NASA's Curiosity Rover Making Tracks and Observations
Pasadena CA (JPL) Apr 17, 2015 -
NASA's Curiosity Mars rover is continuing science observations while on the move this month. On April 16, the mission passed 10 kilometers (6.214 miles) of total driving since its 2012 landing, including about a fifth of a mile (310 meters) so far this month.
The rover is trekking through a series of shallow valleys between the "Pahrump Hills" outcrop, which it investigated for six months, ...
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Taiwan opposition reveals female presidential candidate
Taipei (AFP) April 15, 2015 -
Taiwan could be on track for its first ever female leader after the island's main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) announced Wednesday that its chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen will run for president.
Officially accepting the party's nomination, Tsai pledged to maintain the "status quo" with China, as her party - traditionally sceptical of Beijing - faces tough questions on its cross-s ...
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Saab tests BriteCloud active decoy system
Basildon, England (UPI) Apr 16, 2015 -
An expendable active decoy system by Selex ES has been successfully fired from a Gripen jet fighter during capability tests in Sweden.
Saab, maker of the Gripen, intends to offer the BriteCloud system as an enhancement option to electronic warfare systems aboard the Gripen.
The testing involved three releases from a Gripen using a standard Gripen counter-measures dispenser.
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Russia to Maintain Leadership in Space Exploration - Medvedev
Moscow (Sputnik) Apr 16, 2015 -
The Russian government will do its utmost to preserve the country's leading role in space exploration, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday.
On April 12, Russia observes the anniversary of the first-ever manned space flight carried out by Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in 1961. Gagarin became the first human to orbit the Earth, with his flight lasting 108 minutes. In 2011, ...
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Russia Should Consider Launching Super-Heavy Rockets From Vostochny
Moscow (Sputnik) Apr 16, 2015 -
Russian space experts should study the possibility of launching super-heavy rockets from the Vostochny space center currently under construction in Russia's Far East, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday.
The space center's launch facilities include those needed the heavy version of the Angara rocket, but "launches of the super-heavy [version] should also be considered," Putin told ...
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Chinese president to visit Pakistan next week: Islamabad
Islamabad April 16, 2015 -
Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Pakistan next week, Islamabad said Thursday, with investment in the energy sector and Taliban talks in neighbouring Afghanistan likely to feature on the agenda.
Xi was originally scheduled to visit Pakistan last September but Beijing cancelled the trip as Islamabad was in the grip of major anti-government street protests.
China has been a key finan ...
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Lithuania eyes German Army artillery
Vilnius, Lithuania (UPI) Apr 16, 2015 -
Lithuania is to begin negotiations with Germany over acquisition of an undisclosed number of Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled artillery systems.
Disclosure of the talks, to be held beginning in May, was made by Lithuanian Minister of National Defense Juozas Olekas following a meeting with German Federal Minister of Defense Dr. Ursula von der Leyen.
"The Federal Defense Minister ...
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Iran poses growing cyber threat to US: study
Washington (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
Iran poses a growing threat to America's computer networks and has launched increasingly sophisticated digital attacks and spying on US targets, according to a new report released Thursday.
Iran's far-reaching hacking efforts indicate the regime is searching for vulnerable infrastructure that could be hit in future cyber assaults, said the study by private cyber security company Norse and th ...
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Allies concerned at China's maritime moves
Washington (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
US, Japanese and South Korean diplomats Thursday renewed concerns about moves by China to stake its claim to disputed seas and urged Beijing to preserve freedom of navigation in the key waterways.
Deputy US Secretary Tony Blinken repeated America's position that all competing claims in the South and East China Seas should be dealt with according to the rule of law.
Countries should "not ...
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DARPA demos Persistent Close Air Support System
Washington DC (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
Close air support (CAS)-delivery of airborne munitions to support ground forces-is difficult and dangerous because it requires intricate coordination between combat aircrews and dismounted ground forces (for example, joint terminal attack controllers, or JTACs). DARPA's Persistent Close Air Support (PCAS) program focuses on technologies to enable sharing of real-time situational awareness and we ...
