• Nasa’s Artemis rocket lifts off for historic Moon mission

    After several failed attempts, Nasa’s ‘Space Launch System’ (SLS) rocket has launched from the agency's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida,  propelling the Orion spacecraft in the Moon's direction.  The uncrewed mission is the first in the space agency's Artemis programme, which aims to take humans back to the Moon and establish a lunar colony in the Earth's only natural satellite.  “We rise together, back to the Moon and beyond,” said Nasa’s official commentator as the 98-metre rocket took off in a cloud of smoke.  The SLS is the most powerful rocket Nasa has ever built. In this crucial testing phase, it will fly further than any spacecraft built for humans: 40,000 miles past the far side of the Moon and 280,000 miles from Earth. When we go, we go together. The #Artemis team wants…

  • Autonomous robot finds its way through pipe networks to find leaks

    Much of the infrastructure for water, sewage and gas runs in pipes under the ground that require regular inspection to find the source of leaks or needed repairs. This often requires expensive excavation work that is estimated to cost £5.5bn a year in the UK alone, as well as causing disruption to traffic and nuisance to people living nearby. The team has developed a robot called Joey that can navigate by itself through mazes of pipes as narrow as 7.5cm across without needing a camera. Weighing just 70g, it’s small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. Image credit: TL Nguyen, A Blight, A Pickering, A Barber, GH Jackson-Mills, JH Boyle, R Richardson, M Dogar, N Cohen “Underground water and sewer networks are some of the least hospitable environments, not only…

  • The UK grants first-ever spaceport licence

    The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has confirmed that Spaceport Cornwall, in Newquay, can be used for sending satellites into space, paving the way for the launch of the LauncherOne rocket into space.  The launch will see Virgin Orbit’s jumbo, known as Cosmic Girl, carrying LauncherOne, to an altitude of approximately 35,000ft (10km) and then dropping it. Once released into the atmosphere, the LauncherOne rocket will accelerate to 8,000mph (12,875km/h) before deploying seven satellites into orbit with a variety of civil and defence applications. The jumbo – a repurposed Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 aircraft – recently travelled from California in the US to Spaceport Cornwall, and is expected to lift off in the coming weeks.  CAA chief executive Richard Moriarty described the awarding of…

  • Musk ‘fired Twitter staff for criticising him’

    As many as 20 employees have allegedly been told that their behaviour violated company policy and that their employment was being terminated immediately. According to reports in the US, a number of staff using Slack - a messaging platform used officially by staff inside Twitter - had criticised or questioned some of Musk’s recent tweets about the Twitter app’s “slow” performance. Earlier this week, a Twitter engineer who publicly disagreed with the billionaire’s tweets was said to have been laid off, with Musk later tweeting, “he’s fired”. Musk even appeared to mock staff who had been fired, tweeting in reply to a link to the story: “I would like to apologise for firing these geniuses. Their immense talent will no doubt be of great use elsewhere.” Critics of the Tesla and SpaceX boss…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • UK’s failure on heat pump installations has left it ‘gas addicted’

    Heat pumps have already replaced about 20 per cent of the boilers in Europe, but the war in Ukraine is resulting in even more consumers turning to the electric heating systems as a way to reduce demand for gas whose price as increased significantly. Estonia sold 1,583 heat pumps per 100,000 people in 2021 and Poland sold 259 per 100,000 people, 25 times and 4 times more than the UK’s 63 respectively. The ECIU estimated that if the UK had already installed the same amount of heat pumps per 100,000 people as Estonia, the UK’s domestic gas use would be 107TWh or 34 per cent lower than in 2021 and gas imports in 2021 could have been cut by a fifth. Total numbers of heat pumps are also a lot higher in most of Europe compared to the UK, which has just 280,000 heat pumps installed. For example…

