Helicopter & Blazing

Photography Now & Then #24

Today’s photo¹: Helicopter on rooftop pad – St. Mary’s Survival Flight, Russellville, Arkansas.  January 24, 2018 (Pentax K-3 II)

The St. Mary’s Survival Flight  Bell 407 helicopter has called St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center home since July 2016, providing a crew 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. (See more information in links below.)²

Photo Favorite³: Blazing Star blossom in front of black lava at Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve, Idaho, July 24, 2010 (Pentax K10D)

From Double Cone Quarterly:

… perennial herbs of sandy and/or rocky areas, summer-dry flood plains, washes and sometimes road cuts. What first catches the eye are the large five petaled flowers, which are light yellow. and range from about 6 to 16 cm (2.5-6.5″) wide when fully expanded. The flowers are further adorned by a wide fountain-like display of numerous long stamens. The five innermost stamens, which alternate with the petals, have widened, petal-like filaments. The plants begin to produce flowers around June and continue to do so until about October. Another striking feature of this species are the whitish-shining stems. Although Mentzelia laevicaulis translates as “smooth-stemmed Mentzelia,” this is in comparison to other Mentzelia species, for at least the upper stems are rough to the touch due to a light coat of short and stiff barbed hairs.

Mentzelia laevicaulis is widely distributed in temperate western North America, where it is occurs suitable habitats in California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Utah. It is found in diverse regions, ranging from lowland deserts to mountainous areas up to about 2700 m. (8,000′).

1. Today’s Photo is a photo that is almost always taken the day of the blog post.  In some instances, posts may be backdated if internet access is not available on the day of the photo or other reasons prevent posting Now and Then.
2. Survival Flight
   • Survival Flight, Inc
   • Survival Flight: In the Cockpit – ABOUT… The River Valley
   • Survival Flight Inc. to land in Russellville – The Courier
   • YouTube video of landing at Cyclone Homecoming
3. Photo Favorite is a randomly selected older photograph from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Now and Then.

Note: Reference links were accessed on the date the blog post was published, unless otherwise stated.