The Moon at full perigee, the coinciding of full moon and shortest distance to the earth. Also known as the Supermoon. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

These days there is a lot of fuzz in the media regarding the so-called Supermoon, some even believe this is the end of the world as we know it…

Fear not, this is the rare occasion when the Moon is at it’s closest to the earth, or perigee, coinciding with a full Moon. It makes the Moon look slightly bigger and brighter, but only by approximately 12%, so in reality you wouldn’t really know, as it is already quite small on the sky. If it’s close to the horizon it will however look bigger due to an optical illusion. Super or not, it doesn’t really matter, just enjoy the view! The above image was taken yestaerday, with the Supermoon as seen from my home in Stavanger, Norway.

The "Supermoon" of March 19, 2011 (right), compared to a rather "average" moon of December 20, 2010 (left): note the size difference.

The image above indicates the difference between an average Moon and a “Supermoon” as seen through a telephoto lens. If viewed by the naked eye you will however hardly be able to notice it. The Moon is actually so small your thumb will cover it by 2-3 times, so the relative increase of 12-14% will not make any difference!

It has also been claimed that the Earth is more likely to experience natural disasters such as earthquakes, flooding and volcanic eruptions due to the increased tidal effects. This has no scientific support at all, as the Moon is still very far away, and the changes in tidal effects will be very weak, maybe 1cm rise in sea level.

Saying that, go outside and take a look at the Moon through your binoculars any day, not only when the media is full of “Supermoon” stuff. It is a very interesting sight, especially when trying to recognize the craters and other structures up there. Below is an even closer view of the Supermoon.

The Moon at full perigee, the coinciding of full moon and shortest distance to the earth. Also known as the Supermoon. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

You can do as me; fire up Google Earth,open the Moon view and try to familiarize yourself with the alien landscape there, and even see where humans has set foot. On the image below I have for example indicated the various Apollo mission landings with red dots.

The Moon at full perigee. Red dots indicates the landing spots of the various Apollo missions. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Russia, Sakhalin. Okhotskoye is a small village at the south east coast of Sakhalin, not far from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Residential buildings are mostly made of wood. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Sakhalin island, just north of Japan and off the east coast of Russia, has led to many bitter disputes between the two countries. The island is today part of Russia, and is Russia’s largest island.

I visited the island last year, and have added several images to the photo gallery.

Sakhalin has been settled since the stone age. Today there are three main groups of indigenous people here; Ainu to the south, the Oroks in the central region, and the Nivkhs to the north.

Russia, Sakhalin. Okhotskoye is a small village at the south east coast of Sakhalin, not far from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The island has been invaded by both the Mongols and the Chinese before the first Japanese settlement was established in 1679. It was later explored by both the Japanese and the Europeans as well as the Russians, who regarded it as a peninsula.

Russia, Sakhalin, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Sakhalin Regional Museum is housed in a former Japanese building dating back to 1937. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Japan became alarmed by the foreign interest, and proclaimed the entire island as its own territory in 1807. They repeated the proclamation of sovereignty  in 1845, and included the Kuril islands as well. Continued disputes between Japan and Russia led to the Treaty of Shimoda in 1855, where it was agreed that both nations could inhabit the island. Without a clear boundary the Russians settled in the north, and Japanese in the south. In 1905 a new treaty established the boundary to be at 50th parallel north.

Russia, Sakhalin, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. An exhibition of old-style Soviet era military vehicles. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Then in 1945, according to the Yalta Conference agreements, the entire island was taken over by the Soviet Union. But the Japanese didn’t want to leave voluntarily. The fightings lasted until 25 August 1945 when the Soviets occupied the capital. Most of the Japanese were evacuated during the following years. Today only a few of the 450.000 Japanese who lived here remain, while tens of thousands of Sakhalin Koreans has remained.

Sakhalin and the four neighbouring islands are still disputed, and no final peace treaty has been signed.

Russia, Sakhalin, Sea of Okhotsk. Sakhalin coastline with snow covered mountains. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Sakhalin is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Tartary, which is only 4–20 m deep, and 7.3 km wide at the narrowest point. Nearly two-thirds of Sakhalin is mountainous, and much of the interior is covered by coniferous forests. Mount Lopatin (1,609 m) is the island’s highest mountain.

Russia, Sakhalin, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Traffic police. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The capital today is Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, which has a population of about 175.000. A large minority of these are Korean, typically referred to as Sakhalin Koreans, who were forcibly brought here by the Japanese during World War II to work in the coal mines.

