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The struggle to save the elephants is now a shadowy war. It’s being fought in Africa to keep poachers away from the majestic creatures. It’s being fought in China to expose ivory dealers with storehouses of black market ivory masquerading as legal. And it’s being fought in many places in between.These fronts come together in The Ivory Game, a new documentary backed by executive producer Leonardo DiCaprio that made the film festival rounds and came to Netflix on November 4....

The periodic table of elements has been an absolute runaway success for 150 years. Now, a team wants to replicate that success with molecules.It’s a difficult task, considering the many types and pairing that are possible. But using electrons, these scientists have established a weighing system.While they haven’t built the table yet, they’re excited about the prospects.First established in 1869, the periodic table quickly took the scientific world by storm as a means of properly organizing elements....

Only 7 years after its last solar eclipse (a pretty short time cosmically speaking), America will glimpse another total solar eclipse will on April 8, 2024. One of the solar system’s great sights, it will be a chance to recognize humanity’s place in the universe and grab some pretty amazing stellar photography in the process.While we’re still a ways away from this great celestial event, it’s never to late to plan…....

Media Platforms Design TeamTrollhättan, Sweden—Saab’s first all-new model since 1997 is as much a story about a company as it is about a car. Developed by a General Motors subsidiary on a GM platform, the all-new 9-5 Aero is the first product of a company owned by a tiny Dutch supercar maker called Spyker, which succeeded in buying Saab after GM put the Swedish brand into liquidation. Earlier this year, the Saab factory sat idle for seven weeks....

Later this year, the U.S. Air Force will test a new concept drone designed to act like a sidekick to combat planes with human pilots. The service sees the XQ-58A “Valkyrie,” or something very much like it, as a cost-effective way to augment the service’s current aircraft fleet. Kratos, a builder of target drones, has been developing the XQ-58A. Under the Air Force’s “loyal wingman” concept, a drone wingman could act in concert with its crewed partner to shoot down enemy fighters, run interference for the crewed airplane as it carries out an attack, or suppress and destroy enemy air defenses before the crewed plane enters range....

The U.S. Army is fixing a flaw in its carbines that allows some of the rifles to fire without pulling the trigger, a serious and deadly defect. The problem is particularly common among rifles designed to fire fully automatic.Last summer a U.S. Army soldier noticed his M4A1 carbine would discharge if his weapon was loaded and the selector switch moved from the semi automatic firing position (“SEMI”) to the fully automatic (“AUTO”) position....

There’s a moment halfway into Hidden Figures when head NASA engineer Paul Stafford refuses the request of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson) to attend an editorial meeting about John Glenn’s upcoming mission to become the first American to orbit the Earth. Stafford’s response is dismissive—“There’s no protocol for women attending.” Johnson replies, “There’s no protocol for a man circling Earth either, sir.” The quote underlines this based-on-a-true-story movie. For NASA to get John Glenn into space and home safely, institutions that supported prejudices and biases needed to start tumbling down....

I blame Amy.I was 28, she was gorgeous and sophisticated, and I was mooning about our future together. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have been in La Paz, Mexico in the first place 26 years ago. I knew an eclipse was coming, but it wasn’t what was really on my mind at the time. As far as I was concerned, Amy was the only thing waiting for me in Mexico....

Media Platforms Design TeamProduced in 1962, NASA’s educational film The Mastery of Space now serves as a reminder of how daunting the challenges of the space race really were, and how far we’ve come. Alongside impressively minimalist demonstrations of rocket stages and hype for the space race to come, you’ll find some amazing primo footage of the pioneering spaceflights that put Americans in space and put NASA on the map.This includes footage of Alan Shepard’s flight on Freedom 7, the first American manned spaceflight; John Glenn on Friendship 7, which was the first manned orbit of the Earth; and the construction of NASA rockets....

Media Platforms Design TeamHere’s something that may help states follow the EPA’s new plan to reduce carbon emissions: a new and inexpensive powder that captures carbon dioxide (CO) from natural gas and converts the CO from a gas to a solid. With further development, the carbon-based black powder could catch carbon dioxide right at natural gas wells, providing a cost-effective and space-saving way to reduce carbon pollution. The captured CO could be returned to underground wells or used in industry....

Media Platforms Design TeamLancair IV (Photo Credit: D. Miller/Flickr)You can go a trans-Atlantic or trans-Pacific flight easily. But Bill Harrelson is aiming for something a little different in his Lancair IV plane: he’s going trans-polar. Harrelson wants to fly his N6ZQ plane from the South Pole to the North Pole, with a 361-gallon fuel tank in tow.Harrelson is not doing the trip all at once–think of it as more Around the World in 80 Days style, with pit stops as he goes....

