March 2022 CREG Journal Now Published

David Gibson · Post by **David Gibson** » Sun 27 Feb 2022 12:04

A new quarterly CREG journal is now online at http://bcra.org.uk/cregj . The printed version should be mailed by 5th March.

If your online subscription has expired, you will find out when you try to log in. If your paper CREG subscription is due to expire, we will send you an email in a few days. Please renew at http://bcra.org.uk/creg/renew

CREG is The British Cave Research Association's special interest group for cave radio and electronics but recently CREG has broadened its remit to cover other aspects of cave 'technology', including surveying and photography.

Issue 117 of the CREG journal includes a couple of topics that will be of interest to photographers.

In Viewing Poster-Sized Stereo Pairs, David Gibson describes his technique that allows large photos to be viewed in 3D without requiring any artificial viewing aids. An example of a large stereo pair is given on the front and rear covers of the journal. In Photographic Enhancement of Cave Paintings using DStretch, Jon Harman describes image-processing software that can make faded rock art visible. He demonstrates how a drawing that was completely invisible to the naked eye, became visible when a photo of the rock wall was processed using this software.

Further illustrating something of the diversity of topics now covered in the CREG journal are articles on rock drilling, and lunar lava tubes.

An article by Alexander Ried describes how he has modified a popular model of hammer drill. His practical approach describes how to replace the internal battery with an external harness-mounted battery pack while retaining the ability to use original batteries, and provide a load-bearing, power-carrying tether. The modification reduces weight in overhead drilling scenarios and eliminates reliance on expensive and proprietary batteries.

Three Spanish researchers describe a project, part-funded by the European Space Agency, to design a robot to explore lava tubes on the moon. Robocrane is a system that tackles the particular challenges by deploying a battery charger and a communications relay inside the lava tubes through a skylight. The crane is also capable of deploying the exploring robots inside the pit, simplifying their design.

A list of contents and brief descriptions of the articles can be found at http://bcra.org.uk/cregj . The CREG journal is available online and on paper. Annual subscriptions and single back-issues can be ordered.