SpaceX and NASA plan to create the Red Dragon capsule and land it on Mars to collect scientific data — possibly within the next two years in 2018. The plan is to use an unmanned Dragon capsule. Red Dragon missions will help inform the overall Mars architecture that will be unveiled later this year. These …
By the early 2020s, rail commuters in Asia will be able to travel by rail between Kunming, a major transportation hub in southwestern China, and the tiny city state of Singapore in just 10 hours. Construction has begun on several parts of the “Pan-Asia Railway Network,” a mega plan that will see three 4,500-5,500 kilometer …
Tesla’s Vice-President of Investor Relations, Jeff Evanson, jumped in on the call between Langan and Bereisa to correct their analysis. Evanson stated that Tesla’s battery pack cost is already below $190/kWh – meaning at least 26% less than Bereisa’s current estimate – and that the base Model 3 will be offered with a battery pack …
Ramez Naam has an analysis of how cheap electric cars can get Electric Vehicles, like virtually all other manufactured goods, are likely to have a learning curve, meaning that greater production will mean reduced price. Batteries, a large fraction of the cost of EVs, appear to have a learning rate of around 21%, meaning that …
There are a few technically feasible approaches to get about a megawatt of power in space using nuclear power or solar power. Russia has a project to develop about a megawatt nuclear reactor for space applications. NASA Glenn Research Center, GRC, has several programs to advance near-term photovoltaic array development. One project is to design, …
The European Space Agency has a flagship mission to Mercury powered by ion drives. BepiColombo will provide the best understanding of Mercury to date. It consists of two individual orbiters: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) to map the planet, and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO) to investigate its magnetosphere. BepiColombo mission is based on two …
The USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) marked a historical milestone April 13 after installing the first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) command center aboard an aircraft carrier. Capt. Beau Duarte, program manager of Unmanned Carrier Aviation program office (PMA-268), inspected the site and recognized Carl Vinson Sailors instrumental in the security, logistics and installation of the …
Musk spoke late last week at the Future Transport Solutions conference in Oslo, Norway Elon said that the $35,000 Tesla Model 3 is designed such that roughly half the people will be able to afford the car. A fourth generation Tesla and smaller cars will ultimately be in the position where everyone will be able …
A European self driving truck experiment is known as the European Truck Platooning Challenge. The European Truck Platooning Challenge, organised by Rijkswaterstaat, featured DAF Trucks, Daimler Trucks, Iveco, MAN Truck and Bus, Scania and Volvo Group; driving in platoons across national borders. This was a global first. Truck platooning means that two or three trucks …
1. Universe Today – An Earth Like planet only 16 light years away ? An artistic representation of Gliese 832 c against a stellar nebula background. A new paper says Gliese 832 might be home to another planet similar to this, but in the habitable zone. Credit: Planetary Habitability Laboratory at the University of Puerto …
The Phoenix exoskeleton is the world’s lightest and most advanced exoskeleton designed to help people with mobility disorders to be upright and mobile. In the clinic, at home, and in the workplace Phoenix has successfully enabled many individuals to stand up, walk about, and speak to peers eye-to-eye. The Phoenix, costs $30,000 and weighs 12 …