It was quite a Monday for some airports around the country. The day started out like this at Denver International Airport
Who else caught the dramatic sunrise in Denver today? Talk about drama! đ Thanks to IG: denverdave1968 for capturing the beautiful colors over the airfield at DEN! pic.twitter.com/rd3wYBjUh0
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) announced that the SFO Wag Brigade, a team of certified stress-relief animals, is back on duty in the terminals after a 20-month absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The San Francisco SPCA certifies all participating animals through their Animal Assisted Therapy (ATT) Program. And, prior to returning to SFO, all Wag Brigade animals were recertified. We hope that means LiLou the airport therapy pig that used to visit SFO about once a month will return soon too.
Good news â the #SFOWagBrigade is back at the airport!!! Tristan is rolling out in Terminal 3 this morning â ready for smiles, pets, and to make your heart melt. đ đž pic.twitter.com/KVxA0BJJG6
— San Francisco International Airport (SFO) âď¸đˇ (@flySFO) October 18, 2021
Fire at DFW, No Water at CLT Airport
Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) had to deal with a water main break nearby today.
The City of Charlotte has experienced a water main break in the vicinity of the Airport. There is little to no water pressure in the terminal at this time. The Airport is in contact with Charlotte Water to assess the situation.
And at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), there was a fire in one of the parking garages.
đ¨ Customer Alert: There is a small fire located in our Terminal D garage. Customers are being asked not to access the garage at this time and the parking lot is temporarily closed for incoming or outgoing traffic.
We will have more information here once we receive it.
đ¨ Fire Update: The fire is under control in the Terminal D garage and there are no injuries. It is available for drop-off traffic ONLY, but we are still asking customers to avoid the garage. Additional details follow in this thread âŹď¸
Several vehicles sustained damage from the fire. Our DFW Team is providing claim forms on site for anyone whose vehicle was damaged, and we will also add those forms to https://t.co/GhrbmhxCv8 tonight. We will also be reaching out to owners of damaged vehicles proactively.
Now that we’re back to traveling more, we’re delighted to have the opportunity to visit San Francisco International Airport (SFO), home to the SFO Museum, which is fully accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.
SFO is both an airport AND a museum. So, we always make sure to choose the longest layover we can when changing planes at SFO. Not just because we love airports, but because we also love museums. And the SFO Museum always has multiple exhibitions scattered throughout the terminals.
One of the newest exhibitions is The Victorian Papered Wall, which is on view in the International Terminal Main Hall.
Why have an exhibition about wallpaper?
From the press release:
From its inception, wallpaper imitated luxurious materials, providing a more affordable alternative to tapestries, fabrics, mural paintings, and architectural elements. Crafted in repeating rolls and pasted to walls, this decorative art has an ephemeral quality unlike any other. Wallpaper reflects the design styles popular at the time, and in the late nineteenth century during the Victorian Era (1837â1901), walls richly came to life. English âdesign reformersâ insisted on abstract, flat patterns, opposing fashionable French three-dimensional designs. Meanwhile, the Aesthetic Movement, which burgeoned in England, emphasized artful interiors in the 1870s and â80s. Eclecticism prevailedâdesigners drew freely from world cultures and centuries past.
This exhibition features art wallpapers created by Bradbury & Bradbury, based in Benicia, CA. The company hand silkscreens hundreds of historic designs using oil-based paints. Their most complex paper, St. James, requires seventeen individually applied colors. In addition to Victorian-era patterns, the company makes wallpaper using patterns from the Art Deco era, the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. We’re hoping to find the wallpaper from our childhood home in there somewhere.
Here are more samples of the wall and ceiling papers you’ll see in six Victorian-era room sets at SFO.
Facebook and Instagram may have been down on Monday, but Twitter was there for airports to share news and fun tidbits. Here are some items that caught our attention.
Not vaccinated yet?
Please get with the program so you can travel safely. Many airports around the country make it easy to get the jab.
NO APPOINTMENT NECESSARY: COVID-19 vaccines are available this month at LAS. Don't miss your chance to protect yourself and your community.đ pic.twitter.com/IhAh50wUGJ
The red Arrow Sport plane hanging in our terminal has become an iconic symbol at #LNK and one many love taking photos under. Next time you #FlyLNK stop by our Customer Service desk and nab yourself one of our new, red foam glider planes. #FlyLocal#RedPlanepic.twitter.com/svf5y1QJP7
⨠TRAVEL BAG GIVEAWAY ⨠Ready to pack your bags? Enter for your chance to win one of ours! We're giving away a few of these awesome #SFO travel bags so you can be ready for your next trip. Enter đ
— San Francisco International Airport (SFO) âď¸đˇ (@flySFO) October 4, 2021
At a glance, they are clearly works of mechanical know-how and art. But these objects also tell a story about the emergence of modern science and the specialized instruments scientists built and used to explore the world.
From the exhibition release:
When modern science emerged in the seventeenth century, scientists invented specialized instruments to explore the world and universe in a closer, more logical manner. These intriguing devices facilitated the careful study of almost all facets of life through the research and demonstration of ideas and theories. During the nineteenth century, new technologies allowed for the precision manufacturing of scientific instruments. An array of instruments assisted some of the most brilliant minds on Earth as scientists made early discoveries in the fields of electrodynamics and atomic theory.
This exhibition in the Harvey Milk Terminal 1 of the San Francisco International Airport displays a selection of antique scientific instruments and explores their uses. Dates: September 11, 2021, to April 3, 2022.  The exhibit is accessible to ticketed passengers but non-ticketed guests may get access by emailing curator@flysfo.com.
SFO Museum: Geissler tube rotator [with modern tube]  late 19th centurySFO Museum: Helmholtz resonators  c. 1890
Mathematics: Vintage and Modern displays slide rules, early calculating machines, and other math-related objects from the past. Included are teaching tools that help students learn arithmetic, geometry, and calculus, as well as vintage childrenâs toys and games. To make brains work harder, several works of art in this exhibit demonstrate complex mathematics through sculptural forms. Examples from modern mathâknot theory, topology, and ambiguous modelsâillustrate how math deals with the very dimensions of space.Â
Klein Bottle by Cliff Stoll
Here are some more images from the exhibit.
Thacher’s calculating instrument  c. 1903Millionaire calculating machine  c. 1904
Today we use our lightweight telephones as calculators. But in 1893, Swiss engineer Otto Steigler’s invention, the Millionaire, likely seemed miraculous.
“Made of brass and weighing sixty-seven pounds, this revolutionary machine could perform a direct multiplication,” the exhibit notes tell us. “With a single turn of the hand crank, it multiplied two numbers together and calculated results up to eighteen digits. For decades, banks balanced their books and figured compound interest on Millionaires. “
Rubik’s Cube and other mathematical puzzles
Mathematics: Vintage and Modern is located post-security in Terminal 2 of San Francisco International Airport through May 1, 2022.
The exhibition is accessible to ticketed passengers but non-ticketed guests can arrange access by emailing curator@flysfo.com,
