Bag Lady

A nice busy week in Geomatics. A few ones that caught my eye -

• GOCE launched and I heard the fabulous Marek on Radio 4 one morning.
• Durham University map the hottest place on earth.
• Google launch UK Street View and immediately have to pull some images. Raises an interesting debate about privacy. I suppose you're less likely to have this issue with Google Ocean.

And me? I photograph my sustainable bag collection. This is as trendy as I get!

Armagh Planetarium Again

Yes, back here again. This time took more photos.

International Space Station anyone?

Or a walk-on aerial image of Northern Ireland?

We enjoyed the showing of Astronaut. If nothing else it was a chance to sit down, in the dark, for 25 mins.

Hats Off to You

This looks fun but I have two questions
1. What do you do if someone steals it?
2. What if you catch nits?

Jammy Don Mark II

He's off again. The roving surveyor is at large again and has just sent me his latest holiday snaps. A trig pillar in Jizan, Saudi. No, I'm not green.

Levelling in Edinburgh

Visited RICS Scotland in Edinburgh on Thursday for a Geomatics Exec meeting and evening lecture. Notwithstanding the fact that the meeting went really well, and the lecture interesting (measuring green space in urban environments) my greatest surprise was finding the mantlepieces full of old survey instrumentation.

I'm not 100% sure what this is but think it's a miner's level. It's not easy to see the compass set below the telescope.

There were a couple of four-screw levels

and a lovely four-screw theodolite.

I didn't take a photo of the pocket sextant.

To help me along with some of the identification of these (or not as the case may be) I did some googling on miner's levels, theodolites, four-screw levelling system etc. Two observations: firstly it's amazing how many web pages describing differing survey instruments have no pictures (!) and secondly they all seem to plagiarise each other - the same phrases were coming up time and time again. Perhaps there's only much you can say about a graphometer etc?

Anyway, if you're ever passing (and they let you in) - a little museum at 9 Manor Place, Edinburgh.

Plymouth and Back

Spent yesterday evening in wet and windy Plymouth visiting 'my' students from the Hydrography MSc. It was good to catch up with them and hear the praises, and not-so-good comments, about their current course. That's what I'm there for.

I was too engrossed in conversation and missed RICS South West Geomatics AGM which was just up the road. When I clone myself I'll be able to manage everything at once. However caught a CARIS presentation a tad later on large (huge!) dataset management and sharing. Afterwards in the bar, stoking up on sugary coffee for my drive home, chatted to someone who has recently passed the MSc and wants some advice on how to achieve membership of the RICS. Sure thing.

Off bright and early tomorrow to Edinburgh for an RICS Exec meeting and evening lecture on "Issues of identifying and protecting urban green space – a challenge for us all" by Duncan Moss and Neil Stuart. Should be a good day.