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The San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge is unique by the fact the bridge goes into and through an island. The Yerba Buena tunnel disects through Treasure Island and is the midpoint of the bridge. Forming part of Interstate 80 and of the direct road route between San Francisco and Oakland, it carries approximately 270,000 vehicles per day on its two decks. It has one of the longest spans in the world. Shown in this panorama is the portion of the bridge from San Francisco into Treasure Island. Not seen in this panorama is the 2nd portion of the bridge which spans from Treasure Island to Oakland. The Bay Bridge opened for traffic on November 12, 1936, six months before the Golden Gate Bridge. |
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A gigapan of what many believe to be the most dramatic stretch of seafront in Asia, the financial district of Hong Kong, that is a postcard favorite. 5" exposure, 14" pic time on the EPIC.
Another gigapan of HK Island from a similar vantage point at dusk http://www.gigapan.org/viewGigapan.php?id=17500 |
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The Dariush Grand Hotel (Persian: هتل بزرگ داریوش) is a 168-room, $125 million, luxury five star hotel located on the eastern part of Kish Island in the Persian Gulf.
Dariush Grand Hotel was built as a look like Persepolis, a symbol of the glory and splendor of the ancient Persian (Iranian) civilization and the Persian Empire. The hotel was designed and developed by Iranian entrepreneur Hossein Sabet, who also owns and manages several tourist attractions and hotels in the Canary Islands. More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dariush_Grand_Hotel Official Site: www.dariushgrandhotel.com |
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Old dense icebergs that have broken off from the Antarctic ice sheets travel northward through the Southern Ocean, melting and breaking into smaller pieces as they encounter warmer water.
In this shallow bay in the South Orkney Islands, a considerable number of large, dense icebergs have come to rest in water that is still cold enough to maintain them for many years. Because of the big, resting bergs, this place is known as an "iceberg graveyard". This iceberg is being slowly scupltured by waves as it sits serenely anchored in the bay. The dense ice that has very little air incorrporated within, glows intense blue in the dark blue-gray water. The 6 images of this panorama were photographed with a Nikon D-80 and stitched with Autopano Pro. |
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A huge school of Salema fish avoid predation by aggregating into a ball. D200, 10 photos with 15mm lens for full 360 which looks great in Googleearth. A few scuba divers are found in the scene too. Stitched with PtGui.
A view from INSIDE the bait ball can be found here: http://gigapan.org/gigapans/34662/ Salema fish can actually be hallucinogenic to eat! Known as 'dream fish', the herbivorous fish have toxins in their flesh from the algae that they eat that when ingested by humans produce severe auditory and visual hallucinations. No, I did not try it. It was spooky enough inside the baitball. Definition of 'Bait Ball': Schools of small fish cruise near the ocean's surface, feeding on plankton and other organic foodstuff. This schooling behavior evolved as a means of protection. If a shark or other predator approaches, the group parts in unison - making it difficult for the invader to target any individual. As a result, this type of attack often fails. Group hunting changes the odds. In a baitball feeding frenzy, a hunting party may consist of bottlenose dolphins, silky sharks, yellowfin tuna, rainbow runners, wahoo, marlin, jacks and even booby birds. They work in a cooperative effort to ensure a feast for all. A typical main course features teeming schools of juvenile jacks and chubs. When a lone predator, usually a shark or dolphin, discovers one of these floating smorgasbords and attacks, a number of events are set into action. Frightened fish elicit a unique odor and other sharks in the area rush to the scene. The fleeing fish then intensify their frantic swimming patterns, alerting even more nearby predators. Now, each member of the murderous team begins to execute its role. The silky sharks and bottlenose dolphins, which are usually mortal enemies, start to surround the school. Gradually, they increase speed and narrow their path, trapping the fish in a tight ball against the surface. Next tuna and marlin rip through the center of the ball, further disorientating the confused prey. Many of the injured bait fish quickly tire and are easily eaten. A full-blown baitball feeding frenzy leaves few survivors. As predators become satiated, new enlistees arrive to continue the slaughter. Against the odds, small groups of baitfish may escape. They will continue to cruise pelagic waters, eating as much as they can as quickly as they can. Once again, the rule of the ocean is clear and simple: get as big as you can before you get eaten. |
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The Dariush Grand Hotel (Persian: هتل بزرگ داریوش) is a 168-room, $125 million, luxury five star hotel located on the eastern part of Kish Island in the Persian Gulf.
Dariush Grand Hotel was built as a look like Persepolis, a symbol of the glory and splendor of the ancient Persian (Iranian) civilization and the Persian Empire. The hotel was designed and developed by Iranian entrepreneur Hossein Sabet, who also owns and manages several tourist attractions and hotels in the Canary Islands. More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dariush_Grand_Hotel Official Site: www.dariushgrandhotel.com |
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Note! We have cleaned up the jagged edges and changed the blue tinge on this panorama and uploaded it again on June 16.
When we arrived to camp here in the evening we saw sea otters swimming nearby and a big cruise ship in the distance. It would be possible to see orcas and many different birds including bald eagles. None of these were present when I took the gigapan, however. This was shot with a Nikon P90 and the Epic 100. I am not sure how to prevent the ragged top of this image. It is happening on others I have shot as well. Does anyone have any suggestions about how to prevent this? I have not yet tried to manipulate the exported images in Photoshop, but this may be the solution. |
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We used Photoshop to crop the jagged edges and enhance the colors in this gigapan compared to the original image I uploaded a few days ago. |
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Hawaii Pacific News is a student-run news and information site. We report on news, arts, entertainment, sports, university happenings and other stuff. We are located at Hawaii Pacific University in the heart of Downtown Honolulu |