Engineering

The United States has about 94,000 tonnes of nuclear waste in storage, though that's a bit like calling all that gold in Fort Knox "waste." A new technique is being developed to recover its trapped value, unlocking billions of dollars in reusable fuel and high-value isotopes. Continue Reading Category: Energy , Engineering Tags: Nuclear , Nuclear Fission , Waste

Scientists have been searching for ethical, high-quality alternatives to animal leather, which notoriously comes with environmental costs and ethical compromises. While synthetic alternatives solve the ethical dilemma, many of them are plastic-based and very difficult to recycle. Now, researchers are trying to find an option that checks all the boxes, and the best material for it seems to be … mu…

A new 19.9-meter (65-ft) tower rises like a brutalist-inspired, twisted monolith above its rural surroundings, providing a space for watching migratory birds that populate Wuhan's Chenhu Wetland, China. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: China , Engineering , Birds , nature , Art , Experience , Structure

Plans have been revealed for an ambitious wooden high-rise in Bellevue, Washington, that will set a new height record. The timber tower will rise to a height of 180 ft (54.8 m), making it the tallest mass timber office building in the United States once completed. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Building and Construction , Timber , cross-laminated timber , Office , Sky…

Northrop Grumman has unveiled its Raid Hunter chain gun system, adding a new layer to anti-drone swarm defenses by combining cutting-edge AI sensors, precision-guided ammunition, and a motor-driven chain gun feed firing up to 200 rounds per minute. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Northrop Grumman , Missile Defense , drones

The US Navy scored a first as it carried out a submerged undersea launch of its new low-cost, long-endurance unmanned undersea vehicle (UUV) called HADALUS at Portsmouth, Rhode Island, where the vessel performed a series of sea trials. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Raytheon , US Navy , Submarine , Autonomous Vehicles

A breathtaking plunge in an elevator down the side of a canyon has opened, drastically increasing capacity and making what was once a six-hour round trip even shorter. It's now down to around 30 minutes. Continue Reading Category: Engineering Tags: China , Architects , Engineering , Elevator , Infrastructure

Land-based launch sites for orbital rockets just got the flat-pack treatment as Rocket Lab announced its Global Hypersonic & Orbital Spaceport Technology (GHOST) system. The initiative packs a complete launch system into standard shipping containers. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Rocket Lab , US Space Force , Rocket , Launch

You don’t have to watch Kevin Costner’s Waterworld to know that for much of the world, the future will be increasingly flooded. As climate chaos causes oceans to swallow coastlands, and as surging water displaces and devastates communities, social survival will demand that people find ways to live and work with – and on – the water. Continue Reading Category: Robotics , Engineering Tags: MIT , Au…

AI-equipped helicopters went on the offensive off the islands of Hawaii as the US Navy and Lockheed Martin set two modified Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk helicopters to hunt submarines using a new AI sonar system as part of the RIMPAC 2026 naval exercises. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Lockheed Martin , Helicopters , Sikorsky , Artificial Intelligence , Submarine

If you’ve ever tried 3D-printing anything, you know just how flimsy the results can be. In fact, simply removing them from the build plate can make you sweat, since at any moment the beautiful statuette, replacement part for your refrigerator, or gift for someone special that took 10 hours to print can shatter into a pile of PLA garbage. Continue Reading Category: 3D Printing , Manufacturing , En…

Autonomous air combat reached a major milestone in the skies over Edwards Air Force Base, California, as the X-62A VISTA test aircraft carried out full AI air intercept missions using live sensor data rather than simulated feeds. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Autonomous flight , X-Plane , US Air Force , Lockheed Martin

Following almost eight years of construction, the Gordie Howe International Bridge has finally opened for business. Providing an additional connection between the USA and Canada, the crossing features an impressive main span of 853 m (2,798 ft), making it the longest cable-stayed bridge in North America. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Building and Construction , Bridg…

The US Space Force – the youngest branch of the country's armed forces – is investing billions of dollars in next-gen tech to expand its threat detection capabilities. Continue Reading Category: Space Systems , Engineering Tags: Satellite , Rocket Lab , US Space Force , Tracking , Detection

Why walk when you can ride? That seems to be the question of the day as British Army paratroopers exchange Shanks' pony for electric bikes during a combat exercise in Canada, testing the zero-emission conveyances alongside tactical drones and electronic warfare systems. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: ebikes , British Army

Washington Dulles International Airport is set to undergo a major renovation, with an expansion plan that's set to cost some US$22 billion. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Airports , Infrastructure , Transport , Aviation

The JEC Tower has hit another milestone on its journey to become the new world's tallest skyscraper. The building is rapidly moving toward the halfway mark and has reached a height of 430 m (1,410 ft), with around 570 m (1,870 ft) left to go until the record-breaking megatall is completed. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Building and Construction , Skyscrapers , World'…

A radically new concept in VTOL aircraft design has made its debut with the first flight of Sikorsky's Nomad 100 rotor-blown wing prototype. Announced during the Farnborough International Airshow, the milestone marks the official takeoff of the Nomad family. Continue Reading Category: Military , Engineering Tags: Sikorsky , Lockheed Martin , Aircraft , Farnborough Airshow

You could be forgiven for thinking that this extraordinary design was dreamed up for the set of some kind of sci-fi movie. However, it's actually a real proposal for a major new mixed-use cultural building. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Building and Construction , MVRDV , sustainable design , Rotterdam

One of London's most famous landmarks is an engineering marvel that was once the tallest skyscraper in Britain. Celebrities and royalty spent their evenings there, and thousands visited it, yet for decades it officially did not exist. This is the BT Tower. Continue Reading Category: Architecture , Engineering Tags: Communications , Skyscrapers , History