[Geysers] Webcam and other times 8/2/2011

[David Monteith]

The Beehive 1508 wc time is incorrect.  The streaming camera showed
Beehive starting at 1501 and the still camera showed it ie at 1502.

Based on the streaming and still cameras, Old Faithful erupted at 1451
not 1446.

I had assumed that the Beehive error might be due to a delay of the
streaming feed at the observer's computer but that doesn't explain the
Old Faithful time.   

Four times during the past couple weeks I've spent an evening thoroughly
checking the posted webcam times against recordings of both the
streaming camera and still cameras.  I've found very few errors.  And
most of those are similar to errors seen in the VEC logbook (primarily
start time differences of a minute.)  

It is possible to obtain accurate times from the streaming webcam but
this needs to be done with care.  The webcam operators see the stream
with very little delay so their times are usually accurate.  For those
watching the stream "live" on their computer in most cases the media
player is actually buffering the stream before showing it to you.  It
stores the stream in memory and then displays it so the video will play
smoothly.  How long the delay is varies from as little as 15 seconds to
up to 2 minutes.  To make matters worse, we've seen problems with the
stream signal, frequently seen as jerky, stop and start video.  These
delays can build.  On one particularly bad day, the delay on the "live"
view reached two hours on my machine before the server or my computer
finally gave up and disconnected.  I think most people reporting times
from the webcam are taking precautions to make sure their times are
accurate.  

I've found that the delays are very minimal, predictable and
controllable if I record the stream and watch it later.  Working with
Tara while she was in the geyser basin, we determined that the delay on
our system at home was consistently 3 to 6 seconds.  I have the added
advantage though that I can pause, backup and fast forward to determine
start times and durations.  And most importantly, I find the UGB stream
provides me with a nice geyser fix when I can't get to the park.  

Please continue to post your webcam observations.  And for those wanting
to use the data, I believe you can feel fairly confident about it.  But
be aware of the limitations of the technology both when reporting times
and when using the data.

Dave



  



On Tue, 2011-08-02 at 22:31 -0400, Graham Meech wrote:
> Here are some times from the webcams for Tuesday 8/2/11 taken from the
> online geyser logs (www.geysertimes.org and www.geysers.net/mobile). 
> 
> Two more Beehive eruptions zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
> 
> Aurum 1041, 1816 wc 
> 
> Beehive 0213, 1508 wc 
> 
> Beehive's Indicator 0155, 1452 ie wc 
> 
> Castle 1014 min 
> 
> Daisy 0728 ie, 1442 ie wc, 1709 wc, 1935 wc 
> 
> Depression 0841, 1213 ns, 1924 ie wc 
> 
> Fountain 1018 ns 
> 
> Grand 0714, 1509 ns 
> 
> Great Fountain 1428 
> 
> Grotto 0542 ie 
> 
> Lion 0744, 0900, 1007, 1110 ie wc, 1218, 1331 ns wc, 1441 ns wc, 1554 wc 
> 
> Morning's Thief 1019 
> 
> Old Faithful 0526 ns wc, 0654 wc long, 0827 ie wc, 1134 wc long, 1312 ie wc
> long, 1446, 1617 wc, 1755 wc, 1928 wc 
> 
> Plume 0755 ie wc, 0858, 1003, 1108 wc, 1202, 1305 ie wc, 1359 wc, 1454 wc,
> 1552 wc, 1645 wc, 1735 wc, 1831 wc, 1927 wc, 2030 wc 
> 
> Sawmill 1656 ie wc 
> 
> Till 0933 ie 
> 
> West Triplet 0728 
> 
> White Dome 1418 
> 
> Graham Meech
> 
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