This week in Science Friday, we have more news on the space tourism race into sub-orbit, some awesome images of Mars’ moon, sugar-powered transportation, and a reported alien attack! Also, check out this week’s Trekkish gadget of the week: The Illumination Shower!
Space Tourism Race Heats up
For all you skeptics out there about the fate of space tourism in our lifetime, you’ll be glad to know that more and more news keeps popping up about companies from all over the world building their own sub-orbital flight vehicles designed for the general public. Xcor Aerospace, the California based company, plans to enter the industry with a two-seat rocket ship capable of suborbital altitudes more than 37 miles above the Earth. The Lynx is expected to fly in 2010, and even has the interest of the Air Force Reasearch Laboratory piqued.
The Lynx, suborbital flight vehicle of 2010?
Mars Orbiter Images Martian Moon, Phobos
This stunning, enhanced-color image of Phobos — the Martian moon named for the Greek god of horror — was recorded by the HiRISE camera onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as it passed within some six thousand kilometers of Phobos last month. “Marsshine” — sunlight reflected by Mars on to Phobos — also reavealed Stickney crater, a feature nearly half the diameter of Phobos itself, so large that the impact that blasted out the crater likely came close to shattering the tiny moon.
A stunning image of Phobos, Mars’ moon
Cars of the Future: Powered by Sugar?
Chemists are in development of a “revolutionary” process for converting plant sugars into hydrogen, which could be used to cheaply and efficiently power vehicles equipped with hydrogen fuel cells without producing any pollutants.
The system, which involves combining plant sugars, water, and a cocktail of enzymes, is said to be the world’s most efficient method for producing hydrogen. The production, storage, and distribution of low cost sustainable hydrogen has been a roadblock for hydrogen fuel cells, but this new method is likely to revolutionize the industry. For more, see the Zhang research team website.
Percival Zhang, the scientist behind this new process
‘Aliens’ Attacking Bosnian Man with Meteorites
Five meteorites have fallen on Radivoje Lajic’s house in the past six months. There is only one possible conclusion. Lajic says, "I am obviously being targeted by extraterrestrials. I don’t know what I have done to annoy them but there is no other explanation that makes sense. The chance of being hit by a meteorite is so small that getting hit five times has to be deliberate." The rocks, which have been confirmed by Belgrade University scientists to be actual meteorites, have prompted Lajic to install a steel-girder reinforced roof on his home.
The Romulans have launched a preemptive strike!
Gadget of the Week: Illumination Shower (How Trekkies Get Clean)
Ever wanted to see how it feels to go through transport? Stepping into the Illumination Shower might be as close as you can get right now. With a doughnut-shaped light above you emitting a cool glow while water cascades down upon you like rainfall, just close your eyes and you can easily imagine that you’re beaming down with an away team to free Captain Kirk from the Romulans. Now I feel unclean without one! By Spiritual Mode.
I hope they come with heisenberg compensators
Science Quickies
Here’s a warp-speed look at science tid-bits that didn’t quite make the cut, but nonetheless merit mention.
- NIST working on a “Deathalyzer”
- NASA goes low tech to fix a high tech problem
- Phoenix Mars Lander on track for May landing
A car powered by sugar… huh… wouldn’t have ever expected that. To the grocery store for gas!
First, perhaps?
meteors are worth money dont get mad get paid…
OK, the Bosnia meteorite dude’s story makes NO sense whatever.
If these things hit over six months, then they came from as many as five sources. Earth would have moved out of the path of any one, or two, meteor showers. How sure are you that these rocks are real? I smell Serbian-Croatian crappola.
Serbo-Croatian
The only problem with a sugar powered car is that those hooligan kids keep putting gasoline in my tank.
Defracking . . .
CmdrR, at least he didn’t claim to catch Phobos on the ole Serbo-Croatian kabanza. Might of made a bigger dent than the Stickney Crater.
Refracking.
You’re welcome Kayla, awesome pic, huh.
Wow. What a great scientific breakthrough. A showerhead with a fluorescent light on it.
The shower seems completely pointless. xD
A car powered by sugar? What a load of……… whatever they’ve come up with in the past few years, they are mostly using fuels that are in some way derived from “sustainable” agricultural sources… and what happens at this very moment? Food prices are skyrocketing. That’s anything but sustainable. The question should be: a car? We have to drive less, we need prevention strategies, a better modal share etc., and we have to get rid of carbon-based combustion engines in general, incl. fuels that rely on carbon-based intermediates or energy sources in the production chain.
LMAO@#5………. :-)
Great! Now sugar will be $8 a bag! The image of Phobos was quite stunning, though. Too bad that Phobos and Deimos sooner or later will impact Mars; the opposite problem of our moon (which is slowly drifting away from earth). In the meantime, they would make interesting platforms to base automated research stations on (and as captured asteroids, worthy of study in their own right). And while I admire the ambition of the Space Tourism industry, it’s a shame these companies don’t partner with international space development firms and set their sights beyond sub-orbital, sight-seeing jaunts. If governments can’t or won’t explore space, the peoples of the world should pool their resources and give it a shot! In a perfect world, anyway.
