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TIME and Weathering in the Libyan Desert
On an expedition to study two circular structures in the eastern Libyan Desert that later proved to be impact structures, Oasis Oil Co. hydrogeologist Ed Fisk and I came across an old camp site of one or more of the groups engaged in the search for the Lady’s crew. Weapons-carrier chassis, abandoned motors, transmissions, and fuel drums littered the former camp site, indicating that the search crews had operated there for several weeks to months.
One other bit of dramatic testimony to the harsh, dry conditions in that area of the Libyan Desert was provided by the 31 October 1960 issue of TIME, lying on the desert floor at the camp site. The cover photograph, bright and clear and only slightly wrinkled owing to desiccation, was of Richard M. Nixon when he and John F. Kennedy were candidates for the presidency. We found it on May 22, 1970, almost 10 years after it had been cast aside as the search and recovery team abandoned the site. For almost a decade the hot, arid desert environment had slowed the ravages of time, allowing TIME to be preserved.
TIME was preserved in a remarkable, near-pristine state despite prolonged exposure to desert weathering conditions and processes, not surprising perhaps since some localities in the region report no rainfall for extended periods, even as much as 20 years!
-James R. Underwood
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The mysterious disappearance of the WW II B-24 Liberator Lady Be Good on April 5, 1943 while returning at night from a bombing raid over Naples was solved when she was identified on a sand plain deep in the Libyan Desert in 1959 by an oil company exploration crew. With a strong tail wind and thinking they were on course, the Lady’s crew overflew their base near the coast, continuing until they ran out of fuel. The crew including the pilot, bailed out, and Lady Be Good, gradually loosing altitude, eventually landed with very little damage as the engines ran out of fuel; the crew never saw the airplane again. In 1960, search parties eventually located the desiccated remains of all but one of them.
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(800) 472-1988 x 1054
