The past week and half have been a steep learning curve, especially for those who don’t normally follow aviation. Navigating the jargon of the business can be confusing and separating all the acronyms can get in the way of understanding the situation.

What this post is: an attempt to put together some pieces of information so that reading the news doesn’t mean looking up a new acronym every two words. If you’re confused at all by ACARS vs TCAS, or you think ADS-B is what kicks in when your car hits a patch of ice, this post should shed a little light and I’ll do my best to update this post with answers to any questions you may have.

What this post isn’t: a compendium of theories of what happened to flight 370. If you’re looking for that, there are plenty of other places willing to entertain wild speculation.

So what are we talking about?

What kind of plane is it?

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 is a Boeing 777-200ER, registered 9M-MRO, pictured below. The 777-200ER has a range of 7,725 nautical miles and can carry over 45,000 gallons of fuel. This particular aircraft is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 895 engines.

Primary vs. Secondary RADAR? And what’s ADS-B?

We’ve heard a lot about primary and secondary radar—and transponders, but more on that below—this week, but isn’t radar just radar? Not quite. Primary radar is what most people think of when they hear radar. Primary radar sends microwaves out and waits for them to bounce back telling the radar station that an object exists and its distance from the radar station. Secondary radar provides aviators and air traffic controllers with a much more precise way to monitor aircraft. Secondary radar sends a signal to a plane that is equipped with a transponder, which receives and interprets the signal and then sends a corresponding signal back to the radar installation with information about the plane’s position. ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast) is a newer system takes this a step further. Planes equipped with ADS-B determine their own position via satellites and then broadcast that information to air traffic control and other aircraft. Websites like FlightRadar24 and Planefinder compile ADS-B data from aircraft and provide for real-time tracking of flights. The data generated by ADS-B is what much of the original discussion of MH370’s disappearance revolved around.

Update March 18, 9:40amCT: Here’s a great article by AP’s Scott Mayerowitz and Joan Lowy on why airplane transponders have an off switch.

A screen capture from FlightRadar24 showing the last broadcast position of MH370.

What is ACARS?

ACARS or Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System allows aircraft and ground stations to communicate short messages via radio frequency or satellite. These short messages can be related to air traffic control—such as a new route, or to maintenance—the airplane automatically telling the airline that the engine needs to be checked upon landing, or to something more general, like the weather ahead.

What are “Satellite Pings?”

Tim Farrar of TMF Associates, a firm specializes in satellite communications, provides an excellent and detailed overview of the satellite pings on the TMF Associates blog. MH370’s onboard terminal contacted an Inmarsat-3 satellite roughly every hour allowing investigators to construct the two possible arcs where MH370 could be.

Two possible arcs on which MH370 may reside. Image source/WSJ.

MH370 pinged the Inmarsat-3 satellite orbiting over the Indian Ocean (the blue satellite in the image below).

Coverage of the Inmarsat-3 satellite network. Image source, courtesy Inmarsat.

Now what is this TCAS I’m hearing about?

TCAS—Traffic Collision Avoidance System—is the most plainly named system here. TCAS is designed to do exactly what it says: avoid collisions. TCAS uses the plane’s transponder to monitor other aircraft in the area and warn pilots of any danger of collision.

Are satellite pings different than locater pings? What is a underwater locator beacon?

The underwater locator beacon pings and the earlier satellite pings are different. Attached to ever airplane’s black box is an underwater locator beacon—also known as an underwater acoustic beacon—that emits an acoustic pulse when immersed in fresh or saltwater. Once submerged the beacon emits one ping per second. The beacons are designed to withstand immense pressures and can operate for 30 days at a depth of 20,000 feet under water. When wreckage is found specialized equipment like the U.S. Navy’s Towed Ping Locator 25 can be used to detect the beacon’s pings and the airplane’s black boxes.

A example Underwater Locator Beacon, similar to the one on MH 370. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons.

So now, when you’re watching the news or scrolling through twitter, you’ll have a bit of an idea of what is being discussed. What else would you like to know? Let me know in comments and I’ll do by best to answer your questions.

Here are my favorite 2013 Aviation Photos, enjoy!

