Transportation

Watch the F-35B jet make a vertical take-off and landing

The latest round of cutting-edge aerospace technology feels very Zen to me. Much like SpaceX's Grasshopper Vertical Takeoff Vertical Landing vehicle, this Lockheed Martin F-35B jet is capable of vertical take-offs and landings and appears to hover in the air in a sort of meditative state that seems odd for a military fighter.

The first vertical take-off and landing test of the production model was successfully conducted earlier this month and captured in the official video below. … Read more

Lamborghini Egoista concept looks like a space fighter

We've seen some pretty out-there limited-edition cars from luxury manufacturer Lamborghini, but its newest may have just taken the biscuit and sped off with it.

The Egoista, unveiled at the closing gala of the 50th anniversary Grande Giro tour, was designed by Volkswagen's head of design, Walter De Silva, and it's meant to be the ultimate in self-indulgence.

"This is a car made for one person only, to allow them to have fun and express their personality to the maximum," De Silva said. "It is designed purely for hyper-sophisticated people who want only the most extreme and special things in the world. It represents hedonism taken to the extreme, it is a car without compromises, in a word: egoista (selfish)." … Read more

Mercedes-Benz integrates Google Maps features

Mercedes-Benz announced it would demonstrate Google local search, Street View, and traffic integrated into the dashboard of one of its vehicles during Google I/O. These features will be introduced soon as part of Mercedes-Benz's DriveStyle app.

Local search will let drivers enter any term to begin a search, resulting in a list of nearby place names. Each entry can be selected as a destination for navigation. The Street View feature will let the driver see a 360-degree view of any destination, as long as Google has covered it.

Traffic data is similar to what can be found on … Read more

Tesla's path to the upgradable car

At Tesla's sunny headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., I asked CTO JB Straubel when to expect the next model upgrade for the Model S. He quickly dismissed the automaker cliche of updates based on model years, saying that Tesla would release new features for the Model S as his team finished creating them.

One of the Model S' great strengths, beyond its zero emissions, minimal running costs, excellent driving character, and luxury appointments, is that Tesla can deliver over-the-air updates to its cabin electronics.

And those updates can be very extensive, as the Model S features few hard controls. … Read more

Tesla hits first profitable quarter ever

In his quarterly earnings letter to shareholders on Wednesday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced that "Tesla reached profitability in the first quarter of 2013 for the first time in our 10-year history."

Not only did the electric car company exceed analyst expectations, but Musk said (PDF) Tesla even outdid its own expectations for deliveries and gross margin. The company reported adjusted earnings of 12 cents per share on revenue of $562 million, which is far higher than the expected 3 cents per share. Its profit was $11 million after charges.

Tesla's total revenue for the first quarter … Read more

Navy's X-47B makes first arrested landing

The U.S. Navy's X-47B is one step closer to being ready to start making test flights off of aircraft carriers after completing its first-ever arrested landing.

According to the Navy, the X-47B, also known as the Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS), successfully grabbed hold of a special arrester cable with its tailhook, quickly stopping the aircraft during the May 4 test. That marked an important milestone in the development of the UCAS program.

The jet-powered X-47B is a prototype meant to fly autonomously, unlike many drones such as the Predator, which are usually flown remotely by ground-station-based pilots. … Read more

Terrafugia to develop vertical takeoff flying car

Frustrated commuters may soon get some good news from Terrafugia, the maker of the Transition flying car.

The company on Sunday said it has begun feasibility studies of a four-seat, vertical takeoff and landing plug-in hybrid-electric flying car, the TF-X. The vehicle will "further increase the safety, simplicity, and convenience of personal aviation" by using state-of-the-art intelligent systems and other technology, Terrafugia said.

"This is the right time for us to begin thinking about the future of the company beyond Transition development," Carl Dietrich, Terrafugia's chief executive and chief technology officer, said in a press … Read more

Future headlights turn rain invisible, we explain how in video

Rain -- the scourge of the night driver! Too many times have distracting droplets proved an annoyance for those traveling roads after dark.

New technology co-developed by Intel and Carnegie Mellon University could one day change all that. I've spoken to Intel about the new tech, so hit play on the video above to find out how it works.

Instead of relying on a bog-standard bulb to beam light out over a darkened road, the futuristic setup would use something more akin to a projector.

Meanwhile a camera sits nestled beneath that projector, keeping an eye on drops of rain as they enter the headlights' beams. Information from that camera is sent to a processing unit, which identifies raindrops and makes a guess as to where each droplet is headed. … Read more

Tesla plans big announcement that Model S owners 'will like'

There's the possibility that Tesla may be looking to make its luxury all-electric cars a tiny bit more affordable. The company's CEO Elon Musk tweeted Thursday that Tesla will announce some big news on Friday.

Announcement of new @teslamotors strategy tomorrow. Tesla owners will like this.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2013

While no further information is given, this tweet does offer some clues into what Musk may be suggesting. The fact that he mentioned it will be something "Tesla owners will like" harkens back to a similar tweet from last month.

After tweeting about an … Read more