• Amazon satellite operation plans to launch UK broadband service

    Amazon’s satellite operation Project Kuiper – founded by Jeff Bezos – plans to launch a broadband service in the UK, which will compete directly with Elon Musk’s Starlink. Low-Earth orbit (LEO) space is filling up with satellite constellations that aim, when complete, to give total broadband internet coverage around the world. Satellites that orbit the Earth in LEO, which ranges from as low as 550km to as high as 2,000km, reduce the latency effect associated with satellites in a much higher orbit. As such, satellites in this region of space will be able to provide internet to even the most remote areas of the globe. Currently Starlink is dominating the LEO region. However, according to a regulatory filing reported in The Sunday Telegraph yesterday, Project Kuiper (a subsidiary of Amazon…

  • Evil Engineer: Can I trigger a new ice age?

    The most feasible approach for bringing about a new period of glacial growth. Dear Evil Engineer, I previously wrote to you seeking advice on how to nudge the Earth into an orbit further from the Sun to bring down temperatures to something more comfortable. Unfortunately, you were right – the plan was beyond my powers. I’ve been left looking very silly in my efforts to make it happen. Now I’m looking for an alternative way to cool Earth down – ideally enough to bring about a new ice age. Could you provide me with more advice? Yours, A yeti Dear yeti, I am very sorry to hear about the failure of your last scheme. Keep in mind that every failure is just another step in your journey towards world domination. This is particularly true for us in the villainy sector, where being made…

  • UK canals cool cities and protect against floods but face funding challenges

    The UK’s historic canals provide an increasingly valuable role in cooling the UK’s cities while providing water security and flood protection, a report has found. According to the Canal & River Trust, which is responsible for 2,000 miles of waterways, urban canals alone reduced the nearby ambient temperature by around 2°C during 2022’s summer heatwaves. Meanwhile, canal embankments and reservoirs helped to provide additional flood protection for homes and businesses. The organisation warned that UK canals are showing their age, and the network suffered an estimated £10m worth of storm damage in the 2023/24 winter. It is in the process of carrying out 150 “critical maintenance and conservation” projects that will help to future-proof canal infrastructure, but it called for more investment…

  • Climate change ‘wreaking havoc’ on planet’s water cycle, report finds

    A report led by The Australian National University has found that global warming is changing the way water moves around the planet, affecting entire ecosystems and billions of people. 2024 was a year of extreme weather. Simultaneous heat waves and catastrophic flooding were a theme of the past 12 months. In November 2024, data from the European Commission’s climate monitor Copernicus Climate Change Service revealed that 2024 was “virtually certain” to be the hottest on record, with warming above 1.5°C. A report – Global Water Monitor 2024 summary report – produced by an international team of researchers from universities in countries including Australia, Saudi Arabia, China and Germany has found that these consistently rising temperatures are wreaking havoc on the water cycle. Albert…

  • National Grid abandons costly and noisy T-pylon redesign, report claims

    The National Grid has abandoned plans to roll out new designs for its electricity pylons because of their high cost and noise complaints from nearby residents, The Telegraph has reported. The T-pylon design was first unveiled in 2015 as the future design for Britain’s electricity grid. But since then, the new designs have only been installed in one location in Somerset as part of the new 35-mile Hinkley Point C to Avonmouth connection. Each of the T-pylons built so far support 12 conductors for a total of 460km of new power lines across the whole route. Their design sees six conductor spans attached to each diamond earring-shaped insulator on either side of the structure, with wires installed in sections of up to a dozen T-pylons at a time. But the £17m redesign did not feature as part…

  • Tesla sales up in Q4 2024 but Chinese EV rival BYD is closing in

    While Tesla dominates the electric vehicle (EV) market, China’s BYD has reported that it sold more pure electric cars than Tesla in the fourth quarter of 2024. Texas-based Tesla produced approximately 459,000 vehicles and delivered more than 495,000 in Q4 2024, according to its sales figures. Across the whole of 2024 it delivered 1,789,226 vehicles – down about 1% from the 1.8 million delivered in 2023. Its Shenzhen-based rival BYD, which produces both pure battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hybrids, reported selling 1.76 million EVs in 2024. In Q4 2024, it delivered 595,412 BEVs – a 13.1% increase on Q4 2023. Tesla delivered 495,000 in the same quarter. Overall, BYD sold more than 4.2 million cars in 2024, with its year-on-year sales jumping by more than 41%. The surge was powered…