United 777-222/ER (N798UA) at the O’Hare Run on the Runway

JAL 9 headed to Narita takes off from RWY 28R at the O’Hare Run on the Runway

This American Airlines livery won’t be around much longer and I was very happy to get such a good shot. I was even happier to be out spotting with Jon Ostrower, Jason Rabinowitz, Gavin Werbeloff, and Bruce Bere, all avgeeks in the extreme.

American Airlines Boeing 767-323/ER on short final for RWY 22R. Because of the shifting winds that day, we spent a good portion of our time driving back and forth from one side of the airport to the other.

American Eagle Embraer E170-200-LR (E175) on short final for RWY 28R. This was my first shot of the E175 up in the air.

Etihad Airways Boeing 777-3FX/ER on short final for RWY 28R. This shot was a good cap to a day of great shots and great company as I got to meet Jay, the man behind the O’Hare Aviation YouTube channel.

For this shot of an SAS Airbus A330-343X I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I had wandered down to the beach by my house to shoot and it just happened to fly right overhead.

Whenever I have access to the ramp, the weather is gloomy. It’s just a fact of life that I’ve come to accept. But for the E175 unveiling that gloomy weather turned into an asset.

This summer I headed up to EAA Airventure or just “Oshkosh,” with Jaunted editor Cynthia Drescher. Oshkosh is an amazing collection of aviation from all over the world. From vintage civilian and military aircraft to experimental aircraft to hot air balloons. As the sun began to set, the hot air balloons got fired up, making for a great shot.

A 1943 Lockheed L-18 Lodestar’s Wright R-1820 engine at Oshkosh.

“Panchito,” a B-25J Mitchell Bomber flies at Oshkosh.

What are your favorite aviation photos of 2013? Let me know in comments.

Getting to the race was a bit of a challenge as traffic to the parking area went from five lanes to one without much traffic direction from police. It took 45 minutes to go 1.8 miles. That made me question paying for parking until I realized that the shuttle busses from the free lot were stuck in the same traffic.

A lot of people just got off the shuttle busses and out of their cars and walked to the race. The race ended up starting 30 minutes late because of the traffic, but once we got there things improved. The race itself was well organized and clearly marked—which is important considering that going off course during this race could lead to running on an active runway.

United was the aviation sponsor of the run and they sweetened the pot by parking a 777-200/ER at the end of the runway. Last year they had a 747, but didn’t allow anyone near it. This year they allowed us to get up close and personal with the 777. You can view the full gallery from the run and community day on Flickr.

777 Nose Gear

Rear of the PW4090 Engine

The great thing about this years race was instead of being on the north side of the airfield, we were in the heart of the action. During the race ex-Korean Air, China Airlines, and EVA Air 747 freighters landed on the next runway. That was worth the price of admission alone. After the race we were shuttled back to the end of the runway for a photo-op with the United 777. I got a few shots of the 777, but was also treated to ANA 11 and JAL 9 departing on 28R a few hundred feet away.

JAL 9 departs for Tokyo.

It was the perfect day for a race and some planespotting and I’m always happy to support such a worth organization like the Wounded Warrior Project. If you’re interested in running (or just showing up) next year, keep an eye on the Chicago Events page.

My love for aviation goes back to when we moved into our house on the west side of O’Hare when I was about five. My bedroom window gave me an amazing view of easterly arrivals. Young aviation love was on full display on Saturday, and that to me was the part of the day. At the end of Runway 28R families camped out with lunch to watch the planes land. Everyone dropped what they were doing and grabbed their cameras when the heavies, like the Lufthansa MD-11 or Atlas 747 flew over. One young man there with his father was having a tough time getting a steady shot, so I loaned him a tripod. Jay, of the world-famous O’Hare Aviation YouTube channel was also there and helped him set up so he was in the best place for photos.

The thing I like most about planespotting and avgeekery in general is the community. People are passionate and share that passion through photos, video, or just listening to air traffic control and logging tail numbers. And the community has only gotten bigger and stronger as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube have made it easy to find people who love aviation. I often get asked why I love planes, so I show them pictures like these, and they say, “Oh, I get it now.” There’s just something amazing about something that big fly through the air that makes anyone look up and say “wow.”

You can check out highlights from Saturday here, and Bruce’s photos here.