A couple of interesting shipwrecks found (maybe)

I've read a couple of articles about interesting shipwrecks. One of them was found a few years ago, and I've yet to see an update about it; the other was just found.

The one that I checked on (due to linkage from the more recent one) was the potential discovery of the U.S.S. Revenge, an important ship in the War of 1812. When it wrecked, the commander of the ship, Oliver Hazard Perry, was re-assigned to the Great Lakes (a move that he requested), where he was the commander during the pivotal Battle of Lake Erie.

Divers claim wreck is the U.S.S. Revenge 

A year ago, the Navy brought up a cannon from what might be the wreck of the Revenge. It was sent to Washington D.C. for testing. Haven't heard anything since.

The new find is actually from Lake Erie. If it is what it is thought to be, it dates from after the War of 1812, but not by much. The suggested identify of the wreck is the Lake Serpent, a trading schooner.

Shipwreck found in Lake Erie could be nearly 200 years old

More work needs to be done on this one.

Finding the blue forest

I just found out about the existence of the "Blue Forest" (the Hallerbos), a forest area near Halle, Belgium.  Every spring, the floor of the Hallerbos is covered by a carpet of bluebells.

It's sublime.

The blue forest

The future of tornadoes as climate changes

Tornadoes are very fickle things.  Sometimes they can form in bunches, and sometimes they don't form when all the conditions indicate they should, and sometimes they behave the way they are expected to, so tornado chasers can chase them.

But because they are unusual meteorological phenomena, it takes a certain set of factors to combine to make them.   So the question has arisen, how will climate change affect those factors, and will it mean more or less tornadoes?

Apparently, the answer is less, overall.  But more of them when the conditions are right to make them.

Sean Sublette on Severe Weather, Tornadoes in a Warming World


"In a 2014 study, tornado researchers at Florida State University looked at days with at least four, eight, 16 and 32 tornadoes. They found that while days with at least four tornadoes were on the decline, the number of days with 16 and 32 tornadoes has increased. And the odds of a day with at least 32 tornadoes has more than doubled."

Now, climate change deniers would point to the declining overall numbers of tornadoes as a good thing. But those that understand how the world's climate is changing know that "Attack of the Tornado" days can be a lot more devastating.

No way this would work for me

Divine Michelle Keegan says that she visits her husband Mark Wright about every three weeks or so.

SERIOUSLY.

Michelle Keegan on Mark Wright marriage: Actress was 'gutted' her husband missed debut fashion show... but she STILL won't move to LA

According to the article, because Mark Wright followed his career to LA, but Michelle has interests in the UK, they are in a long-distance marriage.

She says:  

" 'We try not to go three weeks without seeing each other, but it can sometimes be four or five weeks.'

While she felt her husband's absence at her fashion show, the beauty added that she still has no set plans to move to Los Angeles, although she loves the lifestyle in the States."

OK, she's young and hot, but maybe she can live with that arrangement.

But Mark... you're married to freakin' MICHELLE KEEGAN.  How can you go three weeks between "visits"?   I'd have trouble going three days between "visits"!

Well, good lick, er, luck to you both.  (But seriously, Mark, you have got to find Michelle a role on an America TV show.  This situation is untenable, unfathomable, and unbelievable.

As a reminder, here's what I wrote about their wedding and honeymoon.

Crystal Palace nears safety

With Manchester City wrapping up the Premier League title a week ago (courtesy of Manchester United losing to the worst team in the league, relegation-bound West Bromwich Albion), the more exciting aspect of the remainder of the season now is watching which teams get relegated, and which ones stay in the Premier League.

And it's quite close. Though the previously mentioned WBA is definitely going to be relegated, nothing is certain about the rest of the teams, and that extends all the way up to the 13th-place team, Brighton and Hove Albion, which has 36 points.  Crystal Palace, West Ham, and Huddersfield Town all have 35 points,  covering the 14th through 16th spots, and unlucky 17 is Swansea City, with 33 points.  18th and 19th are Southampton (which amazingly enough was in an FA Cup semifinal against Chelsea on Sunday), and Stoke City, both with 29 points.  So uneasy Swansea City is four points ahead (1 draw and 1 win), with the tied trio at 35 points six points above the current drop line (2 wins).

Crystal Palace gained a point in a draw with Watford on the weekend, and maybe should have had a penalty kick after Wilfried Zaha was brought down near the goal (and he was actually given a yellow card for embellishing, i.e., "diving", though it didn't look like he did).  Now they have three games left.  One win in those three games would probably be enough for them to be truly safe from relegation and insure another season in the Premier League.  If they defeated Stoke City on May 5, that would probably seal their survival while pushing Stoke down to the Championship (the second tier).  Like CP, Stoke City has three more games left to play.

Southampton actually has four more games, which gives them one more shot at points than CP has.  West Ham has four more, but two of them are against Manchester City and Manchester United. Brighton and Hove Albion have four more games too, as do Huddersfield and Swansea City.  So as these games are played, the Crystal Palace fans have to sweat a little more until the schedule evens out.

Because some of those games are between the teams near the bottom, one win in those cases could seal the deal for another team.  A big game for the bottom dwellers is the last game of the season between Swansea City and Stoke City.  It's possible that could end up being a game where the winner stays up and the loser goes down. 

So, the Eagles (as the CP team is called) are close to safety, but not quite in the fully confident zone yet.  For the team's sake, and for the fans, I hope they close it out successfully.  I'll discuss some other thoughts about this later.

Lighthouse(s) of the Week, April 22-28, 2018: Lighthouses at sunset

Rather than feature one lighthouse this week, I decided to go with a theme, and this is a classic:  Lighthouses at Sunset.

I had a couple of rules as I searched for them. One, the lighthouse had to be identified (or identifiable).   Two, the picture had to be a real picture -- there are a lot of paintings and art works with lighthouses at sunset, some of them nearly of photographic quality.  Three, it had to be a good picture.

I think these three qualify.

Montauk Point Lighthouse, New York, at sunset

Range Light, Southampton, Ontario, Canada - Scott Rock Photography

Tybee Island Lighthouse, Georgia, USA

Again with the Sony World Photography Awards

As I've noted in previous posts through the years, I like photography contests. In a different life, I'd be a photographer, and I admire the work of the experts and skilled amateurs that show up in these various contests.

The Sony World Photography Awards are always outstanding, and the winners (and runners-up) have just been released.

2018 Sony World Photography Awards Winner's Galleries

I screen-grabbed a couple of them (not at full superb resolution - I hope they don't mind).