Russia, Sakhalin. Kholmsk is an important sea port for the island of Sakhalin. Old Soviet era apartment blocks. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The islands total population today are about 600.000, most of which lives in the southern half of the island, centered mainly around Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and two ports, Kholmsk and Korsakov (which has a population of about 40,000 each).

Russia, Sakhalin, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. A new Orthodox church. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Due to the proximity to the Sea of Okhotsk Sakhalin has a cold and humid climate, with snowy winters and cool summers.

Russia, Sakhalin, Anivskiy. View from the road between Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk and Kholmsk. The road follows and crosses the Lyutoga River at several spots. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The island has a rich wildlife, with bears roaming the dense forests and numerous whales just off the coast. Salmon fishing is a popular activity in the many large rivers.

Russia, Sakhalin, Sea of Okhotsk. There is a growing oil and gas development offshore the North East coast of Sakhalin Island. The Lunskoye-A Platform (Lun-A). (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Recently Sakhalin has seen a booming oil and gas industry. Some large oil and gas fields have been discovered and are under development off the northeast coast of the island. The economy is getting very dependent of this industry, which account for approximately 80% of the island’s industrial output.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Sunset at Lipan Point, with the last sunlight hitting some of the rock formations. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

I recently came back from a trip to western United States, including a couple of days at the Grand Canyon. It was still early February, so I was afraid we would meet some really bad weather up there. To my delight we had cold but nice and sunny winter conditions, with some snow in parts of the park.

I had never visited Grand Canyon before, but a quick Google search told me that the south rim was the place to visit at this time of the year. Arriving from Las Vegas late in the evening we found our hotel in the small town of Tusayan, only 15 minutes south of the park’s visitor center. If you prefer there is also accommodation in the Grand Canyon Village, which is inside the park. Book well in advance if you’re visiting at a more busy season.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Panorama view from Yaki Point. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Next morning we drove up to the Grand Canyon Visitor center and jumped on the shuttle bus to Yaki Point, from were we should see the Canyon for the first time. As expected the views were breathtaking. Yaki is the easternmost stop on the Kaibab Trail Route. This is one of the few points which is not accessible with your own car, but the shuttle buses stop here frequently, and at this time of year we were almost alone on the bus.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. View from Yaki Point. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

After trying to capture the splendour of the scenery with my camera, which is quite difficult to say the least, it was back on the bus which after a small photo stop returned to the visitor center. The bus drivers were very helpful and willingly shared their knowledge of the area with us.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. View from Trailview Overlook with Bright Angel Trail and Grand Canyon Village. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

From there on I prefered to drive myself, since the bus don’t stop at all view points. There was almost no traffic at this time of year, so finding parking spots was very easy. We now followed Hermit Road west of the Visitor Center, through Grand Canyon Village to the first stop; Trailview Overlook.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. View from Trailview Overlook. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Trailview Overlook has a great view of Grand Canyon Village and Bright Angel Trail.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Maricopa Point, Panorama view. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Next stop was Maricopa Point. The views from Maricopa Point cover 180° of the Grand Canyon.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Hopi Point, Panorama view. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

We only had one full day in the Canyon, so we skipped Powell Point and drove directly from Maricopa to Hopi Point. Hopi Point is the northernmost spot on this part of the south rim, where much of the western Grand Canyon comes into full view.

Still driving westwards on Hermit Road, the next stop was Mohave Point.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Mohave Point, Panorama view. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Mohave Point has a great view of the near vertical cliffs around The Abyss and towards Pima Point. From Mohave we headed towards Pima Point, but first stopped at the Abyss.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. The Abyss. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

While most Grand Canyon view points stick out from the rim The Abyss is located along an indentation in the steep Canyon walls.

Next stop was Pima Point.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Pima Point, Panorama view. The Colorado River is visible in the image center. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Pima Point is one of the best places on the West south rim to see the Canyon and the Colorado River.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Hermits Rest, the western end of Hermit Road at the West south rim of the Canyon. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

From Pima Point Hermit Road continues a short distance to the west, ending at Hermit’s rest, were there are rest rooms, a giftshop and a cafe. The views from here are more limited, as the canyon edge is densely wooded, but it is a nice place to take a rest and a cup of coffee.

