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The designer of China’s Chengdu J-20 fighter plane says the country is already thinking about what it wants from the next generation of warplanes, even as China contines to develop the J-20 into a family of aircraft. Yang Wei told Chinese state media that the nation now has the technical expertise to develop whatever aircraft it wants.Yang, a deputy director of science and technology at Aviation Industry Corp of China and member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told state-run People’s Daily: “We are not complacent about what we have achieved....

Media Platforms Design TeamEvery archaeological site contains a wealth of information about the past, and context is key. A knife found by a stone hearth tells a different story than one alongside a human skeleton. Unfortunately, excavating the site to reveal the story also destroys it. Detailed records are the only way archaeologists can keep archaeology from erasing the past rather than preserving it. Today, they’re using 3D modeling tech to preserve the information found in a site, find new places to dig, or create models of ancient artifacts via 3D printing....

This article was updated on January 11, 2019 with comment from paper author Cherry Ng. In 2007, radio astronomers discovered what they love most: a mystery. Two researchers, combing the archives of the Parkes Observatory in Australia, found a radio signal the observatory recorded six years prior, but that nobody had noticed. It was fast—just a matter of milliseconds—but what impressed them was the power behind the signal, emitting 500 times the energy of the sun....

We’ve detected black holes time and time again, but we’ve always relied on indirect evidence to do so. But that all changed today with the first-ever image of an event horizon, the “point of no return” of a black hole. The Event Horizon Telescope consortium unveiled its first black hole image today. The “telescope” is actually a group of telescopes around the planet to create what the project refers to as a “planet-sized virtual telescope....

Well-designed steps create a great first impression, and when properly built, they will last for years. Popular Mechanics Senior Designer Michael Stillwell and his father Tony Stillwell recently designed and built steps into their barn, and shared their project with us.The designer of any steps has a responsibility not to make them difficult or dangerous to walk down or climb. To achieve this, you must take into account an easy slope to walk up, and each step must be consistent with all of the others....

Media Platforms Design TeamBefore ever suiting up, all fire-engine operators are taught about friction loss, in which water pressure is reduced by friction inside a fire hose. It’s a complicated calculation, dependent on hose diameter, type and length, as well as water velocity. Getting it right is vital. Many departments post cheat sheets for estimating pressure. Mike Raben, a firefighter in Louisville, Colo., found a more modern solution online: a custom-built calculator app for Google Android phones....

Media Platforms Design TeamQ: I rely on Web-based e-mail, but am worried about how secure these services are. Is there anything I can do to protect my mail against hackers and digital snoopers?A: It’s easy to understand the appeal of Web-based e-mail services such as Gmail, Windows Live Hotmail and Yahoo Mail. They are free, offer several gigabytes of storage and are accessible from virtually any computer or smartphone with a link to the Web....

Kanye West plans to build prefabricated, low-income housing for LA’s homeless population.West is drawing inspiration from Star Wars, modeling the structures after Luke Skywalker’s home on Tatooine.Rapper and fashion mogul Kanye West has set his sights on creating affordable, prefabricated housing for homeless people in Los Angeles. The inspiration for the igloo-like structures is none other than Luke Skywalker’s home on the the desert planet of Tatooine.Forbes reports that West already has prototypes in the works that “look like the skeletons of wooden spaceships … each oblong and dozens of feet tall....

Auroras are among the most spectacular phenomena in the night sky, thrilling travelers and photographers with wispy displays of green light. But these auroras are not the only thing lighting up the night. Scientists have determined that streaks of purple captured by amateur photographers are not auroras at all, but are rather an entirely new type of celestial phenomenon. The streaks of strange light have come to be known as STEVEs....

View full post on YoutubeNASA astronauts have shared how the moon landing evokes tons of pride ahead of the release of First Man, which recounts the successful mission. In the clip shared exclusively with Popular Mechanics, astronauts Scott Kelly, Garret Reisman and Peggy Whitson talk about the ingenuity and risk-taking that thrust Apollo 11 to the lunar surface and America to the top of the Space Race in 1969. Reisman says the moon landing is still “the gold standard for doing something incredibly hard,” even as technology has evolved far beyond its late 20th century capabilities....

