December 1, 2011 - Ladies Night - Dr. Rosaly Lopes - Looking for Volcanic Heat: from Erta Ale in Ethiopia to Outer Space!
Active lakes of lava are very rare on Earth, but common on Io, a moon of Jupiter.
Rosaly Lopes, a volcanologist with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
spent years studying lava lakes on Io using the Galileo spacecraft discovering many that were previously unknown.
Although she had been to many active volcanoes on Earth and written books about them,
at the top of her wish list was Erta Ale in Ethiopia – one of the rare lava lakes on Earth, constantly boiling and churning.
Travelling to active volcanoes is not a big deal for Rosaly, but going to Erta Ale required more than knowing one's way around lava.
Erta Ale is in the Danakil Depression, one of the hottest and most inhospitable places on Earth.
It is very remote and controlled by Afar tribes, who are famous for not liking visitors.
Many colleagues advised against making the journey, telling tales ranging from being stopped from reaching the volcano to being kidnapped.
The expedition required careful planning and some adventurous companions, including Ken Freund and Jim Dorsey from the Adventurers Club and Jim's wife, Irene.
Rosaly will talk about their journey, the lava lake, and how it compares with those on Io.
The trip was a Flag Expedition from the Adventurers Club, the Explorers Club, and the Society of Women Adventurers.
Please join us on what will be the last ladies night of the year and one of the final presentations of an amazing 2011.
Adventurers' Club Flag near Erta Ale and the Danakil Depression
Erta Ale
Hot Stuff
Barren yet Beautiful
James and Irene Dorsey
The Adventurers' Club of Los Angeles®
December 8, 2011 - Barbara Schultz - Flying Carpets, Flying Wings
Demille Field
Enjoy an evening learning about Moye Stephens documented in his biography, Flying Carpets, Flying Wings.
Presentations include slides to enhance a historical perspective of Moye's 50 year involvement in aviation.
Listed below are some of the areas comprehensively covered in the presentation and book.
Early flying in southern California - Clover, Rogers, DeMille, Chaplin and Grand Central Airports - in Standards, Jennys, and Thomas Morse Scouts.
Moye's association with Hughes, Hancock, Bellande, Northrop, Clarke, Nomis, Breeze, and many other notable aviators.
Flying trimotors for Maddux, TAT, and T & WA.
Piloting a Stearman C-3B, nicknamed the Flying Carpet, around the world for author Richard Halliburton in 1931-1932.
This is the factual narrative of that flight based on airplane logbooks, original maps, and letters home from Moye to his parents.
The forming of Northrop Corporation in 1939 and test flights of the N1M, N9M, Black Widow, and other Northrop prototypes.