Ifan Payne, 575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575575
Road maintenance, watering to keep down dust, and cleaning of culverts on FR 235 will continue through the summer. The road is in heavy use weekdays from 6:00 am to 5:00 pm for construction of the Magdalena Ridge Single Telescope (over 40 vehicle-trips were made on 6/29/05, for instance). Security personnel are stationed at the top and bottom of the road to regulate traffic. Generally the road is passable and open to the public, but during workdays there may be delays while heavy equipment and construction vehicles are on the road. Please drive slowly and carefully.
WARNING: If you drive through the open gate, you are in danger of being locked inside. Be sure you know when the gate will be locked that day.
Daily road reports are no longer being posted, but may be resumed in the
future.
The road is open.
WEATHER at 9:25 am
TODAY
Power is up at all sites, and Steve Hunyady repaired all the data links yesterday afternoon, so everyone should be back online. Let Rob Selina know if you are having issues with on-site equipment.
Power was restored to the site at noon today. There are no expected outages in the near future.
There was a vault inspected yesterday that was deemed too dangerous to re-energize by SEC. We had to make some emergency repairs to the vault so they could reconnect the power. Facilities Management electricians started the repairs yesterday afternoon and finished them this morning, at which time SEC reconnected the power.
UPDATE, 4:00 pm: The power will remain off until noon Thursday while the Electrical Coop inspects electrical vaults.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, the Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope Site.
WEATHER at 7:05 am
TODAY
TOMORROW
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, the Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope Site.
WEATHER at 7:19 am
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the top. Overnight rain has left the road surface wet, but it is drying out quickly.
WEATHER at 7:00 am
YESTERDAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, Site Charactgerization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site.
It rained yesterday and overnight on the lower part of the road and snowed on the upper mountain, but there is no trace of snow on the road.
YESTERDAY
Cleared approximately 200 cu yds of rock overburden, most of which was frozen, from Single Telescope foundation. Locatd the edge of the slab.
Continued fabrication of protective box for hte tilt meter.
TODAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site.
TODAY
Fabrication of Single Telescope second tilt meter protective box; continuation of culvert cleanout.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site.
WEATHER at 6:50 am
TODAY
In answer to the many who ask, this shows how much snow remains on the ridge as of this morning.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is clear and dry and open to Langmuir Lab, Site Charactization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site.
WEATHER at 6:50 am
TODAY
After the planned power outage yesterday power was restored to the ridge, though there seems to be an on-site problem with power at the MROST site.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, the Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope Site.
WEATHER The weather station at the MROST site is presently down with the power problems, but should be up later today.
YESTERDAY
More tree removal and culvert cleanout.
CCSM Project Managers meeting at noon: MROST construction delays, anticipated MROI construction schedule and complications with the SITE trench work were topics of discussion.
TODAY
More tree felling and culvert cleanout. Fabrication of PV mounts for the upper guard shack and shelves for the container.
The power is off all day at the site while SEC does line work.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open all the way to the top.
High wind, poor visibility, and snowing lightly on the ridge at 7:45 this morning.
TODAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the top.
WEATHER at 7:50 am
YESTERDAY
Felled and removed dead walnut tree from beside the road.
One of the police trucks sprang a fuel leak over the exhaust pipe. Fortunately the truck did not catch fire and the officer was on campus at the time so the truck went straight into the garage. However the part necessary for repair will not be available until Tuesday.
Bladed the road again across the top of the Ridge, including
Returned the leased roller and motor grader.
The PO for retrofitting the water truck with a pressure pump was issued to MCT Industries.
TODAY
The planned flight to take a 3/4 view photograph of Water Canyon in order to compile a 'map' of the road with all of the names and locations was postponed due to high cloud obscuring the sun. The flight is now rescheduled for Monday morning.
Tree felling continues.
The part for repairing the Police Truck has been located in Albuquerque and will be picked up.
The list of materials for installing the second tilt meter on the Single Telescope foundation will be compiled.
FOREST ROAD 235
It is sad to see that there are people who enjoy the magnificent environment of the Magdalenas and yet will toss their trash all over that environment. We picked up beer cans, soda cans and a baby's diaper off the Forest Road this morning. The road is open to the top.
WEATHER at 7:15 am
YESTERDAY
TODAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to LL, Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site.