  • Passive radar can be used for avalanche detection with signals from Starlink, study finds

    Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques (Fraunhofer FHR) in Germany have proven that passive radar using signals from satellite mega-constellations is suitable for avalanche detection. The increased snowfall in mountainous areas during winter significantly increases the risk of an avalanche. To protect people and infrastructure, avalanche monitoring is critically important. To prevent an avalanche from occurring, controlled artificial detonations are carried out in the affected area. These trigger the release of huge masses of snow, which thunder down into the valley along a predetermined path. To confirm that the avalanche was triggered as planned, monitoring equipment is employed using methods such as mechanical wires that break when the…

  • 5 steps to effectively manage your asset lifecycle and criticality on your journey to Net Zero

    In today's evolving industrial landscape, managing assets in a sustainable and efficient way has become essential for businesses striving to achieve Net Zero goals. Asset availability and sustainability are fundamental pillars of success for any manufacturing process-related business. However, the integration of these two critical aspects remains a challenge for many organisations. In this webinar, we’ll share smart strategies for effective asset lifecycle management and sustainability, shedding light on practical steps you can take to optimise your asset availability while embracing the benefits of the circular economy. This webinar promises to equip you with comprehensive knowledge and practical techniques to manage and extend the life cycle of assets while contributing to your sustainability…

  • Lidar-equipped robot creates detailed 3D models to assess dangerous areas in disaster zones

    A lidar-equipped robot that can create detailed 3D models of its surroundings has been developed by researchers who believe it could be used to assess areas deemed too dangerous for humans. In disaster zones following a chemical plant incident or flooding, emergency services need ways to quickly get an overview of the situation. But in many cases, they are not permitted to enter the scene itself in order to avoid putting themselves at risk. Lidar, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a remote-sensing technology that uses laser pulses to create 3D models of its surroundings. The new robot, developed by a team at German research institution Fraunhofer, uses lidar to produce geometrically accurate 3D environments that are then coloured in using camera images. The end result…

  • Tech predictions: Beyond 2025

    Here are the technologies shaping the next five to 10 years, and the impact they will have on businesses, industry, people and climate. It is 2025, and while there are numerous tech predictions for the year ahead, what about beyond 2025 looking five to 10 years in the future? Capgemini is set to publish its TechnoVision top 5 tech trends to watch in 2025 report, focused on the technologies that are expected to reach an inflection point in the year ahead. This report will also include predictions for the technologies that will shape the next five to 10 years. Five of these include: Distributed manufacturing It is predicted that by 2035 we will see a decentralisation of manufacturing of an increasing number of products. While the most commodified products will still be manufactured…

  • BMW and Yamaha back US firm Phoenix Tailings, which plans to decarbonise rare metals mining

    BMW and Yamaha Motor have invested in rare-earth processing start-up Phoenix Tailings, which plans to open a $13m facility in the US by June 2025. In the shift away from fossil fuel reliance comes an increased demand for rare earth and metal elements. These materials have diverse applications in electrical and electronic components, and are increasingly needed for battery technologies including those in electric vehicles. However, production of these strategic metals mostly takes place in Chinese mines. The process of refining them generates a lot of harmful waste that poses significant risks to the environment. US-based Phoenix Tailings claims that each year the mining industry discards over 200 billion tons of waste (known as tailings). Its mission is to be the world’s first clean mining…

  • Eccentric Engineer: The non-existent N-Rays

    How a suspicious physicist debunked the mass hysteria of this acclaimed ‘discovery’ Engineers are very good at designing systems to prove theories. Indeed, any modern physics laboratory could be said to be as much a temple to advanced engineering as it is to theory. But just because you are using all the latest engineering kit to prove your point, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you are looking at the truth. As French physicist Prosper-René Blondlot found out, even the most finely engineered experiment can fall victim to wishful thinking. The discovery of N-rays was announced to the world in 1903 to some considerable fanfare but no particular surprise. In the previous 10 years, invisible ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, radioactivity and electron (cathode) rays had all been discovered, so…

