which Aman used for transportation until his death. In other words, Pardo never left his wingman behind, not even after retiring.

Ezoic

Noteworthy, as told by John L. Frisbee in his 1996 article for Air Force Magazine, Pardo’s push was not the first time a U.S. pilot pushed another jet out of enemy airspace: in 1952, during the Korean War, fighter ace Robbie Risner pushed his wingman out of North Korea in an F-86. However, pilots were ordered to refrain from attempting the hazardous maneuver again, and the episode had faded from memory and was almost completely unknown within the Air Force by the time Pardo and Wayne pushed Aman and Houghton outside of North Vietnam’s airspace.

Bob Pardo passed away aged 89, on Dec. 5, 2023. His courage and ingenuity, along with the legendary “Pardo’s Push“, will be remembered forever.

About David Cenciotti

David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.

@Aviationist via X

[skeletoninthemelonland]

I let the brainrot win, I made a Fusionsprunt OC

I took the liberty to came up with a whole new company that focuses on building ships, mechanics and androids to use in the ocean field (because I'm an ocean nerd HAHA)

She doesn't have a name yet, but her model was built to lift heavy things on a transportation ship (Ercole= Hercules) and doing minor fixes on machineries of the ship. Also the number of her neck is the date in which I created her (so the day I am sending the ask LMAO I WAS HYPERFOCUSED ON HER THE WHOLE DAY), making it like her series number or smth

I am no scientist but I try to make things have sense HAHAHAHAH So:

Ercole androids are powered by water. They get water into their system like a human drinking water, for then extracting the hydrogen from it with a fuel-cell and releasing the excess water in the water tank on their backs (that can be reused) and the heat from their necks. Extracting the hydrogen from the water is a process called electrolysis, that requires a source of electrical energy, in this case wind power. The hole on their chest serves to capture wind and store the energy created by it, used for the electrolysis. It can open and close, because excessive wind can result in overriding the android's system.

I wanted to make her one of the androids that B2 rescued from their absusive owner (that also broke the wind capturing device making it unable to close, that's why she wears a shirt. Not that she really needed a reason to, but oh well HAHA) 👉👈 For then starting her new life at Fusionsprunt. She ofc helps with heavy lifting (BIG FOREARMS RRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-) and sometimes with machineries repairment

I will make doodles of her interacting with B2, Hunter and Guto because- *cries in wholesomeness*

Also I hope the design makes sense HAHAHAH I am very new to this robo thingy

(SORRY FOR THE LONG ASK AHVHDBFJSBHDBSHS)

WOOAAAAAAHHHHHGAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAA💕💕💕💕

[uss-edsall]

On 9 November, 1942, flying off the coast of Casablanca, French Morrocco in support of the Operation TORCH landings, the Piper Cub (under the name L-4 Grasshopper) made her official combat debut in the Second World War. This once-civilian plane had been bought by the U.S. Army to function as "air observation posts," flown by pilots in the U.S. Army Field Artillery, attached directly to battalions. Her concept, proven in training maneuvers, was as aerial reconnaissance; aerial photography; single-person transport; air ambulance; and in particular, reconnaissance and artillery observation. She would prove to be perfect for all of these roles. She would go on to have an incredible record during the Second World War, one of the best planes built for her particular role, with over six thousand of them bought by the U.S. Army. She was small, she could handle landing tiny fields, she was stealthy, she was dead simple to repair and reliable in the air.

But on that day? For that mission? There were only three Grasshoppers, and it was an absolute disaster.

The three planes were attached to the 3rd Infantry Division. Their pilots were hurriedly brought to USS Ranger (CV-4), aboard which were three L-4 Grasshoppers in bad condition. All their efforts were getting the planes ready for flight. What the pilots did not know was that their commanders, from colonels to generals alike, did not prepare properly for their debut.

On 8 November American troops stormed ashore at Safi, Casablanca and Point Lyautey. The next day, Ranger turned into the wind, the pilots got aboard the planes. In the 35-knot wind the instant the ship's crew let go of their tails, the planes hopped off the deck and were in the air, sixty miles from shore.

Three miles from the beach, the allied invasion force appeared. Transports, destroyers, the light cruiser USS Brooklyn. Aboard the Brooklyn alert officers and anti-air gun crews spotted the L-4 Grasshoppers.

There was nothing in the allied aviation recognition books that resembled the L-4 Grasshopper. None of the artillery pilots' superiors had properly distributed warnings that the Army had procured the civilian planes, and were using them for the first time.

The Brooklyn's anti-air weaponry opened up. 5" shells, 40mm bofors, 20mm Oerlikons reached out to lick at the Grasshoppers. In the first flak burst the quartet of little planes scattered, diving for the deck. Captain Ford Allcorn leveled off at twenty feet and started juking like mad, gamely going for the beach leading his flight. Every other ship, seeing the Brooklyn open up on the unfamiliar planes, joined in.

