Challenger
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NASA confirms underwater debris is from the 1986 Challenger explosion
After reviewing recent footage, NASA has confirmed that material discovered in the Atlantic Ocean is from the 1986 Challenger explosion.
Dodge to phase out its Challenger and Charger muscle cars in shift towards EVs
Dodge is phasing out its gas-powered Charger and Challenger muscle cars by 2024 in favor of electric muscle cars.
Dodge's 2FA security update for muscle cars will slow thieves to a crawl
A security PIN for Dodge's performance vehicles stops anyone else from speeding away -- even if they have a key.
Report says NASA lost historical artifacts due to lax procedures
NASA's Office of Inspector General has released a new report detailing shortcomings in how the agency manages its historical items, The Verge reports. Over the years, NASA has apparently lost a number of assets, including a lunar soil collection bag, Apollo 11 command module hand controllers and even a lunar rover vehicle prototype.
Recommended Reading: Self-driving cars still have a lot to learn
Self-driving cars are headed toward an AI roadblock Russell Brandom, The Verge It's no secret that the auto industry is racing towards production of fully autonomous vehicles. A number of companies say they can achieve the feat in the next year or so; however, critics say it may be a while longer before you're able to completely relax during your commute. The Verge explains why AI experts argue self-driving cars could be years or maybe decades away from being able reliably avoid accidents.
NASA will use Apollo 1 hatch to honor fallen crew
Apollo 13 might be the space mission that everyone knows offhand thanks to director Ron Howard's movie, but it wasn't the first to experience critical failures. On January 27th, 1967 the three-man Apollo 1 crew was trapped inside its spacecraft, still on the launchpad, as smoke roiled inside the capsule and suffocated them. Now on the fatal mission's 50th anniversary, NASA is taking the three-part hatch that trapped Roger B. Chaffee, Virgil "Gus" Grissom and Edward White out of storage and putting it on display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Reuters reports.
NASA to honor crews of doomed Apollo 1 and Challenger missions
Every year, NASA holds a Day of Remembrance to honor the memory of the astronauts who lost their lives in the pursuit of space exploration. The space agency is holding 2016's ceremonies on January 28th, exactly 30 years since the space shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after take off. Challenger fell apart off the coast of Cape Canaveral in 1986, causing the deaths of its seven passengers, including Christa McAuliffe who was slated to film "teacher in space" videos for kids. The space shuttle was supposed to launch the Comet Halley Active Monitoring Program and to rendezvous with and capture the satellite Spartan.
Fleet of underwater gliders could improve global weather forecasts
While our entire climate model is based on the world's ocean currents, there's a surprising lack of detailed measurements of their movements. Researchers from Rutgers and elsewhere want to rectify that with the Challenger Glider Mission, which will launch 16 unpowered, autonomous submarines later this month. As with past adventures, the 7-foot-long craft will ply deep currents across 80,000 square miles in five ocean basins, using buoyancy changes and fins for propulsion and navigation. From there they'll transmit real-time current, temperature and salinity data to the Iridium satellite network. Combined with other observational methods, that could help scientists refine current climate models and improve forecasting. Researchers will also gauge the health of our planet's oceans using phytoplankton measurements -- definitely a hot-button issue at the moment.
Pioneering astronaut Neil Armstrong dies at 82
It's a story that we hoped we'd never have to report. Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on Earth's Moon, has died at the age of 82 after complications from heart surgery three weeks earlier. His greatest accomplishment very nearly speaks for itself -- along with help from fellow NASA astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, he changed the landscape of space exploration through a set of footprints. It's still important to stress his accomplishments both before and after the historic Apollo 11 flight, though. He was instrumental to the Gemini and X-series test programs in the years before Apollo, and followed his moonshot with roles in teaching aerospace engineering as well as investigating the Apollo 13 and Space Shuttle Challenger incidents. What more can we say? Although he only spent a very small portion of his life beyond Earth's atmosphere, he's still widely considered the greatest space hero in the US, if not the world, and inspired a whole generation of astronauts. We'll miss him. [Image credit: NASA Apollo Archive]
Challenge mode testing now open on the Mists of Pandaria beta
Game Designer Watcher, gadabout eye of wealth and taste, announced that the Scholomance and Gate of the Setting Sun challenge modes are now available for testing. He also provided some more details about how challenge modes are going to work. Watcher - Challenge Mode Testing Yes, just those two dungeons for now. A few relevant testing notes: You must have completed the Heroic version of the dungeon once in order to attempt the challenge mode. Item level will be normalized to 463. There is no queue system for challenge modes; groups must be formed manually and you must zone in from the outside world. While the challenge is active, the group leader may Reset the dungeon at any time via a drop-down accessible by right-clicking your unit frame. source He then clarified in two additional posts that item level on live will only be normalized down to 463, and not up to 463 from a lower ilevel. Also, challenge modes grant no loot at all, only valor points for completion, and using the challenge mode reset feature does not count against the dungeon reset lockout limit currently in place. So if you're planning on spending a lot of time running challenge modes, these are all details of interest to you. It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Sally Ride, first American woman in space, dies at 61 (updated)