This week the U.S. Air Force launched what was probably the biggest number of F-22 Raptors ever to take off at once. Twenty-four F-22s took off from an air base in Alaska, proving the stealth fighter fleet is capable of generating a large number of ready planes at once. The fighters lined up on the tarmac and then took off, one by one, into the Alaskan wild blue yonder, as you can see in this clip:View full post on YoutubeThe mass launch, known as an “elephant walk” in U....

The worst turbulence you’ve ever gripped your armrests through is nothing compared to what NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters fly directly into. Yesterday, before Hurricane Irma made landfall in the Carribean, the Hunters went out for a rendezvous, flying through the tumult and into the eye of the storm. The footage, posted to Twitter, is incredible. View full post on TwitterView full post on TwitterView full post on TwitterThe NOAA’s main storm-faring vehicles—the “Hurricane Hunters” themselves—are a pair of Lockheed WP-3D Orion turboprop aircraft, each kitted out with three different kinds of weather radar as well as the capability to deploy “dropwindsondes,” disposable sensor capsules that collect data as they fall through the storm....

In late 2017, a number of diplomats and related personnel working at the embassy in Cuba suffered a series of bizarre health problems, including concussions and brain damage. No one knew what the problem was, and after more than a year of investigations officials were no closer to an answer. But now, a group of researchers may have found the culprit: Anurogryllus celerinictus, otherwise known as the Indies short-tailed cricket.From the very beginning, officials identified that the cause of the diplomats’ distress was related to some sort of sound they had been hearing....

You’ve got to go to the ends of the Earth to fully understand how changes there affect the broader climate around the planet. Luckily, NASA scientists are up to the challenge.NASA’s Operation IceBridge uses a fleet of research aircraft to help make sense of the connections between polar regions and the global climate system. Last year, between August and September, it was sending planes over Greenland to track seasonal changes in the elevation of the ice sheet....

The new movie Arctic, out February 1, opens with the main character already several weeks into a solitary subsistence. The pilot, played by Mads Mikkelsen of Doctor Strange and TV’s Hannibal, is the lone survivor of a plane crash in the far north. Living out of the carcass of his plane, he has honed a routine for staying fed and attempting to signal potential rescuers. He’s calm and efficient—as is the movie....

Media Platforms Design TeamDodge has chosen Frankfurt for the unveiling of its first truly midsize crossover vehicle, the Journey, which it will sell in different versions all over the world, including here in the United States. Journey is larger than a Caliber but smaller than a Grand Caravan minivan, and rides on the corporate “D” platform that underpins the Avenger and Chrysler Sebring sedans. Standard power comes from a 2.4-liter four cylinder with 173 hp mated to a four-speed automatic....

Media Platforms Design TeamOn Sale Date: Spring 2012Price: $26,000 (est.)Competitors: Ford Fusion, Honda Accord, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Optima, Nissan Altima, Toyota Camry, Volkswagen PassatPowertrains: 2.4-liter I4 with electric hybrid assist, 182 hp, 172 lb-ft , 6-speed auto, FWDEPA Fuel Economy (city/highway): 26/38What’s New: Chevy’s eighth-generation Malibu shares GM’s global midsize architecture with Buick’s LaCrosse and Opel’s Insignia, with the goal of segment-leading ride and handling (yes, both). It has wider tracks, a stiffer structure and better steering and brakes compared with the previous generation and comes with a full suite of safety equipment, including standard stability control and 10 available airbags....

Canon PowerShot D10 Camera ($330)Media Platforms Design TeamCanon is known as a cautious company, typically eschewing glitzy features and instead focusing on basics such as improving image sensors and lens glass. And while waterproof and ruggedized cameras have been around for years, the cameramaker has steered clear, until now. This 12.1-megapixel, 3x-optical-zooming camera is the company’s first waterproof shooter, and one of the toughest we’ve seen–it can be submerged 33 feet, fall 4 feet, fight off grains of sand and withstand temperatures as cold as 14 F....

Going into space changes you. It’s called “the overview effect,” the experience of seeing the Earth in space is frequently a transformational one as the astronaut realizes the fragility of our place in the universe. And if you’re curious about its practical effects, look no further than Astronaut Mark Kelly’s strong op-ed on CNN that speaks to the destruction of the planet’s environment.A naval aviator, Kelly flew 39 combat mission in Operation Desert Storm....