{"id":430,"date":"2011-08-01T12:01:02","date_gmt":"2011-08-01T18:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/?p=430"},"modified":"2011-09-02T09:31:28","modified_gmt":"2011-09-02T15:31:28","slug":"sunspot-rally-2011","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/?p=430","title":{"rendered":"Sunspot Rally 2011"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\">On July 30th we joined a local El Paso Mini club, <a href=\"http:\/\/epminis.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">EPMINIS<\/a> for a rally to the Sunspot National\u00a0Observatory just outside of Cloudcroft NM.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/maps.google.com\/maps?ie=UTF8&amp;hq=&amp;hnear=El+Paso,+Texas&amp;ll=32.790016,-105.819218&amp;spn=0.008027,0.009892&amp;t=h&amp;z=16&amp;output=embed\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" width=\"425\" height=\"350\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<small><a style=\"color: #0000ff; text-align: left;\" href=\"http:\/\/maps.google.com\/maps?ie=UTF8&amp;hq=&amp;hnear=El+Paso,+Texas&amp;ll=32.790016,-105.819218&amp;spn=0.008027,0.009892&amp;t=h&amp;z=16&amp;source=embed\">View Larger Map<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">The rally started at 9:30 with everybody meeting at Starbucks off of I-54 for a quick drive to\u00a0Alamogordo\u00a0New Mexico. \u00a0In\u00a0Alamogordo\u00a0there was a a brief lunch break at Alameda park before we headed into the\u00a0Lincoln National Forest towards Cloudcroft.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5993920311\/in\/set-72157627198570397\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Alameda Park, Alamagordo NM\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6142\/5993920311_23119316f4.jpg\" alt=\"Alameda Park, Alamagordo NM\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">Alameda Park, Alamagordo NM<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>We were driving our Jeep and don&#8217;t have a Mini but we were given a nice &#8220;Honorary Mini&#8221;\u00a0car-magnet to identify us as part of the rally. \u00a0The El Paso crew was joined by some New Mexico Mini-ers, so there was quite a turnout.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5994831073\/in\/set-72157627198570397\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Lincoln Sign\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6134\/5994831073_11592df4ba.jpg\" alt=\"Lincoln Sign\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">Entrance to the forest<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>The drive to Cloudcroft is pretty quick\u00a0with\u00a0a nice change in\u00a0elevation as you enter the forest. \u00a0The roads are curvy and the Minis were cruzing at a good clip on the way to Sunspot. \u00a0We wound up in the middle of the pack so I did my best to keep the Jeep in the mix and not slow anybody up. \u00a0The\u00a0Jeep handles really good for a large SUV, supported by a new stiffer\u00a0uni-body\u00a0construction and airbag suspension. The 5.7 HEMI\u00a0helped\u00a0too:)<\/p>\n<p>First stop was the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nso.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\">National Solar Observatory<\/a>\u00a0(NSO). \u00a0\u00a0Their mission statement from their website:<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">&#8220;The mission of the National Solar Observatory is to advance knowledge of the Sun, both as an astronomical object and as the dominant external influence on Earth, by providing forefront observational opportunities to the research community. The mission includes the operation of cutting edge facilities, the continued development of advanced instrumentation both in-house and through partnerships, conducting solar research, and educational and public outreach. &#8220;<\/p>\n<p>It was a nice facility with plenty of parking and a visitors center.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5994664870\/in\/set-72157627198570397\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Sunspot\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6027\/5994664870_841a53a296.jpg\" alt=\"Sunspot\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">NSO Visitors Center<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>After a brief\u00a0explanation\u00a0of the\u00a0facilities purpose, which included an overview of the structure of the sun, we were given a tour of the grounds\u00a0by a astronomy student who works there. The tallest on site was the Dunn Solar Telescope:<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 170px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5994154231\/in\/set-72157627198570397\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Dunn Solar Telescope\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6017\/5994175521_2946aa8c58_m.jpg\" alt=\"Dunn Solar Telescope\" width=\"160\" height=\"240\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">Dunn Solar Telescope<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>After viewing the inside and getting a overview of how the scope works, we exited and toured the rest of the site wrapping up at about 3:00 PM. \u00a0From the NSO we motored over to\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.apo.nmsu.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\">Apache Point Observatory<\/a>\u00a0(APO) where one of the EpMini club members, Garrett worked and was going to give us a tour. APO is a private\u00a0facility partnered with the NSO and New Mexico State University.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5994647123\/in\/set-72157627198570397\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Apache Point\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6125\/5994647123_7108d0c437.jpg\" alt=\"Apache Point\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">Telescope row<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>Garrett&#8217;s job at APO was keeping the 2.5 meter telescope operational. \u00a0He explained the telescopes capabilities and showed us the work that goes into the fiber optic cartridges that are used to do\u00a0spectral\u00a0analysis on stars, planets and other space objects. Garrett gave us a lot of info and really showed some\u00a0enthusiasm for his job. \u00a0I would imagine working here to be pretty chill, you get to look out into space seeing things that few people get to experience, coupled with the calm forest\u00a0surroundings.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"Fiber Optic Disk\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6138\/5995194524_cde927255b.jpg\" alt=\"Fiber Optic Disk\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">Garrett&#8217;s disks (each hole gets a fiber cable plugged into it)<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>One of the best parts about the APO tour was the view from the Sacramento Mountains down into the valley. The Who&#8217;s &#8220;I can see for miles&#8221; sums it up best:<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp mceIEcenter\" style=\"text-align: center;\">\n<dl id=\"\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"width: 510px;\">\n<dt class=\"wp-caption-dt\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/5994745971\/in\/set-72157627198570397\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"I can see for miles!\" src=\"http:\/\/farm7.static.flickr.com\/6143\/5994745971_72893f3439.jpg\" alt=\"I can see for miles!\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" \/><\/a><\/dt>\n<dd class=\"wp-caption-dd\">I can see for miles!<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n<p>We were finished at APO at about 5:00 and it was time to head back home. I would like to thank the EPMINIS group for letting an ol&#8217; Jeep tag along, it was good to get away from the heat in El Paso. \u00a0For more pictures of the NSO and APO sites see my Flickr set here: <a title=\"Sunspot Ralley\" href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/juanoxido\/sets\/72157627198570397\/with\/5994745971\/\" target=\"_blank\">Sunspot Rally 2011<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On July 30th we joined a local El Paso Mini club, EPMINIS for a rally to the Sunspot National\u00a0Observatory just outside of Cloudcroft NM. View Larger Map The rally started at 9:30 with everybody meeting at Starbucks off of I-54 for a quick drive to\u00a0Alamogordo\u00a0New Mexico. \u00a0In\u00a0Alamogordo\u00a0there was a a brief lunch break at Alameda [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[9],"tags":[30,32,33,31],"class_list":["post-430","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-photography","tag-epminis","tag-mini-cooper","tag-new-mexico","tag-sunspot-rally"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1MdZY-6W","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/430","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=430"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/430\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":434,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/430\/revisions\/434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=430"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=430"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rust2.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=430"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}