YESTERDAY
TODAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to LL, Site Characterization Traailer, and the Single Telescope site. The road is now completely clear of snow and ice, even up to Langmuir Lab, but expect mud on the ridge as the day warms.
WEATHER at 7:45 am
YESTERDAY
TODAY
FOREST ROAD 235
Rain over the weekend has given us a foretaste of things to come. Rocks have been washed onto Forest Road 235 and the third wet crossing is in full operation -- it will probably have to be rebuilt since the original installation appears not to have created enough of a channel to keep the water from flowing down the road.
The road is open to Langmuir Lab, Site Characterization Trailer, and the Single Telescope site. It is now completely clear of snow and ice, all the way to the top.
WEATHER at 7:39 am
TODAY
We have now received a new pair of radio frequencies, so work can proceed to install a repeater on M Mountain and thus enable full KQP492 radio contact to the campus (including MRO offices) and Highway 60.
Maintenance and temporary rebuilding of the third wet crossing continue today.
The cattle guard and gate at the Balloon Hangar are being removed, and the pit filled in.
The ruts to the Site Characterization Trailer and at the bottom of Langmuir Lab hill will be repaired as soona s they dry out. However, some of the problem will become moot when the diversion road spur starts being used later in the spring.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the top. It is dry to the gate, but muddy along the ridge top.
YESTERDAY
TODAY
Road maintenance continues, including culvert cleanout.
NEXT WEEK
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the top. It is dry and in good condition except for some muddy patches on the ridge top. There is new snow on the road from Sure Woody up to the ridge, but it's very light and should clear by noon.
Strong gusting winds on the ridge top today with a slight dusting of new snow on the ridge.
SCHEDULES
The CCSM crew finished the rock pile at the MROST site on Saturday. The crew will be working on culvert cleanout and also setting up the upper guard shack.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the top. Clear and dry except for ever-decreasing slippery patches on Sure Woody.
TODAY
YESTERDAY
FOREST ROAD 235
Open to the top. Clear and dry except for slippery patches in Sure Woody and muddy patches at the turn off to the Site Characterization Trailer.
WEATHER
TODAY'S SCHEDULE
YESTERDAY
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the Single Telescope, Site Characterization Trailer and Langmuir Lab Main Building.
The lower portion of the road is mostly dry and in good condition though there are some muddy patches. Ice and packed snow patches start roughly at Sure Woody and persist to the site. The rest of the upper portion of the road is muddy.
WEATHER
Dan Klinglesmith and Tom Coleman have made the current weather available on the website as well. The last 5 minutes of data can be seen here.
SCHEDULES
The FM/CCSM road crew is working on the third wet crossing today. The area will remain passable. We will also be working on culvert cleanout up the road.
The MRO Site Characterization team will be accessing the site today.
Steve Hunyady of Langmuir Lab will be accessing the site this morning. Carl Popp of Langmuir Lab will be accessing his sample site at the Microphone Hill trailer during the day.
MROI has a pre-bid site visit this morning.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the Single Telescope, Site Characterization Trailer, and Langmuir Lab Main Building.
The lower portion of the road is mostly dry and in good condition. Ice and packed snow patches start roughly at Sure Woody and persist up to the site.
WEATHER by Dan Klinglesmith, at 8:00 am
SCHEDULES
The FM/CCSM road crew is working on the third wet crossing today. The area will remain passable. We will also be working on culvert cleanout up the road.
The MRO Site Characterization team will be accessing the site this morning.
Steve Hunyady of Langmuir Lab will be accessing the site this afternoon or Thursday, weather permitting.
MROI has a pre-big site visit scheduled for Thursday morning.
Ifan will be back on duty Thursday morning.
FOREST ROAD 235
We had some drifting overnight and heavy winds are currently hampering any clearing effort beyond the gate (we can clear it, but it's impassable again within the hour). If you have a need to access the site today please contact me ASAP and we will try to accommodate you (575-835-6649 or 575-418-8421).
WEATHER at 8:00 am, by D. Klinglesmith
SCHEDULES
The FM/CCSM road crew is working on the third wet crossing today. The area will remain passable.
Garcia's Tents will be picking up the tent, tables, and chairs from yesterday's picnic. They will likely require assistance so delays can be expected between Sure Woody and Goat Corral this morning.
