jet

Unexpected problems with a NASA science satellite in orbit around Mars could briefly delay receipt of telemetry from the agency's $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory rover during the spacecraft's dramatic 7-minute descent to the surface August 6, officials said Monday.

While the issue with the orbiting Odyssey satellite will have no effect on the rover's ability to successfully execute its autonomous entry, descent, and landing sequence -- half jokingly dubbed "Seven Minutes of Terror" by project engineers -- it could mean an additional period of nail-biting before confirmation that the so-called "sky crane&… Read more

Gentlemen, start your Lego jet engine. Created by Rolls-Royce and unveiled at the Farnborough International Airshow in England yesterday, the engine uses 152,455 bricks and reaches an overall size of 4.9 feet long and 6.5 feet wide. All of those Legos together stack up to an astounding 676 pounds. … Read more

In just 41 days, on August 5, NASA's Mars Science Laboratory rover will touch down on the Red Planet, and this will be no ordinary landing. In fact, NASA has dubbed the descent "Seven Minutes of Terror."

"When people look at it, it looks crazy," senior EDL engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Adam Steltzner said in a new video by NASA on the rover landing. "It is the result of reasoned engineering thought, but it still looks crazy."

The recently released video (see below) outlines exactly how crazy the feat of landing … Read more

You may have seen those crazy cousins of the Jet Ski and jetpack that let you zip around your favorite water-sports venue while essentially attached to a wild fire hose.

We've written about the JetLev R200 -- a jetpack-like design -- as well as a later spin on the idea: the Flyboard, which with its foot- and hand-level water jets, might make for more of a skiing-like experience.

Well, now it looks like the concept has been applied to a form factor all of us can more or less relate to: the cycle. The Jetovator lets you ride the wild hose as if it were a bike or motorcycle. And for that reason, it looks a little less squirrelly than the other devices (though watching the embedded video does make us wonder about the fine print in our health insurance policies).… Read more

NASA's $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory rover is in good shape and on target for a nail-biting seven-minute plunge to a bull's-eye landing on the red planet in early August, thanks to upgraded software and post-launch improvements that will enable the craft to make a more precise descent to the floor of Gale Crater, mission managers said Monday.

While engineers are continuing to troubleshoot a contamination issue with Teflon seals inside a high-tech rock drill on the rover's robot arm, the project scientist said he is confident workarounds will be in place by the time the … Read more

HP has taken the wraps off three new consumer printers, including an update to last year's mobile all-in-one.

The HP Officejet 150 Mobile is a refresh to the HP Officejet Mobile 100, a useful accessory that earned a 7.5/10 CNET Editors' rating back in 2011 for its flexible connectivity options, Bluetooth accessibility, and rechargeable battery. This time around, HP updates the mobile inkjet sidekick with quick scanning and copying directly to a compatible USB drive or memory card.

The printer's physical composition retains the same general clam shell design of its predecessor but adds a 2.… Read more

Here's another reason not to blow your cash on those Beats by Dr. Dre headphones: the NYPD is reporting that the headphones have become the new top target for thieves based on their $500 resale value. With dozens of Beats heists occurring over the last four months alone, your best bet is to avoid the red "b" altogether and invest in a better pair of cans.… Read more

Random strangers can change your life. So can ear, nose, and throat specialists who trained as engineers at MIT.

This is something 52-year-old Jan Christian discovered when she was in a supermarket and someone heard her attempts to talk. The stranger suggested she visit Dr. Sid M. Khosla.

"I sure wish I could remember what she looked like and knew who she is," Christian told WXIX in Cincinnati.

Khosla studied engineering at MIT and when he came to the University of Cincinnati, he received a grant to study flow in the voice box. In another random occurrence that characterizes this extraordinary story, one of the finest experts in jet noise happened to be at the same university. … Read more

There is no accounting for the chemically imbalanced ones and zeros that operate within the human head.

So please attempt to decipher what the people in this video are thinking, as they try to persuade a jet engine to blow them as far as possible in the direction of the sea.

These events are taking place -- every day, it seems -- on the island of Sint Maarten, around 190 miles east of Puerto Rico.

The Princess Juliana airport is right on the beach. Signs warn of the dangers of trying to get too close to the planes, as they … Read more