Trying to make the most out of the day we then decided to head directly to Desert View, which is the first lookout when arriving the park from the east. It’s quite a long drive from Hermit’s rest to Desert View, but we made it in good time before sunset.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Desert View Watchtower, also known as the Indian Watchtower at Desert View. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The many facilities at Desert View also includes the historic watchtower, built in 1932. The Watchtower is visible for many miles across this part of the Canyon. Much of the interior is nicely decorated by a Hopi man named Fred Kabotie, make sure you go all the way to the top of the tower!

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Desert View. with a view of the Painted Desert and Cedar Mountain. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

A lot of the scenery here also includes a view of the Painted Desert and Cedar Mountain.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Navajo Point. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Continuing a short distance westwards we arrived at Navajo Point. Navajo Point is quite close to Desert View. Painted Desert and the watchtower at Desert View can also be seen from here.

The daylight were now starting to fade, and last stop for the day was Lipan Point, were we watched the sunset, spiced up with a full moon hanging above the Canyon.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Sunset at Lipan Point, with a full moon hanging above Grand Canyon. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

From Lipan Point we drove back to our hotel, and decided to get up very early next morning to see the sunrise from Yavapai Point.

United States, Arizona, Grand Canyon. Sunrise at Yavapai Point. The morning sun colours everything red. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

In the morning the nice weather started to fade, and it was a really strong, cold wind at the edge of the Canyon, but luckily some small openings in the cloud cover allowed the sun to appear for a few moments, colouring the landscape red.

The cold wind soon forced us back to the hotel, and after a good breakfast we started on the long drive back to California’s warmer coast. But that is another story I will get back to later. in the meantime check out my Grand Canyon Gallery.

Visiting Grand Canyon at winter can bring its own qualities of peace and quiet, snow and good visibility. But bring warm clothes! The Desert View Road can be closed during snow storms, but we had good driving conditions all the way.

Some day I may be back, and hopefully I can then visit the North Rim as well.

Azerbaijan, Baku. Baku city view with the harbour and the Caspian Sea in the background. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Click here to see some newly added images from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. I visited the country last year to do a job there, and had a few hours to spend in the city. Baku is probably derived from the old Persian name Bād-kube, meaning “Wind-pounded city”. It can also mean “Mount of God” from Baghkuh, which one also can compare to Baghdad.

Azerbaijan, Baku. National Flag Square is a large city square by Neftchiler Avenue in Bayil, Baku. The flag flies on a pole 162 meters high and measures 70 by 35 meters which makes it one of the world's tallest flags. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Baku is the the largest city in the Caucasus and Caspian Sea area with a population of about two million people.

Azerbaijan, Baku. Baku Boulevard is a promenade that runs parallel to Baku's seafront. The yacht club. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

People interested in music, well at least that kind of music, will know that Baku will host 57th Eurovision Song Contest in May 2012. The contest will take place at the newly constructed Baku Crystal Hall.

Azerbaijan, Baku. A statue in front of the Azerbaijan State Carpet Museum. Flame Towers, a residential complex under construction in the background. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Most of Baku’s income is generated from the petroleum industry, and in recent years a lot of new construction projects has taken place in the city. It is also placed among the top “party cities” of the world, with a vibrant nightlife.

Azerbaijan, Baku. Baku Boulevard is a promenade that runs parallel to Baku's seafront. Flame Towers, a residential complex under construction in the background. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

I couldn’t see everything the city has to offer in the few hours i was there, but I wouldn’t mind going back sometime. Baku is an important tourist destination in the Caucasus, with many hotels of good quality.

Azerbaijan, Baku. Green park and fountains. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Azerbaijan is located between Western Asia and Eastern Europe and is a rich mix of cultures. After it got it’s independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 it is still struggling with political and economic reforms, but has seen a huge economic growth in recent years.

Azerbaijan, Baku. St. Gregory the Illuminator's Church is a non-functioning Armenian Apostolic church in downtown Baku. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Bab Agnaou is one of the nineteen gates of Marrakech, Morocco. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

I have just added a new gallery with images from Morocco taken during a visit some time ago. Follow this link to take a look; Morocco Photo Gallery. Some panorama photos is included as well.

The roundtrip started in  Marrakech at the foot of the Atlas mountains. This amazing city with its old medina, the largest souk (traditional market) in Morocco and one of the busiest squares in Africa, Djemaa el Fna, is absolutely worth a visit, and full of photo opportunities.