The artillery pilots had not the fuel to return to the ship, even if they'd been trained in carrier landings, which they weren't. Land was their only option for salvation. Shellfire blew out Allcorn's windshield, shot off one of the doors. As the Grasshoppers juked and weaved, bullets splashed into the water all around them. A hundred feet from shore, they levelled off and gunned their throttles to the maximum - 80 mph - for the safety of the shoreline.

At which point the pintle mount machineguns on tanks ashore opened fire on them. For nobody had told the Army troops of the 2nd Armored Division either about the Piper Cubs, and seeing the Navy so enthusiastically shooting at them, they joined in. .50-calibre bullets ripped into the Grasshoppers, betrayed by their own.

Captain Allcorn's engine cut out after several tanks' machineguns stitched bullets across the frame, and five bullets tore into his leg.

The wounded planes got to the shoreline. They flew over the armor, guns straining to shoot at them, desperately trying to get to the safety of the Fedala Racetrack, where they were supposed to go. Allcorn spotted a relatively flat area and pancaked in, crawling out of the mortally wounded flaming bird before the fuel exploded.

And then the Vichy French opened up.

Lieutenants Butler, Shell, and Captain Devol (one L-4 having carried two of them) were taken prisoner after crash landing behind Vichy French lines, but were released when the French in Casablanca surrendered two days later on 11 November.

Amazingly, despite all this, nobody had been killed.

Captain Allcorn was the first Army aviator in the ETO to fly off a carrier, the first in combat, and the dubious distinction of the first to be shot down and the first to be wounded. Captain Allcorn, from his hospital bed back in the States, wrote a report about it all that even reached the Chief of Staff General Marshall's desk. He argued that this disastrous beginning was not the death knell of the Grasshopper. He concluded, perhaps rather dryly, that there was seemingly a failure to communicate between the Army and the Navy. His report helped the Piper Cub / L-4 Grasshopper survive the event, to go on to become one of the most produced aircraft of the war, and most widely used.

Even today, almost four thousand of the nearly twenty thousand Piper Cubs built are still in the FAA registry.

[northgazaupdates]

25 April 2024

Journalist Anas Al-Sharif documents an IOF attack on a horse-drawn cart carrying humanitarian aid in Beit Lahiya today. A sniper shot the cart’s occupants, killing 1 and wounding 2. The horse was also killed.

As we described previously, animal carts have been a lifeline for north Gaza (and the rest of the Strip) after the occupation’s complete blockade prohibited the entry of fuel. Gazans have relied on working animals to transport people and supplies and even function as ambulances. The occupation has observed this, and targeted these animals with drones, snipers, tanks, and other ground troops. They have also expressly forbidden the import of animal feed in order to starve both the humans and animals of Gaza. All of this is done in order to quash the resilience of the people of Gaza by removing a vital logistical force and perpetuating despair.

WARNING: The video is linked rather than attached, as the cover photo is very graphic and upsetting.

[sanctus-ingenium]

Saint Taurus & a handy size chart based mostly on relative size rather than Actual Size (so ignore the little human figure).

Once the church threw itself into the hunting of dragons and subsequent harvesting of their ichor, a new problem arose: the transportation of thousands upon thousands of gallons of highly volatile, toxic dragonsblood. The harvesting process takes months, and it is a continual race against time; dragonsblood in liquid form will become gas at very low temperatures, and a good 50% of all spilled blood is lost to evapotranspiration after a battle. Transporting this precious liquid safely is a greater challenge than harvesting it.

Taurus provides a simple solution. Stationed in the most central region of the empire, Taurus can reach the site of a battle and start transporting ichor before the dragon has even died. Taurus is the biggest of all the beasts and by far the strongest, and his harness & transport barge consist of the largest manmade structures within the empire (and potentially beyond it, as well). In fact, the fire shield at the front of the barge is the single largest continuous piece of metal ever designed by the armoursmiths, but it serves a vital role of keeping sparks from the exhaust flames from reaching the dragonsblood. Although the barrels are sealed, the danger of dragonsblood ignition is so great that all caution must be taken.

As if the logistical and metalworking challenges of this venture were not enough, Taurus must also be heavily armoured, with his main connection points to his barge reinforced. Poachers who can't bring down dragons to get their own dragonsblood engine fuel frequently choose to attack the barge. Taurus is considered to be unstoppable, too large and tank-like to even attempt to take down, but he still needs an escort of ground soldiers to watch the back of the barge, or occasionally a companion beast if the risk is high. It's a tricky operation - the scale of the barge is such that it becomes difficult to watch every inch, and on nearly every single excursion there is some ichor lost to theft, even if it is only as much as a single person or horse can carry.

The knight rider of Taurus, Sir Bounty, always rides with an inspector in his throne chamber, after an incident fifty years back wherein the previous Sir Bounty was found to have been taking bribes from poachers from outside the empire. He would linger at certain points on the route long enough to allow significant theft of ichor from the barge. Since then, all knights are regularly tested to ensure they do not succumb to the sin of greed, and that their vows of poverty remain unbroken. The punishment for the crime matches that which the old Sir Bounty suffered; death by immersion in hydrargyrum.