Action Gas and the Facilities Management electricians will be on site at the CCSM trailer today.
FOREST ROAD 235
There was some drifting overnight, but the road is now open to the Single Telescope Site, Site Characterization Trailer, and Main Lab Building.
The road is mostly dry up to Point Zero. From there to Sure Woody there are some ice patches. Sure Woody is snow-packed and icy and it's either icy or muddy from there to the top. Snow has drifted in Sure Woody but it is passable and being cleared.
WEATHER at 8:00 am
SCHEDULES
Relocation of the Site Characterization dome was successfully completed yesterday.
The FM/CCSM road crew is working on culvert cleanout today. Work at the wet crossing has been postponed until Monday. The road will remain passable.
Port-a-potties, the tent, and tables and chairs for the MRO picnic on Sunday are being delivered this morning. It is likely that the tent delivery truck will require some assistance through Sure Woody, so please be prepared for a delay if you are accessing the site between 10:00 and 10:30 am.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open all the way to the Main Lab Building.
WEATHER at 8:00 am
SCHEDULE
Relocation of the Site Characterization Dome is taking place this morning.
The FM/CCSM road crew will be working on the wet crossing and culverts today and tomorrow. The road will remain passable at th wet crossing.
CCSM is assisting with some of the preparations for the MRO picnic on Sunday afternoon. The tent/shelter and port-a-potties are both scheduled for delivery on Friday morning.
FOREST ROAD 235 NOTE: At 9:00 am the road is open to the top.
We are presently clearing the road and it is open to mile 10.5. Snow depth varies between 8 and 12 inches. If there is minimal drifting beyond the gate we hope to have the road open to the Single Telescope Site and Site Characterization Trailer within a few hours, and Langmuir Lab by 1:00 pm.
WEATHER at 8:00 am
SCHEDULES
Relocation of the Site Characterization dome will ikeley take place tomorrow.
The FM/CCSM road crew will be focused on snow clearing today and then weather permitting we will return to work on the wet crossing and culverts.
WEATHER UPDATE
Snow fall at the trailer is now 4"+. Sandy at Langmuir Lab has confirmed that none of their personnel will be accessing the site and the MRO Site Characterization team has also canceled their plans so there are no expected trips to the mountain today. With the deteriorating weather conditions on site and the lack of any planned activity I have called our operators and officers down to campus. There are no personnel at the CCSM Trailer or on the road. If you have an unexpected need to access the site please contact me at 575-835-6649.
Dan's weather station is up and running now. Here's the weather on Site:
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is still open to the Single Telescope Site, Site Characterization Trailer and Langmuir Lab though conditions are deteriorating. Snow chains are required.
There are approximately 2-3" of snow at the CCSM Trailer and 4-5" as you approach Sure Woody. It is still coming down hard and we will not begin clearing until the snow has stopped to prevent the road from turning into an ice rink (if we clear the road while it is still snowing, the loader leaves a 1/2" sheet of packed snow/ice that is then covered by fresh snow. The result is a surface with very poor traction).
HIGHWAY 60
Between Socorro and Sedillo Hill the road is wet with small snow patches. Bridges are still frozen. Above Sedillo Hill the road is snow packed and slick.
WEATHER
As of 7:30 this morning best estimates are that we had 15 mph winds on site and temperature was in the 8-10 degree range. (Dan Klinglesmith's weather station went down yesterday afternoon).
SCHEDULE
Relocation of the site characterization trailer has been postponed due to the weather.
The FM/CCSM road crew will be focused on snow clearing today and then weather-permitting we will return to work on the wet crossing and culverts.
FOREST ROAD 235
Luckily the storm that was lingering Sunday largely avoided the site. The road is still open to the Single Telescope Site, Site Characterization Trailer, and Langmuir Lab.
The road is mostly dry up to mile 8.75. Between there and Sure Woody we have intermittent snow and ice patches. From Sure Woody up we have packed snow that is melting and we're getting a lot of mud. Please drive accordingly and try to avoid rutting the road. Also please watch for unstable trees. Recent moisture and runoff are eroding the banks of the road and we are seeing a loss of stability of nearby trees in some areas. We will be addressing this shortly.
