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NASA's revolutionary launcher dreams could improve mass transit systems, boost astronaut applications
If there's one thing we hate waiting for, it's getting to space. Those 18 hour jaunts from Newark to Singapore just seem so brisk compared to getting from ground zero to the stratosphere, you know? All jesting aside, a team of engineers at NASA are pursuing a revolutionary new launcher that would rely solely on existing technologies. The catch? Said technologies need to be pushed forward a good bit, but if it all pans out, the result could lead to more efficient commuter rail systems, better batteries for motorcars and roller coasters that force a waiver upon you prior to riding. The proposal details a "wedge-shaped aircraft with scramjets to be launched horizontally on an electrified track or gas-powered sled," and once launched, the craft would soar at Mach 10 in order to breach the atmosphere and allow a rocket's second stage to fire. It's pretty riveting stuff -- we'd recommend giving that source link a look for the full skinny, but not if you're hoping to see this materialize in the next decade score.
X-51A WaveRider scramjet hits Mach 5, sets record for longest hypersonic flight
It might be a bit difficult to make out, but what you're looking at above is the X-51A WaveRider scramjet in the process of setting a record for the longest hypersonic flight. That happened around 10 a.m. on May 26th, when the rocket was dropped from the wing of a B-52 bomber at a height of 50,000 feet and proceeded to fly at Mach 5 for more than three-and-a-half minutes, blowing away the previous record of just twelve seconds. If you can believe it, however, the aircraft actually fell somewhat short of its goal -- Boeing and the Air Force were hoping the WaveRider would be able to fly for 300 seconds and hit Mach 6, but something apparently caused it to lose acceleration towards the end. Head on past the break for the video, we assure you it's still pretty impressive.
Penny Arcade wants you to write 10 words about WoW
Penny Arcade, those funny WoW comic guys, are giving away a metric ton of loot, via a contest, that they've gotten for the WoW Trading Card Game. Things that they're giving away include "four boxes of boosters, tournament playmats, a Winterveil collector's box, deckboxes, sleeves, two binders, three raid decks, three starter decks, and one of these awesome dice chest things." That's a ton of stuff to be handing out. But it gets better.They're also handing out an X-51 Nether-Rocket card to each winner. You can get your very own Rocket Mount! Three lucky winners will be quite happy. What's the contest they're holding? From the site: "you must write a short story, set in World of Warcraft, and this story must be precisely ten words long." It's so simple and so easy you just have to chuckle. Head on over to their site for more information on how to enter the contest.Of course, you'll have to go up against a certain WoW Insider writer on this one, since I've already submitted my story: "A casual paladin casually walks up and one shots Illidan."Good luck!
Whirligig: the generation, jury rigging, and joys of the gyrocopter
...And associated technologyOr:"IT'S WHISPER QUIET!"Since the very dawn of sentience, since the first daring Gnome looked skyward and said "Hey what's up there," since the first drink addled Goblin fell back near-insensate and said that those birds weren't so great, anyone could fly if they had a mind to, before falling into a Dark Iron Ale-induced coma, it has been our dream.Since the first parachute cloak failed to deploy (Engineer 2nd Class Amplebottom regrets packing her bloomers in that pack, and points out respectfully that the quantity of cloth involved did slow Engineer 1st Class Plummetorque's descent somewhat), we have held out hope.Since the first Engineer took flight in Outland, we have dreamed, demanded, planned, protested, and raised our voices (amplified or otherwise) as one, crying out to the great Engineers, the Blue Gears of the World, for succor. Let us, we have cried out, slip off at last the line and mooring, the chain and the anchor. Let us, we called from Shattrath and Stormspire alike, cast off into the air, in machines we have made ourselves, and trusting only our craft and our skill, reach out to touch the skies themselves!Ahem.Many of us, however, died in the process. Turns out our craft and our skill are not always the most trustworthy of companions, much less copilots, much less sole source of support between our posteriors and the unforgiving, unresilient ground below. However, after much research on both flight and gravitational acceleration, Engineers have at their disposal two crafts for aerial flight. Herein we discuss the components required for each model of the Engineers' Flying Machines, and possible advantages therefrom derived.
The Pentagon gets creative with Weapons of mini Destruction
In the current game of modern warfare, the perception of a weapon is almost more important than its actual destructive capability. That's why a newly designed Trident II missile that carries a non-nuclear payload could have a rough time getting funding from congress: in flight, the ballistic missile looks just like a fast nuke. The payload is pretty exciting, since at the peak of its climb outside the atmosphere, the missile pops out a payload of four warheads that can hit independent targets and travel up to 13,000 mph. Just above the target, the warheads detonate, showering a 3000 sq. ft area with scored tungsten rods at high enough speeds to decimate the target. Major points for the surgical strike, but we're not so hot for that whole "could instigate nuclear war" thing. Further off, but a bit more promising is the X-51 hypersonic cruise missile, which is designed to ride the shock waves created at its Mach 5 (3600 mph) target speed. Best of all, the missile is designed to destroy targets with its own kinetic energy, meaning even more precise targeting. The goal of the missile is "to strike virtually anywhere on the face of the Earth within 60 minutes." Perfect for acting on fleeting intelligence against teensy targets. The technologies being developed for the X-51 are also being considered for space vehicles and ultra-speedy planes.
