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Wind turbine powers up for final phase

    People driving to Drumheller from Highway 9 South may have spotted the wind turbine located at the Drumheller Institution rotate last Friday.
    After months of delay due to a faulty part during performance testing, the wind turbine is now ready for its final phase of commissioning.
    Dawn Bancroft, chief of administration at the Institution told inSide Drumheller engineers finished installing the replacement part last week and the turbine now needs to run for 500 hours for the contractors to review the operation.
    “I think it will be giving some electricity at this point, but what they are doing is making sure that everything is working properly and that it is producing the power it needs and going to the right holding facility,” she said.
    Bancroft explained that the turbine only powers itself when the wind velocity reaches a certain level, adding, “People may also notice that when it is really windy, it is not turning because at a certain point if the velocity of the wind is too high, it stops turning as well.”
    The turbine was installed in December 2009 to help offset some of the institution's power costs, as well as improve its ecological footprint.

Royal Tyrrell featured on newly minted 50-cent coin

    Celebrating its 25th birthday this summer, the Royal Tyrrell Museum seems to be getting nods from all over the country.
    The latest came from the Royal Canadian Mint which rolled out a new dinosaur collector-coin in honour of the museum.
    “We’re thrilled to be a part of the Mint’s series of dinosaur coins,” says Tyrrell marketing coordinator Leanna Mohan.
    With a lenticular Albertosaurus in front of the museum itself, the brass coin is sure to be a favourite of local and visiting dinosaur enthusiasts.
    Mohan says the coin’s response has been overwhelming, with many people calling the museum to get their hands on one.
    They came into the Tyrrell’s giftshop on Wednesday.
    The Mint’s announcement of including the Tyrrell is just another example of good press the museum, and Drumheller, have been seeing recently.
    No doubt because of the museum’s 25th birthday, and the fact that the Tyrrell is expecting its 10 millionth visitor tp come through come through this month.
    This 50-cent brass-plated coin comes with six exciting trading cards: five showing off different dinosaurs found in Alberta and the sixth telling the story of province’s famous Royal Tyrrell Museum.
    The coin is legal tender.
    Developed as part of a series celebrating significant milestones for two of Canada’s most popular natural history museums - the Royal Tyrrell Museum and the Canadian Museum of Nature - the Albertosaurus coin will retail for $24.95.
    “This coin is a perfect tribute to the Royal Tyrrell Museum on its 25th anniversary,” said Lindsay Blackett, Minister of Culture and Community Spirit.
    "It is at once very educational and very cool. Collectors in Alberta, across Canada and around the world will love it.”

Dinosaurs terrifyingly alive in Walking with Dinosaurs at Saddledome

    The dinosaur fossils filling the Royal Tyrrell Museum are pretty cool and all, but have you ever wondered what it feels like to have a 23 foot tall T-rex breathing down your neck?
    Over 17 dinosaurs come alive in the arena spectacle Walking with Dinosaurs which starts its 8 show stint at the Saddledome on August 11.
    “It is a look at both the earth’s and dinosaur’s history... using amazing life-sized puppets,” says Nellie Beavers, the Assistant Tour Manager with the BBC associated show.
    “It’s the closest thing you’re going to get to seeing a live dinosaur.”
    An internationally renowned crew of 75, including some working with the Muppets, have worked with scientists to create 17 life-size dinosaurs, including the terror of the ancient terrain, Tyrannosaurus-rex.
    A team of three people remotely control each dinosaur, the large ones weighing as much as a car, as they tell a personal and historical story about the giant creatures Drumheller knows all too well.
    Huxley takes the audience on a journey all the way back to the Triassic period, bringing it through all three periods of the dinosaurs.
    “We start with the tiniest hatchling dinosaurs and let them grow into the tall Brachiosaurus.”
    “We see them fight for food, protect their young,” says Beavers. “This isn’t Barney, its a theatrical presentation backed by the BBC so we pride in having accurate dinosaurs.”
    “We’ve had lots of palaeontologist come see our show over the years, and I think what the most exciting thing for us is they think it is very accurate.”
    The $20 million production is now in its fourth calendar year, and this will be the second time it’s been in Calgary.
    More than 3.1 million people have taken in the show in North America.
    Walking with Dinosaurs was inspired back in the late 90’s by Jurassic Park, and has since grown into a world-renowned travelling production.
    Three people are required to move each dinosaur which ways up to 1.6 tonnes.
    Controlled by remote, one operates the chassis movement at the base of each beast, while one operates head and tall motion and another controls detailed movements such as breathing, blinking, and mouth movement.

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