A steam locomotive at MOSI (Museum of Science & Industry, Manchester) has been X-rayed by a new mobile X-ray unit used for scanning cargo and vehicles for criminal activity.
Video produced by Rapiscan, following the scan of MOSI’s Planet Locomotive is on this link: http://www.videonewsagency.com/media.aspx?ID=10814
The Museum’s replica 1830 Planet was X-rayed to test the new Rapiscan Eagle M60, which was developed by Rapiscan with the University of Manchester, before it hits the road to scan cargo and unoccupied passenger vehicles to protect against threats, counter trade fraud and detect contraband such as narcotics. The insides of Planet locomotive are revealed in an X-ray image taken by the M60, which shows its complicated system of boiler tubes, cylinders, valves and watertank. It is the first time that such an image has been taken of a steam locomotive. <br><br>?The M60 was originally designed to help identify contraband and plastic explosive type materials in cargo shipments, and is able to detect different materials such as wood and metal. The company says that it’s the first Rapiscan system with a high energy X-ray imaging system in a road legal, mobile platform. Rapiscan Systems works regularly with the University of Manchester and funds research work by mathematics postgraduates to help develop X-ray imaging, including work on the M60. <br><br>Robin Holgate, MOSI’s Head of Interpretation and Learning said: “It’s fascinating to see the insides of Planet in the image taken by Rapiscan’s Eagle M60 and really helps us to understand the complex engineering behind this 19th century technology. We hope to display the photo in the future for our visitors to see the inner workings of our favourite steam locomotive.” <br><br>Dr Ed Morton of Rapiscan Systems said: “The Eagle M60 was designed to effectively identify contraband hidden within all manner of dense cargo and vehicle types. The opportunity to test the penetration our new M60 mobile unit on a Locomotive especially one as iconic as the Planet was of real interest and a great honour.” <br><br>And Bill Lionheart Professor of Applied Mathematics at the University of Manchester said: "Stephenson’s Planet was made for the first passenger railway here in the North West so it seems fitting to make an X-ray image of it with Rapiscan’s Eagle truck scanner, which has also been developed in the region. Unlike Stephenson’s more famous rocket the cylinders of Planet are inside. With Rapiscan’s huge X-ray machine we should be able to show the inside workings of the engine.” <br><br>The original Planet steam locomotive was built by Robert Stephenson and ran on the Liverpool & Manchester Railway – the world’s first passenger railway, built in 1830. MOSI is based in the buildings of the former Liverpool Road station – the oldest surviving station on the line. Rapiscan Systems, a division of OSI Systems, Inc. is a security screening provider, using X-ray and gamma-ray imaging, and advanced threat identification techniques such as neutron and diffraction analysis. Rapiscan Systems products are made at four locations including Biddulph near Stoke-on-Trent. Visit – <br><br>http://www.mosi.org.uk <br><br>About Rapiscan Systems<br><br>Rapiscan Systems products are sold into four market segments: Baggage and Parcel Inspection, Cargo and Vehicle Inspection, Hold Baggage Screening, and People Screening. The company has sold more than 70,000 security and inspection systems worldwide. For more information on Rapiscan Systems, visit –
