What type of industry is this?

[Erik W]

This is an arial view on the east side of Pacific, MO.

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qddkxj7f5k7r&style=o&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9313717&encType=1

Erik

[Bob Bufkin]

Check out the Chamber of Commerce web site.  Not sure what the business is but they definately use train photos in their site.
Bob

[wazzou]

I would guess lime or some kind of heavy substance based on the 2 bay covered hoppers.  Have you used the map scroll function to follow the dirt access road coming in from above left in the scene?  There appears to be some sort of large sediment retention ponds.

Regards,
Bryan

[cv_acr]

Lime maybe? Follow the little dirt road up to the north, it seems to be related to the rather massive open pit gravel quarry operations there. Some nice limestone cliff escarpment running along the area there.

[sirenwerks]

Or talc or gypsum?

[cv_acr]

Or talc or gypsum?

That could be too. Whatever it is, it's definately related to what they're digging up behind there.

[asciibaron]

in the lower right above the white pickup is an entrance to an underground mine. they are mining silica.

http://www.u-s-silica.com/pacific.htm

US Silica
819 E Osage St
Pacific, MO 63069
(636) 257-2464

here's the other entrances

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qddscq7f5shp&style=o&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9313401&encType=1
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qddpcj7f5j27&style=o&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9313185&encType=1
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qddv307f5tmp&style=o&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9370856&encType=1


follow the road west toward town - plenty of entrances that appear to be used by the local industries.

[FrankCampagna]

deleted

[Norm P]

I wish birds eye view was more widely available.  It's neat to look at an image and then have it change 2 minutes later.  The white pickup was in the photo when I first looked at it and now the white truck is gone, and a single UP loco is pulling a string of empty coal hoppers by the plant.



Ok I got hold of some bad mushrooms or something.  I assumed it was actually live feed shots from a satellite or something, but I guess it's just a compilation of 2-3 different images from the same area.

[chuck geiger]

WMD plant, LOL - this web site is awesome MSN Live Maps!

[Erik W]

Thanks for the info guys.  It's amazing what you can find on the net.  That http://www.maps.live.com website is an excellent tool for you modelers modeling the present day or not too distant past.  You can pick the segment of RR you wish to model and literally follow the right of way the entire distance.  It shows you track arrangement, line side industries, towns, bridges, scenery, etc.  If the location is in an area that has the "birds-eye" feature then you can get views of all sides of structures and bridges.  This should be enough to scratch build what you see.  Take the silica plant for example.  Pretty cool stuff. 

Erik

[sirenwerks]

Ok I got hold of some bad mushrooms or something.  I assumed it was actually live feed shots from a satellite or something, but I guess it's just a compilation of 2-3 different images from the same area.

You're right. Different angles taken at different days by the satellites, so if you pan a bit the image can change in detail and even season. But that can be furstrating,

The images not changing frequently has its advantages though. A few months ago, a rail-served warehouse building I've been wanting to model was demolished. Luckily, I had already taken photos, but never gotten around to guestimating measurements. I popped onto Google Map (or whatever it's called) and , using its measuring function, was able to pull off rough measurements of the warehouses components, since the shot still had the warehouse in it.

[railbuilderdave]

Based on what looks like a closed entence to the mine to the NE of the main plant this place has been there some time.
http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qddpyy7f5m65&style=o&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9310197&encType=1
rbDHD

[Dave Schneider]

The "Bird's Eye" images shown on Live Maps are created using oblique aerial photography (e.g. Pictometry International Corp). That is the only way to get the look angles and spatial resolution.  With satellites there is too much atmosphere in the way. Basically they fly an aircraft with cameras pointed down, forward, backward, and to the sides. What is cool is the ability to stitch the images together. However, you will notice jumps in the coverage when panning as you reach the edge of the field of view for a given flightline.

On a related note, I see people all the time referring to "Google's satellites". Although these guys are rich, they don't own any satellites. They are basically repackaging satellite and airborne images from a variety of commercial groups and government agencies. For the commercial data, there is usually a several year embargo on the data, during which time the satellite company is trying to sell the images. That is why (for example) a Google Earth view of the Washington DC mall shows the WW II Memorial under construction even though it opened in 2004.

As people have mentioned, this delay is very valuable at times when researching past industries, etc. Just make sure you save the images you want because someday in the future they will be replaced with newer ones.

Dave

[slickwillie]

Great site! My wife was excited to see what the garden looked like a few weeks after starting the landscaping... a few years ago!  :  ;D