We will be beginning road maintenance today so please radio the officer at Water Canyon as you leave campus so we can minimize any delays.
SCHEDULE
Relocation of the Site Characterization Trailer may take place today; the details are still being worked out.
We will have a Facilities Management/CCSM crew performing some maintenance and capital improvements on the road. Starting today we will be working on the third wet crossing installing a drainage structure across the road. Later in the week we will be progressing up the road cleaning out the culverts and finishing off the gabion installations. Once that work is complete we will remove some of the unstable trees on the road.
CONTACT
Ifan Payne is out of the office from March 10 returning on March 24. Rob Selina will coordinate CCSM activities during this period: 575-835-6649.
Ifan Payne is out of the office from March 10 returning on March 24. Rob Selina will coordinate CCSM activities during this period: 575-835-6649.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the Single Telescope site, Site Characterization Trailer, and Langmuir Lab.
The road is mostly dry up to Point 0. Above that point there are some small ice spots as you approach Sure Woody. Snow and light mud up top.
WEATHER at 8:00 a.m.
SCHEDULES
The Site Characterization team will be evaluating the dome situation this afternoon. Relocation of the dome has been rescheduled for Monday or Tuesday.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the Site Characterization Trailer and to the Langmuir Lab Main Building. Dry to Point Zero; patches of snow on the road to the top.
WEATHER
SAFETY
MRO personnel, please read the MRO Safety Rules for travel to the Ridge.
POINT OF CONTACT
Ifan Payne is out of the office from March 10 returning on March 24. Rob Selina will coordinate CCSM activities during this period: 575-835-6649.
FOREST ROAD 235
The road is open to the Site Characterization Trailer, and on to the Langmuir Lab Main Building. It is wet and muddy in parts from the bottom to Point Zero. From Point Zero to Sure Woody it is snow-covered and ice-packed in parts. From there to the top it is snow-packed and icy.
WEATHER
POINT OF CONTACT
Ifan Payne is out of the office from March 10 returning on March 24. Rob Selina will coordinate CCSM activities during this period: 575-835-6649.
YELLOW TUBING
Strands of 1/8-inch diameter yellow tubing are visible poking out of the snow in places between the gate and the single telescope site. These are sections of fuse tubes that were used to detonate the ANFO to dislodge the avalanche. The tubing is inert and not dangerous (a pressure pulse, not an electrical charge, is used to detonate the explosives). We will clear up the rest of the tubing as the snow melts.
MRO SAFETY DOCUMENT
A draft of the first part of what will become the Magdalena Ridge Observatory Safety Program, which initially will deal with safe working on the Ridge, is available from the MRO Office.
FOREST ROAD 235
Public vehicles driving along the road over the weekend have rutted lower portions of the road badly. We would be grateful if those driving up to the Ridge help maintain the road surface by not driving in the ruts and by weaving back and forth to pack down the rest of the surface.
The road is open all the way to Langmuir Lab. Muddy on the lower third, snow-packed on the upper two thirds.
A lesson learned: John Murphy got stuck in a snow drift early this morning. Fortunately one of the police officers is also a trained heavy equipment operator and was able to come to his aid and pull him out. If the front loader had become stuck we have no other equipment with which to rescue it. The lesson learned is that we must always have two operators and two items of equipment available on Magdalena Ridge.
WEATHER at 8:00 am, thanks to Dan Klinglesmith
The road is open to the Site Characterization Trailer and to Langmuir Lab. The dozer is being walked back down the road and is expected to arrive in the campground around 12:30. The road is closed until the dozer reaches the bottom.
FOREST ROAD 235
Ifan Payne, 575-835-6808 (office), 505-363-5455 (cell), ipayne@admin.nmt.edu.
The dozer is being "walked" up to the Ridge (i.e, being driven under its own power) and should be reaching the gate about 9:00 am. Equipment like dozers and graders cannot be transported on a flatbed to the top of the Ridge since the trucks are too large to negotiate the road. "Walking" tracked equipment up the road is a hazardous, and sometimes dangerous, operation since the steel tracks have no lateral traction and the operator has to fight the tendency for the equipment to slide sideways into the mountain or the canyon, depending on the camber of the road. Normally we have to wait for fine weather and a dry road before moving tracked equipment up and down the road but in this case we are making every effort to take advantage of the couple of days during which we have the dozer and of the fine weather on the Ridge.
