• Has Europe’s golden age of space tech finally arrived?

    Global geopolitical turmoil is forcing Europe to boost spending on space technologies to reduce its reliance on the US. But catching up after decades of underinvestment won’t be easy. The European space industry could be about to enter a golden era. That’s because European countries have been pressed to rethink their spending due to shifting relations with the US, increasing competition with China and Russia’s war against Ukraine. From East to West, European Union member states have been announcing purchases of new military satellites and intentions to develop novel space-defence technologies including orbiting satellite bodyguards, jammers and spacecraft inspections. On top of that, the European Space Agency (ESA) – Europe’s counterpart to Nasa – recently raised a record-breaking budget…

  • Astronomers call for 100,000-satellite cap to protect the night sky

    Future proposals to launch over 1.7 million satellites into Earth’s orbit will have “devastating consequences” for astronomy, a study from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) claims. The number of active satellites orbiting Earth has exploded over the past decade, increasing by roughly 10-fold. This is partly driven by a huge reduction in rocket launch costs due to the reusability of SpaceX rockets. But broadband satellite internet projects, such as Starlink and Amazon Leo, also require thousands of satellites in orbit to provide a functional service. SpaceX now plans to send one million more satellites into orbit for space-based data centres, which would significantly alter the appearance of the sky. Other planned satellite constellations, such as E-Space’s Cinnamon and China’s CTC…

  • Rail line closed during Beeching cuts set to return after 60 years

    Work has started on restoring passenger rail services between Portishead and Bristol for the first time in 60 years. A £63m investment from the government will result in two brand-new stations and reconnect more than 50,000 people to the railway. The Portishead line was closed to passenger traffic in 1964, after 97 years in operation, as part of the infamous Beeching cuts. It continued to be used for freight traffic until the early 1980s. But the line was not entirely dismantled or sold off, which is a major reason why it can be restored today at a relatively low cost. In 2002, a new, high-capacity freight terminal opened at the Royal Portbury Dock, which meant a section of the line from Bristol to the dock was reopened to handle this new traffic. As a result, only a 5km section of disused…

  • Gatwick deploys robots to park passengers’ cars

    Gatwick Airport has launched the UK’s first robotic airport parking service. The new system, delivered in partnership with Paris-based tech company Stanley Robotics, allows passengers to drive into a dedicated private drop-off cabin, step out of their car and let robots take care of the rest. The robots do not require drivers to hand over their keys. Instead, they work like high-tech forklifts – sliding underneath a vehicle, clamping onto all four wheels and then moving it to the correct location. It operates outdoors in all weather conditions and uses a suite of autonomous navigation technology, including a 3D lidar array, cameras and ultrasonic sensors, to map its environment in real time. Stanley Robotics has said that the system can pack 50% more cars into the same surface area, which…

  • Rare 2024 Northern Lights event exposed UK infrastructure weaknesses

    Many parts of the UK had a rare opportunity to see the Northern Lights in May 2024, but the geomagnetic storm behind it laid bare a number of weaknesses in domestic infrastructure, the Royal Astronomical Society has said. Scientists from the Space Environment Impacts Expert Group (SEIEG) identified multiple threats that the storm exposed and has made 14 recommendations to better protect British electricity supplies, satellites, aviation and other critical infrastructure from future space weather events. The May 2024 storm reached G5 – the highest category on the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s geomagnetic storm scale. While it only caused relatively minor disruption, it highlighted large gaps in the UK’s resilience to more severe events. The electricity network was…

  • Nvidia chip to give rovers the power to explore the Moon more independently

    Lunar rovers will be equipped with Nvidia GPUs to help them quickly map the surface of the Moon and communicate with Earth. Robotics firm Lunar Outpost has been selected by Nasa to take part in its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) programme, which sees it pay private firms to explore the surface of the Moon ahead of an eventual manned landing. Its lander will use Nvidia’s Jetson platform to generate terrain maps, plan autonomous paths and process them as well as operate with “increasing independence”. The processors also support real-time video streaming from the Moon to Earth. It takes about 1.3 seconds for a radio signal to travel from the Moon to Earth, and another 1.3 seconds for the response to get back. This means that driving a rover in real-time via a joystick from Mission…