[tekumaniac311]

Open Arms: Prologue

6 months after the events of Rider Rescue...Poppy the android was speaking to Dogbite's crew about their new mission coming up. The recent weeks, the cult has been unleashing the dreaded Bloodline monsters, Rider groups are on the hunt for the vile beasts, with Dogday and Dogbite's own teams having the most Bloodline kills, Dogbite in his typical egotistical fashion, takes this as a personal challenge to best his brother at all cost. Dogbite's desire to best his brother at this stage, had become his OBSESSION.

"The cult has released 4 of those Bloodline monsters onto a town on the planet Exe, they resemble Catnap, Dogday, Hoppy Hopscotch, and Kickin Chicken." She explained to them. "Looks like we'll need to split up and deal with each." Drago said as he looked to his captain. Dogbite said not a word as he was looking to the side, with a furious look on his face "Dogbite?" Poppy asked as her holographic form hovered over to him. "We're behind, again." he growled to her. "Behind? Behind on what?" Poppy asked

"Behind on Bloodline kills, Dogday and his squad are ahead of us by 2! We take down these 4 and we'd surpass them and stay in the lead!"

"Dogbite, taking down Bloodline's is not a comp--" Before Mama Mammoth could finish, Dogbite barked. "It is, Mama! Drago, Berserk and Leopard! Let's move out now!" He said storming off, the three looked at eachother before bidding the other four farewell.

The four arrived on the planet and approached the town where the four Bloodline's were attacking. Drago went after the Bloodline Catnap, Leopardaisy went for the Hoppy Bloodline, Berserkerine the Kickin Bloodline. That would leave Dogbite to go after the Bloodline counterpart of his brother, Dogbite eventually tracked it down and prepared to fight it.

The Bloodline Dogday tilted it's head and charged at Dogbite, who dodged with ease and tossed a Sun blast hard, before jumping on it's head and pummeling with such aggression.

The Bloodline Dogday roared in pain and tried to strike back, only for Dogbite to blast it into a nearby house. "You freaks are all the same!" He said tossing a sun blast into it, the Bloodline Dogday ducked and swung at Dogbite, knocking him into a parked cargo transport, Dogbite growled in pain. As he charged straight at it, he morphed into Overdrive mode and unleashed a hail of attacks on the beast.

Drago, Leopardaisy and Berserkerine all soon caught up as they took care of the other 3 Bloodline monsters quickly, and reducing collateral damage. "Yo! Captain! Need a hand taking this one down?" Leopardaisy called out. "Stay back! HE'S MINE!!" Dogbite barked and while still in Overdrive, blasted the creature into more buildings. The pink leopard shielded her eyes from the flashes "Holy crap! Dogbite's gone mental!" Berserkerine, taking a sip from a can of soda and sporting a few bruises from his fight shrugged "I don't see the big deal, daisy." Drago scoffed in response and crossed his arms "I do, Berserk. It's worrying...he's been so angry, so obsessed with besting his brother, plus remember how he's been trying to keep us separate from his brother's own team?" The dragon asked looking at the both of them.

Berserkerine and Leopardaisy looked at eachother before facing Drago "Well now that ya said it, I'm worried." Berserkerine said, tossing the soda away. Dogbite then blasted the Bloodline Dogday into one more building, a fuel station. The weakened beast staggered and saw itself surrounded...by fuel canisters, Dogbite approached and exited his Overdrive, returning to normal. "Maybe this will give me more 'style' over my brother." He said coldly and fired a sun blast at one of the fuel tanks.

Drago, Leopardaisy and Berserkerine all gasped as they saw the canister ignite and explode, and the canisters around it exploded to as Dogbite walked away, the burning fuel engulfed the Bloodline monster and the whole fuel station blew to rubble, there was the smell of smoke, burnt fuel and flesh in the air.

"Mission accomplished. Let's get out of here." Dogbite coldly said. As they walked back to the ship, Leopardaisy gave a quiet purr of fear "He really has lost it...". Soon they returned to the ship and carried on into space, later the eight Riders gathered in the meeting room as Poppy's hologram appeared.

"Leopardaisy, Berserk, Drago. Each of you did great reducing damage and making sure the Bloodlines went down quick." Berserkerine shrugged at her response "Hope the crater I made wasn't too bad." Poppy snickered "Could've been worse, you three did good." Dogbite's ears twitched "Three? Uh Poppy? Your forgetting someone." Poppy's expression turned firm as she faced Dogbite.

"Dogbite, you did not follow protocol at all. You smashed that Bloodline into PEOPLE'S houses, vehicles, everything! And for the cherry on the top you blew up an entire fuel station and critically damaging it's surrounding property!"