  • Stratospheric balloons offer space tourism’s alternative to glamping

    Stratospheric balloons are cheaper and easier to build than rockets and spaceplanes. They can offer hours of magnificent views of the Earth from within a comfy space capsule. But something has been holding their developers back. This space race has been unfolding largely away from the spotlight. While the attention of global media has been fixated on the likes of Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin and their rocket-powered rides to the edge of space, a handful of companies have been working in the background to offer a more affordable alternative to space tourism, suitable for those with weaker stomachs and in less robust health than required to fly a rocket. Using helium- or hydrogen-filled balloons, these firms want to fly paying passengers to altitudes of over 30km. There, above 99% of the…

  • Interview: Humanist Chaplain at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Greg Epstein

    Humanist chaplain at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Greg Epstein believes that technology – more accurately ‘tech’ – has become the 21st century’s most powerful global religion. He also believes it’s time it had its own Reformation. With a global market worth trillions, devices in the hands of billions, its reach unlimited and the appetite of the growing population of power users inexhaustible, Greg Epstein says: “Tech has become the world’s most powerful religion.” MIT’s humanist chaplain is careful not to use the general term ‘technology’ here: “There are many technologies. But there is only one tech.” The author of Tech Agnostic is talking about a post-digital sub-sect that includes artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning algorithms, “the technologies that can…

  • UK must maintain 2030 ban on hybrid cars or become a ‘laughing stock’, experts warn

    Labour has been urged to ban the sale of new hybrid cars by 2030 amid concerns that their continued availability will damage the UK’s shift to electric vehicles (EVs). In October 2023, the Conservative government under Rishi Sunak reduced ambitions on a number of green policies, including postponing the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles until 2035. But Labour reinstated the 2030 ban once it took power in the summer, following commitments made in the manifesto. Nevertheless, in December reports emerged that Labour was considering pushing the ban on hybrids back by five years as consumer adoption of EVs has been slower than anticipated. Now, the head of industry lobby group Electric Vehicles UK (EVUK) has said such a move would be highly damaging for the sector. “The inclusion…

  • UK’s ambitious sustainable aviation fuel mandate officially comes into force

    A mandate on the aviation sector to supplant 2% of its jet fuel demand with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has come into force from 1 January 2025. The mandate was first introduced by the previous Conservative administration in 2022 and requires the sector to ramp up its usage of SAF until at least 10% of UK aviation fuel is derived from sustainable sources by 2030. In July 2024, then transport minister Louise Haigh said the Labour government would stick to the previous government’s plan after introducing a bill to support SAF production in the King’s Speech. Made from sustainable sources, including materials such as household waste or used cooking oil, SAF is considered a major tool in helping to lower climate change emissions from air travel – widely regarded as one of the most difficult…

  • AI assistants could enable ‘social manipulation on an industrial scale’, researchers warn

    AI assistants could be used to forecast and influence the future decisions of the consumers that use them, with those ‘intentions’ later sold on to third-party companies, researchers have said. A team of AI ethicists from the University of Cambridge say the tech sector is at the beginning of a “lucrative yet troubling new marketplace for digital signals of intent”, which would include actions such as buying tickets to see films or voting for political candidates. In the future, AI agents including chatbot assistants, or even digital tutors and girlfriends, will have access to vast quantities of intimate psychological and behavioural data gleaned from their conversations. It could then use this data, alongside knowledge of online habits, to build levels of trust and understanding that…

  • IET Comment: Is e-voting in the UK on the horizon?

    Steve Schneider, director of the Surrey Centre for Cyber Security, professor of secure systems at the University of Surrey and chair of the IET Working Group on e-voting. General elections in the UK, with their paper ballots, tend to be accompanied by calls for electronic voting. Yet there are good reasons to be cautious. In the early 2000s the Electoral Commission carried out several pilots exploring modernising the electoral system, which included electronic voting. Their final report made a strong statement that “the level of risk placed on the availability and integrity of the electoral process was unacceptable” and raised concerns around security and transparency of e-voting solutions. No further UK pilots have been carried out to date. The IET has been investigating this topic since…

