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Scientists observe a red supergiant going supernova for the first time
Astronomers have captured a red supergiant supernova explosion for the first time, gathering crucial new information about these dramatic events.
Another SpaceX Starship prototype explodes after an engine test
SpaceX lost another Starship prototype to an explosion during testing this afternoon.
Apollo 13's long-shot mission to reach Earth
On this date 50 years ago, the jinxed Apollo 13 mission splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. The spacecraft’s lunar module never landed on the moon as intended, but considering everything that went wrong, it was arguably the most successful Apollo mission of all.
Nearby nuclear sensors went silent after Russia's mystery explosion
Earlier this month, a rocket test explosion in Russia resulted in the deaths of five people and a radiation leak that affected nearby towns. Now, the operator of a global network of radioactive particle sensors says that sites closest to the explosion mysteriously went offline shortly afterwards.
Russian rocket test explosion leads to radiation leak
Russia's military technology push has unfortunately produced deadly consequences. The country's Rosatom has confirmed that five people have died and three have been injured after an explosion on August 8th while testing an isotopic power source for a rocket's liquid propulsion system. The same blast also increased radiation levels by as much as twenty times in nearby Severodvinsk for about half an hour.
Florida man says his Apple AirPod exploded
A man in Florida claims that one of his Apple AirPods began smoking and later exploded. Florida's WFLA TV reports that the man, Jason Colon, was working out at a gym when he noticed smoke coming from the AirPod in his right ear. He immediately took both AirPods out and placed them on a piece of gym equipment while he sought help, but when he returned, the AirPod in question was charred and broken apart. "I didn't see it happen, but I mean, it was already fried. You can see flame damage," he told WFLA.
This is why you shouldn't bite an iPhone battery
We're nothing if not helpful here at Engadget and we're always looking out for your well-being. So today we have a little bit of advice for you: Don't bite your iPhone battery. One man found this out the hard way, Appleinsider reports, causing a minor explosion at an electronics store in China.
A SpaceX rocket engine exploded during a 'qualification test' in Texas
SpaceX was testing a rocket engine on Sunday when it exploded, and now the aerospace company is trying to figure out what happened. The incident happened at a company site in Texas, and SpaceX reported no injuries and doesn't expect that the accident will affect its launch schedule.
Fitbit says that Flex 2 didn't explode on its own
Wisconsin resident Dina Mitchell said she suffered second-degree burns on her arm after her Fitbit Flex 2 suddenly caught fire on Tuesday, while she was reading a book. Today, Fitbit says that didn't happen.
A Fitbit Flex 2 reportedly exploded on woman's arm
Dina Mitchell was reading a book on Tuesday in her Wisconsin home when the Fitbit Flex 2 on her wrist exploded, causing second-degree burns, she told ABC News. Mitchell reportedly tore the device off of her arm as it was still on fire, and doctors had to remove melted plastic and rubber from the wound. She said she had worn the Flex 2 for about two weeks before the explosion.
Explosions may be the answer to mass-producing graphene
Graphene is difficult and expensive to mass produce, but while trying to make something else altogether, Kansas State University (KSU) scientists may have lucked into a promising technique. The team was attempting to make carbon soot aerosol gels by detonating acetylene gas and oxygen with a spark plug. That yielded soot resembling "black angel food cake," according to lead researcher Chris Sorensen. It proved to be graphene, a discovery that could pave the way for cheaper manufacturing of lightweight but incredibly strong materials, superconductors, and more.
Samsung blames two different battery flaws for the Note 7 fires
Well, after months of speculation, Samsung has finally announced the results of its Galaxy Note 7 investigation. The official line: those fires were caused by two distinct battery flaws (just as a recent report suggested), not a hardware or software issue. The first flaw had to do with how the Note 7's original batteries were manufactured: their casings were too small to safely fit the electrode assembly inside, which led to short-circuiting.
Smart body armor could gauge brain damage from explosions
Explosions are insidious. Even if a blast doesn't deliver a conspicuous injury, it can inflict brain trauma that might not be evident until much later. The US Navy's Office of Naval Research doesn't want medics to wait, though. It's developing Blast Load Assessment Sense and Test (conveniently, BLAST), a sensor system that could determine whether or not an explosion's shockwave is likely to have injured your brain. Tiny sensors in your helmet and body armor would record the blast pressure and share it with a scanner. When combined with a palm-sized neurological assessment tool (which stimulates your fingers to gauge your responses), the data would let medical teams quickly decide whether or not you're able to fight.
Facebook Safety Check erroneously says a bomb exploded in Bangkok (updated)
Facebook's Safety Check program incorrectly said there was an explosion in Bangkok, Thailand, The Independent reported. For an hour beginning at 9PM local time on December 27th, anyone in Thailand's capital city saw reports of an explosion and a prompt to mark themselves as safe. However, there was no actual bomb explosion in Bangkok tonight.
Software update will annoy Galaxy Note 7 owners into a return
While Samsung continues its quest to retrieve every Galaxy Note 7, a software update that reduces how much the phone's battery can be charged is finally rolling out in the US. Even though it's still apparently unclear exactly what caused so many of the phones to overheat, smoke and/or start fires, the idea is that this will increase participation in the recall. Another "feature" of the update is a system of pop-up notifications about the recall anytime an owner reboots, charges or turns on the screen of the device
Lithium battery failure wipes out DARPA robot at NASA
It's not just Samsung that has problems with combusting batteries, as NASA's office of Safety and Mission Assurance has just revealed. The body has announced that NASA centers have seen at least four major explosions and a number of close calls over the last decade. The latest crisis was a fire at the Jet Propulsion Lab that wiped out one of DARPA's RoboSimian droids before a test.
US regulators warn customers about exploding Samsung washers
Just days after Samsung began replacing defective Galaxy Note 7s due to a risk of exploding batteries, the company faces another major product issue. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a warning today after multiple reports of top-loading washing machines exploding. Owners of Samsung appliances in Georgia, Indiana and Texas say that they were doing a load of laundry when they heard a loud boom.
SpaceX thinks Falcon 9 blew up due to a helium system breach
SpaceX is still in the midst of examining every video, audio and image of the September 1st Falcon 9 explosion, but it's already found one possible explanation for the unfortunate event. According to the private space corp's latest update, the huge explosion might have been caused by a large breach in the rocket's helium pressurization system. The company also clarified that what happened wasn't a repeat of the CRS-7 incident, another failed rocket launch last year that was caused by a faulty strut.
FAA officially warns against using Galaxy Note 7 on airplanes
Samsung's slightly explosive new phone is drawing more critical attention, this time from the FAA. The government agency has apparently heard about the Galaxy Note 7 recall, and after some consideration issued a statement. The FAA "strongly advises passengers not to turn on or charge these devices on board aircraft and not to stow them in any checked baggage." According to Gizmodo, the FAA will update its statement as more info becomes available, so even this might not be the end of things.
Samsung explains how the US Galaxy Note 7 recall will work
It's been less than 24 hours since Samsung announced its worldwide recall of the Galaxy Note 7, and owners are probably wondering exactly what's next. The major US carriers have already provided information on what they will do for customers (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon), and now Samsung is laying out its plans for direct support. If owners want to exchange for another Galaxy Note 7, they can do that as early as next week. Their other option is to exchange the device for a Galaxy S7 or Galaxy S7 edge, plus replacement of any Note accessories and a refund of the price difference.
