Science, Space, & Robotics - Page 58

The Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Unit has chosen General Motors to develop and test a battery pack prototype for future use.

The DoD doesn't want to miss out on the expansion of batteries and other forms of energy storage, especially as more EV technology hits the road. This project, however, is designed for the National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries 2021-2030 objective and requires GM Defense to develop a battery pack prototype.

GM expects its Ultium Platform - combined EV battery architecture and propulsion system - will be the best choice, as it is modular and extremely scalable. Ultium ranges from 50 to 200 kWh and Ultium-powered Evs have fast-charging capability with a range of up to 400 miles supported on a full charge.

The Sun is much larger than people may expect and constantly affects Earth with blasts of charged particles streaming from its surface in various forms.

Our local star has a diameter of 864,000 miles, which may be hard to visualize, but being the largest object in our solar system, that isn't surprising. Notably, approximately 1.3 million Earths can fit inside the Sun, and due to its immense size and power, its presence directly affects Earth. An example of how the Sun can affect us is seen above in an incredible video captured by Miguel Claro, who writes on Space.com that on July 10, 2022, the Sun released a gigantic solar prominence that resulted in a coronal mass ejection (CME) being launched into space.

Claro explains in his article that as soon as he realized that a solar prominence was visible, he began taking photos, with the astrophotographer snapping pics of our star from 5:37 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. local time (Alqueva, Portugal). The final results are absolutely stunning, and as Claro explains, the short video is comprised of approximately one-hour images that shows the prominence swirling like a tornado over time. Plasma releases such as the one seen in the above video, when directed at Earth, can result in charged solar particles impacting Earth's magnetic field.

A group of scientists has condensed 1 billion years of tectonic plate activity into one short 40-second video showing how drastically the planet has changed over time.

In 2021 a group of scientists created one of the most complete models of Earth's tectonic plate movements ever. The video was published on YouTube in February last year and showcases how these incredibly large pieces of irregularly shaped solid rock have moved over the course of millions of years, revealing how locations we know today were in completely different spots on the planet a millennia ago.

An example of this is Antarctica, which is a place known for its extreme freezing temperatures, but at one stage during Earth's evolution, it was warm as it was positioned at the planet's equator. To humans, tectonic plates only move a few centimeters every year, but over large periods of time, they have moved drastically. Creating models such as the one above will enable scientists to learn more about tectonic plate movement patterns and, in turn, will allow for scientists to predict where they will end up in the future.

A YouTuber has posted a video where he built the entire universe inside of Minecraft in what may be the biggest effort ever made inside the game.

The YouTuber ChrisDaCow posted the video on October 4 titled "How I Built the Entire Universe in Minecraft" to Reddit, where it quickly went viral, gaining hundreds of awards and multiple supportive comments on the effort that was made. This isn't the first time ChrisDaCow has challenged himself inside of Minecraft, as the YouTuber has previously recreated Middle Earth, dragons, Van Gogh's Starry Night, factories, and much more.

However, recreating the entire universe is the biggest challenge ChrisDaCow has ever made, and the results are absolutely phenomenal. Chris explains during the video that there was quite a lot of planning involved and that he used Minecraft mods such as WorldEdit to speed up the development of the process as well as painting large selections of blocks. Despite the fact that mods were used to create the project, the effort that was made is still gargantuan.

A group of researchers has claimed they've discovered what they believe to be the secret ingredients to the building blocks of life.

A new paper published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences details a discovery made by researchers from Purdue University. The researchers behind the study describe the discovery as "dramatic" as they believe that the "secret ingredient for building life" has been found.

According to Graham Cooks, a chemistry professor at Purdue University and lead author on the newly published paper, the discovery is "essentially the chemistry behind the origin of life" and that this is the first demonstration of "primordial molecules, simple amino acids, spontaneously form peptides, the building blocks of life, in droplets of pure water".

Neil deGrasse Tyson and Elon Musk have taken to Twitter to debunk the physics seen throughout Tom Cruise's Top Gun: Maverick.

The latest installment into the Top Gun series saw the return of Tom Cruise playing the fan-favorite character Captain Pete "Maverick" Mitchell for the highly anticipated sequel, and while the movie was certainly a success at the box office, scientists such as Neil deGrasse Tyson have broken down the physics that were displayed throughout a specific scene in the movie. As with most movies, what viewers witness on the big screen isn't necessarily possible in real life, and Maverick's achievement of reaching Mach 10.5 seems to be one of those instances.

deGrasse Tyson took to Twitter to explain that when Maverick was traveling at Mach 10.5 and was forced to eject from his aircraft due to a malfunction, he was moving at 7,000 mph, which gave him 400 million joules of kinetic energy, or the explosive power of 100 kg (220 pounds) of TNT. deGrasse Tyson added that the human body is incapable of surviving this much kinetic energy and that Maverick would have certainly died in the real-world.

Elon Musk's SpaceX recently launched a groundbreaking mission to the International Space Station (ISS) with its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket.