Next stop was Meknes which was the capital of Morocco under the reign of Moulay Ismail. Main sights to visit includes the Bab Mansour gate (built in 1732), Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail (built in 1703) and Dar El Makhzen palace.

Volubilis is an archaeological roman site in Morocco situated near Moulay Idriss. Triumphal Arch in Volubilis. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Volubilis has the best preserved Roman ruins in this region, and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Unforunately parts of Volubilis was demolished in the 18th century to provide building materials for Moulay Ismail’s palaces in nearby Meknes. Still enough of the site remains to make it a memorable visit.

Panorama. Moulay Idriss is a pilgrimage site for Muslims. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Close by Volubilis is Moulay Idriss, a pilgrimage site for Muslims. It is named after Moulay Idris I, founder of the Idrisid Dynasty. Moulay can be translated to “Prince” or “Lord”. Idris founded both the city of Moulay Idriss and Fes.

Leather tanning in Fes, a very strong smell rises from the area. The medina in Fes, Fes el Bali, is on UNESCO's World Heritage Site list. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Fes is the second largest city of Morocco, and the cultural and religious center of the country. Fes el Bali, the old, walled city, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Entering the medina here is like moving back to the middle ages.

Panorama. Hassan Tower or Tour Hassan is the minaret of an incomplete mosque in Rabat, Morocco. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Rabat is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the river Bou Regreg. The first settlement was known as Chellah, in 40 AD taken over by the Romans who named it Sala Colonia. Local rulers eventually took over in 250 AD. Rabat and  Salé formed the Republic of Bou Regreg in 1627. Run by Barbary pirates the two cities was used as base ports for launching attacks on shipping, the Republic of Bou Regreg finally collapsed in 1818.

The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, is the largest mosque in the country and the 7th largest mosque in the world. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Casablanca is Morocco’s largest city and also has it’s largest port. It is the economic and business center of Morocco. It’s main sight is maybe the Hassan II Mosque, which has room for 25.000 people inside. The minaret reaches 210 meters in height, and is the tallest in the world. For some of us Casablanca may be best known trough the movie of the same name, with Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart in the main roles. Nothing of the film was actually shot in Casablanca though.

Colourful blue fishing boats. Essaouira is a city on the Moroccan Atlantic coast. Fortress walls originally enclosed the entire city. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Essaouira is a very charming city on the Atlantic coast. During the 1960′s and 70′s it was home to many celebrities like Jimi Hendrix, Cat Stevens and Leonard Cohen. The Medina of Essaouira is a UNESCO World Heritage Listed city. Several small arts and crafts shops can be found here, like wood carving. The fishing harbour is quite small but still one of the major fishing harbours of Morocco.

Coastline. The Souss-Massa National Park on the Atlantic coast of Morocco was established in 1991. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The visit to Morocco ended in Agadir, famous for it’s nice beaches and mild winter climate. Main income here is tourism and fisheries. We also explored the area just south of Agadir, like The Souss-Massa National Park.

Morocco is a great place for photographers, with a large variety of nature, people and culture. I would not mind going back to see more!

Two dung beetles doing what they do best, Kruger Park, South Africa. Many dung beetles, known as rollers, are known for rolling dung into spherical balls, used as food or egg chamber. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Now, what is it NOT to love about dung beetles? Actually I can’t think of anything. Take for example the fact that most of the about 5.000 subspecies feed partly or exclusively on feces. Why don’t they ever consider another diet, you may ask? But that is exactly the recipe for their success. Remember Darwin never said “survival of the strongest”, he said “survival of the fittest”. The most adaptable species will succeed, and dung beetles have definitively found their niche.

So what’s so great about an insect that consumes and bury manure? Most people never think about it, but what happens if tons of dung from livestock are left alone on the fields is that it becomes a habitat for pests like flies. Another benefit is the improved recycling of nutrients and improvement of the soil structure. The cattle industry in the United States alone estimates a saving of several hundred million US$ every year due to the actions of the dung beetles. No wonder then that countries like Australia and New Zealand have introduced certain species of dung beetle. The quality and fertility of the pastures, as well as hygiene, has since improved considerably.

The ancient Egyptians regarded several species of the dung beetle as sacred. The best known is the Scarabaeus sacer (the sacred scarab). The Egyptians believed the dung beetles was purely of male gender and deposited their semen into a dung ball. This resembles Khepri, the god of the rising sun, who created himself out of nothing. The dung ball also symbolizes the sun.