  • BAE unveils UK's first homegrown autonomous fighter jet

    The first autonomous fighter jet built entirely in the UK has been unveiled at the Farnborough International Airshow. Built by BAE Systems, the Brontanax CCA (collaborative combat aircraft) is designed to be operated by a Typhoon pilot or mission commander from range, allowing crewed and uncrewed aircraft to operate as a team. The prototype aircraft was designed and built by engineers at BAE Systems in Warton, Lancashire. More than 500 BAE Systems employees have been involved in its development and it is now being prepared for ground-based testing at Warton prior to flight testing. Brontanax is similar in size to a BAE Systems Hawk trainer jet and is designed for electronic warfare, such as jamming and radar disruption, and precision strike capabilities on airborne and ground targets…

  • UK delays shutdown of key nuclear power stations ahead of 2030 decarbonisation goal

    Heysham 1 and Hartlepool nuclear power stations will now continue operating until March 2030 following another lifetime extension. As part of net zero goals, the government wants to ensure that clean energy sources will produce at least 95% of Great Britain’s electricity generation by 2030. Nuclear power is considered to be an essential base load generator to meet this goal. Originally intended to close in 2024, the lifespan of both power stations was extended to 2028 last year after operator EDF carried out a series of positive graphite inspections at both stations. The decision is set to boost nuclear output by 28TWh over the two-year extension and should roughly coincide with the opening of the first generator at the upcoming Hinkley Point C plant. As it’s based on newer technology…

  • Airbus to test foldable wing designs for more efficient aircraft

    Airbus will test designs for aircraft with longer, folding wings that could operate in airports too small for their wingspan. The firm has already built three 17-metre, ground-based wing demonstrators to explore the advantages of increased wingspan. Broadly speaking, longer wings made out of advanced materials that are both strong and light could help to maximise aerodynamic efficiency and reduce fuel burn. But existing airports are generally not equipped to handle the raw, unfolded wingspan of next-generation high-span aircraft without significant and costly modifications. Over the next three years, Airbus will design, build and flight-test full-scale wing extensions. These will be installed on an A321neo aircraft and used to evaluate how the different wing geometries perform in real…

  • Plug-in solar panels to be legalised in the UK next month to help cut energy bills

    Plug-in solar panels that can help to reduce household energy bills without the need for professional installation or planning permission will be legalised in the UK from next month. Tucked away in an amendment to the ‘Plugs and Sockets’ regulations is a new set of rules that effectively legalises the panels for home use from August 27. Previously, the British Standard for standard household plugs contained restrictions that prohibited using a plug to feed electricity into a socket. In reality, the hardware has already been available to consumers, but because it was technically illegal to use it as intended, retailers were operating in a legal grey area. The government has acknowledged that the technology is already widely used and legal in Europe, but to counter fears over safety, it…

  • The quest to unlock ten times more geothermal energy from Iceland's volcanoes

    Tapping the heat directly from a magma chamber would be the ultimate geothermal energy solution – research in Iceland is showing positive signs. You can see the black stain of lava from previous eruptions; rocks steam with the heat and there are places where lava bubbles its way to the surface. The striking blue geothermal lake at Krafla (pronounced ‘Krapla’) is even named Viti or ‘hell’ in Icelandic, and it’s a site that sits firmly on the country’s tourist trail. The volcanoes along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge created Iceland over millions of years, and today they rumble on – it’s one of the most volcanically active places in the world, although the Krafla caldera is enjoying a relatively tranquil period, for now. By next year, however, this remote site in north-east Iceland will host one…

  • England has water for just 420,000 of 1.5m planned homes as data centre demand rises

    Historic underinvestment, coupled with rising demand from data centres, could leave England with less than a third of the water it needs to build the 1.5 million homes the government has pledged to deliver this parliament. According to Water UK, which represents firms in the sector, England will only have enough water to provide for 420,000 homes under the current regime, and the Environment Agency (EA) has failed to take into account the additional demand from data centres when planning infrastructure. Between 2010 and 2024, Ofwat cut water bills by around 20% in real terms in a bid to keep bills below inflation and not add to the cost-of-living crisis. But one of the consequences has been a lack of investment in the water system that has left the country unable to keep up with the pressures…