In February 2006, we reported on the complex, decades-long campaign to find a new general-issue rifle to replace the aging M-16 – and the two related weapon programs that showed promise. More than a year later, where are these guns?XM-25Media Platforms Design TeamThis grenade launcher, which fires 25mm “air-bursting” shells that detonate in midair over targets’ heads, is still being developed. But a larger, 30mm version of the XM-25’s microchip-embedded round will be shipped to the U....

Media Platforms Design TeamThe first thing I noticed about the 2015 Alfa Romeo 4C was the color. It’s not quite burgundy, there’s a hint of silver, and in certain lighting conditions it takes on an almost purple hue. The Italians call it Competizione Red. To be fair, I would drive this beauty if it were pink with Hello Kitty decals on the hood. The second thing I noticed is the display....

Aesthetics aren’t exactly a priority for any Mars rover, but that doesn’t mean a paint job isn’t crucial to success. Beyond offering a clean, minimal look, white paint can create an important reflective surface for any space-bound object. The Mars 2020 rover recently got its paint job, and that process is a microcosm for the level of detail that’s required for each and every part. There are no paint shops on Mars, after all....

Russia is gearing up for what could be the largest military exercises in half a century. The Vostok 2018 exercises will involve 300,000 Russian soldiers, sailors, and airmen, far more than previous exercises, and involve troops from across Russia. The drills will also include several thousand Chinese troops.A gigantic country that spans 11 time zones, Russia splits its military preparedness drills into two separate events. Every four years it holds the Zapad (“West”) drills in the Urals and the following year holds the Vostok (“East”) in Siberia....

Vladimir Putin’s much-hyped nuclear-powered cruise missile is having trouble staying in the air. The Russian president announced the weapon in March as part of a package of new nuclear arms, but the unnamed missile has crashed four times in four months. The new Russian cruise missile takes advantage of a nuclear chain reaction for power. According to CNBC the missile uses a gasoline-powered engine, likely a turbojet similar to the one powering the Kalibr cruise missile (see above, using its rocket booster motor) to achieve flight....

SpaceX completed its first ever Falcon 9 launch on the West Coast on Sunday night, carrying the satellite SAOCOM 1A into orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Falcon 9 booster stage landed safely only 8 minutes after taking off, lighting up the sky in a dazzling flurry that captured the attention of onlookers on the ground. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to laud his company’s efforts, in what’s become something of a routine for the outspoken billionaire....

Amateur Canadian sky-watchers have spent years viewing and photographing a streak of light across the sky. Too far south to be the aurora borealis, or northern lights, the spectators named the phenomenon simply, “Steve,” in an homage to a 2006 animated film. But until now, it was unclear to scientists what Steve actually was. A new paper in Science Advances proposes a theory. Importantly, the researchers also gave Steve an official name: Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement, or STEVE....

Spring has officially sprung, which means that the weather is finally nice enough to accommodate all sorts of adventures. And with adventures comes endless documentation. All Pro HD Waterproof Action Camera + Accessory PackAll Pro HD Waterproof Action Camera + Accessory Pack$40 at shop.popularmechanics.comYou can keep your thousand-dollar smartphone, though. To immortalize your hikes, bikes, hitchhikes, use the All Pro HD Waterproof Action Camera, an adventure-ready camera that can hold its own against the coveted GoPro, and only costs a fraction of the price....

When it comes to the future of transportation, there is no shortage of intriguing and possibly crazy vehicle concepts. By 2100, commuters could be zipping around in passenger pods that fly through vacuum sealed tubes at 700 mph, soaring through the skies in autonomous personal rotorcraft that look like quadcopter drones, blasting off in rockets that fly from city to city, or even boarding commercial jetliners to fly more than five times the speed of sound....

While the snow globe has become a fixture on the mantles of welcoming grandparents everywhere, it’s got a much cooler cousin that you might not have heard of. How can you make a snow globe cool, or cooler than it already is? Easy—make a storm glass.View full post on YoutubeStorm glasses predate snow globes, with the former dating back to around 1750 and the latter only gaining popularity at the Paris Universal Expo of 1878....