• Archer’s electric air taxi cuts California journey from 35 minutes to nine

    An electric air taxi made by Archer Aviation has made an intercity round trip between Salinas and Monterey in California that cut the journey down to nine minutes from 35 in a car. Otherwise known as an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle, the upcoming transport option is aimed at delivering short-haul flights in urban areas. However, it’s one thing building an aircraft and another getting it certified for flight. This is an area where many eVTOL companies are struggling: getting past the testing stages into operation because of stringent regulations and safety rules. The Archer-made eVTOL known as Midnight departed from Salinas Municipal Airport and landed at Monterey Regional Airport before making the return flight on 30 July. Midnight covered each leg of the journey…

  • Apple contests UK demand to access encrypted user data

    Apple has launched a second legal challenge against the UK government over its demands for “backdoor” access to encrypted user data stored in its cloud service. According to a report from The Financial Times, the tech giant has lodged a complaint with the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), an independent body that investigates complaints about surveillance by UK public bodies. The complaint challenges government demands on Apple allow it access to end-to-end encrypted iCloud data belonging to British users. The home office maintains that law enforcement bodies require this ‘backdoor’ capability to protect the public from terrorism, serious crime and child sexual abuse. Apple has long taken a strong stance advocating for enhanced privacy and encryption protocols as part of its business…

  • US Air Force flies F-16 with AI pilot for first time

    A US Air Force F-16 fighter jet has been flown by an AI pilot for the first time, demonstrating how standard military aircraft can be converted into autonomous weapons of war. According to the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the plane was modified to allow a pilot to toggle between traditional human control and AI control with the flip of a switch. While DARPA has previously demonstrated that its X-62A VISTA experimental aircraft could be autonomously piloted in a dogfight scenario, the modifications to a pre-existing F16 show that the US aircraft fleet could receive an AI boost on a much shorter time frame. Brigadier General James Valpiani, DARPA’s program manager, said that AI is particularly useful at helping human pilots during situations where aerial combat…

  • UK solar generation hits record high after sunny July

    Solar supplied a record share of Great Britain's electricity in July, driven by exceptionally sunny weather and a surge in rooftop installations. According to data from the National Energy System Operator (Neso), solar contributed 14.4% of the UK’s power generation mix in July, 50% more than the same time last year. The previous monthly record of 12.4% was only set in May. Neso’s historic GB generation mix dataset, which dates back to 1 January 2009, reveals that solar generated a total of 3.2 terawatt-hours of power in July. On Sunday 12 July, particularly dry and sunny conditions saw solar power account for 18.8% of Great Britain’s electricity generation. At its peak, solar accounted for 44% of generation from 10.30am to midday that day, rising to a maximum of 15,427MW. The record…

  • US coastal wetlands succumb to sea level rise, putting infrastructure at risk

    Coastal infrastructure in the US is increasingly at risk from rising sea levels that are rapidly enveloping the country’s wetlands, a study from the US Geological Survey has found. Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in recent geologic history. A new national-level study has found that 84% of the US’s coastal wetlands are succumbing to the sea and are on track to become open water areas that offer little protection inland. Wetlands dissipate the impact of storm surges, are often used to protect buildings and transportation networks in coastal towns and cities and are also key habitats for wildlife. Globally, sea level rise averaged 1.7mm per year during the 20th century but has sped up in recent decades, hitting 3.8mm per year between 2006 and 2018. While higher water levels…

  • Rocket problem delays UK’s first orbital launch

    The first orbital rocket launch from the UK mainland has been delayed indefinitely after German startup Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) discovered an issue “that requires further investigation”. The firm was preparing for the inaugural launch of its RFA ONE vehicle from the Scotland-based SaxaVord Spaceport this summer, but has said on X that it needs to “destack” the vehicle to understand an underlying problem. The previously agreed upon launch window was a five-week span starting from Monday August 10, with the ultimate decision taken 24 hours beforehand depending on local conditions. Once confirmed, a launch exclusion zone will be implemented around the spaceport, rerouting flight traffic while marine vessels are asked to leave the area." The RFA One rocket, which has been in development…

  • Hungary’s sole nuclear power plant faces shutdown as Danube falls to record low

    Hungary is the latest European country to shut down or reduce nuclear power output due to severe heatwaves and critically low river levels. In a historic first, Hungary’s two gigawatt Paks power plant is expected to halt operations completely this week as the Danube River drops to record low levels. The plant relies on these waters for reactor cooling. In a Facebook video posted on Sunday (2 August), Hungary’s Prime Minister Peter Magyar said: ”We are facing the most critical five days ahead. Tomorrow, the Paks power plant will not be generating, while the hottest, 40°C days are ahead.” With Hungary’s water authority projecting that the levels of the Danube will continue to drop amid the heat, Paks, which generates about half of the country's electricity, could remain inactive for weeks…

  • BP seeks North Sea buyer after Burnham backs ‘pragmatic’ approach to extraction

    BP has started looking for buyers for its North Sea oil and gas business just one day after Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he would take a “pragmatic” approach to fossil fuel extraction in the area. Outlining the reason for the decision, BP said it was part of its “ongoing portfolio review” and was designed to maximise the company’s value. The regulatory environment governing extraction in the North Sea has been turbulent in recent years, with the 2022 introduction of the Energy Profits Levy squeezing the profit margins of big oil firms after the war in Ukraine sent wholesale prices surging. Extraction operations in the North Sea are also more complex and expensive compared with equivalent oil fields in the US Permian Basin or the Middle East. The North Sea is an ageing oil and gas…

  • Can captured carbon become a new manufacturing industry?