  • Hands-on review: OneOdio Monitor 60 pro wired headphones

    While sales of in-ear wired earbuds have been tanking in recent years, their bigger, over-ear wired brothers have seen an uptick in sales. Driven partly by the pandemic, and partly by the rise (and rise) of social media platforms and the cult of the influencer, more and more people have got involved with creating content – as opposed to passively consuming it – be it videos for TikTok and YouTube, audio podcasts or self-produced songs and beats. This trend has, in turn, driven an increase in sales of pro audio equipment – the tools you need to do your best work. Acknowledging this shift in consumer behaviour, Chinese firm OneOdio has released the Monitor 60, billed as "professional wired headphones". These ear goggles are strictly for direct wired connection only. There's no Bluetooth,…

  • View from India: Path-breaking research fetches laurels

    The Infosys Prize is awarded by the Infosys Science Foundation (ISF), a not-for-profit trust set up in 2009. The annual award goes towards the outstanding achievements of contemporary researchers and scientists in six categories: Engineering and Computer Science, Humanities, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Social Sciences. Panels of jurors comprising world-renowned scholars and experts shortlisted the winners of the Infosys Prize 2022 from 218 nominations. Each prize consists of a gold medal, a citation and a purse of US$100,000. The award intends to celebrate success in research and stand as a marker of excellence in these fields. Over the past 13 years, ISF has recognised the accomplishments of some of the best and creative scientific research that has contributed…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Google fined nearly $400m for breaching location tracking rules in the US

    The case leading to the multistate payout was instigated by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, along with 39 other attorneys general. It is the largest multistate privacy settlement in the history of the US, with Michigan alone receiving close to $12m from the settlement. “Google makes the majority of its revenue from using the personal data of those who search in its browsers and use its apps,” Nessel said. “The company’s online reach enables it to target consumers without the consumer’s knowledge or permission. However, the transparency requirements of this settlement will ensure that Google not only makes users aware of how their location data is being used, but also how to change their account settings if they wish to disable location-related account settings, delete the data collected…

  • North Korean mobile usage is soaring, escapee interviews reveal

    The notoriously restrictive regime has been slow to adopt mobile internet technologies in comparison to its neighbours, South Korea and China. But some two decades after the first mobile networks began operating in the capital Pyongyang and the port city of Rason, more than a quarter of the country’s population are now estimated to have some access to the internet. 38 North, a body that conducts research into the reclusive country, has been collecting data from recent interviews with North Korean escapees which indicates that usage of mobile phones is now ubiquitous. As well as communication with friends and family, the devices also underpin North Korea’s private economy – providing a vital tool for communicating with suppliers, buyers and distributors necessary to do business. Researchers…

  • Italy bans the use of facial-recognition technology

    Italy has banned the use of facial-recognition technology and similar biometrics systems until either  a specific law is adopted or at least until the end of next year.  "The moratorium arises from the need to regulate eligibility requirements, conditions and guarantees relating to facial recognition, in compliance with the principle of proportionality," the agency said in a statement. Facial-recognition systems can extract different kinds of information from images and then relay these data back to the user.  Under European Union and Italian law, the processing of personal data by public bodies using video devices is generally allowed on public interest grounds and when linked to the activity of public authorities, the Italian watchdog said.  However, municipalities that want to use…

  • OECD countries phasing out coal as China continues new projects

    The Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA) said that countries within the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) are on track to close down over three-quarters of coal-fired electricity generation by 2030. The scale of proposed new coal power plants has also collapsed globally by the same amount since 2015, which is expected to lead to an irreversible transition away from coal power and towards cleaner electricity. The report also found that despite short-term energy security concerns arising from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, over a long-term trajectory, coal is firmly on the way out. Since 2015, the global capacity of operating coal power plants increased by 170GW to a total 2,067GW as of July 2022. However, if China is removed from the picture, the rest of the world…

  • Amazon reportedly planning to cut 10,000 jobs

    Amazon could "axe 10,000 workers" after economic forecasts predict slow growth, The New York Times and The Washington Post have reported, citing sources close to the matter.  The layoffs would start as soon as this week and affect as many as 10,000 people in the company’s devices organisation, retail division and human resources, in what would be the largest job cuts in the company’s history. If confirmed, the redundancy plan would affect a pproximately 3 per cent of Amazon's corporate employees or 1 per cent of the company's total workforce, which employs over 1.5 million workers.  The news was surprising for some, as it has come during the critical holiday shopping season – when the company typically has valued stability – and follows an aggressive  hiring spree. The Covid-19 pandemic…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Winter idling of car engines creates high carbon cost