Dogbite leaned back in his chair with his arms behind his head "It's no big deal, Poppy. Collateral damage is part of the job, no?" Poppy went full scolding mode and attempted to lay it out "Part of the job?? I-I-I admit that collateral damage is inevitable one way or the other but most of the time it's inadvertent, unintentional, you purposely prolonged that fight and caused nearly 300'000 Credits in da--"

There was a loud WHAM! As Dogbite slammed his fist on the table, silencing everybody. Lean quietly gulped and scooched his chair closer to Mama who was sitting next to him "Poppy, when will you stop complaining? It's not even that serious!" Poppy softly glared "It isn't complaining, Dogbite. It's the truth--"

"Wanna know the truth, Poppy? The truth is you're not in charge of this team, I am. You only just tell us what mission we got, you're in no position to tell me how i run my team. So why don't you shut up, disconnect and go back to your regular day complaining to your dad about seeing the universe for all I care."

There was a long silence, Poppy looked like she was about to cry from that burn and abruptly disconnected, Dogbite huffed and got out of his chair, leaving his team in shock of what had happened, Drago and Mama took off after him.

Dogbite growled to himself as he walked to his quarters "Captain!" Drago called as he and Mammoth caught up. "What is it, Drago?" He asked "I want to know: What the HELL was that back there?" Drago responded, Mama stepped in to "Dogbite, it's unfair the way you have been acting out, plus you're going overboard with things lately."

"I miss the part where that's my problem. Now i'm going to bed, don't disturb me." Dogbite walked away from Drago and Mama "I gotta find a way we can stay ahead of my brother and his amateurs..." He told himself.

Mama looked deeply worried for Dogbite. Drago on the other hand clenched his fist tightly, he was furious. "That is it...."

Later that night, as everyone was asleep, Drago came out of his quarters and headed for the briefing room, he then tapped the keyboard interface and began typing up a report, a report on his own captain regarding his behavior. After finishing it, he requests the report to be sent to Mr Ludwig himself, with that done he headed back to sleep.

The following morning, Dogbite will learn that actions have consequences.

TO BE CONTINUED

Space Riders AU by @onyxonline

[a-man-for-hire-and-his-archives]

Here’s Why Everyone Is Talking About A Pirate Drama That Ended In 2017

Black Sails has been described as Game of Thrones with pirates

If Black Sails kicked off in 2020 instead of 2014, it certainly would have thrown fuel on the raging fire that was TikTok’s sea shanty obsession. The reality is that this TV series aired on Starz from 2014 for four seasons, coming to a close in 2017. So why is everyone talking about it now, a decade after it began?

Black Sails is coming to Netflix very soon, triggering its fans to emerge from the woodwork and promote the show online. ‘I am SO excited for people who’ll be watching this show for the first time,’ one user wrote, with many others recommending the series to fans of Game of Thrones. With House of the Dragon still a few months away, here’s why you should tune into Black Sails this month.

New To Netflix: Black Sails

What Is Black Sails About?

Black Sails transports us back to 1715 – aka the Golden Age of Piracy. Set in New Providence, an island in the Bahamas, we meet the feared Captain Flint (Toby Stephens) who brings a new younger crew member into the fold (‘Long’ John Silver, played by Luke Arnold) as his crew continues to fight for survival and negotiate their space on the island.

Is Black Sails Based On A Book?

Black Sails was written as a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel, Treasure Island (1883).

Is It Based On A True Story?

While Black Sails isn’t based on a true story, it does trace real events. The first season focuses on the hunt for the Spanish treasure galleon Urca de Lima, a real ship that sank in 1715 near Fort Pierce in Florida (where it still lies). Season two traces the fallout of Urca de Lima’s treasure being stranded in Florida, strictly guarded by Spanish soldiers while pirates prowl the shores. The subsequent third and fourth seasons then look at the war for the control of New Providence between the pirates and the British Empire – a la Pirates of the Caribbean.

Likewise, some of the characters are based on real people. Real pirates fictionalised in the show include:

Blackbeard (Ray Stevenson)

Anne Bonny (Clara Paget)

Benjamin Hornigold (Hakeem Kae-Kazim)

Jack Rackham (Toby Schmitz)

Charles Vane (Zach McGowan)

Ned Low (Tadhg Murphy)

Israel Hands (David Wilmot)

Meanwhile, Captain Woodes Rogers (Luke Roberts) – who represents the British Empire in seasons three and four – is based on a real English sea captain and slave trader, and subsequently the first Royal Governor of the Bahamas.

Was Captain Flint A Real Pirate?

Captain Flint is a fictional character who was first created by Robert Louis Stevenson in Treasure Island. He has since appeared in multiple works of fiction, including A. D. Howden Smith’s Porto Bello Gold (1924), John Drake’s Flint and Silver (2008), Pieces of Eight (2009) and Skull and Bones (2010), and J. M. Barrie’s Peter and Wendy (1904).

Where Was Black Sails Filmed?