#5. Melonpool
LOL! ! ! ! ! !
And regarding this guy:
“… Lajic says, “I am obviously being targeted by extraterrestrials. I don’t know what I have done to annoy them but there is no other explanation that makes sense. The chance of being hit by a meteorite is so small that getting hit five times has to be deliberate.”
This guy has been watching WAY TOO MUCH SCIFI or has been chugging tranya and blood wine. (See? This is what happens when you mix your alcohol!!)
Good grief.
kg
The Lynx is great news. I would very much like to see the Earth from a suborbital height-once the domain of the X-15 pilots, whose flights I greatly admire. Where do I sign up? I’ve wanted this all my life!!!
Oh so scientists have finally refined the sugar fuel idea. I read this way back in 1989.
Here’s an interesting article to read. In Australia they’ve got a tree called the Diesel Tree, http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/04/the_diesel_tree_grow_your_own_oil.php
Sounds too good to be true.
#4
Serbo-Croatians doesen’t exist, like doesen’t exist Germano-Frenchs. As a Croat, I’m insulted with tthat term.
#16
I think it wouldn’t be insulting to consider the people in Alsace as Germano-Frenchs.I belive a lot of them are happy (maybe even proud) to embrace both of there heritages.
17
their not there, sorry
These Friday ‘science’ round-ups are great. Keep ’em coming.
I have to say that the suborbital flight vehicle looks pretty awesome!
– That croatian folk sure has a ..phobia to meteorites..what a lucky man…
#16 a friend of mine is Croatian, and she refers to everyone down there (incl. herself) as Yugos. And btw: there are “Germano-French” people. They are called Alsatians.
I may be being too much of a Trekkie, but I have to point out that if you were rescuing Captain Kirk from the Romulans, you wouldn’t be part of an “away team.” That term only came into use in Picard’s time; in Kirk’s era it was called a “landing party.”
I dunno, maybe you want to correct that to avoid pissing off other TOS fans/TNG fans alike… *shrug*
As for the illuminated shower, I just had this horrible image of a crack or short in the lighting fixture. Water is electrically conducted and…instant Darwin Award! Or, as Sean Connery’s Bond would say, “Shocking.”
Amen, Mary Jane. You can’t put your dinner in the gas tank.
Mass transit.
Regional transit.
2-person cars.
NO MORE SUV’s.
Urban planning that puts jobs and homes together rather than grabbing bribes and rubber stamping every strip mall and condo.
Green food. (Sorry, you’ll have to mostly make do with stuff grown within 200 miles of your home to cut down on shipping.)
Close Wal-Mart. (No joke. Just take a look at the over-packaging, shipping, waste, disregard for human and labor rights and general crappiness all found in one place — not to mention the very worst aspects of consumerism.)
Wow — didn’t even feel that rant coming until I was halfway through it.
But, in all seriousness, there’s no magic needed here at all. Just willpower. Time for a Roddenberry-esque evolutionary step.
#25. I hear you. While we may not be at that stage this instant, we are rapidly heading there. And I, for one, would not mourn the loss of Wal-mart business philosophy (greed at its apex) or SUVs (giant, stupid, macho, f**k-you mobiles). My wife and I have tried taking trains into Los Angeles and have found it to be much less stressful than risking your life in LA traffic. The trains are clean and quiet, and take only slightly longer than driving. Sooner or later, use of these systems may no longer be voluntary as fossil fuels ARE finite; and the supply needle is a LOT closer to ‘E’ than ‘F’ right now. If anyone out there has seen the comedy film, “Idiocracy”, it’s a humorous, but scary look at the future we are careening toward if we are not careful. The true flip-side of Roddenberry optimism!
10. Mary Jane – April 11, 2008
A car powered by sugar? What a load of……… whatever they’ve come up with in the past few years, they are mostly using fuels that are in some way derived from “sustainable” agricultural sources… and what happens at this very moment? Food prices are skyrocketing. That’s anything but sustainable. The question should be: a car? We have to drive less, we need prevention strategies, a better modal share etc., and we have to get rid of carbon-based combustion engines in general, incl. fuels that rely on carbon-based intermediates or energy sources in the production chain.”
Not all the plants being considered are edible or considered a food source for humans. Relax a little…
#27 That’s why I wrote “mostly”. But even those crops, which are not considered a human food source, have roughly the same effect on the market, via livestock, rerouting of subsidies, occupation of valuable farmland, soil detereoration and ecosystemal degradation due to monocultures etc. pp.
So I’m definitely not relaxing, not even a little. Those who do the relaxing are the reason why it’s going downhill.
What’s next ?
Cars that run on Soda Pop ?
Oy vey, I can see Soda Pop going from $1.00 for a 12oz bottle to $5.00 overnight if they ever figure that one out.
If it can be taxed they’ll figure a way to tax it.
16: Maybe this is a little late, but Serbo-Croatian means between Serbs and Croatians. The falling out between the PRC and USSR is called the Sino-Soviet split, as Sino is to Chinese as Serbo is to Serbian. Another example would be the Franco-Prussian war between France and Prussia.