  • The digital build: Erecting Everton FC’s new stadium

    Construction of Everton FC’s new £555m stadium has relied on the novel use of 4D modelling technology, which is credited with helping to keep the project on schedule and within budget. Football stadiums bear witness to spectacle and, often, pure drama. For Everton last season, there was plenty of both. With the club in the process of building a new 52,888-seat stadium on Liverpool’s Bramley-Moore Dock, they had a total of eight points deducted for breaching financial rules. It looked at one stage that this new ground would not be visited by Premier League clubs any time soon until a much-needed end-of-season surge saw the Toffees narrowly retain their top-flight status. Building stadiums can be equally precarious, says Simon Beards, the principal planner for the new £555m venue, which is…

  • How France rebuilt Notre-Dame: Blending medieval craftsmanship with cutting-edge tech

    Notre-Dame Cathedral is set to reopen to the public this December five and half years after it was badly damaged by fire. The iconic building has been restored using a combination of digital technologies and medieval engineering practices. At around 6.20pm on 15 April 2019, a fire broke out inside Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. The fire burned until the next morning, destroying the roof, spire and a network of supporting oak beams so vast it was known as la forêt (the forest). The burning remains (including some 30,000 scaffolding poles, in place because restoration work was already being done on the spire) crashed through Notre-Dame’s limestone vaulting into the main cathedral, causing even more damage. Over 850 years after it was built, one of Europe’s most visited landmarks lay in ruins…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • The year in review: 2024’s biggest technology and engineering stories

    As the year draws to a close, we at E+T magazine have been looking back at some of the most important trends in engineering and technology over the last year. AI AI has been the technology leading the pack in 2024, with pretty much every major tech firm hoping that their chatbot will be the one to take the crown. While fears of imminent job losses may have been tamped down a little since the public launch of ChatGPT in late 2022, there is still much uncertainty about the impact it will have. Whether the technology is overhyped or the start of a major societal shift will become clearer over the next year. ChatGPT consumes one 500ml bottle of water per 100-word request, according to research Is AI the over-hyped bubble that is about to burst? AI-driven underwater vehicle performs ‘world…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • France's next-generation nuclear reactor begins operations after years of delays

    France’s most powerful nuclear reactor finally came online over the weekend following years of delay and setbacks. While the Flamanville 3 European pressurised reactor (EPR) in Normandy achieved its first nuclear reaction in September, teams from EDF, France’s state-owned power company, have spent the last few months conducting various tests and inspections prior to its connection to the grid. These tests will continue over the following months as the plant slowly increases its power output to full capacity of 1,650MWe. “Starting up a reactor is a long and complex operation,” EDF said. “It requires the full mobilisation of teams and is carried out at each stage with the highest level of safety and industrial reliability.” The Flamanville plant’s first two reactors originally came online…

  • Edinburgh Airport to capture turbulent low-level wind energy with wind ‘panel’ tech

    Edinburgh Airport has partnered with Scottish clean tech company Katrick Technologies to help it generate renewable energy at its airfield. The airport aims to meet 55% of its annual electricity demand through on-site green technologies by 2028. In 2023, it installed a 10MW photovoltaic solar farm on site together with a 1.5MW battery pack with the aim of this technology providing up to 26% of the airport’s annual energy needs. However, a mid-2024 analysis conducted by Edinburgh Airport revealed a significant rise in its average daily energy demand, increasing from 68.49MWh to 83.70MWh, largely driven by the growing use of electric vehicles and fixed electrical ground power for aircraft. The airport then partnered with Katrick Technologies to evaluate the potential of ground-level wind…

  • Local councils given £1.6bn to repair roads and fix potholes

    The government has promised to fix the UK’s roads and fill potholes with an extra £1.6bn investment that will be distributed to local councils. The Department for Transport (DfT) said the money represents an increase of nearly 50% on local road maintenance funding from last year and goes beyond Labour’s manifesto pledge to fix the equivalent of over 7 million extra potholes in 2025 to 2026. Recent data from the AA found that the number of vehicles damaged by potholes reached a five-year high. In November 2023, the Conservatives announced that £8.3bn in redirected HS2 funds would be spent to try and remedy the issue, but while the funding represented an increase, the Asphalt Industry Alliance said that more than £14bn in central government funding would be needed to fix the backlog of repairs…

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