Airborne wind turbine

An airborne wind turbine is a design concept for a wind turbine with a rotor supported in the air without a tower, thus benefiting from more mechanical and aerodynamic options, the higher velocity and persistence of wind at high altitudes, while avoiding the expense of tower construction, or the need for slip rings or yaw mechanism. An electrical generator may be on the ground or airborne. Challenges include safely suspending and maintaining turbines hundreds of meters off the ground in high winds and storms, transferring the harvested and/or generated power back to earth, and interference with aviation.

Airborne wind turbines may operate in low or high altitudes; they are part of a wider class of Airborne Wind Energy Systems (AWES) addressed by high-altitude wind power and crosswind kite power. When the generator is on the ground, then the tethered aircraft need not carry the generator mass or have a conductive tether. When the generator is aloft, then a conductive tether would be used to transmit energy to the ground or used aloft or beamed to receivers using microwave or laser.

 Kites and helicopters come down when there is insufficient wind; kytoons and blimps may resolve the matter with other disadvantages. Also, bad weather such as lightning or thunderstorms, could temporarily suspend use of the machines, probably requiring them to be brought back down to the ground and covered. Some schemes require a long power cable and, if the turbine is high enough, a prohibited airspace zone.

Microelectronics in space

With approximately 1,500 active satellites orbiting Earth, most of them carry highly sophisticated microelectronics that support communication and enable research that was scarcely imaginable a generation ago. Telecom satellites keep people around the world continuously in touch and informed, research satellites monitor global weather, while other missions provide scientists with information on the earth’s magnetic field and geomagnetic storms.

Increasing the gain of avalanche photodiodes (APDs) without adding more than a negligible amount of noise boosts the sensitivity of photon detectors. Leti and CNES showed that APDs made of HgCdTe (mercury cadmium telluride) significantly outperform those based on other semiconductor materials, making it possible to greatly improve their sensitivity, while maintaining a nearly constant signal-to-noise ratio.

Electronic boards for us are delivering a service onboard the launcher- Gilibert said. “Of course, we are shaking them a lot and warming them up and down. However, the ideal situation for us would be … to test the functional aspects to make sure it works as a functional chain onboard the launcher, and get rid of having to demonstrate one by one that all the equipment is qualified for the dynamic, radioactive and thermal environment of space.” In space and on Earth, the challenges and opportunities for the microelectronics industry are far reaching.

Mars Science Laboratory is shutting down

This 900 kg (2,000 lb), six-wheeled rover has been transmitting back to Earth since 6th August 2012, the day it touched down on Mars.  Although its planned mission duration was around two years, it continued to be operational for considerably longer, like the previous rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. In fact, its onboard plutonium generators carried enough heat and electricity to last 14 years. By 2026 the machine is finally grinding to a halt. The last signal is received from the rover this year.

Various campaign groups voiced concerns, including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, the RSPB and WWF, as well as conservation organisation The National Trust, and developmental charities Oxfam and Christian Aid, alongside Hillingdon Council – a local government in West London. Among the biggest concerns were the impacts on local communities. Environmental campaigners warned that the increased CO2 caused by the additional flights would make it harder for the UK to meet its commitments to the Paris climate agreement.

Many people also resented London gaining yet another major project, drawing money away from the rest of the UK. The widening gap between London and everywhere else had already created a worrying socio-economic divide. This ever-growing sense of inequality may have been a contributory factor in the Brexit referendum result. The arguments from the opposition side were strong. In the end, however, the importance of Heathrow as an international transport hub and a catalyst for wealth generation in London and the South East was deemed too great. The construction of its third runway would be completed in 2026.

39-day Mission to Mars

The trip to Mars originally would have taken approximately 300 days. Now with the new technology of plasma rockets, it will take six times less time. That's right: only 39 days to Mars. This is made possible by the Variable Specific Impulse Magneto plasma Rocket (VASIMR), an advanced space propulsion system that uses argon gas and radio waves in the form of light—a renewable source of energy that is found in space.

