And now for something completely different

ALWAYS BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU PARK

You may have missed this important news in early July, so we present it here for your enlightenment.

Last month's launch of NASA's orbiting space shuttle "Discovery," was complicated by the discovery of some whitish splotches on the shuttle's black-colored right wing after the launch. NASA officials stated that these appeared to be "bird droppings."

If correct, this means that these bird droppings withstood (1) intense and regular Florida thunderstorms, (2) a powerful launch during which 300,000 gallons of water were sprayed at the shuttle's main engines, and (3) a thrust upward through Earth's atmosphere. (During the launch, Discovery went from 0 to 17,500 miles per hour in under 9 minutes.)

This example offers new appreciation for the "out-of-this-world" durability of bird droppings. Apparently, despite a reentry temperature of as much as 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the bird poop made it all the way back from orbit on 17 July, albeit a bit charred!

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an excerpt from
THE BIRDING COMMUNITY E-BULLETIN
August 2006

This Birding Community E-bulletin is being distributed through the generous support of Steiner Optics as a service to active and concerned birders, those dedicated to the joys of birding and the protection of birds and their habitats. You can access an archive of our past E-bulletins on the website of the National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA):


 and on the birding pages for Steiner Optics