  • Hybrid-electric aircraft reaches commercial cruising altitude in test flight

    GE Aerospace has demonstrated that its hybrid-electric aircraft can climb above 30,000 feet, near the typical cruising altitude of commercial aircraft. A hybrid-electric engine system combines an electric powertrain with a traditional gas turbine that drives power efficiencies during different phases of flight. While electric vehicles are becoming more commonplace on the ground, electric aircraft are faced with a number of unique challenges before they can be commercialised. The single biggest technical hurdle is the stark difference in energy density between jet fuel and batteries. This requirement for heavy batteries on electric aircraft significantly reduces their range and passenger payload. But by combining the high energy density of liquid fuel with the instant torque and efficiency…

  • How will Andy Burnham’s premiership shape tech, engineering and UK infrastructure?

    Andy Burnham has been sworn in as Britain’s new Prime Minister – the fifth in less than four years – but how will his agenda shape the world of technology and engineering? HS2HS2 has been beset by a string of failures and budget overruns over the last decade, including the cancellation of routes ending in Leeds and Manchester by the previous Conservative government. During his tenure as mayor for Greater Manchester, Burnham has long called for more investment into the North of England and for local infrastructure improvements. In an interview with the i last month, he said he wanted to reinstate the northern leg of HS2. That is estimated to cost around £36bn, but Burnham believes the impact on the Treasury’s coffers could be minimised by capturing the soaring value of land around new stations…

  • China ‘strongly dissatisfied’ with nationalisation of British Steel

    The Chinese government has said that it is “strongly dissatisfied” with the UK’s decision this week to nationalise British Steel and will support Chinese companies in “safeguarding their rights through legal means”. In April 2025, the UK government took emergency control of the largest remaining integrated steelmaking plant on British soil after its Chinese owners, Jingye Group, effectively decided to stop manufacturing at the Scunthorpe facility. The firm had been running down its existing raw material supplies and had not ordered enough to keep the two blast furnaces operating. While restarting the blast furnaces would have been technically possible in the event of a shutdown, it would be extremely expensive and could damage key plant systems. Now that the plant has been fully nationalised…

  • Laser system detects deadly methanol through sealed spirit bottles

    A laser-based technology is able to detect toxic methanol hidden inside unopened spirit bottles, even through coloured glass. Researchers at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and Australia’s Adelaide University have developed a laser system that uses Raman spectroscopy to read the unique chemical "fingerprint" of a liquid through its packaging. This enables it to identify dangerous methanol contamination in whisky and other spirits. Methanol is a highly toxic, industrial alcohol. It is commonly found in antifreeze and paint thinners, but in some parts of the world, being cheaper, it is mixed with ‘real’ alcohol such as spirit-based drinks and cocktails. Often impossible to detect without opening the bottle and conducting laboratory tests, the risks of drinking even a small amount…

  • Rail infrastructure spending squeezed as cancellations fall UK-wide

    A reduction in the scope of infrastructure renewals on the train network poses risks to future safety and reliability, the UK’s rail regulator has said. The government had previously allocated £44bn to operations, maintenance and infrastructure renewals on the rail network to cover the five-year period from 2024 to 2029. According to an assessment from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), high inflation has seen effectively £2bn in buying power removed from this total. The budget for operations and maintenance needs to remain static, which meant the inflationary pressures have driven an effective cut in infrastructure renewals to 83% of the original plan in England and Wales. This has led Network Rail to reduce the number of assets, such as track, tunnels and bridges, that it intends to…

  • Environmental groups demand freeze on orbital data centre proposals

    A coalition of environmental and scientific groups has urged the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to halt the “reckless” rush toward authorising data centres in space. The coalition, represented by nonprofit environmental law organisation Earthjustice, has submitted a 28-page petition to the FCC calling for a comprehensive environmental review of satellite-based data centre proposals before any licences are issued. It wants to see licenses paused until a thorough assessment has been made into their risks, alternatives, needs, impacts and costs to “ensure they are not causing irreparable environmental harm to our planet.” To date, the FCC has authorised satellites without an environmental review. The petition challenges this approach, arguing that it fails to consider the cumulative…