In fact both male and female will be around the ball, but usually it is the male that rolls while the female is hitch-hiking. This is no big deal for a dung beetle which can roll up to 50 times it’s own weight. The ball is then buried in soft soil, and the female will lay her eggs inside it. When hatched the larvae will feed on the dung surrounding it.

Dung beetles with this behavior is known as “rollers”, like those you can see on the image above. Other subspecies are known as “tunnelers”, which bury the dung at the same spot as they find it. Another group is called “dwellers”, who simply live in the manure without any rolling nor burrowing.

As I said, what is it not to love about them?

Giraffes feeding on leaves, acacia trees are among its favorite food. Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve, South Africa. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

How about some images of live giraffes?

These are images I took during a visit to the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve in South Africa a while ago. Hluhluwe-Umfolozi is located 280 km north of Durban, and is the oldest proclaimed park in Africa.

Did you know that the giraffes’ scientific name (Giraffa camelopardalis) refers to its irregular patches of color resembling a leopards spots and to its face which is similar to a camel, hence the English name cameleopard? Cameleopard was used in the English language from the 14th century till the 19th century, when it was replaced by giraffa. The name giraffe though is first known as an Arabic word (ziraafa or zurapha).

Giraffe against a blue sky in Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve, South Africa. Formerly known as cameleopard due to its leopard-like spots and camel-like head. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The tallest giraffe ever measured was almost 6 meters high, but the common height varies between 4 to 5 meters. There are at least 9 subspecies of giraffe which varies in color, pattern, size and habitat. The giraffes you can see on these photos is the South African Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis giraffa), which is a subspecies found in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

The giraffes’ main trademark is its long neck which can be over 2 meters. This has led to one of the most remarkable circulatory systems in the world of mammals. Its heart can weigh up to 10 kg and be about 60 cm long. It must generate at least double the normal blood pressure compared to other large mammals to keep a steady flow of blood to its brain. This kind of blood pressure would kill a human in seconds. A special regulatory system prevents excess blood flow to the brain when it lowers its head, for example when it needs to drink.

Grazing giraffes in the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Game Reserve, South Africai. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The giraffe is not regarded as an endangered species overall, even if a few subspecies has been classified as such. It is a protected species in most African countries, but its habitats are constantly being reduced.

Young male lions feeding on a giraffe. Kruger Park, South Africa. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

It was our last day in the Kruger National Park in South Africa, and early in the morning we were heading through the park towards the Paul Kruger Gate in a large tourist bus when all traffic suddenly came to a full stop.

Looking out of the window I could clearly see the reason why; a small group of three young male lions had very recently brought down an adult giraffe, and were feeding on the carcass just a few meters from the roadside. A red track of blood could be followed to the other side of the road, were the actual kill had taken place.

I prefer to go with smaller cars when looking for animals, but this day was en exception; the large and tall bus gave us a much better view than what would have been possible from a smaller vehicle. I almost felt pity for all the people caught in the traffic jam who could hardly see what was going on. Well, that feeling faded quickly, as I became too busy shooting photos through the bus window.

The lions didn't seem to be much affected by the large number of people watching them. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

This was, for me, a rare display of raw nature. Even if a lions prey normally consists of large mammals like wildebeest, impala, zebra and warthogs they rarely attack very large prey like a fully grown giraffe due to a high risk of injury. The giraffe is actually known to have killed lions with it’s very powerful kick.

In certain areas however, like the Kruger National Park, giraffes are hunted more regularly. One reason may be that giraffes are at an disadvantage when forced onto roads, as they run slower and are easier to bring down. It is also an abundance of giraffes here, so it may simply be a question of opportunity.

If a giraffe is hunted by lions it is normally done by an experienced group led by female lions, not young males like here. This giraffe however may have been injured, as a limping giraffe had been observed in the area the day before, making it easier for the young, inexperienced lions to bring it down.

Young male lions feeding on a giraffe carcass. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

As soon as the traffic jam ended we left the lions behind and headed further into the park. We had several more encounters with Kruger’s wildlife that day, but nothing that could match the lions by the road.

Penguins on Boulders Beach. It is a popular tourist stop because of a colony of African Penguins which settled there in 1982. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Until I visited South Africa a couple of years ago I’ve never seen a penguin in the wild.  And I certainly didn’t expect to meet some on the African continent. But there they were, happily bouncing around on a beach not far from Cape Town. Boulders Beach is a sheltered bay located on the Cape Peninsula near Simonstown. Also known as Boulders Bay, it is a part of the Table Mountain National Park.