Black Sails was filmed in Cape Town, South Africa, mainly inside at Cape Town Film Studio. Because the real city is so different today than it was in the 1700s, Nassau – the capital of the Bahamas, located on New Providence island – was built from scratch in a studio over a period of four months, as were two large water tanks to house the series’ two ships. Some scenes were filmed outside in and around Cape Town when new terrain was required, but most of the series was filmed on set.

The Cast

The cast of Black Sails is incredibly large, but key characters to know include:

Toby Stephens as James McGraw/Captain Flint

Hannah New as Eleanor Guthrie

Luke Arnold as ‘Long’ John Silver

Jessica Parker Kennedy as Max

Tom Hopper as William ‘Billy Bones’ Manderly

Zach McGowan as Charles Vane

Toby Schmitz as Jack Rackham

Clara Paget as Anne Bonny

Mark Ryan as Hal Gates

Hakeem Kae-Kazim as Mr. Scott

Sean Cameron Michael as Richard Guthrie

Louise Barnes as Miranda Hamilton/Barlow

Rupert Penry-Jones as Thomas Hamilton

Luke Roberts as Woodes Rogers

Ray Stevenson as Edward Teach

David Wilmot as Israel Hands

Harriet Walter as Marion Guthrie

The Trailer

Interested? Here’s the trailer for a taste of the action.

WATCH

All episodes of Black Sails are streaming on Netflix from 17 April 2024.

Source: Country & Town House

[cozzzynook]

Pleasure bot Bumblebee who joins the autobot ship when the war breaks out.

He didn’t want to be aboard an autobot ship. He was on his way to a neutral planet when his transporting ship was gunned down in “friendly fire.”

His ship crashed offlining almost every bot aboard and the only reason he survived was because he transformed in time heavily damaging his alt mode.

When he woke up he was in an autobot medbay being treated by Ratchet who informed him he was on an autobot base. Bee wanted to transfer from the ship the moment he onlined but with how far they were from neutral territory he couldn’t. If decepticons saw him leave in an autobot spacepod he’d be shot down.

So Bee stayed and rejected any offers to become an autobot. He stuck to doing simple work around the ship and kept his helm down. He didn’t want autobots learning how he made a living. They typically were the bots who judged the most and did things even if they claimed to be the “good guys.”

It wasn’t until he met Optimus did he think autobots weren’t so bad. Optimus took an immense liking to Bee right away wanting the mini to keep besides himself as if he was a sparkling following their sire.

That put Bee even more in the light of others and Bee found himself knowing every bot on the ship. It was easy for bots to like him even strict bots like Ratchet and anti social mechs like Prowl. Bee didn’t particularly want to be close to any of them still and he wasn’t save for Optimus. But even then Bee kept his past to himself.

His frame was a reveal to his past of course. Being shaped like a femme did not help him any but since his pleasure bot stamp was hidden none knew. He was thankful Ratchet didn’t check his the fuel globe mesh on his chassis. That meant he didn’t know Bee was a pleasure bot or that he was a carrying mech.

Of course Bee long had his reproductive tank sealed shut, sure it was done illegally with dangerous methods but thats just how things worked before war broke out. Better to be a pleasure bot than a breeding bot.

Not that he liked either option.

He just picked the one with less complications.

Only complications still came when the autobots ship ran into the decepticon ship with none other than Megatron and his golden army.

The battle was intense and left both ships heavily damaged. Bee was taken to a part of the ship that was supposed to be safe but nothing was ever truly safe.

The door was broken in half and in walked one of the last mechs Bee thought he would ever get to see again.

“Hummel?”

Bee doesn’t know how much time passed as he stared at the large mech who once looked so different. The mech he used to laugh with under the solar system when they had a chance to meet. The mech he’d buy extra energon for so he could take it back to his friends and trine. The mech he once let stay in his suite when his own was burned down by the counsel. It turned into the two living together permanently and though the mech didn’t like his line of work he respected him and went out of his way to make sure he was safe.

The mech would sneak him treats that were his favorite and draw him when he was recharging in his berth or on his lap.

It was the best Bee ever felt.

But then one day the seeker just disappeared and Bee was crushed.

He once thought the worst had happened to him but now. Now he just wishes to be wrapped in his arms as he demands to know what happened and why he abandoned him.

“Frostwing?”

“I go by Blitzwing now, bug.”

“Blitzwing,” the name still tasted of cyber honey on his tongue and Bee found himself shedding a droplet from his optic which Blitzwing caught.

Bee hadn’t seen him move yet he didn’t feel threatened, he knew the mech was dangerous now if his speed was anything to go by. Yet he felt..old and new. A familiar stranger was holding him and he couldn’t stop himself from seeing the decepticon insignia.

Blitzwing halted in hesitation but Bumblebee laid a servo on his chassis above his engine and spark and leaned in with a smile.

“Vill jou come vith me hummelchan?”

“With you Blitzwing,” his spark pulsed deep, “always.”

-

[morbidology]

Juliane Koepcke, a determined 17-year-old German high school student studying in Lima, had aspirations of following in her parents' footsteps as a zoologist. On December 24, 1971, she embarked on a journey with her mother, Maria, boarding a flight from Lima to Pucallpa to reunite with her father.

