World's most heat resistant material found

December 25, 2016

London, Dec 25: Scientists have identified materials that can withstand temperatures of nearly 4,000 degrees Celsius, an advance that may pave the way for improved heat resistant shielding for the faster-than-ever hypersonic space vehicles.heat

Researchers from Imperial College London in the UK discovered that the melting point of hafnium carbide is the highest ever recorded for a material.

Tantalum carbide (TaC) and hafnium carbide (HfC) are refractory ceramics, meaning they are extraordinarily resistant to heat. Their ability to withstand extremely harsh environments means that refractory ceramics could be used in thermal protection systems on high-speed vehicles and as fuel cladding in the super-heated environments of nuclear reactors.

However, there has not been the technology available to test the melting point of TaC and HfC in the lab to determine how truly extreme an environment they could function in. The researchers developed a new extreme heating technique using lasers to test the heat tolerance of TaC and HfC.

They used the laser-heating techniques to find the point at which TaC and HfC melted, both separately and as mixed compositions of both.

They found that the mixed compound (Ta0.8Hf0.20C) was consistent with previous research, melting at 3,905 degrees Celsius, but the two compounds on their own exceeded previous recorded melting points. The compound TaC melted at 3,768 degrees Celsius, and HfC melted at 3,958 degrees Celsius.

The findings may pave the way for the next generation of hypersonic vehicles, meaning spacecraft could become faster than ever.

"The friction involved when travelling above Mach 5 -hypersonic speeds - creates very high temperatures," said Omar Cedillos-Barraza, currently an Associate Professor at the University of Texas.

"So far, TaC and HfC have not been potential candidates for hypersonic aircraft, but our new findings show that they can withstand even more heat than we previously thought - more than any other compound known to man," said Cedillos-Barraza, who carried out the research as a PhD student at Imperial College London

"This means that they could be useful materials for new types of spacecraft that can fly through the atmosphere like a plane, before reaching hypersonic speeds to shoot out into space," he said.

"These materials may enable spacecraft to withstand the extreme heat generated from leaving and re-entering the atmosphere," he added.

Examples of potential uses for TaC and HfC could be in nose caps for spacecraft, and as the edges of external instruments that have to withstand the most friction during flight.

Currently, vehicles going over Mach 5 speeds do not carry people, but Cedillos-Barraza suggests it may be possible in
the future.

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Agencies
February 5,2020

San Francisco, Feb 5: After a German artist, Simon Weckert, demonstrated how he "hacked" Google Maps with 99 smartphones and a wagon to create "virtual traffic jams" on the streets of Berlin, Google responded to the incident saying it "appreciates" creative use of maps.

Admitting that it has not quite cracked travelling by wagon, the tech giant also hinted that it might use cases like this to improve how its maps work.

"We appreciate seeing creative uses of Google Maps like this as it helps us make maps work better over time," 9to5Google quoted a Google spokesperson as saying.

In a YouTube video, Weckert showed that he put 99 smartphones with Google Maps onto a small wagon cart and then wheeled that cart around various streets in Berlin, including outside the Google office, Android Authority reported on Monday.

The smartphones "apparently fooled Google Maps" into thinking that there was a high concentration of users on those streets.

Because the second-hand phones were in a cart, Maps was further tricked into believing that the traffic was slow-moving.

As a result, the navigation app started showing virtual traffic jams by turning green streets to red in the online navigational tool, showcasing how digital technology can have a real impact on the real world.

"Traffic data in Google Maps is refreshed continuously thanks to information from a variety of sources, including aggregated anonymised data from people who have location services turned on and contributions from the Google Maps community," the Google spokesperson said.

"We've launched the ability to distinguish between cars and motorcycles in several countries including India, Indonesia and Egypt, though we haven't quite cracked travelling by wagon," the statement added. After a German artist, Simon Weckert, demonstrated how he "hacked" Google Maps with 99 smartphones and a wagon to create "virtual traffic jams" on the streets of Berlin, Google responded to the incident saying it "appreciates" creative use of maps.

Admitting that it has not quite cracked travelling by wagon, the tech giant also hinted that it might use cases like this to improve how its maps work.

"We appreciate seeing creative uses of Google Maps like this as it helps us make maps work better over time," 9to5Google quoted a Google spokesperson as saying.

In a YouTube video, Weckert showed that he put 99 smartphones with Google Maps onto a small wagon cart and then wheeled that cart around various streets in Berlin, including outside the Google office, Android Authority reported on Monday.

The smartphones "apparently fooled Google Maps" into thinking that there was a high concentration of users on those streets.

Because the second-hand phones were in a cart, Maps was further tricked into believing that the traffic was slow-moving.

As a result, the navigation app started showing virtual traffic jams by turning green streets to red in the online navigational tool, showcasing how digital technology can have a real impact on the real world.

"Traffic data in Google Maps is refreshed continuously thanks to information from a variety of sources, including aggregated anonymised data from people who have location services turned on and contributions from the Google Maps community," the Google spokesperson said.

"We've launched the ability to distinguish between cars and motorcycles in several countries including India, Indonesia and Egypt, though we haven't quite cracked travelling by wagon," the statement added.

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News Network
May 6,2020

Hyderabad, May 6: Away from city lights, two hours before Sunrise, people in India and across the world can witness Annual Meteor Shower called Eta Aquarids till May 28.

Observed since time immemorial, Meteor shower are commonly known as shooting stars which are nothing but dust flakes of comet/asteroid entering earth atmosphere.

This Annual Eta Aquarids Meteor Shower peaked on Wednesday at 02.30 am on Wednesday whereas presence of Full Moon was an obstacle outshining bright streaks of lights of this meteor shower zipping across the South Eastern sky.

As this meteor shower is active till May 28, people can still watch this celestial spectacle in early morning every day, Planetary Society of India (PSI) Director N Sri Raghunandan Kumar interacting with UNI said.

As per International Meteor Organization (IMO), 50 meteors per hour are expected to be seen on day of peak today. And this number would vary as days pass on till May 28 while earth passes through dust cloud of comet debris in its orbit.

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News Network
June 30,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 30: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday launched 'Skill Connect Forum' and said that the government is committed to provide impetuous to creating jobs by reviving economic and industrial activities.

The 'Skill Connect Forum' portal connects both private entrepreneurs and job seekers on the same platform.

After launching the forum, the Chief Minister said that the portal provides information on jobs available and who needs a job. "Under this forum, an unemployed will be imparted skills and then enabled to get a job," Yediyurappa said.
Besides providing jobs via registration, the portal also provides a skilled pool of people for those looking to hire, he added.

Deputy Chief Minister Dr CN Ashwath Narayan, who is also the Skill Development Minister said that portal will be a boon to the youth seeking jobs and it will avoid unemployment issue to a great extent.

"All these years, there was no information and communication between job seekers and recruiters. The portal will solve that problem," he said.

Narayan said that there was no proper information on skilled workers and job market. Moreover, skill development was not in sync with the market. All these issues have been addressed by the portal, he added.

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