Even if the bay is located in the midst of a residential area, a colony of African Penguins settled here in 1982. Actually it was only two breeding pairs at first, since then the colony has grown to about 3.000 individuals. Today it is a popular tourist stop, and newly constructed boardwalks will take visitors to within a few meters of the birds.

African Penguin with egg on Boulders Beach. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The African Penguin is also known as the black-footed penguin, the Cape penguin or the “Jackass” penguin. The latter because of it’s donkey-like sounds. It is found on the south-western coast of Africa, and is the only penguin species that breeds in Africa. It can measure more than 60 cm in length, and weigh about three to five kg.

Like South America has the Humboldt current this area has the Benguela current, bringing cold, nutrient rich waters from the Antarctic all the way up to Angola. The current makes perfect conditions for the African Penguin, but still the population has dropped from more than four million to about 55.000 today. The main reason for this is probably hunting, but oil-spill has recently become a serious threat as well. It is now listed as an endangered species.

Young penguins checking out the water. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

In June 2000 an iron ore tanker sank between Robben Island and Dassen Island and released 1.300 tons of fuel oil. 19.000 penguins were affected and brought to Cape Town for cleaning. An additional 19.500 penguins were removed from the area before they became oiled. These were released 800 km east of Cape Town, and before they had completed their long swim home rescue workers had cleaned up the oiled waters and shores. Tens of thousands of volunteers took part in the rescue operation, which was the largest animal rescue in history.

More than 91% of the penguins were rehabilitated, and part of this success can be enjoyed on Boulder Beach today.

Boulder Beach is full of large... boulders. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Not the moon, not even close. The astronauts main objective in Askja was to study geology. (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

The phrase “The area was used during training for the Apollo program to prepare astronauts for the lunar missions” is commonly used when trying to attract tourists to the Askja area on Iceland and similar desolated locations. You can see it all flashing before your eyes; heroic astronauts jumping around in bulky space suits, trying not to fall over in the moonlike landscape.

Well, it is a common misconception that the Apollo astronauts traveled to wastelands on earth to get used to the bleak hell of the barren moon. As someone said: “for that they could have stayed in Houston”. I’ve never been to Houston, so I cannot say…

However it had a more mundane explanation; they simply had to take geology lessons. The moon landings were foremost, at least in the beginning, about politics rooted in the cold war era. But in the end  it was also about scientific exploration, and if there is one thing the moon has in abundance it is rocks and geology. The astronauts did not go there only for the view, they were expected to bring back samples of the moon, and preferably an interesting variation of specimens.

Now this is the moon; Buzz Aldrin walking on the moon, Apollo 11 (Photo: NASA)

NASA first tried out more conventional, boring lectures. The first astronauts were however not your typical geeky scientists, they were former test pilots, more attuned to an action fueled and learn as you go style. It was therefore decided that geology field trips (GFT’s) were more in line with their personalities.

The first official GFT took place in 1964. They normally took place in spots geologically as similar to the moon as possible. This means desert like, barren places like the ones you easily can find on for example Iceland. They couldn’t see the rocks if they were covered with vegetation, even if some GFT’s were done in wooded areas in order to study some specific kind of rock which also could be found on the moon.

They also visited Grand Canyon to study rock layers, even if they hardly expected to find water carved canyons. Also nuclear test craters were visited because of the similarities they have to meteorite craters.

Geology in the Askja caldera (Photo Bjorn Grotting)

Two field trips were done to Iceland; one in 1965 and one in 1967. The GFT’s concentrated on the Askja caldera, where multiple volcanic eruptions had taken place over centuries. The astronauts had to learn to communicate by radio with geologists and report what they saw using “technical” terminology like for example “FSR” (“Football Sized Rock”) and describe the larger geological structures in front of them. Later their reports were scrutinized, with great amusement, by the scientists who would point out all the geology they had missed. No space suits were required for these lessons, that would not have been very practical.

In 1971 and 1972 the Sudbury basin in Ontario, a 62km long meteorite impact crater, was the destination of later GFT’s. Other field trips not involving geology were done to locations chosen for their resemblance to actual landing sites. In case of emergency landings. they underwent jungle survival training in Panama and desert survival training in Nevada.