We hope to clear the road to Langmuir by the end of the day. Unfortunately, the dozer sprang an oil leak at 7:00 am this morning, half way up the road, but we can make it to the top and a mechanic is on the way to repair the leak so we should not be held up too long.
Ifan Payne, 575-835-6808 (office), 505-363-5455 (cell), ipayne@admin.nmt.edu.
WEATHER at 8:00 am (thanks to D. Klinglesmith)
SCHEDULE
The road to Langmuir Lab should be open by the end of the day.
As of 3:30 pm all but the last 20 ft of the avalanched snow, which turned out to be 20 ft deep, has been cleared. Thanks to the generosity and cooperation of Steve Welch, Manager of Aerojet, and Jim Shaffner, Director of Facilities Management, we have been able to acquire a dozer for two days which is being transported to Water Canyon as I write. Thanks also to Mike Hefner for following up and helping to make this happen.
With both the Front Loader and the Dozer in operation, the expectation is that the road will be open to Langmuir by the end of the day tomorrow.
WEATHER at 8:00 am
FOREST ROAD 235
Open to the gate. Muddy and slippery from Water Canyon to Point Zero; snow-packed and icy from Point Zero onward.
SCHEDULE
Snow clearing all day; updates on progress will be made in the afternoon.
WEATHER
SCHEDULE
Following a morning meeting with Rudy Correa, Deputy Director of EMRTC, we have arranged detonation of the avalanche area for tomorrow morning. The schedule reflects this revised timing.
WEATHER
About four inches of snow fell over the weekend.
FOREST ROAD 235
WEATHER - Provided by Dan Klinglesmith
FOREST ROAD 235
Approximately two inches of snow fell overnight
FOREST ROAD 235
Open to the gate. Snow chains are required.
SCHEDULE
Single Telescope pre-bit site visit approximately 10:30 a.m. today.
Is no one else intending, or hoping, to go to the Ridge next week? Next Month? As we get ever closer to the construction season, it would really help if we could get an idea of proposed schedules. Ideally I would like to be able to post the daily schedule for a rolling seven-day period, and have an outline of a proposed rolling monthly schedule.
Contact Ifan Payne, 575-835-6808 (office), 505-363-5455 (cell), ipayne@admin.nmt.edu.
FOREST ROAD 235
We would be grateful if everyone who travels on the Forest Road helps to maintain the surface of the road. Please help by compacting the whole width of the surface of the road. This means making sure that you do not drive in the tracks or ruts formed by others. It would greatly help if, when driving up to the Ridge, you ensure that your wheels are driving over un-compacted parts of the road surface. It's actually more fun to weave back and forth across the road rather than just driving up in the same boring old ruts. At the very least, please attempt to keep either the left- or the right-hand wheels in the middle of the road between the main ruts.
SCHEDULE
Again, I would be grateful if we could develop a system for letting us know your schedule for any proposed trip up to Magdalena Ridge so that w begin to develop daily schedules and help with traffic management and help ensure that you can travel up the Forest Road as scheduled.
Contact Ifan Payne, 575-835-6808 (office), 505-363-5455 (cell), ipayne@admin.nmt.edu.
Today at 7:00 am the temperature was 28 degrees F at the gate with a light breeze taking the wind-chill to 6 - 9 degrees F. The road is open to the gate, dry on the lower half, snow packed on the upper third. Additional snowfall is expected over the next few days.
The decision was made yesterday to halt road-clearing operations above the gate due to the danger of additional avalanching in that area. More snow is predicted for the rest of this week. It is too dangerous to clear the road with heavy equipment because of the overhang above the road. Plans are being made to detonate charges after the approaching storm passes, to bring down the snow from the hillside above the road. Then clearing operations will resume, and may take some days to open the road above the gate if more avalanching occurs as a result of the charges.
Please notify Ifan Payne in advance if you have plans to use FR235 so that he can develop a daily schedule to help with traffic management: 575-835-6808 (office); 505-363-5455 (cell).
The Langmuir Lab Office (575-835-5423) and the MRO Office (505-835-6808) are in radio contact with the security officers and road maintenance crew and can advise you of the road's status.