  • British Steel officially nationalised as government secures Scunthorpe plant

    British Steel has been brought into public ownership some 15 months after nationalisation was first mooted as a way to protect the UK’s national interests. In April 2025, the government took emergency control of the UK’s largest remaining integrated steelmaking plant after its Chinese owners, Jingye Group, effectively decided to stop manufacturing at the Scunthorpe facility. British Steel was acquired out of insolvency in 2020, but by the end of 2023, Jingye claimed it had racked up cumulative losses exceeding £350m. British steel manufacturing is plagued by disproportionately high operating costs compared to international competitors. Jingye frequently cited sky-high UK electricity prices and heavy carbon tax burdens as insurmountable obstacles to running a profitable traditional blast…

  • India invests $13.3bn to build homegrown semiconductor industry

    The Indian government has approved a $13.3bn semiconductor programme aimed at establishing India as a global hub for chip manufacturing. The Semicon 2.0 initiative, which was announced in an official statement by India's Union Cabinet, will provide “long-term policy support” for India’s chip sector and help “put our country on the semiconductor map of the world”. Currently, with much of the world’s semiconductor manufacturing concentrated in East Asia, including China, geopolitical tensions and potential supply chain issues have prompted countries around the world to invest heavily in domestic production. The focus of this new scheme will be on expanding India's capabilities in semiconductor design, chip fabrication, chip packaging and testing, electronics manufacturing, research and…

  • 3D thermal ‘cloak’ renders objects invisible to infrared cameras

    A 3D-printed thermal cloaking device hides objects from thermal imaging from any direction, according to a new study. Designed and built by researchers at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, US, the aluminium-and-rubber device guides heat around an object, making it appear to infrared cameras as if nothing is there. It also protects these objects from extreme temperatures, and works from any direction. “A real thermal cloak should work no matter where the heat comes from. Our device can hide a complex 3D object in an infinite number of directions while keeping the temperature inside stable and protected,” said civil and environmental engineering professor Shelly Zhang. While previous experiments only worked in two dimensions or along a single direction of heat flow, the team used…

  • £2bn blast-built tunnel could link Manchester and Sheffield through the Pennines

    A 14-mile dual-carriageway tunnel connecting the cities of Manchester and Sheffield has been proposed using an explosive technique that could slash the cost of construction. The Trans-Pennine Connect would cut journey times between the two cities by up to 30 minutes while potentially restoring some areas of the Peak District that are blighted by the need for major A roads running through them. Westminster has previously considered the case for the tunnel, but its own study estimated that it could cost between £7.8bn and £11.6bn which was deemed too expensive to build. Instead, the newly created Future Works start-up believes it could be built for under £2bn using a tunnelling method popularised in Scandinavia known as drill and blast. UK tunnels typically use large boring machines and…

  • Fleet of autonomous robots to map Greenland's melting ice sheet

    A scientific expedition will deploy a fleet of autonomous robots to collect data on how Greenland's glaciers are melting. An international research team has embarked on a six-week expedition to south-east Greenland on the UK’s polar research ship RRS Sir David Attenborough. Led by British Antarctic Survey (BAS), the mission forms part of the five-year Greenland Ice sheet to Atlantic Tipping points (GIANT) project, which aims to collect data on melting ice to improve predictions of its impact on climate change. The Greenland ice sheet, which sits in the North Atlantic, is melting at a rapid rate. It’s not only being melted from above through warmer air but also from below through warmer ocean waters. As it melts and fresh water enters the ocean, it affects nearby ocean currents, which in…

  • New York bans hyperscale data centres for a year over energy cost concerns

    New York has temporarily banned hyperscale data centres for the next 12 months in order to prevent soaring utility bills and protect the environment. Governor Kathy Hochul signed an Executive Order to create the nation’s first moratorium on data centres, which includes temporarily pausing state environmental permits, effectively blocking construction. The proliferation of AI in recent years has seen a boom in data centre construction globally. But their huge consumption of energy and water can lead to rapidly rising household bills for nearby consumers. Not all upcoming data centres will be impacted, just those considered “hyperscale” which are defined as facilities requiring 50 megawatts or more of electricity. “New York has always been at the forefront of innovation and change but we…

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