 |
| Side & back view of the Pistenbully |
Is world domination enough for Lego?
Lego and its fans never miss an opportunity to advance Lego to a new frontier, in this case continent. In December 2016, two Lego models, designed by AFOLS, were sent to Antarctica; putting Lego on every continent on Earth. This is quite an inspirational effort and something that we have all come to expect of Lego and its followers as ingenuity and imagination are never far away. |
| Lego Pistenbully at South Pole |
One of the Lego designs to appear at the South Pole came from two Australian builders - Tim and his brother Jeremy. They were only given two days notice to design, build and pack the Lego for its unparalleled journey. They chose to develop a Lego version of the Pistenbully.
A key feature of this vehicle is a radar mounted on a tyre that extends from the front of the vehicle; looking down into the snow to check for hidden crevasses that a vehicle may fall into (an important bit of kit in a remote, snow laden environment!).
 |
| Lego Pistenbully showing off national pride |
The model designed by Tim and Jeremy is an excellent facsimile of the real life vehicle, even faithfully capturing the pile of bamboo attached to the back. In true Australian pride photos were sent from the South Pole showing the little Lego model's place in history.
The second Lego model to be captured at the South Pole comes from The Brothers Brick, who were contacted by Ethan Rudnitsky, who was spending the winter at the US Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station. They were specifically asked to provide instructions for a Lego replica of the LC-130 Hercules. The LC-130 Hercules is used to transport people to and from the Station, which can only be accessed between November and February each year.
The builders from The Brothers Brick did a great job in designing the model. As you can see here it is an exact replica of the LC-130 Hercules, with identical sticker decals and a loyal recreation of the plane's shape.
I wonder if any of the scientists at the South Pole are testing the temperature limits of the Lego.
So, as if conquering all continents wasn't enough, Lego partnered with NASA to put minifigures onboard the Juno Space Probe. The Probe was launched in August 2011 bound for Jupiter; entering its orbit in July 2016. There are three minifigures:
- Jupiter - Roman god - King of Mt Olympus (Zeus in Greek mythology)
- Juno - Roman god - Queen of Mt Olympus (Hera in Greek mythology)
- Galileo Galilei - Renaissance polymath (astronomer, physicist, engineer, philosopher and mathematician) who, in 1610, discovered four of the largest satellites of Jupiter; named the Galilean moons.
 |
| Left to right: Galileo, Juno and Jupiter |
I must say that I find these relationships formed by Lego with pioneering projects inspiring. They invoke in me the same sense as when I watch West Wing (Season 2, Episode 9) and in the opening everyone's favourite fictional President remarks upon the next probe - Galileo V - and the adventure you feel just by repeating the name, which should cause 'your imagination, like a child, [to] explode with unrestrained possibilities for adventure'. I feel it is the same here - Jupiter, Juno and Galileo left the Earth's atmosphere bound for another planet where humans have never travelled. I must say, if minifigures really would be the largest population on Earth, they would also be the most interesting with exciting adventures not bound in reality but expressed through unlimited creativity. Which minifigure would you want as your ideal dinner guest?
| Jupiter with a superimposed Juno |
Acknowledgements to brickingaround.com (http://brickingaround.com/2017/03/03/lego-at-the-south-pole/#more-16514), the brother's own blog (http://imgur.com/gallery/skjPL) and The Brothers Brick (http://www.brothers-brick.com/2016/12/31/lego-hercules-travels-south-pole-interview/) for bringing these stories to life so that all Lego fans could share in the awesomeness of seeing Lego on every continent.
No comments:
Post a Comment