Tragically, their flight encountered a lightning strike mid-air, causing the plane to disintegrate. All 91 individuals onboard perished, with the exception of Juliane, who miraculously fell to the Earth still strapped to her seat. Despite suffering a broken collarbone, an arm laceration, and a swollen eye, Juliane found herself alone in the treacherous depths of the Amazon rainforest.

Over the next harrowing 11 days, Juliane drew upon her knowledge and resilience to survive. Guided by her instincts, she discovered a small stream and waded through its waters, believing it would eventually lead her to civilization. Enduring countless insect bites that soon became infected, she encountered a boat and utilized the gasoline from its fuel tank to cleanse her wounds and rid them of maggots. Recalling her father's use of gasoline to treat worms in the jungle, Juliane opted to remain with the boat, desperately hoping for a rescue.

Eventually, three lumbermen stumbled upon her location. They guided Juliane to a lumber station, undertaking a grueling seven-hour canoe journey. From there, she was airlifted to safety and transported to a hospital. Despite her physical rescue, Juliane endured lingering nightmares, haunted by the loss of her mother during the ordeal.

Undeterred by her traumatic experience, Juliane went on to achieve remarkable accomplishments. She earned a doctorate from Ludwig-Maximilian University and returned to Peru to pursue her research in mammalogy. In 2011, she courageously shared her extraordinary journey in a biography that captivated readers around the world, shedding light on her indomitable spirit and unwavering determination.

[motocorsas]

here's my rundown of all the new 2027 tech regulations:

the most important news is the reduction in engine capacity. the pistons are going to be reduced from 1000cc to 800cc, meaning they generate less power with each stroke. the bore of the pistons is also going to be reduced, which is the width of the piston head. the wide bores that have been in use for some time deliver more power, so reducing bore size means less fuel and air will be used with each stroke. this makes the bike slower, but more fuel efficient.

fuel efficiency has also been taken into account with the new gas tank and fuel regulations. gas tanks are being reduced from 22 to 20 liters for full races and from 11 to 10 for the sprint. essentially, since dorna has reduced bike power, they've reduced fuel capacity as well, since less fuel is needed.

this is where the new sustainable fuel comes in: the new fuel will be a mix of biofuel and synthetic, both of which have a lower power storage by volume compared to gas fuel. this will also reduce power. are you seeing a pattern?

the last time 800cc bikes were used in MotoGP, they were absolutely hated by riders. from 2007 to 2012, engine capacity was reduced from 990cc to 800cc for similar reasons as today; concerns about safety and overtaking. but the bikes were considered some of the worst to ride, due to low torque and inconsistent power delivery, meaning the bike performed best a very narrow rpm and throttle range -- step on the gas for just a milisecond longer, and you'd get shot off the bike. that made highsides much more frequent. mat oxley explains here:

the title of the article is MotoGP 800s - Rot In Peace, which feels like a grim portent of the years to come.

attempts to mitigate the engine's problems with electronics also sacrificed power and overtaking.

sound familiar? right now, riders, stewards and engineers are all complaining about overdone electronics. this brings us to the next point revealed in the presentation, that holeshot and ride height devices will be banned.

these devices program the bike body to shift up and down under certain conditions, carrying momentum and reducing drag. holeshot devices specifically program the bike to start, resulting in the classic rocket-powered starts we see today. riders plant their feet, tuck their heads down, and let the bike do the rest. holeshot devices have their negatives, especially combined with heavy aero -- plenty of crashes occur in the first few corners of a race because the overpowered start combined with heavily engineered aero shoots a rider directly into another's rear tire. this is the sacrifice made for overtuning bikes so that they're perfectly optimized.

but notably, these changes don't mitigate crashes! despite claiming to prioritize safety, reducing power on its own does not reduce crashes. less torque = slower corner exit = riders prioritizing quicker roll speed and engineers seeking higher rpms. and less power = less braking = less overtakes.

none of this is to say that the original 800cc era was inexcusably terrible or that the new era will be as well. but i don't think liberty media or dorna understand what draws viewers to the sport. in the presentation, they justify most of these changes as making bikes more "road relevant", increasing mileage and sustainability. but world superbike already exists to fill that niche, making motogp obsolete in that sense. i'm all for safe and environmentally conscious racing, but as stated above, these new regulations don't make motogp more safe. they also don't make it more eco-friendly either; ethanol fuel is nice, but it's a drop in the ocean compared to the absurd emissions generated by transporting the entire traveling circus from racetrack to racetrack. if there's anything motogp can learn from wsbk, it's a reduced calendar. less travel means less emissions, and longer breaks gives riders time to recuperate from injuries.

in their attempts to make motogp a better entertainment product, liberty media are challenging the integrity of the sport. their unnecessary limitations ignore the true root of most problems -- overworked riders and teams and a bloated schedule -- and waste money in the process. constantly changing concessions and regulations forces manufacturers to spend more and more money developing new bikes; no wonder teams have been dropping out. these concessions don't help anyone but liberty, since they can claim they've "revolutionized" the sport and made it into a safe, sustainable overtake-fest. all they've really done is sanitize it.

