Scotius

In other words: Diversification is the key. Let's not put all our eggs in one basket. Time and practice will show which method of producing energy is optimal.

For a second test flight, it was amazing. Now it's time to analyze what went right, and what went wrong. And lastly, third time's the charm!

Eh, give it a couple of months in a decaying orbit and problem will be gone.

Apparently they had rough landing, with capsule tumbling from too much lateral velocity. Not sure if it was caused by wind, or parachute malfunction. Taikonauts are fine, it seems. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toWIIZcxAUI

Did you just broke the rule No. 1? You did!

With Israel planning to accelerate the deployment of Iron Beam system, we should get more data about effectiveness of lasers in combat. Apparently during trials system was able to destroy missiles, artillery and mortar shells. Considering it has rather short range (up to 7 km.) it suggests both very short reaction time and the ability to deliver significant amount of energy in very short time. Now I'm wondering if similar system could be attached to space stations, to protect them from space trash? Maybe not destroy space junk outright, but push it away - to a safer orbit. Possibly even decelerate piece enough to make it burn in the atmosphere faster? This way station could serve as a space janitor, cleaning its orbit of garbage over time.

Just use pulsed weapon. With short enough pulses you will notice the flashes, but locating where they are coming from will not be easy. Unless you are looking straight at the source - which won't be healthy!

Sometimes jokes just write themselves. Honesty though - I do hope BO will display more Ferociter under new boss. Because Gradatim got old long time ago.

Unless SN wants to use their own launcher, instead of hitching a ride on SH. On one hand it may be less economical, but on the other hand it provides more options and elasticity.

Or so we think. Which is a bit of a reach, because our current knowledge is based on single sample. Meanwhile Sllorps from the world of Duzamur discuss how rare life must be on energy poor, cold worlds of galactic rim...

Flesh and metal, eh? It just asks for trouble. Jump from the fifth floor? Why not - after all you have tough metal skeleton. Then you land... and all squishy tissues let you know how displeased they are with being put under very violent deceleration. Either go full metal "ghost in the shell" or stay human and stay safe.

Too bad we don't have any functioning seismometers on the Moon anymore. Those left by Apollo missions were turned off in the 1970'ties. There would be valuable data to obtain from relatively high-speed crash.

I just take issue with firing people, and dressing it up as "Optimization of workforce". Soulless af.

"Optimizes workforce." Yeah, right. Less people now has to do more for the same pay. Quality of work will not suffer at all...

Good news. I'm glad to hear Voyager is not lost yet.

In this case "Pics or it didn't happen." wouldn't help, because we only heard "I've seen something", "Someone told me something" etc. Evidence or bust.

It is a very nice photo. Weather must have been excellent if you got good results despite light pollution.

Dark Forest is so incredibly USA-centric it makes my European heart clench with sadness. While I know crime is a thing and murderers are everywhere, I do not fear every stranger I pass on the street. Nor am I afraid to enter a bank, cafe or restaurant. I don't feel the need to carry a weapon with me either. Projecting our human faults on entire Universe seems very excessive.

Very nominal launch! Remember the times when we felt anxiety before every landing? It's gone now - and it pleases me. I'm glad to watch space flights becoming as non-exciting as airplane landings.

One interesting idea I've read once was a herbivorous, gregarious prey species. They evolved to be dominant life form on their world... and in the process exterminated pretty much everything else in their biosphere, leaving only edible plants in heavily modified and controlled environment. See, other animal species and insects were seen as a potential threat or competitors, while plants had to go to make space for agriculture keeping their incredibly xenophobic civilization going. And then they went to space.

I love comic books, and Magneto is one of my favorite villains, but... Don't try to analyze comic book physics using logic. It is a dive into a rabbit hole, and only madness waits for you on the bottom.

There were many cases of survivors being rescued hours or even days after a catastrophe that should be immediately fatal. As long as there's a chance, rescuers will and should try to reach the victims. In this case, services suspected the sub was a total loss, but they did not know for sure. So they kept deploying ROV's and looking. This is genetic. Altruism is a paradigm baked in our DNA by millions of years of evolution as social species. If we will ever lose it, on that day we will stop being humans.

Unfortunately, "late-stage carbon burning" may still last thousands of years.

It's probably subjective, but new model lines look to me as if they shifting away from wings to more lifting body profile.

Question: Could colliding musket balls release enough heat to partially melt, thus welding themselves together?