NASA's SpaceX Crew-5 mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on October 5 to the International Space Station (ISS) with the Falcon 9 rocket carrying four astronauts aboard the Dragon capsule. The launch marked the fifth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, and after an approximately 29-hour flight to the floating laboratory, the four astronauts successfully docked and entered the ISS on October 6.

As with all of SpaceX's launches, the mission liftoff was livestreamed via its social channels as well as NASA's own livestream. The four astronauts aboard the Dragon capsule and now members of the ISS crew are: NASA's Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and cosmonaut Anna Kikina. Notably, the presence of NASA's Nicole Mann marks the very first time a Native American woman has reached the final frontier, with an additional milestone being reached with cosmonaut Anna Kikina being the first Russian to fly on a private American spacecraft.

AIRROBO is quite proud of its P20 robot vacuum which brings an impressive 99.2% cleaning efficiency to customers using the robotic device in their apartment or house.

The P20's 99.2% cleaning efficiency, based on the percentage of debris picked up, is specific to robot vacuum cleaners priced under $200 and based on the following criteria - three different debris types (rice, dust, dog hair), and included three different surface types (hard surface, low-pile carpet and mid-pile carpet).

As noted by Tommy Zhang, General Manager of AIRROBO, in a press statement:

Boston Dynamics has joined five other leading robotics companies to publish an open letter pledging that general-purpose robots should not be weaponized. Joining Boston Dynamics in the public statement were the following leading robotics companies: Agility, ANYbotics, Clearpath Robotics, Open Robotics, and Unitree.

Each company will ensure their "advanced-mobility general-purpose robots" and software that makes them run will not be weaponized. In addition, they will work to ensure customers also didn't weaponize any of the products for nefarious purposes. They will actively review plans customers have for their products, while also exploring features that would prevent any intended weaponization.

The industry leaders also want lawmakers to work with them to promote the safe use of the robots and prevent possible future misuse.

Restaurants struggling to find human workers are finding robots to be a good way to augment staff, eliminating repetitive tasks in the back of house. In the future, robots will continue advancing from test labs into restaurant kitchens, with restaurant owners willing to invest in automation.

Restaurant hosts, baristas, and drive-through operators are at the greatest risk of robotic automation, and 76% of restaurants already are using 3 or more automated tools, according to a recent report from Capterra. For restaurants already embracing automation, the majority of workers also found it easy to use the tools while at work, an important metric as additional technology is added.

Diners tend to be oblivious to the automation that is already underway, and that is currently acceptable - it will take some time for them to become welcoming to robots and non-human automation that they must interact with directly. Everything from traditional restaurants to fast food restaurants and pizza shops have custom robots they can rent for monthly dues - or purchase outright - and see if their operations benefit.

Pharmacy giant Walgreens is embracing prescription-packaging robots designed to free up pharmacists' time while greatly reducing costs.

Pharmacist workloads could be cut by 25% and may save the company $1 billion per year - and is an effort that will continue to accelerate in the future. Controlled medication and time-sensitive prescriptions still require a pharmacist to sign and validate the prescription.

Walgreens might see half of its prescription volume from stores filled at automated centers by 2025, which would make it possible for pharmacists to focus more on direct interaction with patients. Pharmacists will now be able to provide direct medical services and patient outreach, which is currently limited due to tasks that aren't automated.

SpaceX has taken to its social channels to announce that it launched its Falcon 9 rocket with its Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS).

Elon Musk's company took to Twitter to provide live updates on the launch and the condition of the Dragon capsule as it separated from the rocket. The Dragon capsule harbored the Crew-5 astronauts and launched from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The flight to the ISS is expected to take approximately 29 hours, and the four astronauts currently aboard the Dragon capsule are: NASA's Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and cosmonaut Anna Kikina.

SpaceX's launch and the presence of NASA's Nicole Mann marks the first time a Native American woman has reached the final frontier, along with cosmonaut Anna Kikina being the very first Russian to fly on a private American spacecraft. On October 1, Mann said during a press conference, "I am very proud to represent Native Americans and my heritage. We're all from very unique, different backgrounds. We all came from different educations and different job specialties. And it's really great to see everyone coming together."

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope have teamed up to photograph a galaxy pair 700 million light-years away from Earth.

NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have taken to their respective channels to share an incredible image of the galaxy pair called VV 191. Researchers combined data from Webb and Hubble and were able to trace light that was emitted by the large white, elliptical galaxy seen on the left of the above image through the spiral galaxy on the right. The results were that researchers were able to identify the effects of interstellar dust throughout the spiral galaxy.

Webb's near-infrared data and Hubble's visible light data revealed to researchers the long, extremely dusty spiral arms in increased detail, which makes them appear to be overlapping with the elliptical galaxy's bulge in the center. Despite the image making the galaxies look like they are next to each other, they actually aren't overlapping at all.

NASA's Earth-observing satellite called Landsat 8 has captured an incredible natural-color image of Hurricane Ian's eye.