The project, led by Frank Chang-Díaz , a former NASA astronaut who has he been to space seven times andspent more than 1 600 hours in space, is being developed by Ad Astra Rocket Co. Ad Astra Rocket Co. has currently invested $30 million in the project so far, but Chang-Díaz says it will take $100 million to have the rocket ready to go.

The sun, lightning and plasma televisions are all things that possess plasma, one of the most important parts of the VASIMR. There is one major problem with the use of plasma, though: it gets extremely hot. In fact, it can go up to over 1 million degrees. To combat this heating effect, the plasma is guided along a magnetic duct that eventually ejects it out of the rocket, keeping it cool enough to function.

Space as the next step for humankind

               I always wanted to fly. I imagined it mimicking a nun as a young girl: taking flight into the sky with white dress and habit made of cardboard, the kind cardboard found prepackaged in men’s shirts. I was successful with the overall look; I stood atop a platform on a well-chosen windy day ready for lift off.  But when it came to the countdown, that’s when mortality overcame me with disappointment in a flash…until I quickly shifted into drive and initiated levitation then ascension into the sky. My mind just soared into the bright blue yonder with its collection of the puffiest radiant clouds.  I’ll never forget that impression. 

            To be airborne and ascending, jetting from one destination to another, and even spiraling down, can all be a riveting adventure depending on what aircraft you are using. Humans have a sensational appetite for flying. They have flirted with all kinds of ways to fly, like Davinci’s dissection of mammals, impeccable drawings of future spaceships and what is known as the ornithologist, or helicopter today.

                Whether it’s a dream to discover our atmosphere and deep space, to travel regularly through space until you reach your destination, or to experience flight for the first time in a variety of ways, we are here to inspire ourselves and our children to imagine and experience, in the most sustainable way, a wider scope of all that there is to learn about the immediate and distant future. 

Future of space exploration is red

           The future of manned space exporation is bright, according to some space experts.Humans may one day tread across some of the alien worlds that today can be studied only at a distance. Closer to home, private industries like Mars One seek to establish a permanent settlement on the Red Planet. At the Smithsonian Magazine's "The Future is Here Festival" in Washington, D.C. this month, former astronaut Mae Jemison and NASA engineer Adam Steltzner spoke optimistically about the future of manned space exploration."Exploration and the curiosity that motivate it are fundamentally human," Steltzner said during the conference.

           Steltzner served as the lead engineer for NASA's Mars rover Curiosity. He helped to design and test the rover's one-of-a-kind descent system, but he isn't solely focused on robotic exploration of the solar system. Landing a human on the Red Planet would be far trickier than landing a robot. For instance, Curiosity hit the Martian atmosphere at 15 times the acceleration of gravity (15 gs). Traveling at such extreme speeds would be disastrous for humans, who only experience 1g while standing on Earth's surface. At 15gs, the retinas would detach from human eyes, Steltzner said.

      "Humans should be involved in exploration," Steltzner told the audience. That form of exploration could come in a number of ways. In addition to kicking up dust on a moon or planet in the solar system, Steltzner suggested another way to spread humans throughout the galaxy.

Space becomes an Investment Race

        The space race is on — but this time it is entrepreneurs taking the lead. Space is the new hot market. More so than at any time since the famous Apollo program in the 1960s, there is an excitement about the possibilities that space offers. Imaging, analytics, minerals, water extraction, exploration, tourism – these are all emerging growth segments in the space market. Meanwhile, there are already very solid and dependable cash flows being produced by the relatively mundane activity of satellite communications.

         Space is a very particular environment requiring very particular technologies and methods. For instance, the electronic components used in space are often built differently to those on Earth – and putting a satellite into orbit is a lot more difficult than putting up a cellphone mast. Space is also a new market to most. So, in this article, we lay out some of the basics of the business of space, so that interested investors can start to understand this new market in some detail before diving in.

         The successful splashdown of the Dragon capsule — the first private spacecraft to make a trip to the International Space Station (ISS) — was a major milestone in the entry of private companies into the business of space exploration.