It's a sad day for space travel. Sally Ride, the first American woman to ever travel to space, has died at the age of 61 after a bout with pancreatic cancer. She's best known for breaking NASA's gender barrier by flying on Space Shuttle Challenger on June 18th, 1983, but she spent much more of her time guiding our future in space while here on Earth -- she founded NASA's Office of Exploration and directed its early strategy, and she later went on to lead the California Space Institute as well as teach physics at the University of California in San Diego. Her final decade saw her establish Sally Ride Science to encourage students wanting to follow in her footsteps, especially girls. Ride blazed one of the brighter trails in technology, and she'll be missed. Update: Ride is survived by her same-sex partner of 27 years, Dr. Tam O'Shaughnessy. [Image credit: National Archives]
Thermaltake's Challenger keyboard fans off our sweaty palms
As crazy as Thermaltake's fan-equipped keyboard is, we're sort of shocked that something like this hasn't made it to market earlier. The gaming keyboard comes with a small 6,000rpm fan that plugs into the top of the panel and blows air across it to keep your tired, perspiring hands cool. We expected it to be a total gimmick, but the fan actually moves a decent amount of air for its size. Beyond the added blades, the keyboard is of the typical "clicky" mechanical variety and has two USB ports along with a mic / headphone jack on its backside. The Challenger Ultimate is the most premium version with 256 backlight cool options, 64KB of memory and 14 macro keys. The mid-range Challenger Pro only has 10 macro keys, while the entry level Challenger has only 6 and 32KB of memory. A marketing rep on hand told us that all three models will retail for under $100, and mentioned the Pro version landing in the $65 range. In other news, Thermaltake also introduced its red-glowing, 4000dpi Black gaming mouse at the show. We know you're probably dying to see what that small fan feels like (trust us: it's exactly what you think), but the best we can give you from here are the shots below. %Gallery-94358%
Season 4 arena titles awarded incorrectly
The top arena teams of Season 4 have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of their rewards since the launch of patch 3.0.2, but things haven't turned out quite right. The Customer Service forum is full of reports of titles not being handed out correctly, and an ongoing Blizzard investigation into the matter. A little digging of our own (and a firsthand account from our Rogue guru Chase Christian) confirms that there's a problem, but obviously we don't know the cause.In a lot of cases, the top (the tippy-top, the #1) team in a bracket is receiving the title of Duelist, when they should be getting Brutal Gladiator and their Netherdrake pets. Players with a rating of 2100 or higher are earning only the Challenger title in some cases, and I think it's very, very safe to say that those players would be in a bracket higher than just the top 35%. Season 4 is not exactly known for having a glut of people nearing the 2200 needed for shoulders.
End of Season 3 reward requirements
Season 4 starts next week. As a result, this coming weekend is going to be a gladiatorial weekend for many folks, fighting to get their Arena rating high enough to score end of season rewards. Blizzard has posted (on both US and EU forums) a reiteration of the criteria to be considered for those rewards -- they look pretty much the same as they have before. The requirements for a team to be considered for end of season rewards are: The team must have played at least 20 games during the season. The team must have at least one player that has played in 20% or more of the total games for that team. Players on a team that qualifies for consideration, must do the below to be counted: The player must have played in 20% or more of the total games for that team The player must have a Personal Rating that is not more than 100 points lower than the Team Rating (your Personal Rating may be higher, however). So, there it is. If you want to be considered for one of the coveted Arena titles, you must meet the above criteria. Good luck!
The Art of War(craft): Planning for Season 4
Vims has already speculated on when Arena Season 4 will arrive, pegging it somewhere around early to mid-June. I tend to agree with that statement as Blizzard has noted on several occasions that Season 4 isn't coming anytime soon. Considering that none of servers worldwide have even opened the second gate in Sunwell Plateau, it means that equivalent level PvE items won't be cascading into the player base for quite some time. This gives players roughly around a month and two weeks to prepare for the next Arena season, if not longer.Banking aheadBecause Arena points are capped at 5,000, players with enough Arena gear can start banking points in preparation for the new season. If gear prices remain the same (which is likely as prices have been constant through Seasons 1-3), players can open the Arena week with 3/5 Brutal Gladiator pieces: the gloves, which are priced at 1,125 Arena points during the current season; and any two of the chestpiece, headpiece, or leg piece, which go for 1,875 points. It is also possible to purchase the 1,500 points worth shoulder piece on the first week if players manage to raise their personal rating to a highly restrictive 2200 if the speculated changes make it live. Because personal ratings are calculated directly after each game, it is possible to purchase the personal ratings-limited shoulder pieces or weapons provided the player has enough points during the first week.
