Beginner orbital tether for Phobos

A sensor package that “floats” just above the surface of Phobos, suspended by a tether from a small spacecraft operating at the Mars/Phobos Lagrange 1 (L1) Point would offer exciting opportunities for science (SMD), for human exploration (HEOMD) and for advancements in space technology (STMD). Detailed information on the Martian moon Phobos is limited even …

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Architectural Design for 99.99% of a space elevator but does not solve for main problem of the tether

Architects have a system is referred to as the Universal Orbital Support System (UOSS). It calls for placing a large asteroid into orbit over earth, a high strength cable can be lowered towards the surface of earth from which a super tall tower can be suspended. 1. There are future plans to move a small …

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F-35B controls missiles on an Aegis equipped destroyer to shoot down a drone

The Marines completed a proof-of-concept test in which a Marine Corps F-35B detected a cruise-missile decoy (a drone), passed targeting information to a remote sensor, and set up a shot by an Aegis combat system of the sort you’ll find on modern destroyers. A battery controlled by the Aegis fired a live SM-6 missile, which …

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Tesla Motors Powerwall lithium ion battery energy storage

Tesla Motors Powerwall is a home battery that charges using electricity generated from solar panels, or when utility rates are low, and powers your home in the evening. It also fortifies your home against power outages by providing a backup electricity supply. Automated, compact and simple to install, Powerwall offers independence from the utility grid …

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China could have high speed rail to Central Asia and Moscow around 2025

China has opened a 330-mile stretch of high speed rail between Xinjiang’s capital, Urumqi, and Hami, a city in eastern Xinjiang, is the first stage of the 1100-mile Lanxin Railway, which will connect Urumqi to Lanzhou, the capital of the northwestern province of Gansu. The full length of the passenger railway was on schedule to …

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After being wrong for over a decade there are renewed predictions that India’s GDP growth will pass China

India’s GDP growth is expected to rebound with improved prospects for reforms, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth should increase from 4.7% in 2013-14 to around 6% in 2014-15 and 7% in 2015-16. China is GDP Growth is expected to fall to around 7.3% this year and 7% next year. While a housing crunch could …

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China has problems and in a show of political insecurity blocks Google services since last week

China has reportedly blocked all Google services days before the 25th anniversary of the military clampdown on the student protest centered around Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. Cnet.com, citing a Chinese news website, reported Monday that Chinese users have found Google’s services to be inaccessible since last week. If you liked this article, please give it a …

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India gives go ahead to Mumbai Ahmedabad high speed rail line and looks New Dehli Patna line

India’s new prime minister Mr Narendra Modi reportedly gave the go-ahead to develop the 545km Mumbai – Ahmedabad line as a showpiece project at a recent meeting with the chairman of India’s High Speed Rail Corporation (HSRC) Mr Satish Agnihotri. Indian Railways (IR) and French National Railways (SNCF) are understood to have developed a detailed …

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Boeing CEO wants Incremental Progress so that Future Moonshot Projects from Elon Musk, Google or others will kill Boeing instead of a self inflicted failed Dreamliner project

Boeing Co. Chief Executive Jim McNerney said the plane maker aims to emulate the product strategy of Apple Inc. by developing future passenger jets in incremental steps, rather than once-a-generation “moon shots” that carry too much risk. This is a reaction to the difficulties in building the advanced 787 Dreamliner, which suffered years of delays …

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An immersive display room driven by a graphic supercomputer with 1.5 billion pixels from 416 screens

Stony Brook University unveiled its latest engineering feat, a 1.5 billion pixel Reality Deck. The Reality Deck, a 416 screen super-high resolution virtual reality four-walled surround-view theater, is the largest resolution immersive display ever built driven by a graphic supercomputer. Its purpose and primary design principle is to enable scientists, engineers and physicians to tackle …

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Stanford expert: ‘Black swans’ and ‘perfect storms’ become lame excuses for bad risk management

Instead of reflecting on the unlikelihood of rare catastrophes after the fact, Stanford risk analysis expert Elisabeth Paté-Cornell prescribes an engineering approach to anticipate them when possible, and to manage them when not. Her research suggests that other fields could borrow risk analysis strategies from engineering to make better management decisions, even in the case …

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