Tom's adventure to oil rig

Last week Tom went on an adventure to Galveston and the Ocean Star  Offshore Energy Center oil rig museum. and the 1877 tall ship Elissa. I was a little punk and working on a knitting project so stayed behind.

Visitors board the retired jackup drilling rig and view a video about the offshore industry. The museum features three floors of models and interactive displays illustrating the story of offshore oil and gas from seismic technology to exploration and production. Scale models of production platforms, actual drill bits and remotely-operated vehicles (ROVs) as well as videos and exhibits explain drilling, geology, seismic, well servicing and production.

The Ocean Star, a retired jack up rig, was acquired in 1995, moved to Galveston, refurbished, and opened as the Ocean StarOffshore Drilling Rig Museum and Education Center in 1997.  Thousands of students, teachers, industry tours, youth groups, and families have experienced the offshore energy industry first hand through the Ocean Star. Today it is a one-of-a-kind center for science education.  More than 70 interpretive exhibits, models, and multimedia displays about the offshore oil and natural gas industry await you on the Ocean Star, berthed at Pier 19 in Galveston. Families can visit www.oceanstaroec.com for museum hours and more details.

White Pelicans

Elissa is a three-masted, iron-hulled sailing ship built in 1877 in Aberdeen, Scotland by Alexander Hall & Company. She carries nineteen sails covering over one-quarter of an acre in surface area. Tall ships are classified by the configuration of their sailing rig. In Elissa's case, she is a 'barque' because she carries square and fore-and-aft sails on her fore andmainmasts, but only fore-and-aft sails on her mizzenmast. From her stern to the tip of her jibboom she measures 205 feet. Her height is 99 feet, 9 inches at the main mast and she displaces about 620 tons at her current ballast.