Posts Tagged ‘VLA’
Coffee Cups 742, 743, and 744
Posted by Lloyd Y. Asato | Filed under Poetics of Peet's
Off to see Serenity tonight, of course.
Then the long drive east. 742.
Over the mountains to the plains of San Agustin in New Mexico. 743.
To look at a bunch of white dishes. What is your weekend plan? 744.
Interlude 36 – The Very Large Array
Posted by Lloyd Y. Asato | Filed under Coffee Interludes
We, eventually, drove 1,200 miles to look at the Very Large Array. Just because.
It is on The Plains of San Agustin. There was a Historical Marker but I do not remember what it said. The plateau is about 7500 feet above sea level and ringed with mountains.
We came east from Arizona on the 60. In fact, that is the why of the trip. We live off the 60 and when I found out the VLA was on the 60 and in certain configurations crossed the 60 we had to go. Just before getting to the VLA we passsed through Pie Town but did not stop.
It really is a remarkable site and sight. The sky was this particular blue. The dishes were at attention when we drove by and bowed as we got on campus.
The dishes are huge 25 meter things and a much better spectacle than Christo’s killer umbrellas. Those were yellow. These are white. But they shared a vibe, you know?
It was a pilgrimage. A geek quest of sorts. Homage to the dishes. Then what? Roswell, maybe the Trinity site, or a drive past the camp where my family was interred during the war? Coffee in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico seemed like the appropriate next thing. But that would not end well.
We drove 1,200 miles to look at the Very Large Array. Just because.