    Warming our cars up in winter before driving away is no idle matter, according to new research shared by the IET.  The average UK motorist leaves their car running for 244 minutes in winter – based on an average idling estimation of 14.35 minutes per week over three winter months – generating a combined 107,000 tonnes of CO 2 annually in the UK. This equates to more than the entire population of Cardiff catching a flight to Egypt to attend COP27. The study by the IET found that more than six in ten (64 per cent) of drivers let their engine idle during the colder months, with 41 per cent doing so at least three times a week. More than a million motorists idle every single day during winter, producing a carbon footprint over a lifetime of 825kg. Highlighting the extent of the issue, the…

  • Self-charging trains backed by Department for Transport

    The DfT’s ‘First of a Kind 2022’ competition saw 24 projects receive a share of more than £5m, with grants of up to £400,000 each. This year’s competition was focused on new concepts that will transform rail travel for passengers and help to decarbonise the network. Echion Technologies submitted a successful project for developing batteries that will charge from overhead wires and use that charge to ‘leapfrog’ across unelectrified sections of track. In 2020, diesel-powered UK trains began to be retrofitted with batteries to allow them to run on low-carbon electricity even on unelectrified rail lines. Varamis – another project receiving funding – is working closely with DHL and Fedex to repurpose former passenger carriages to carry parcels across the UK. The firm said it wanted to capitalise…

  • Mushroom skin could be made into biodegradable computer chips

    Using mushroom skin as a base for computer chips and batteries could be a sustainable alternative that reduces the environmental impact of the technology. As part of the process of manufacturing computer chips, their electronic circuits, made of conducting metals, need to sit in an insulating and cooling base called a substrate. This is often fabricated with non-recyclable plastic polymers, which are thrown away at the end of a chip's life, contributing to the 50 million tonnes of electronic waste that is produced each year. A team of researchers at Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria, has come up with a biodegradable alternative to these polymers, made from the skin of a certain type of mushroom.  Chip made from mushroom skin / Credit: Soft Matter Physics…

  • View from Brussels: Killing the engine slowly

    One of the more controversial parts of the EU’s Green Deal includes rules that will slash greenhouse gas emissions produced by road transport and clean up all the other pollutants that driving creates. This means that by 2035, sales of new cars and vans will have to be zero-emission. This ostensibly opens the door for full-blown adoption of battery-electric mobility in order to stick to the new rules. In addition to that, the European Commission laid out its plans earlier this month for a new engine standards regime, which would also govern pollutants created by braking and tyre wear. But there are, of course, loopholes, some of which still need to be written. The Commission has to publish new methodology on how to measure the life-cycle emissions of vehicles by 2025, for example. More…

  • More households to turn to electric heaters this winter despite safety concerns

    Electrical Safety First found that 42 per cent of people will either definitely use, or are considering using, an electric heater to warm up a single room in their home because of concerns regarding the cost of central heating. Of this group, 37 per cent said they were using an electric heater for the first time. Some 90 per cent of those surveyed said they were concerned about the cost of heating their home this winter, up from 78 per cent this year. A fifth (22 per cent) of those concerned about rising energy costs have bought an electric heater in the last year, 45 per cent of them from an online marketplace. But Electrical Safety First, which is a charity, warned shoppers to buy heaters directly from reputable retailers. “Heating your home should never come at the expense of your…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Egg whites used to whisk away microplastics from water

    The scientists used egg whites to create an aerogel, a lightweight and porous material that can be used in many types of applications, including water filtration, energy storage, and sound and thermal insulation. The idea came to Craig Arnold, vice dean of innovation at Princeton, who was working on developing new materials for engineering applications, during a faculty meeting. “I was sitting there, staring at the bread in my sandwich,” he said. “And I thought to myself, this is exactly the kind of structure that we need.” Arnold asked his lab group to make different bread recipes mixed with carbon to see if they could recreate the aerogel structure he was looking for. None of them worked quite right initially, so the team kept eliminating ingredients until only egg whites remained.…