Iceland Apollo GFT’s

Below is a list of participants and a brief description from NASA regarding the GFT’s to Iceland in 1965 and 1967;

July 12-16, 1965 Iceland Anders, Bassett, Bean, Cernan, Chaffee, Cunningham, Eisele,

Schweikart, Scott, Williams

Beautiful volcanic geology with practically no vegetation cover. Features includes calderas, ash cones,steaming volcanic vents, cinders, pumice, various types of lava flows. Probably the most moon-like of the field areas. Leaders: Sigurdur Thorarinsson and Gudmundar. Signaldson.

Other geologists present:

Clanton Foss (MSC), Chidester, Wilhelms, Stephens, Lee (USGS). The “Moon game” was utilized in some of the training. The geologic observations made by the astronauts around the edge of Askje Caldera produced a revision in the interpretation by Icelandic geologists of the origin of some of the units erupted from the caldera.

July 2-8, 1967 Iceland Anders, Armstrong, Brand, Carr, Duke, Engle, Evans, Garriot,

Gibson, Haise, Kerwin, Lind, Lousma, Mattingly, McCandless, Michel, Mitchell, Pogue, Roosa, Schmitt, Swigert, Weitz, Worden

Leaders: Sigurdur Thorarinsson and Gudmundar Signaldson. Other geologists present: Clanton, Foss, McKay, Laidley (MSC), Chidester, Kane, Stephens, Lee (USGS). Others: Rhoder, Riley, Nelms of MSC.

See field trip of July 12-16, 1965 for details.

Harrison H. Schmitt

The only actual scientist among the Apollo astronauts was Harrison H. Schmitt.  He was picked as a member of the last moon landing mission – Apollo 17. The text below is from NASA:

Lunar Module Pilot

Dr. Harrison Hagen (Jack) Schmitt, Ph.D. civilian

Jack was born July 3, 1935 in Santa Rita, New Mexico, and grew up in the nearby town of Silver City. He received a B.S. from Caltech in 1957 and then spent a year studying geology at the University of Oslo in Norway. He received a Ph.D. in Geology from Harvard University in 1964. Before joining NASA as a member of the first group of scientist-astronauts in June 1965, he worked at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Astrogeology Center at Flagstaff, developing geological field techniques that would be used by the Apollo crews. Following his selection, Schmitt played a key role in training Apollo crews to be geologic observers when they were in lunar orbit and competent geologic field workers when they were on the lunar surface. After each of the landing missions, he participated in the examination and evaluation of the returned lunar samples and helped the crews with the scientific aspects of their mission reports.

Because Schmitt was the only geologist in the astronaut corps and, as well, had spent considerable time becoming proficient in the CSM and LM systems, it came as no surprise when, in March 1970, he became the first of the scientist-astronauts to receive a crew assignment. He joined Richard Gordon (Commander) and Vance Brand (Command Module Pilot) on the backup crew for Apollo 15 and was clearly in line to fly as Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 18. After the cancellation of Apollo 18 in September 1970, many people expected that he would be assigned to fly on Apollo 17, the last lunar mission. That assignment was announced in August 1971. After the completion of Apollo 17, Schmitt played an active role in documenting the Apollo geologic results and also took on the task of organizing NASA’s Energy Program Office. In August 1975, Schmitt resigned from NASA to seek election as a United States Senator representing New Mexico. He served one term and, notably, was the ranking Republican member of the Science, Technology, and Space Subcommittee. He was defeated in a re-election bid in 1982 and, since then, has kept very busy as a consultant in business, geology, space, and public policy. In 1994, he was appointed as an Adjunct Professor of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin and Chairman and President of the Annapolis Center for Environmental Quality.

Harrison Schmitt by a lunar boulder (Photo: NASA)

Finally his own description of the moon training:

Training to go to the moon took many forms and included thousands of hours in spacecraft simulators, survival training in the jungles of Panama, and several days a month of science training (mostly geology) at various field locations around the country. Science training for the lunar surface crew aimed not at exposure to analogs of lunar features — no good analogs exist on Earth — but at using both instructive settings of comparable geological style and simulated lunar traverses to streamline and refine exploration procedures. We concentrated on sampling, documentation of sample setting, and communication of the essential details and interrelationships of materials and features we might encounter. In the process, we not only prepared to deal efficiently with unexpected discoveries, but polished the planning and operational skills of the entire mission team.

Read the whole story here;

A FIELD TRIP TO THE MOON, as told by Schmitt himself.