    Every year, humans release almost 40 billion tonnes of planet-warming CO2 into the atmosphere. But some companies are finding productive ways to use that waste... Carbon dioxide has made up a quarter of all the waste humans have created since 1900. In a 2015 paper, Austrian researchers estimated that 2,470 gigatonnes of material extracted from mines, oil wells, forests and farms had been dumped back in the environment after processing and use. Besides the carbon emissions, 35% ended up as solid waste, 20% as water vapour and the rest as an assortment of human and animal excrement plus other gases. Much of this waste damages the planet. But the CO2 is particularly worrying, given its contribution to the greenhouse effect. An obvious solution to this problem would be to pull the gas out of…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • Ground lasers could wirelessly power drones in flight

    Drones could undertake drastically longer flights using a lightweight solar receiver that generates electricity by harnessing targeted laser energy from the ground. A team from the Civil Aviation University of China placed the device on the underside of the wings of a drone. Using heat-blocking technology, the receiver converted more of the laser’s energy into usable power. “Imagine a future where drones inspecting forests, monitoring disasters, or delivering packages no longer need to land frequently to replace batteries,” said senior author Jianhua Han. “As drones take on longer missions, battery life has become one of the biggest barriers.” The technology relies on a perovskite laser cell-thermoelectric (PLC-TE) tandem device, a type of solar cell that is optimised for lasers rather…

  • Data centres face hefty fees to secure connections to the UK electricity grid

    Data centres could be forced to pay millions of pounds to Ofgem in order to secure their spot in the queue of new connections to the energy grid. The past few years have seen the number of data centres explode due to the advent of AI technologies, which has caused strain on electricity grids around the world. According to Ofgem figures, between November 2024 and June 2025 contracted demand in the connection queue increased from 41GW to 125GW, of which 73GW was attributed to data centres. For a sense of scale, peak demand in Great Britain in 2025 was 45GW. Historically, the UK grid has operated on a ‘first-come, first-served’, basis with very long wait times. Because of this, data centre developers have resorted to speculative booking. For example, a developer might want to build one 500MW…

  • Under development: Invisible solar cells could turn windows into power generators

    Harnessing the natural power of sunlight to make energy and the air to produce water. Lab: Nanyang Technological University, SingaporeWhat: Near-invisible ultrathin perovskite solar cellsStage: TRL-3 Researchers at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) have created perovskite solar cells that are about 10,000 times thinner than a strand of human hair and around 50 times thinner than conventional perovskite solar cells. Perovskite solar cells are made up of several layers, including a semiconductor layer that absorbs sunlight and converts it into electricity. To make their ultrathin cells, the NTU team used a vacuum-based process, also known as thermal evaporation, in which source materials are heated in a vacuum chamber until they evaporate. The vapour then settles on a surface, where…

  • Qantas completes 24-hour test flight for non-stop Australia services

    Qantas has landed one of the longest flights to date in a commercial aircraft, with a direct trip from Melbourne to Toulouse that took over 24 hours. The flight-test aircraft, which is a variant of an Airbus A350, underwent a series of tests in June to ensure it could complete the journey. Once fully deployed, it will be able to travel a distance of almost 10,000 nautical miles, enabling non-stop flights between Sydney, New York and London for the first time. This is made possible primarily by the integration into the aircraft structure of an additional rear-centre tank that increases its range by roughly 1,000 nautical miles. The aircraft also features a new galley air-cooling system with lighter, more efficient refrigeration units designed specifically for extended flights, as well as…

  • E+T Podcast: Episode 24 | London’s Robotaxis are finally here, but why did the future take 10 years?

    In this episode of E+T Off the Page, hosts Tim Fry and Jack Loughran sit down with Professor Siddartha Khastgir, head of safe autonomy at WMG, University of Warwick, to explore the real-world arrival of robotaxis on the streets of London. The episode covers why it took a full decade to move from early experiments to commercial driverless fleets, highlighting the immense engineering required to solve the final 5% of safety challenges. Prof Khastgir breaks down the milestone global UN safety regulations and explains why London’s historic, chaotic road network has become the ultimate commercial testbed for autonomous technology. The discussion also dives into the biggest hurdles facing public trust, from cybersecurity "computers on wheels" to debunking the famous Trolley Dilemma. Prof Khastgir…

    E+T Magazine
    E+T Magazine

  • China eyes Europe’s floating wind boom but technology trust gap remains

    Floating wind could offer China a gateway into Europe’s fast-growing offshore wind market – but do developers want its technology? Encompassing around 66 by 59 metres with 30-50 metre drafts, floating wind installations tend to be mammoth. They enable wind turbines to access the more consistent wind speeds found in deeper seawater (beyond 60 metres) that fixed-bottom structures can’t – yet – reach. Floating wind power offers an immense opportunity: it’s predicted 2,500MW could be generated by 2030 – enough to power approximately 1.8 to 2.5 million homes. But today, it’s still fledgling; in January, the UK awarded long-term Contracts for Difference (CfDs) to two pilot projects that will boost the existing 277MW in operation globally for floating installations: the 100MW Erebus in the Celtic…

  • 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…

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