Author: Andrew Grantham

Denge mirrors seem from above

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

As a result of visiting Camber castle on 4 July 2009, I stumbled across RXwildlife Sightings, the weblog with the latest wildlife sightings for the Hastings, Rye Bay, Dungeness and Romney Marsh area.

On the website is an aerial photograph from 1946 showing (if you look carefully!) the Denge sound mirrors from above. There is also a modern view for comparison, showing how the area has been developed.

This photo shows the Lade, the north eastern part of the Dungeness shingle beach in 1946. This section of the beach is relatively young with a series of beach ridges terminating in the marsh soils to the west of the shingle. The dark line bending round from the top left and cutting south across the shingle is the old railway line, with little development to the west of this feature other than the listening mirrors, which were reached by tracks from the east coast. These structures were a pre-radar attempt to focus the noise of aircraft crossing the channel for its operators, and in those days they have a relatively clear view of the sea with only scattered housing along the coast. the most extensive buildings are the beginnings of the Romney Sands holiday camp.

[More at Then and now: 5]

A series of “then and now” photos show how the coast line has changed over time.

Sound mirror open day 19 July 2009

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

Just a reminder about this weekend’s open day at the Denge sound mirrors, organised by the Romney Marsh Countryside Project:

Due to the overwhelming popularity of last years Echoes of the Sky tours we are making a few changes this year. We will be holding a new open day on Sunday 19th July. The island will be open from 10am in the morning until 5pm. Dr Richard Scarth, an expert on these structures, will be present to answer any questions. The Sound Mirrors are located on private land and this is the only way in which they can be accessed. We will have a number of staff stationed at key places to help direct people to the island. There will a member of staff on the bridge asking for a £2 donation per person to cover costs. Parking is available at Lade car park, opposite Taylor Road on Coast Drive (halfway between the Pilot Pub and Romney Sands) (TR 085 208). This will be a non-booking event, you just need to turn up on the day. The walk will be across shingle. For anymore details contact the Romney Marsh Countryside Project

The Geek Atlas

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

The Geek Atlas is a new book by John Graham-Cumming published by O’Reilly, the people who do those techie books with animals on the covers (and as a result made me want to slash and burn any East Indies jungles where tarsiers might live).

The reason for mentioning the book here is that one of the sites listed is Denge, for the three sound mirrors.

The Geek Atlas book cover

The history of science is all around us, if you know where to look. With this unique traveler’s guide, you’ll learn about 128 destinations around the world where discoveries in science, mathematics, or technology occurred or is happening now. Travel to Munich to see the world’s largest science museum, watch Foucault’s pendulum swinging in Paris, ponder a descendant of Newton’s apple tree at Trinity College, Cambridge, and more.

Each site in The Geek Atlas focuses on discoveries or inventions, and includes information about the people and the science behind them. Full of interesting photos and illustrations, the book is organized geographically by country (by state within the U.S.), complete with latitudes and longitudes for GPS devices.

Destinations include:

Bletchley Park in the UK, where the Enigma code was broken
The Alan Turing Memorial in Manchester, England
The Horn Antenna in New Jersey, where the Big Bang theory was confirmed
The National Cryptologic Museum in Fort Meade, Maryland
The Trinity Test Site in New Mexico, where the first atomic bomb was exploded
The Joint Genome Institute in Walnut Creek, California

You won’t find tedious, third-rate museums, or a tacky plaque stuck to a wall stating that “Professor X slept here.” Every site in this book has real scientific, mathematical, or technological interest — places guaranteed to make every geek’s heart pound a little faster. Plan a trip with The Geek Atlas and make your own discoveries along the way.

The Geek Atlas. ISBN: 9780596523206, 542 pages, £22.99

Abbot’s Cliff hum and gusts

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

A 75 second recording of the wind at the Abbot’s Cliff sound mirror on 2 April 2009 by Steven Rowell. Evident in this recording, with mic placed directly on concrete mirror concave face, is a noticeable, resonant hum below 150Hz. Wind gusts on the cliffs were quite strong.

It is from radio aporee ::: maps

an open project about the creation and exploration of public soundscapes. it collects and organizes recordings of daily surroundings and other sonic habitats from all over the world. the sounds are organized within a mashup system of mapping software, databases, telephone networks and the Internet. sites and sounds can also be explored and accessed in situ by recent GPS-enabled mobile devices.

Kilnsea sound mirror pictures at From The Neolithic To The Sea

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

Kilnsea Sound Mirror at From The Neolithic To The Sea.

This is a personal journey through time and space, visiting many places and the story told in pictures and words. As with most journeys, we encounter the ordinary, the unusual and the interesting. Some we seek, some we find and some even find us.
From The Neolithic To The Sea: A Journey From The Past To The Present

Other pages of interest on the site include the Humber Port War Signal Station at Spurn, Reighton Sands and the Godwin Artillery Battery at Kilnsea.

Drop Redoubt

Posted on by Andrew Grantham

An open weekend on 30-31 May 2009 allowed the public to visit the Drop Redoubt, a fortress situated on Dover’s Western Heights.

One of the most important and impressive fortifications in Britain, the Western Heights are a series of strong points linked by miles of ditches on the western hilltop above Dover. They were originally begun during the American War of Independence, were strengthened during the Napoleonic Wars and updated and strengthened again in the mid nineteenth century.
Western Heights Preservation Society

Open days are infrequent, but it is well worth a look around if you get the chance to visit. There are no sound mirrors(!), but the redoubt is very impressive, with immense walls surrounded by deep ditches. The entrance drawbridge is gone, so access is via a tunnel into the moat, and then into the fortress building through a sally port.

There were various re-enactors there and a vintage bus service from the town to the redoubt – though it isn’t far to walk.