  • Pathway to decarbonise US aviation sector with biofuel identified

    Around 45,000 planes fly across the US daily, carrying some 1.7 million passengers, making it the single largest contributor to aviation carbon dioxide emissions globally and responsible for more than a quarter of all emissions from flying. The new study, led by a team of Arizona State University researchers, found that planting the grass miscanthus on 23.2 million hectares of existing marginal agricultural lands across the US – land that often lays fallow or is poor in soil quality – would provide enough biomass feedstock to meet the liquid fuel demands of the country’s aviation sector fully from biofuels. “We demonstrate that it is within reach for the United States to decarbonise the fuel used by commercial aviation, without having to wait for electrification of aircraft propulsion,…

  • UK could launch space clean-up mission by 2026

    The UK Space Agency (UKSA) has given two companies £4m to design a space clean-up mission that could launch as soon as 2026.  The winning prototype will track down and capture two defunct satellites already orbiting Earth, then cast them into the atmosphere where they will burn up. Amongst the proposals are two innovative solutions: Britain's first garbage truck for space, and a spacecraft with a robotic arm.  "For the last six decades we've been launching satellites into space without really thinking about what happens at the end of their life," Rory Holmes of ClearSpace, one of the competing companies, told Sky News.  "When they run out of fuel or when they break, we just discard them. We leave them to clog up space. "We're in a situation now where space is quite congested and all…

  • Half a million to lose Warm Home Discount, hospitality businesses opt to go dark

    Eligibility for the “winter lifeline” Warm Home Discount is changing, with the government shifting the targeting of the one-off payment, which has increased by £10 this winter to £150 for those fortunate enough to qualify for it. More than half a million households could no longer be eligible for the payment, charities have warned. National Energy Action (NEA) and Scope said that 500,000 households across England and Wales are now ineligible for the discount because Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payments are no longer qualifying benefits. Some of those living in smaller homes who were previously entitled to the assistance will also miss out. Among the 2.8 million people who are eligible are pensioners who receive the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit and…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Road users urged to follow changed Highway Code, at start of Road Safety Week

    Children at Ravenfield Primary School, Rotherham, officially launched the Week. Nine children - a figure representing the number of pedestrians and cyclists killed every week across Britain in 2021 - held Road Safety Week placards. The changes to The Highway Code aim to help improve road safety for people walking, cycling and also horse riding and were publicised by the government earlier this year. The Code sets out a hierarchy of road users, with those who can cause the most harm having the greatest responsibility to protect others on the road. Road Safety Week is coordinated by Brake, the road safety charity, and in support of the Department for Transport’s 'THINK!' Campaign. Brake also runs the National Road Victim Service, providing bereaved and seriously injured families with dedicated…

  • UN calls for investment in sustainable cold food chains

    In the face of rising global food insecurity and global warming, two UN agencies have published a report urging governments, international development partners and industry to invest in sustainable food cold chains to decrease hunger, provide livelihoods to communities, and adapt to climate change. Launched during COP27, the global climate summit taking place in Egypt, the report is the result of work by  the Sustainable Food Cold Chains initiative from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).  “At a time when the international community must act to address the climate and food crises, sustainable food cold chains can make a massive difference,” said Inger Andersen, UNEP executive director. “They allow us to reduce food…

  • How to keep data centres online

    While we all welcome the increased use of biofuels such as biodiesel to reduce carbon emissions, data centres need to be aware of the additional risks this poses to backup generators. The increased use of some bio components/materials within the fuel industry makes the environment within the fuel tank more appealing to microorganisms. Present in large concentrations, these can create issues by blocking filters and corroding metal parts within the fuel system – issues that are not likely to be covered by generator OEM warranties. What can data centres be doing to ensure that they stay online? Since the adoption of ultra-low sulphur diesel back in 2006, authorities such as the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have documented the increased risk of severe and rapid corrosion of fuel…

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