Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA has placed orders comprising a total of 372 aircraft whereof 222 are on firm order

Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA (NAS) has placed orders with Boeing Commercial Airplanes and Airbus S.A.S. comprising a total of 372 aircraft whereof 222 are on firm order.

Read More... (Reads: 27)

Austal wins contract to build wind farm support vessel

Australian shipbuilding company Austal has confirmed a contract for a fourth wind-farm support vessel for Holyhead-based Turbine Transfers.

Read More... (Reads: 48)

Microsoft Corporation co-founder Paul Allen to build behemoth plane for space launches

Plans for the world's largest airplane powered by six jumbo jet engines were unveiled by Seattle billionaire and Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen as part of a new commercial space venture that plans to send satellites, cargo and tourists into Earth orbit aboard a rocket ship.

Read More... (Reads: 267)

A revolution in composite materials characterisation

The characterisation of a new composite material system, particularly for application to fields such as aerospace structures, is a time-consuming process costing potentially millions of dollars. This is partially due to the vast number of tests conducted with a single mode of loading in a qualification scheme. In fact, testing of materials has consistently been driven to a purity of loading mode, so that material response is easily understood and modelled. However, the costs associated with this approach provide a large barrier to the qualification of new materials. Collaborative research undertaken by the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL)  has been focused on the development of a testing system to address this barrier, utilizing a more comprehensive understanding of mechanical response of composite panels.

Read More... (Reads: 161)

Newly developed metallic "micro-lattice" material is world's lightest

Researchers have created a new metallic material that they claim is the world's lightest solid material. With a density of just 0.9 mg/cm3 the material is around 100 times lighter than Styrofoam and lighter than the "multiwalled carbon nanotube (MCNT) aerogel" - also dubbed "frozen smoke" - with a density of 4 mg/cm3 that we looked at earlier this year. Despite being 99.99 percent open volume, the new material boasts impressive strength and energy absorption, making it potentially useful for a range of applications.

Read More... (Reads: 27)

GM to introduce industry-first front center airbags

With frontal, roof-mounted and rear-window airbags you'd be forgiven for thinking that there couldn't possibly be anywhere else in a car automobile manufacturers could cram one. But you'd be wrong. General Motors (GM) has just announced it will introduce the industry's first front center airbag in selected vehicles in 2013. The latest airbag addition is designed to protect drivers and front passengers in the event of side impact crashes.

Read More... (Reads: 247)

First flight test of Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) concept

Following the two test flights of the unmanned Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle (HTV-2) earlier this year, both of which ended prematurely with the vehicle making a "controlled descent" into the Pacific Ocean, the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command conducted the first test flight of the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) concept.

Read More... (Reads: 266)

Solving aviation’s challenges. Through NASA innovation

Millions of passengers and millions of tons of cargo fly through the global airspace every day. It is a complex system that demands reliability and the ability to adapt immediately to changing traffic and conditions. The airspace over the United States is no different. NASA is part of a team that is developing solutions to the challenges facing our air transportation system.

Read More... (Reads: 208)

Polyurethane matrix resin for automotive composites

With lightweighting in mind, automotive manufacturers are using more and more parts made from carbon fiber or glass fiber composites. Henkel has developed a polyurethane-based composite matrix resin that cures faster than the traditional epoxy resins.

Read More... (Reads: 323)

"K computer" achieves goal of 10 Petaflops

Clocks in with LINPACK score of 10.51 petaflops on the TOP500 list for November

Read More... (Reads: 123)