[copperbadge]

Sam re: American Bats in the Ask. There is a (possibly apocryphal) story about the American military trying to use bats as a delivery method for incendiary payloads in WW2. According to the story, the first test did not go well at all, since you can't tell a bat where to roost and your control tower and hangars look like as good a place to land as the intended targets. (search bat bombs WW2 for more info)

But, this raises the possibility that some 'genius' had heard about this plan, packed some of their local bats into a ship for transport to Europe to try it themselves, and upon arrival hearing about how poorly it had gone, releasing their bats into the wild, not knowing/caring about invasive species etc etc etc. Ta Da! Jelly Donut Bats in the Ask!

Oh yeah! I remember hearing that story on QI years and years ago, although I think the actual story is that the bats were released too soon, accidentally, and instead of being deployed on a test site, just roosted under a fuel tank until they were blown up. In googling, I also came across this absolutely shining example of twentieth century military reasoning -- the bats idea came from a dentist in Pennsylvania named Adams who happened to know Eleanor Roosevelt:

In his letter, Adams stated that the bat was the "lowest form of animal life", and that, until now, "reasons for its creation have remained unexplained". He went on to espouse that bats were created "by God to await this hour to play their part in the scheme of free human existence, and to frustrate any attempt of those who dare desecrate our way of life."

There's something very typical about some random middle-aged middle-class white dude deciding he knows what God's purpose is and it's to use the military to serve his wants and needs. I think of this as the Kissinger Aesthetic, where men in ugly haircuts and tortoiseshell glasses come up with wildly stupid plans to accomplish brutally cruel objectives. But it is, frankly, exactly the kind of thinking that would result in some poor Naval grunt having to look after several pairs of bats all the way from Carlsbad to Askazer-Shivadlakia, then either being ordered to release them because the plan was scrapped (which, it was scrapped in late 1944) or accidentally releasing them because he stored them in the wrong cage or something.

I bet Michaelis and Jes do an episode of All On Mike about the Infamous Immigrant Bats Of Fons-Askaz and the battles of three separate kings to eradicate them (Gregory II, Nathan IV, Jason) before Michaelis actually, you know, phoned up a specialist in bats and asked what his options were. Said bat specialist probably immigrated as well and has been Bat Health Officer with the conservation corps for the last few decades.

[piastrispastry]

Logan Sargeant does not deserve what happened today and this is my rant about it.

Firstly, and this is extremely obvious but Logan didn’t crash the car. Alex did. Logan didn’t make the mistake. Alex did. If you crash the car to the point they can’t repair it, it is your responsibility to suffer whatever consequences which come of that.

Now Williams are the only team to do something like this in recent years (to my knowledge) on the off chance they score points? Alex has not scored points this season yet and that is not due to the talent it is due to the car, so it doesn’t matter who drives it at this point in the season the car is just not up to scratch.

I am also a firm believer that if Logan didn’t have that steering issue in Bahrain he would have at least scored a point, so it is not due to a lack of talent on Logan’s part it is due to a lack of faith from Williams.

Another thing to note that jumped into my head is Qatar 2023. Carlos Sainz had an issue with the fuel tank. Despite Carlos being a recent race winner Ferrari did not tell him to jump into Charles’ car did they? Because other teams know that if it is an issue with one driver’s car then it is not the responsibility of the other driver to bear the brunt of the aftermath.

This is not just Logan paying for Alex’s mistake this is Logan paying for the entirety of Williams’ lack of preparation. It is their fault they don’t have a third chassis, it is not Logan’s job to be stood there with a checklist in the manufacturing or transport stage to ensure they are prepared. Why should he suffer?

This also shows a massive lack of trust in Logan from the entirety of Williams, especially James Vowels. Why would you resign a driver, claim that you believe in him when you are going to give him the obvious second driver treatment? This could have been a great opportunity for Logan to build up confidence but instead Williams broke him down inside out.

They can preach all they want about giving Logan another chance. This is a sport. Words mean nothing. Unless you practice what you preach it is honestly worthless. It’s a fat load of good saying you believe in a person if when push comes to shove you decide to kick them out of their own car.

Also, I don’t think Alex could have said no to taking Logan’s car. Maybe he could have protested, and he should have, but it was team orders at the end of the day. But, if he could have said “no this is wrong, it is my mistake I should pay for it” then he definitely should have and if he didn’t then that’s on him.

Ultimately, Logan didn’t deserve any of this and this says more about Williams than it does about Logan. I personally hope he scores points at Suzuka just to stick it to the team.

[brandwhorestarscream]

Headcannons about lil train sparklings?