The Landsat 8 satellite used its Operational Land Imager to capture the above photograph of Hurricane Ian's eye on September 28, approximately three hours before it made landfall on the coast of Caya Costa, Florida. NASA explains on its Earth Observatory website that the eye of Hurricane Ian is the fair weather seen at the center of the storm and that the eye is surrounded by what researchers call the "eyewall", which is the part of the hurricane that has the strongest winds.

According to the report, the swirling clouds seen on the edges of the eyewall are called mesovortices, which are only found in hurricanes that have particularly strong winds. When Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida, the National Hurricane Center reported sustained wind speeds of 150 miles per hour, which is strong enough to tear roofs off houses, collapse power lines, and cause widespread damage to almost anything in its path.

Daxbot continues to promote the Dax delivery robot, an artificial intelligence-driven robot that follows GPS towards its destination. The market for delivery robots is continually expanding, with restaurants teaming up with tech developers interested in finding new solutions to reach our doorstep.

The Dax robot stands three feet high and is two feet wide and weighs in at a hefty 120 pounds. Storage capacity includes the ability to carry two medium pizzas with drinks. Dax has a 2.5-mile delivery range but has completed a 5K (3.1-miles), so can get in a little extra distance when necessary.

The robot travels at a respectable travel speed of four miles per hour, though could travel upwards of 20 mph without a limiter in place. Built-in cameras and sensors help Dax avoid obstacles and cross streets safely, though can learn and build on the customized DaxOS.

Astronomers have used a telescope in Chile to capture an incredible image that showcases a debris trail caused by NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART).

A team of astronomers used the Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) Telescope in Chile to observe the asteroid Dimorphos and the impact debris caused by the DART spacecraft, which collided with the asteroid's surface at the end of September. From millions of miles away, astronomers were able to observe a debris trail partly caused by DART, which is stretching 6,000 miles and is expected to continue growing.

According to researchers, NASA's kamikazeing spacecraft caused the initial debris, and pressure from solar radiation is causing it to accelerate away from the asteroid, resulting in the long debris trail seen above. As previously mentioned, astronomers expect the trail to continue stretching and disperse even more, eventually becoming so thin that it won't be detectable as the dust will be like any other dust floating around the solar system.

Pizza Hut Canada and Serve Robotics have recently teamed up to test a service that lets customers receive their mobile delivery orders with small robots.

Customers need to use the Pizza Hut app to place their order and then can track the robot's location - and receive a custom PIN number to retrieve their order from a built-in storage compartment.

During the test run in Vancouver, the delivery bots were only traveling extremely short distances, but could one day travel a few kilometers. The zero-emission robots can navigate their way down sidewalks and safely around pedestrians, though Serve engineers are available to remotely monitor - and control - the robot if there are any problems along the way.

Agricultural giant John Deere is consistently expanding its repertoire of products and offerings, with a strong push to adopt emerging technologies. In the fast-moving digital age, companies that are at the forefront could be left behind - and that's exactly why Deere continues to show interest in software, autonomous technologies, and other solutions relatively new to farming.

The company wants to be able to take care of row crops with fully autonomous machinery by 2030 but understands the pressure to meet that goal is extremely high. Although research continues into fully autonomous solutions, Deere is currently retrofitting existing tractors so they're able to use more precision seeding measures, along with GPS-based self-steering technology.

As noted by Jorge Heraud, VP of automation and autonomy for Deere, per a CNBC report:

Reports indicate that the US Military spilled more than 1,000 gallons of wastewater into Pearl Harbor on Thursday, sparking major backlash from community members concerned about Hawaii's environmental treatment.

The news comes from Civil Beat, which reported a 12-inch wastewater line broke, causing a massive amount of sewage to spill directly into the ocean. Following the discovery of the leak, the US Navy announced via a press release that it had fixed the leak at Pier B-23 with a plug, but the wastewater that spilled into the ocean is, unfortunately, "unrecoverable".

Notably, the new spill into Hawaii's oceans comes only two days after the Department of Health fined the Navy $8.7 million for tainting Hawaii's waters with fecal bacteria that was traced back to previous sewage spilling. The seemingly rampant spilling of sewage into Hawaii's oceans has sparked community demands for the military to treat Hawaii's environment with more respect or to reduce its overall presence in the islands.

NASA has taken to its social channels to share a video that showcases a small piece of martian debris stuck to the foot of its Mars helicopter named Ingenuity.

At the end of September, NASA announced Ingenuity successfully completed its 33rd flight on September 24, where it traveled 364 feet over the Martian surface at an altitude of 33 feet. The total flight time was 55.2 seconds, and during the flight, the 4-pound helicopter traveled at a max speed of 10.6 mph to its new destination, where it will await its coming mission. NASA JPL has taken to Twitter to share a video captured by Ingenuity's navigation camera (Navcam) that reveals a small piece of debris attached to one of the helicopter's feet.

The space agency categorizes the object as "foreign object debris," and it's seen approximately halfway through the above video, where it briefly gets stuck and then falls back down to Mars' surface. NASA has conducted an analysis on Ingenuity to determine if the debris caused any damage, and according to the space agency, everything appears to be performing as expected with no damage to report. NASA says teams are now investigating the source of the debris.