3 ms·

December? Ha! It's probably self-paving right about now.

grecy 3y ago
Not yet, there's barely snow on the ground in the Arctic Circle right now, not much below freezing overnight. Give it another month, then we're talking.
- gojomo 3y ago
  Seems to me that soon as there are consistent nighttime freezes, pumped water could create a level & sealed frozen surface.
  - lxgr 3y ago
    Interesting question: Can a jet take off from a (very) low friction runway? Seems similar to the classical problem of whether a take-off from a conveyor belt is possible :)
    - DocTomoe 3y ago
      Yes [1] [1] https://www.aircontact.com/boeing-737-landed-in-antarctica.5200173-109016.html https://www.aircontact.com/boeing-737-landed-in-antarctica.5...
      - lxgr 3y ago
        That runway has been carefully prepared to have high friction: > The original construction of the runway was done over two years and accomplished using a laser cutter to level the blue ice near the station [...] Finally, two snow groomers with tillers grind a small layer of ice to create a top layer of crushed snow and ice that gives the runway the necessary friction for aircraft to operate. https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/troll-research-station-how-to-operate-an-airport-in-antarctica/ https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/troll-research-station-ho...
    - dredmorbius 3y ago
      Changing your mind might be problematic however: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37773669 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37773669>
    - culebron21 3y ago
      1) smooth ice is hard to get, and if you just pour water on snow/dirt, it won't be like ice rink or frozen lakes. 2) snow will also cover the surface, and it's not slippery.
  - grecy 3y ago
    You'd be surprised, even +5C during the day will turn that shallow frozen water back to liquid. But when it hits, it happens quickly. Every year people dogsled on a lake outside Whitehorse, Yukon in November. Often it's pure liquid on November 20th, and yet they will dogsled on it before the last day of the month.
  - culebron21 3y ago
    In that place, temperatures drop below 0 permanently in November (i.e. even in daytime) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate My summary on flying the plane on Stackexchange: https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/101015/how-can-ural-airlines-fly-an-a320-from-an-unpaved-field-after-an-emergency-landi/ https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/101015/how-can-...
culebron21 3y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate

Not yet, there's barely snow on the ground in the Arctic Circle right now, not much below freezing overnight. Give it another month, then we're talking.

gojomo 3y ago
Seems to me that soon as there are consistent nighttime freezes, pumped water could create a level & sealed frozen surface.
- lxgr 3y ago
  Interesting question: Can a jet take off from a (very) low friction runway? Seems similar to the classical problem of whether a take-off from a conveyor belt is possible :)
  - DocTomoe 3y ago
    Yes [1] [1] https://www.aircontact.com/boeing-737-landed-in-antarctica.5200173-109016.html https://www.aircontact.com/boeing-737-landed-in-antarctica.5...
    - lxgr 3y ago
      That runway has been carefully prepared to have high friction: > The original construction of the runway was done over two years and accomplished using a laser cutter to level the blue ice near the station [...] Finally, two snow groomers with tillers grind a small layer of ice to create a top layer of crushed snow and ice that gives the runway the necessary friction for aircraft to operate. https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/troll-research-station-how-to-operate-an-airport-in-antarctica/ https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/troll-research-station-ho...
  - dredmorbius 3y ago
    Changing your mind might be problematic however: <https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37773669 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37773669>
  - culebron21 3y ago
    1) smooth ice is hard to get, and if you just pour water on snow/dirt, it won't be like ice rink or frozen lakes. 2) snow will also cover the surface, and it's not slippery.
- grecy 3y ago
  You'd be surprised, even +5C during the day will turn that shallow frozen water back to liquid. But when it hits, it happens quickly. Every year people dogsled on a lake outside Whitehorse, Yukon in November. Often it's pure liquid on November 20th, and yet they will dogsled on it before the last day of the month.
- culebron21 3y ago
  In that place, temperatures drop below 0 permanently in November (i.e. even in daytime) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate My summary on flying the plane on Stackexchange: https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/101015/how-can-ural-airlines-fly-an-a320-from-an-unpaved-field-after-an-emergency-landi/ https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/101015/how-can-...

culebron21 3y ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Novosibirsk#Climate