The eVinci microreactorWestinghouseWestinghouse Electric Company is pushing forward with its groundbreaking eVinci nuclear microreactor. Drawing on space nuclear technology, this compact reactor has no moving parts and can be easily replaced for refueling, similar to swapping out a used gas cylinder.As concerns about climate change grow, nuclear energy is making a comeback. Its zero-emission...
Unlike some other experimental suction-based adhesive patches, the octopus-inspired AMOS patch should be relatively easy to produce on a commercial scaleKAUSTSensors like electrocardiogram (EEG) electrodes can be lifesaving, but the adhesive patches used to attach them can sometimes damage the skin. A new experimental medical patch tackles this problem by using octopus-inspired suckers.Unlike traditional...
An artist's impression of atoms (gold) flowing friction-free along an edge of laser light (green)Sampson WilcoxMIT scientists have successfully guided atoms into a unique "edge state" for the first time, enabling them to move without any friction. This breakthrough could pave the way for improved superconductor materials.When electrons pass through various materials, they experience...
Polaris Dawn lifting offSpaceXThe Polaris Dawn mission, the most ambitious private space venture to date, has successfully launched, marking the first-ever private spacewalk. At 5:23 am EDT, the mission lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39A in Florida aboard a Falcon 9 rocket, heading for low-Earth orbit.This mission represents a significant...
The first shape created with the 3D Metal PrinterESA/NASAIn an experiment that seems as risky as bobbing for fries, the European Space Agency (ESA) successfully conducted the first 3D metal printing in space aboard the ISS. Developed in collaboration with Airbus, the Metal 3D Printer produced the first of four test shapes.3D printing on...
Artist's concept of Starship entering the Martian atmosphereSpaceXSpaceX founder Elon Musk announced that the first Starship spacecraft will head to Mars within two years, with crewed missions following in 2028. This effort is part of his broader vision to make humanity an interplanetary species.Musk is known for making bold predictions that occasionally come true,...
Ganymede with the impact site approximately in the centerNASAFour billion years ago, an asteroid larger than the one that ended the age of dinosaurs may have struck the largest moon in our solar system, Ganymede, knocking it off its axis and causing it to crack like an egg.Discovered by Galileo in 1610 while experimenting...
Mingyang's enormous 20-MW offshore wind turbineMingyang Smart EnergyMingyang Smart Energy announced last week that it has installed "the world’s largest single-capacity offshore wind turbine" in a project in Hainan, China. This turbine generates up to 20 MW, surpassing the company’s earlier 18 MW model from 2023.Mingyang describes the MySE18.X-20MW turbine as lightweight, modular, and...
An artist's impression of a star circling a supermassive black hole, a repeating event that seems to be at the core of AT2018fykNASA/CXC/M. WeissAstronomers have observed a supermassive black hole consume a star in two phases and have predicted when it might take a third. If it happens, it could create a fascinating cosmic...
A new electron microscope can effectively freeze time, snapping images of events just 1 attosecond longDepositphotosThe subatomic world is challenging to visualize not only because of its minute scale but also due to its incredibly rapid dynamics. Physicists at the University of Arizona have now developed the world's fastest electron microscope, capable of capturing...
