Transportation

Small drone spotted dangerously close to jet over NYC

Looks like someone in the New York City area needs to keep their robot plane on a shorter leash.

Federal authorities are investigating today after the pilot of an Alitalia flight spotted what appeared to be a small, unmanned drone hovering close by as the passenger flight made its approach in to New York's JFK airport on Monday afternoon. The drone reportedly came within 200 feet of the jet.

Don't get all panicky over the prospect of a possible al Qaeda sleeper cell in Queens though. The eyewitness said the drone was black in color, no more than 3 feet wide, and had four propellers -- a description much more similar to a Parrot drone than a Predator.… Read more

Light it up: Epic LED show to wrap SF Bay Bridge in swirls and stars

With the flip of a switch Tuesday night, the San Francisco Bay Bridge, already known as one of the world's most amazing bridges, will undergo an epic transformation.

Starting tomorrow evening, anyone looking at the San Francisco side of the Bay Bridge at night will be wowed by the ever-changing swirls, bursts, star fields, and other patterns of the Bay Lights Project, the world's largest LED art installation.

Created by artist Leo Villareal, the project features 25,000 1-inch LEDs strung for 1.8 miles along the bridge's cables that together make up the pixels on what … Read more

3D-printed car saves money, energy

It wasn't long ago when 3D printing was a really cool concept we liked to daydream about. Now, it's gearing up to change our lives. We've seen 3D-printed buildings, portraits, organs, prosthetics, food, couture, a moon base, and even a pen for all your creative and repair needs. What's missing?

3D-printed transport, of course.

That, however, could change if engineer Jim Kor has his way. Heading up the team behind 3D-printed electric car Urbee, Kor has more than 35 years of experience in designing automotive, bus, rail, agricultural and heavy mobile equipment, as well as civil … Read more

Inventor gets off the ground with homemade jetpack

It might look like a recipe for disaster, or at least a trip to the hospital, but a German inventor is trying to take to the skies with a jetpack that's designed to race along a runway before flying.

Inspired by daredevil Felix Baumgartner, Fritz Unger wants to soar like a bird by strapping wings and two jet engines to his back.

That hasn't happened yet, but his Skyflash jetpack has lifted him off the ground for an instant as he rolled along at 34 mph. … Read more

Tesla CEO: NYT review cost us $100M in value -- Bloomberg

The New York Times/Tesla debacle may have cost the car maker $100 million in value, Tesla's CEO told Bloomberg.

Elon Musk, speaking on Bloomberg TV, said "a lot" of people canceled orders for Tesla's Model S following a scathing New York Times review.

"It probably affected us to the tune of tens of millions, to the order of $100 million, so it's not trivial," Musk said. "I would say that refers more to the valuation of the company. It wasn't as though there were 1,000 cancellations just due to … Read more

Behind the bloodsport: Tesla vs. NY Times

Where's Don King when you need him?

It seems that everybody and their mother-in-law are buzzing about the tussle between a New York Times car reviewer and Tesla Motors. It's a good example of the kind of public dialog that can happen in the age of the Internet and instrumented devices, such as a super-fast car that is basically a computer on wheels.

To briefly catch you up, a fierce debate broke out not long after New York Times writer John Broder wrote a review reporting shortcomings in the range of Tesla's Model S electric car during … Read more

Researchers develop a more accurate car navigation system

Driverless cars could get a big boost from a new system that researchers say will increase the accuracy of in-car satellite navigation systems by 90 percent.

Researchers say the system combines conventional GPS signals with data from sensors such as accelerometers and gyroscopes to determine a vehicle's position within six feet of its location, a dramatic reduction from the current margin of error of 50 feet. The system can be installed inexpensively in any vehicle, say researchers at Spain's Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, where the system was developed.

"We have managed to improve the determination of … Read more

Tesla's Elon Musk lambasts New York Times article

Tesla's CEO Elon Musk has become incensed over a news article critical of the all-electric car that was published in The New York Times last week.

"I do not think this is a he said, she said situation," Musk told Bloomberg West in an interview today. "It is really black and white. The facts are the facts."

The tussle got started after New York Times reporter John Broder wrote an article about taking the Tesla Model S out on a test drive in the East Coast's freezing weather. He claimed that the car couldn'… Read more

FAA approves Boeing test flights of grounded 787 Dreamliner

Boeing was granted permission today to conduct test flights of its 787 Dreamliner as the aircraft maker tries to determine the cause of battery fires that have kept the fleet of planes grounded around the world.

The test flights will be subject to a number of restrictions, the Federal Aviation Administration said today, including limiting the flights to specific airspace over unpopulated areas. Other conditions include preflight testing and inspections, and in-flight monitoring.

"The traveling public's safety is our highest priority," the FAA said in a statement. "These test flights will be an important part of … Read more