Author: caseydriver

Founder: Space Corps | President: Aeromerica | Publisher: AV Media | Filmmaker

Recurrent Energy Develops Rosamond 1 and Rosamond 2

Photo: Rosamond 1 and Rosamond 2
CREDIT: Recurrent Energy

Recurrent Energy, a subsidiary of Canadian Air “developed and constructed the Rosamond 1 and Rosamond 2 projects near the town of Rosamond, located in Southern California. Electricity generated from the projects will be delivered to two different offtakers, including Southern California Edison (SCE). Rosamond 1 and 2 are part of a six project portfolio acquired by Google and KKR in late 2013 and reached commercial operation in the same time frame. Google and KKR previously partnered in 2011 to invest in a four project portfolio totaling 88 MW near Sacramento, CA…” (Read portfolio overview via Recurrent Energy)

 

 

by Categories: Antelope Valley, energy, Rosamond Leave a comment

Mojave-Rosamond Mines

Gold Districts of California

MOJAVE-ROSAMOND

“Location. The Mojave-Rosamond district is in southeastern Kern County. The gold deposits are associated with the five prominent buttes south of the town of Mojave and west and north of the town of Rosamond.

History. Gold was discovered in the Yellow Rover vein on Standard Hill by George Bowers in 1894, and soon afterward other discoveries were made. Activity continued until about 1910 but waned over the next 20 years. The Cactus Queen mine was discovered in 1934, and from 1931 until 1941 mining was done in the district on a major scale. The mines were shut down during World War II, but there has been some activity since. The Tropico mine is now an historical museum and a popular tourist attraction. The district is estimated to have had a total gold and silver output valued at $23 million” (Full Story via Explore.Museumca.org).

by Categories: Antelope Valley, mining, Rosamond Leave a comment

Antelope Valley Demographic Shifts

Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County,California and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert.[1] It is situated between the Tehachapi and the San Gabriel Mountains.[2] The valley was named for the pronghorns that roamed there until being eliminated by bad weather in the 1880s and hunters.[2][3] The principal cities in the Antelope Valley are Palmdale and Lancaster.

 

by Categories: Antelope Valley Leave a comment
Test pilot Neil Armstrong

Cam Martin: Speaking on NASA and Art

Public · Art · Hosted by Lancaster Museum of Art and History – MOAH

September 18th at 2 pm in the Main Gallery for a special guest talk. Cam Martin from the NASA Armstrong Research Center hosted a special Curator’s Talk on the current exhibition of NASA Flight Research: Probing the Sky as part of Made in America.

by Categories: Antelope Valley, aviation, Edwards AFBTags: , , , Leave a comment

Antelope Valley Residents Opposes High Speed Rail

1024px-flv_california_train-640x360

By California High-Speed Rail Authority [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

“Antelope Valley residents told the Board of Supervisors Wednesday that the Palmdale-to-Burbank high-speed rail segment proposed to run through the Big Tujunga Wash in the Angeles National Forest would divide the community of Lake View Terrace, threaten wildlife and crush property values.

Supervisor Michael Antonovich recommended that the board send a letter opposing the plan — one of three alternatives set for environmental review — to county lobbyists and the California High-Speed Rail Authority Board.

“Throughout the environmental process, as alternatives have been added, refined, or deleted, we have consistently advocated for alternatives that are tunnel-oriented and less community-intrusive,” Antonovich said. “The Refined E-2 Alignment is not consistent with those principles, and should be removed.”

Supervisor Sheila Kuehl said that such a letter might be interpreted as support for the remaining two alternatives and suggested a more detailed critique” (Read full article via mynewsla.com).

by Categories: Antelope Valley, transportation Leave a comment

Kern County Economic Diversification Plan Kick-off Meeting

CREDIT: Jessica Weston/Daily Independent

“CALIFORNIA CITY — More diversified business growth. Long-term sustainable jobs at a livable wage. Housing to support new business development, and retail and other amenities to support quality of life.

These were key among definitions of success in economic development and diversification, as brainstormed during the kick-off meeting for the Kern County Economic Diversification Plan in California City Wednesday.