Wittle choo-choos 🥺

First of all, baby trains are HUGE. Mecha that become trains are massive, standing over 3 times the height of even the bulkiest warframes, and unlike their similarly sized distant cousins, the shuttles? Their babies are born big. They may look tiny while cradled in their carrier's arms, but they're roughly the same scale as humans with their infants. About a third of the length of their parents at birth, they're already bigger than your average civilian and about the same height as your average warframe. At birth.

Baby trains also eat a lot. And I mean a lot. Despite their large size they have comparatively tiny tanks, and fuel goes right through them. They more or less eat every megacycle, constantly suckling from their carrier because they just can't hold much fuel. As a result, bitty trains tend to get hungry very quickly, and crankier even quicker. If a train sparkling is hungry you either feed them now, or deal with a colossal meltdown less than 2 kliks later complete with sobbing cries and very upset little train whistles.

Lets see, what else? At home, parents will often install "training tracks" for their sparklings when they're old enougj to transform, in little loops around the playroom or up and down the halls, so they can practice taking corners without derailing and really get familiar with how to accelerate but also how to stop. Their alt modes can stop a lot faster than earth trains, don't get me wrong, but they barrel along at such force and at such high speeds they still need a lot of room to stop.

Sometimes the only way to put a baby train to sleep is to take them for a trip around the tracks. Sometimes, no amount of rocking, bouncing, lullabies, and warm sparkling energon is enough, and even after hours they won't recharge. The only thing that will pacify them is to be placed in their cradle, inside mama or papa's alt mode, and taken out for a ride. The rattling of the tracks and the rhythmic chug of their parent's systems is the only thing that will work. It's not uncommon to see one of the train mecha out and about even though they're not scheduled to be transporting anything/anyone. If you see a "ghost train" at 3 a.m., just go about your business. It's probably a sleep deprived parent desperately trying to put their little one to sleep and they do not have the energy for smalltalk

Sometimes baby trains will have to go along with their parents for work, and while they usually just stay in their sparkling compartment, sometimes they'll go wander about and say hi to the passengers. Imagine getting accosted by a friendly baby train while riding the much bigger train to work 🤭 bonus points if the intercomm is on, mama train announcing that, "Approaching Iacon Central Station, I repeat, we are approaching Iac- oh no, sweetie no, I don't think he wants to play with you-! Sir, I'm so sorry- bitty! No! That's not a toy--sorry everyone, we're approaching Iacon Central Station, please prepare to disembark- baby no! Get that out of your mouth this instant! Collison Course, bad! Bad sparkling, naughty!"

Everyone is thoroughly amused by baby train antics 🤭

[quakerjoe]

The US standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches. That's an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used? Well, because that's the way they built them in England, and English engineers designed the first US railroads.

Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail lines were built by the same people who built the wagon tramways, and that's the gauge they used.

So, why did 'they' use that gauge then? Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they had used for building wagons, which used that same wheel spacing.

Why did the wagons have that particular odd wheel spacing? Well, if they tried to use any other spacing, the wagon wheels would break more often on some of the old, long distance roads in England . You see, that's the spacing of the wheel ruts.

So who built those old rutted roads? Imperial Rome built the first long distance roads in Europe (including England ) for their legions. Those roads have been used ever since.

And what about the ruts in the roads? Roman war chariots formed the initial ruts, which everyone else had to match or run the risk of destroying their wagon wheels. Since the chariots were made for Imperial Rome , they were all alike in the matter of wheel spacing. Therefore the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8.5 inches is derived from the original specifications for an Imperial Roman war chariot.

Bureaucracies live forever. So the next time you are handed a specification/procedure/process and wonder 'What horse's ass came up with this?', you may be exactly right.

Imperial Roman army chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the rear ends of two war horses. (Two horses' asses.) Now, the twist to the story:

When you see a Space Shuttle sitting on its launch pad, there are two big booster rockets attached to the sides of the main fuel tank. These are solid rocket boosters, or SRBs. The SRBs are made by Thiokol at their factory in Utah . The engineers who designed the SRBs would have preferred to make them a bit fatter, but the SRBs had to be shipped by train from the factory to the launch site. The railroad line from the factory happens to run through a tunnel in the mountains, and the SRBs had to fit through that tunnel. The tunnel is slightly wider than the railroad track, and the railroad track, as you now know, is about as wide as two horses' behinds.

So, a major Space Shuttle design feature, of what is arguably the world's most advanced transportation system, was determined over two thousand years ago by the width of a horse's ass. And you thought being a horse's ass wasn't important? Ancient horse's asses control almost everything.

[northgazaupdates]

7 February 2024

Journalist Ahmed Hamdan documents the excruciating lengths to which people are forced to resort for supplies. Due to the absence of fuel for automobiles and the dwindling availability of animal-drawn carts, people are forced to search on foot for supplies every day. Some of them travel miles on foot every day, like these men, who risk IOF snipers and tanks to search for firewood. After traveling a great distance, they now have to transport their meager finds without use of any load-bearing equipment.

Source: Ahmed Hamdan on Instagram

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