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Sep 7, 2021

Nanoracks’ spinoff aims to bring food production to Earth’s deserts and orbital space

Posted by in categories: space travel, sustainability

The first space-style greenhouse could open in Abu Dhabi in 2022.


High-tech solar-powered greenhouses inspired by technology developed for missions to the moon and Mars could soon grow food in Arabian deserts as well as in orbit around Earth, according to plans of space services company Nanoracks.

Sep 7, 2021

ELSA-d spacecraft captures “space debris” in orbit for the first time

Posted by in category: satellites

Private orbital debris removal company Astroscale has validated its magnetic capture system that is designed to tackle the problem of space debris. Its End-of-Life Services by Astroscale-demonstration (ELSA-d) servicer satellite managed to capture a simulated piece of space debris in orbit for the first time using the system.

Space debris is a serious and growing problem as popular orbits around the Earth become increasingly cluttered with defunct satellites, boosters, and other flotsam that present the hazard of an increased probability of a bit of debris striking a working spacecraft at hypersonic speeds.

Continue reading “ELSA-d spacecraft captures ‘space debris’ in orbit for the first time” »

Sep 7, 2021

Intel’s Mobileye will launch a robotaxi service in Germany in 2022

Posted by in categories: computing, transportation

The plan will need regulatory approval to go forward.


Mobileye, a computer vision company owned by Intel, announced plans to launch a robotaxi service in Germany in 2022. The company says it plans on working with rental car provider Sixt, as well as Moovit, a mobility data company owned by Intel.

Sep 7, 2021

Space station astronaut captures breathtaking view of the edge of the Earth

Posted by in category: space travel

If the state of the planet is getting you down or you’re just terrified that ducks can now speak human words 0 then I advise you to stop what you’re doing for a few moments and gaze in awe at this photo by Thomas Pesquet, a French astronaut currently residing inside the International Space Station.

Pesquet, an engineer with the European Space Agency, is one of the members of the SpaceX Crew-2 mission and member of NASA’s Expedition 65, which launched to the station in April. It’s his second spaceflight and he’s become known around these parts for delivering some absolutely surreal images of our home planet.

This may be his best yet.

Sep 7, 2021

Who is Starlink really for?

Posted by in categories: internet, satellites

The boom in LEO satellites will probably change the lives of customers who’ve struggled for high-speed internet—but only if they can afford it.

Sep 7, 2021

Dark regions of the genome may drive the evolution of new species

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, evolution

So-called junk DNA plays a key role in the way cells organize information, and new research has found that it might affect species formation.

Sep 7, 2021

El Salvador adopts bitcoin as official currency, first country to do so

Posted by in categories: bitcoin, law

El Salvador became the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, with Pres. Nayib Bukele saying it will save millions in commissions for remittances.

Sep 7, 2021

A Black Hole Triggers a Premature Supernova — First Observation of a Brand-New Kind of Supernova

Posted by in category: cosmology

The first observation of a brand-new kind of supernova had been predicted by theorists but never before confirmed.

In 2,017 a particularly luminous and unusual source of radio waves was discovered in data taken by the Very Large Array (VLA) Sky Survey, a project that scans the night sky in radio wavelengths. Now, led by Caltech graduate student Dillon Dong (MS ’18), a team of astronomers has established that the bright radio flare was caused by a black hole or neutron star crashing into its companion star in a never-before-seen process.

“Massive stars usually explode as supernovae when they run out of nuclear fuel,” says Gregg Hallinan, professor of astronomy at Caltech. “But in this case, an invading black hole or neutron star has prematurely triggered its companion star to explode.” This is the first time a merger-triggered supernova has ever been confirmed.

Sep 7, 2021

Fast quantum random number generator fits on a fingertip

Posted by in categories: computing, quantum physics

Chip-scale device achieves record speeds using vacuum fluctuations as its source of truly random numbers.

Sep 7, 2021

Intel’s turnaround and the future of chipmaking

Posted by in categories: business, futurism

Pat Gelsinger is opening up America’s historically hermetic semiconductor giant — and shaking up its industry in the process | Business.