"user314" (user314)
03/30/2018 at 17:00 • Filed to: U-2, Dragon Lady, Aurora, Northern Lights, Planelopnik
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"user314" (user314)
03/30/2018 at 17:00 • Filed to: U-2, Dragon Lady, Aurora, Northern Lights, Planelopnik | 12
| 4 |
Not a bad way to spend your day
USAF U-2 instructor pilot !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! recently shared a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! of pictures taken at 70,000 feet of the Northern Lights:
The photos most certainly show the greens and purples of the Aurora Borealis as they dance across the sky. They demonstrate just how vibrant the colors are, regardless of the altitude. And, of course, what better selfie moment is there than in a spy plane with the Northern Lights behind you? But Franquemont’s photo wizardry isn’t owed solely to the location. There’s a fair amount of skill involved in taking photographs in a vibrating plane traveling at 500 mph while wearing a space suit that restricts motion and visibility.
“To get somewhat crisp shots, I had to use a pretty fast shutter speed, no faster than about a second. My wide angle lens could open to f2.8 and to get anything usable, I had to bump the ISO up to about 8000. I knew that movement would be an issue but I wasn’t sure until I was shooting it what settings I would use. I found that to get even crisper shots, I had to speed up the shutter even more because of how fast the aurora itself was changing. This meant an even higher ISO. Most of the shots have a noticeable grain from the high ISO. Shooting the selfies was also a challenge. I actually took those on a whim and hadn’t planned on it.”
415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)
> user314
03/30/2018 at 17:23 |
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These companies keep trying to get space tourists but I would be plenty happy with a trip in one of these or a Mig to that altitude.
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user314
> 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)
03/30/2018 at 17:31 |
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Unless you’re a Mythbuster, the chances of getting a ride in a Dragon Lady is very slim, but there are several places that have offered flights in MiG-25s and -31s (among other types). Availability is contingent on maintenance, and will run you around 15-20 grand.
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415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)
> user314
03/30/2018 at 17:39 |
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Oh yes I know, my dad is/was a pilot. I’ve been in various aircraft but not that high!
wafflesnfalafel
> 415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°)
03/30/2018 at 21:48 |
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Yeah - or even a Dassault Falcon or something. A time to altitude run in F15 would be pretty darn cool too...