The Saar Loop at Mettlach

The natural beautiful Saar River rises in the Vosges mountains on the border of Alsace and Lorraine, in France, then river flows northward through western Germany to its confluence with Mosel river, near Trier. Thus, inside Germany the Saar River pursues a winding course until it reaches a barrier in the form of Hunsrück, a low mountain range made of hard quartzite rock. Quartzite is a hard, metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Moreover, sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure frequently related to tectonic compression. The river, impotent to carve a way through the rocks, creates a full 180-degree turn and cuts a deep U-shaped gorge through the densely wooded mountains. Furthermore, this astonishing hairpin bend situated above Mettlach is called the Saar Loop or Saarschleife in German, and is one of the most famous sights of Saarland. The river flows comparable for a long stretch in the opposite direction before turning left and ongoing its northward journey towards Mosel River. The superlative views of Saarschleife are to be had from Cloef, a rocky viewpoint at the apex of the Saar loop about 180 meters above the river. An eye-catching panoramic viewpoint has been built here for the sake of sightseers.

Therefore, on the wooded ridge within the Saar loop, lie the Church of St. Gangolf and the ruins of the 12th century Montclair Castle. The castle is located about 290 metres above sea level on the high ridge of the Saar loop, the so-called Castle Hill. Hence it can be reached by boat. Both on the inside as well as on the outside loop, runs a continuous walking and bike path. The Saar Loop is also recognized as the Great Saar loop at Mettlach, for further downstream in the municipality of Taben-Rodt, the Saar river makes another loop called the Small Saar loop, though not as remarkable as it’s bigger brethren.

The Ghostly Shipwreck of the Yacht “Mar Sem Fim”

Mar Sem Fim is also called Endless Sea is a Brazilian yacht that was sunk and afterward got frozen in ice in Maxwell Bay of Ardley Cove, Antarctica, about 1,200 kilometers south of tip of South America, in April 7, 2012. The yacht that belonged to the famous Brazilian journalist and entrepreneur João Lara Mesquita, was crewed by four peoples who were filming a documentary off the Antarctic coast when the boat overturned. Strong winds in excess of 100-kilometer per hour had tossed the boat from one side to the other “like a bucking bronco in a rodeo,” according to one crew member.

With their vessel trapped in ice, the crew radioed for assistance and was received by the Chilean navy in the base in Bahia Fildes, in Antarctica. All four investigators were finally rescued but bad weather delayed the process by couple of days. João Lara Mesquita says who was also in the yacht then with strong winds and high waves, the boat Frei came to us. Our evacuation was extremely ambitious waves of more than 1.5 meters and winds over 40 knots made the boat jump from one side to another, just like a bucking bronco. When it got close, each of us threw ourselves into the arms of three Chilean crew members. Fortunately all went safely. Mar Sem Fim, however, couldn’t be rescued. The nearby freezing water that had been tossed over the ship was later frozen and then split the hull when it expanded. This phenomenon is called complete compression, and is what was later determined to have been the final blow to the hull of the Mar Sem Fim, sending her to the bottom of the shallow bay.

The boat lay in about 30 feet of water, preserved and can be seen from above, for almost a year, until rescue in early 2013. Owner João Lara Mesquita managed to return to the site and when the weather fully cooperated sent divers who wrapped strong lines under the hull and attached them to inflated buoys on either side. The buoys were incessantly inflated, gradually raising the vessel that had been underwater for almost a year. Once the vessel was surfaced, and then it was towed back to the shore where the researchers recovered their equipment and the Mar Sem Fim will most likely head for salvage. The ship was though insured for $700,000, nevertheless, the breached hull and damage from being submerged for ten months would seem to indicate the vessel is beyond repair.

Source: Amusing Planet 

The Hand of Punta del Este

The Hand of Punta del Este, or Mano de Punta del Este, is a sculpture of a hand partially formed with sand and located at Brava Beach in the famous resort town of Punta del Este, in Uruguay.  Chilean artist Marion Irarrazabal made this sculpture and unveiled during the summer of 1982, while he was attending the first annual International Meeting of Modern Sculpture in the Open Air in Punta del Este. The sculpture has since become a symbol for Punta del Este and is one of Uruguay's most recognizable landmarks. Over the years the sculpture came to be called by different names such as Emergiendo a la Vida (Man Emerging into Life), Monumento los Dedos (Monument of the Fingers), and Monumento al Ahogado (Monument to the Drowned), although the creator prefers it to be called simply “the Hand”. Mario Irarrázabal was the youngest of the nine sculptors who were invited to attend the inaugural edition of the International Meeting of Modern Sculpture in the Open Air.

Therefore, during that summer, the seafront turned into a kind of outdoor workshop where artists from several countries gathered and initiated to give shape to what they had in mind. Mario Irarrázabal arrived with a scale model of the hand but he had to improvise the rest of the procedure while facing natural hindrances such as the sand and the wind. Unluckily, a conflict arose among the participating sculptors about the places assigned on a public square. Though the others argued, Mario Irarrázabal quietly took his creation to the beach. He was very passionate about his work, and he just finished his work in just 6 days.

Thus, the massive hand is made of concrete reinforced with steel bars, and metal mesh, and covered with a degradation-resistant material. His magnificent sculpture became an instant hit earning him worldwide praise. It’s the only sculpture from the exhibition, hosted over two decades ago, that come to an end to sit on the beach these days. Moreover, it gives fantastic opportunity to tourists who has been photographed by thousands of tourists and has appeared on countless postcards and magazines. Mario Irarrázabal later made similar to exact replicas of the sculpture for the city of Madrid in 1987, in the Atacama Desert in Chile in 1992, and in Venice in 1995.

Source: Amusing Planet

Udachnaya Pipe, The World Third Deepest Open-Pit Diamond Mine in Russia

The Udachnaya pipe is also called lucky pipe actually a diamond deposit in the Daldyn-Alakit kimberlite field in Sakha Republic, Russia. The Udachnaya is one of main diamond suppliers in Russia and about 80% and almost half of the world’s proved diamond resources are located on the territory of the Republic of Sakha Yakutia. This is an open-pit mine is located just outside the Arctic circle at 66°26′N 112°19′E. 

In June 15, 1955 The Udachnaya pipe was discovered right after two days after the discovery of another diamond pipe Mir by Soviet geologist Vladimir Shchukin and his team. The open-pit mine is over 1,970 feet deep, making it the third deepest open-pit mine in the world after Bingham Canyon Mine and Chuquicamata. Moreover, the nearby settlement of Udachny is named for the deposit. Currently Udachnaya pipe is well controlled by Russian diamond company Alrosa, which planned to halt open-pit mining in favor of underground mining in 2010. 

The Udachnaya pipe mine has estimated more than reserves of 225.8 million carats of diamonds and an annual production capacity of 10.4 million carats. The development of the rough diamond geological exploration will focus on localizing, exploration, evaluation and prospecting of potential diamond-bearing areas in the Yakutsk diamondiferous province. At present, the localizing commercial diamond deposits are connected with the Sredne-Markhinsky and Muno-Tungsky diamond-bearing areas, where the new kimberlite bodies rich in diamonds and can be discovered, as well as buried high-quality diamond placer deposits. Moreover, it is also planned to enhance the diamond exploration works by 3.5 per cent per year of the value of the diamonds mined in the Republic in order to replenish the utilized reserves and discover new promising kimberlite and alluvial deposits. Source: Charismatic Planet