Life is cathartic journey; accidents & injuries give us clarity as do weddings & funerals. I won't recant too much but a set of nostalgia searches fixed an intriguing mind puzzle. A glimpsed seemingly static framed image of the world in a movie decades past but it stuck with me. There is an inner calling to be veracious & throw in dollops of exaggeration. But my path of gaining this (broken) device was bizarre & full-fulling whilst scaring the bejaysus outta me. It's name is the GeoChron World Clock - a mechanical machine that depicts time everywhere across our entire Planet Earth. I could extrapolate about the terminator zone of night & day at the equator. Which moves roughly 1,040 miles per hour or 463meters per second. Indeed worth mentioning only supersonic aircraft concorde or fighter jets can keep up or overtake it. The speed decreases as you move towards the celestial poles, where it can drop to zero during peak summer or winter months depending on the hemisphere. The fuzzy edge of the terminator (shaded or curved lines) known as twilight zone is caused by atmospheric scattering. The Earth spins on its axis (axial tilt creating the annual seasons) once every 23hours 56minutes & four seconds aka solar day. Maximum speed at the equator is 1,670km/h. We revolve around the Sun or Sol at about 107,000km/h or 67,000mph. The sidereal day of our shared Planet is 84,164 seconds (approximately four minutes shorter than a standard solar day of 24hours). To get the Sun back to the exact same position in the sky overhead (one solar day), Earth must rotate a little over an extra degree - requiring those extra 4 minutes. Speed by location at 45° latitude North or South is roughly 1,184km/h aka 735mph. For me this is a living piece of art & science exploration/doorway to further insights. You just need to keep been interested in learning knowledge or broaden ones wisdom. These modern machines or restorations come with points of interest, human, terrestrial & oceanic too name but a few & the odd nuclear disaster locations too boot. Onwards to my story of Myke Blackburn gifting me this exquisite device. PS: Patrick Bolan - Ham radio handle KJ7ZSU (I'd like to see a red-light option for the mechanical version for us Astronomers to conserve dilated pupils)
There's a whole slew of changes that took place helping a friend or been coaxed too change one's path. For better or worse mind' & searching for a American rotating globes from this site; https://www.1ststoptravelstore.com/ I was sent into a frenzy of "that's it, the thing I saw years ago..". From which I will summarise ebay took some proverbial battering along with facebook market place. As I was now determined to amend my endeavours for a (RGB stem) Magellan Illuminated Gemstone Globes with Floor Stand. {still after one my American comrades} Had been whipped aside for more urgent information like,...how much is a GeoChron & who makes them? My ultimate hero was a gentleman requesting a donation to the charity; Parkinsons disease. The advert for broken geochron didn't look right too me from the facebook advert. I arrived at the home & was greeted with "...your on a motorbike, do you know what your collecting?" My rebuttable was swift, oh don't worry I do this all the time. Inside the dwelling I learned immediately this was a rare golden metal brass effect version GeoChron. I was almost slack-jaw at this point & was unsure if this transaction was actually going to manifest. It was to good too be true, a machine in touching distance which was one of say five things that have kept voids in my brain for some fifty odd years. A request for sustenance along the lines of a cuppa tea was humbly requested. All I can say is that I happily donated as I have done to hospices in time immemorial. I still feel a level of shock recalling this because the clock will never be sold & is now an heirloom item for ones family too eventually be bestowed. Once home I now ran the mental maelstrom of how much this was going to cost too be restored. As even static faulty ones go for a good chunk of shrapnel. The process requires locating the serial number & contacting GeoChron USA or UK outlets for basic price & optional extra's or addons. It was,....I am pausing typing this as the amount & sending it too USA rather than UK. Was all fairly terrifying, ignoring the fiscal outlay would it make it? Would it be fixed & then get lost incoming as the odd parcel is left randomly at different fences or postal boxes. No, it made it to & fro Warwickshire unhindered. I was exhausted, though it now has a linked remote control with two saved levels of illumination & lit analemma (Sun's location on Earth at all times of the year). Keeping my other loved time-piece a yes watch company, combing the same theoretical depictions of Astronomical/Nautical/Civil twilight aka 6°/12°/18° at the golden hour or terminator zone in good standing. https://geochron.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Geochron_brochure_16b1.pdf
I shall now link some videos for different things to fully encapsulate my wanton desire for more people to go buy one or refurbish a mechanical version. https://www.geochron.com/about/ https://www.geochron.com/ham-radio-premium-bundle/ https://www.geochron.com/iss-earth-view/ https://www.geochron.com/premium-weather/ However they do a digital far superior version for televisual programming unit, for which I've not owned or had one since 2012. Truly the hardest addiction to give up https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analemma https://bigthink.com/strange-maps/the-worlds-first-tutulemma/ There will be a link for the Mercator projection map; GeoChron allowing nocturnal ( crepuscular ) & diurnal time dilation pictorially presented via analogue mechanical magnificence. To be deciphered if the leaning takes you on a path of discover about specific animals all the merrier. As someone who's constantly revolving around chaotic circadian rhythumic motion due to long distance lorry driving. I'm at peace glancing knowing friends in far flung places are enjoying winter & I know there rituals & morning routines in a moment. ps: The hidden part must be covered - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch PPS: This is the item I still desire help in gaining USA members & posted here. https://nifao.com/products/illumina...ize-19-x-19-x-42h?_pos=1&_sid=397b6b497&_ss=r
Have to say the Geochron looks a serious piece of interesting kit. You’re not thinking of buying a DeLorean are you?
