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After Math: Let's take a drive
Though Tesla reported its Q4 earnings last Tuesday, the auto industry has sent this week making moves and announcing news. GM is bringing its semi-autonomous Super Cruise system to nearly two dozen models by 2023, ChargePoint is teaming with NATSO to bring a billion dollars worth of the EV charging stations to the nation's highways, and Uber is making claims about finally becoming profitable by the end of the year -- though we've been hearing bold claims like that from the ride-hailing service before. Here are a few of the week's top transportation headlines.
Ariel will fully unveil its hybrid supercar this summer
British automaker Ariel revealed concepts of its Hipercar -- short for "high-performance carbon reduction" -- in the summer of 2017. The company mentioned some impressive specs, such as the ability to reach 60 miles per hour in just 2.4 seconds and a top speed of 160mph (at least for the all-wheel-drive version). The car -- which is presumably meant more for a racetrack than for a trip to the grocery store -- uses four small motors at each wheel to produce 1,180 horsepower and 1,330 pound-feet of torque. Ariel promised that more specs and hardware details would be announced in 2019, but that didn't happen. We should be getting a clearer picture of the innovative supercar later this year, though: Autoblog reports that the automaker will reveal the progress it has made on the Hipercar before September's Low Carbon Vehicle Show.
European astronauts plan to take pics of a comet from the dawn of time
The European Space Agency (ESA) hopes to photograph a yet-to-be-discovered comet as it approaches Earth's orbit for the first time. To do so, it's developing "Comet Interceptor," a composite made of three individual spacecraft, which will separate to snap photos of the comet from multiple perspectives. The photos will be used to create a 3D model, and ESA hopes to spot material from the dawn of the Solar System.
Ariel's electric supercar promises 1180 horsepower
No sooner had rumors started circulating that car manufacturer Ariel had something special in the works than the company came out and confirmed it was true. An electric supercar with more than 1000 horsepower is on its way, and fittingly for a vehicle capable of such impressive speeds, it'll be arriving soon, unveiled fully in 2019 and on sale in 2020.
Ariel Atom-inspired simulator touts world's first 180-degree spherical projector screen (video)
The Ariel Atom is arguably one of the greatest bangs for the buck in terms of sports car performance, so it's no surprise that the automaker has paired up with Motion Simulation to design a particularly special simulator for both hardcore fans as well pro racing drivers and pilots. The TL1 has the world's first 180-degree spherical projection unit (technically, three projector screens acting as one) to give you that advance view of the apex without display bezels getting in the way. Its seat not only adjusts to fit different breeds of cars and aircraft but, if you opt for it, tucks in a motion transducer that will properly jolt you when you hit a bump in the road. What may please extra-serious racing game fans the most is the off-the-shelf nature of the computer needed to drive the TL1 properly: as long as your graphics hardware can handle the extra-wide 5760 x 1200 resolution, any typical Windows XP or Windows 7 desktop will do. The real question is whether your wallet can handle it, as the £11,500 ($18,573) PC-less starting price will make it tempting to buy a real Atom instead.
