Rocket Lab has unveiled plans for a larger rocket that can carry bigger payloads than its current reusable trooper, the Electron. It’s called the Neutron and will be capable of carrying 8 metric tons to low-Earth orbit compared to the Electron’s 660 lbs capacity. Engadget reports: The Neutron will also have a fully reusable first stage that can land on an…
Tag: forecast
Pandemic Drove Sales of 4G and 5G-Enabled PCs To New Record In 2020
Global sales of cellular-enabled mobile PCs reached more than 10 million units for the first time in 2020 as home workers sought improved connectivity in response to the closure of office facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research firm Strategy Analytics: According to the latest analysis from Strategy Analytics’ Connected Computing Devices program, global shipments increased by 70% to 10.1 million, the…
How to see Sirius B
Sirius is a binary star, with a small white dwarf called the Pup orbiting the large primary star. It’s not easy to observe, but it is possible. Here’s how. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/how-to-observe-sirius-b…
Facebook Testing Notification To Users About Apple Privacy Changes
Facebook is testing a notification that notifies Apple iOS users about ways the tech giant uses their data to target personalized ads to them. Axios reports: The test is happening in light of upcoming changes to Apple’s privacy settings that will make it harder for Facebook and others to collect data on Apple users for ad targeting. Facebook warned investors last…
Facebook Uses AI To Predict If COVID-19 Patients Will Need More Care
Facebook is harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to help doctors predict whether they will need more resources, such as extra oxygen to care for COVID-19 patients in hospitals. CNET reports: The social network said Friday it developed two AI models, one based on a single chest X-ray, and another from a series X-rays, that could help forecast if a patient…
The myths behind the southern and northern lights
For millennia, humans have viewed the northern and southern lights – aurora borealis and aurora australis – and created myths and folklore to explain the dancing lights they saw in the sky. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/legends-folklore-myths-northern-southern-lights-auroras…
Is a solar flare the same thing as a CME?
Solar Cycle 25 is here, and that means – in the years ahead – more solar flares and more coronal mass ejections, or CMEs. People sometimes use the words interchangeably, but they’re not the same thing. Here’s the difference. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/is-a-solar-flare-the-same-thing-as-a-cme…
LG Wants To Put Transparent OLEDs in Restaurants and Subways
LG’s got a transparent OLED display, and if you’re wondering how such a device could be useful, the company has a few ideas to share. From a report: Ahead of the upcoming CES 2021 show, LG shared a few ideas on how its transparent OLED products could fit into real-world situations. One idea is having a transparent OLED at a restaurant,…
New sunspot cycle could be among strongest on record
A study of oppositely charged magnetic field bands, moving in the sun’s northern and southern hemispheres, suggests the coming sunspot cycle – Cycle 25 – will be a particularly strong one. This result contradicts an earlier expert forecast, suggesting a weak Cycle 25. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/sunspot-cycle-25-among-strongest-on-record-says-ncar…
Quantum Computer Makers Like Their Odds For Big Progress
For years, quantum computing has been the preserve of academics. New advances, however, are pushing this potentially revolutionary technology toward practical applications. From a report: At the Q2B conference this month, quantum computer makers Google, IBM, Honeywell, IonQ and Xanadu detailed specific steps they expect by 2024 that will push their machines further down the road of commercial practicality. Those achievements…