The Martin Aircraft Company’s Jetpack will be available commercially, they expect, by the end of the year. The company has been developing these things for decades, had their first paying customers a few months back, and now expect to be doing general business with an admittedly elite clientele. Their site may be found here. You may see video at the site or after the jump, and several more, tracing the history of their packs, here.
To Infiinity…. And Beyond!
Noted film critic Roger Ebert lost his voice to several cancer surgeries. Unlike others– such as the world’s most famous electro-larynx, Stephen Hawking– Ebert has been given a computer voice that sounds like his original.
Thumb’s up for modern technology.
Atlantis is due to launch around 2:30pm EST on Monday.
NASA confirms the presence of water on the moon.
A new ring, perhaps the most massive in the solar system, has been identified around Saturn, author Yann Martel (Life of Pi) and astronaut Julie Payette will be first in the ring for Friday’s Moving Stars and Earth for Water, the first entertainment show hosted from space, the CEATEC conference in Tokyo features this robo-performer, and a breakthrough discovery holds out new hope for cancer patients.
Guy Laliberte, founder of Cirque du Soleil and creative party creature, has become the latest space tourist. The highlight of his journey will be his hosting, from space, a celebrity-studded international broadcast aimed at heightening awareness of water-related issues.
Oxford scientists have created transparent aluminium. Most famously imagined in Star Trek IV, this sort-of version has some fascinating potential applications.
I keep hearing people say, “Seems like only yesterday” but I can’t agree. Even so, it’s an impressive achievement. 40 years ago today, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon.
It seems so trite a phrase “Landed on the moon,” but really think about it. Think of the forces involved. The sheer balls of it. Think of the MATH! In 1969 we put two guys on the freaking moon and brought them back! That was something special and my hats off to everyone that helped out.
If you want a trip down memory lane (or to pretend like you were alive back then, like me), NASA has a great site full of photos and videos.
And, if you’re really jonesing for a trip back, Google Moon can help you out.
We may have programmable matter in our near future.
Betelgeuse may go nova
Astronomers have found the largest black hole yet, with 6.4 billion times the sun’s mass.
Parts of Messier 87, a galaxy in the Virgo cluster, appear to be missing.
Other science-related stories (including the awesome Bat-Touch Gun)….