Business leaders and stakeholders from Ridgecrest, California City, Tehachapi and Mojave gathered for the project’s inaugural meeting Wednesday. The Ridgecrest contingent included representatives from Cerro Coso Community College, the China Lake Alliance, the Indian Wells Valley EDC, the Desert Empire Fair, the city of Ridgecrest and others. Mojave Air and Space Port CEO Karina Drees and Bill Deaver were among those from Mojave. The California City Chamber of Commerce acted as host, and California City elected officials were also in attendance, along with a representative from the city of Tehachapi economic development and tourism commission…” (Read full story via The Independent Daily).

by Categories: Uncategorized Leave a comment

FOUR WHEELER Selects Ram 1500 Rebel as Winner 2016 Shoot Out

“LOS ANGELES January 19, 2016—FOUR WHEELER, the world’s leading 4×4 authority, has selected the Ram 1500 Rebel as the winner of its prestigious 27th annual Pickup Truck of the Year Award.

FOUR WHEELER’s Pickup Truck of the Year award program is an invitation-only shootout open to all-new or significantly revised pickup trucks for the upcoming model year. For 2016, the field of vehicles included four entries:

Ram 1500 Rebel, 5.7L V-8
Ram 1500 Rebel, 5.7L V-8

Chevy Colorado Z71, 2.8L I-4 turbodiesel
Nissan Titan XD PRO-4X, 5.0L V-8 turbodiesel
Ram 1500 Rebel, 5.7L V-8
Toyota Tacoma TRD Off-Road, 3.5L V-6

FOUR WHEELER’s highly experienced judging staff thoroughly evaluates each vehicle in a variety of terrain and conditions ranging from 0-60-mph and quarter-mile acceleration and 60-0-mph braking distance at the racetrack to real-world situations on the highway, down backroads, in traffic, and, of course, through every off-road terrain imaginable. Vehicles are judged on a wide range of criteria, including off-road performance and survivability, interior appointments and amenities, quality of construction, and the ability to perform in rigorous off-road environments…(Read full story via fourwheeler.com)

by Categories: Uncategorized Leave a comment

Virgin Galatic Spaceship Two Crash

The fatal breakup and crash of Virgin Galactic’s first SpaceShipTwo space plane last year was caused by a co-pilot error, as well as the failure of the spacecraft’s builders to anticipate such a catastrophic mistake, federal safety investigators say.

SpaceShipTwo crashed in October when co-pilot Michael Alsbury unlocked the commercial space plane’s re-entry “feathering” system too early during a test flight over California’s Mojave Desert, investigators with the NationalTransportation Safety Board said in a hearing today (July 28). (via space.com)

ntsb-spaceshiptwo-hearing-christopher-hart

by Categories: aerospace, Antelope Valley Leave a comment

Space Tourism in the Mojave Desert

 

Virgin Galactic's WhiteKniteTwo mothership with SpaceShipTwo aboard approaches lift-off speed for a powered test flight at the Mojave Air and Space Port.

John Makely | NBC News
Virgin Galactic’s WhiteKniteTwo mothership with SpaceShipTwo aboard approaches lift-off speed for a powered test flight at the Mojave Air and Space Port.

“MOJAVE, Calif.—The Mojave Desert is where the Right Stuff was born. It’s where Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier with the X-1 rocket plane in 1947. It’s where other test pilots earned their astronaut wings in the X-15 during the ’60s.

Now the Right Stuff is being born again in Mojave. But it’s an open question whether that renewed spirit of rocket-powered flight will grow up here—or take root someplace else, as it did in the 1960s.

This time, the rockets being tested in the desert aren’t secret military projects. They’re commercial ventures, focused on bringing the thrill of outer space to the masses and turning a profit.

“As a child, I read about some of the things that happened… the early X-1 flights, the whole X-series…I guess I thought that was over and gone with, and probably wouldn’t be seen again,” said David Mackay, a 56-year-old veteran aviator who’s now the chief pilot for one of those ventures, Virgin Galactic. “And yet, here we are with a very similar system, an air-launched spaceship.” (Full story at CNBC.com)

by Categories: aerospace, aviation Leave a comment