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Space Domination: Pentagon to Beef up Defense of Satellites
Washington DC (Sputnik) Apr 17, 2015 -
United States satellites could be vulnerable to attacks, according to the deputy secretary of the Defense Department, who urged the government and private sector to work together to protect the key space assets.
Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work, speaking during a session at the annual Space Symposium conference, said the satellites were "absolutely critical" to the operation of the US ...
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Carmakers race to China auto show despite market slowdown
Shanghai (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
China is crucial to foreign carmakers as the world's biggest auto market, but slowing economic growth and a corruption crackdown are denting its appeal as they gather for the country's premier industry show.
The Shanghai auto show - the location alternates with Beijing - is a chance for global automobile manufacturers to show off their latest offerings to the massive market.
Vehicle s ...
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House GOP wants more Atlantic leases in offshore drilling plan
Washington (UPI) Apr 16, 2015 -
The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held an oversight hearing Wednesday on the Obama administration's Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2017-2022.
The U.S. Interior Department released a draft proposal in January for access to federal waters for exploration and drilling. While an Atlantic Ocean area was included for the fi ...
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Thousands of Greek miners protest feared job losses
Athens (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
Around 4,000 miners demonstrated in Athens Thursday to protest job cuts they fear will result from the hard-left government's opposition to continued exploitation of their gold mine in northern Greece.
Scores of buses transported miners from the Halkidiki region of Greece - about 600 kilometres (370 miles) north of Athens - to protest the Syriza-led government's decision last month to rev ...
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Oil prices move lower on surging OPEC output
Washington (UPI) Apr 16, 2015 -
Brent crude oil topped $63 per barrel early Thursday before moving lower on word OPEC output had surged in March, balancing slowing U.S. production.
The global benchmark was trading at 62.58 for the June contract Thursday morning, after OPEC released its monthly market report, stating March output rose by 810,000 bpd, thanks in part to increased output in Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
O ...
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OPEC increases oil production in March; U.S. shale dropping
Vienna (UPI) Apr 16, 2015 -
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will continue increasing output of oil, despite an oversupply, projecting an increased demand 80,000 barrels per day higher for this year than anticipated.
For the month of March, OPEC produced an average of about 30.79 million barrels per day - an increase of 810,000 thousand bpd.
"Crude oil output increased mostly from Saudi Ar ...
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Twitter out to crack down on abusive tweets
San Francisco (AFP) April 16, 2015 -
Twitter said Thursday that it is cracking down on mean, hateful or menacing tweets that cross the red line from free speech into abuse.
Twitter is overhauling its safety policy and beefing up the team responsible for enforcing it, along with investing "heavily" in ways to detect and limit the reach of abusive content, general counsel Vijaya Gadde said in an column published by the Washington ...
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Relativistic heavy ion collider smashes record for polarized proton luminosity
Upton NY (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, a powerful particle accelerator for nuclear physics research at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory, just shattered its own record for producing polarized proton collisions at 200-giga-electron-volt (GeV) collision energy.
In the experimental run currently underway at this two-ringed, 2.4-mile-circumference particle collider, ...
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German Nuclear Energy Bombshell
Moscow (Sputnik) Apr 17, 2015 -
Germany's decision to pull out of nuclear energy generation by 2022 following the Fukushima disaster has hit the buffers, after it emerged that investors are unwilling to finance its replacement gas power stations because of the fall in global energy prices.
The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster occurred in March 2011, triggered by a tsunami created by the magnitude 9.0 Tohoku Pacific coa ...
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Quantum physics - hot and cold at the same time
Vienna, Austria (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
Temperature is a very useful physical quantity. It allows us to make a simple statistical statement about the energy of particles swirling around on complicated paths without having to know the specific details of the system. Scientists from the Vienna University of Technology together with colleagues from Heidelberg University have now investigated, how quantum particles reach such a state wher ...
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China approves nuclear power project
Beijing (XNA) Apr 17, 2015 -
The Chinese government on Wednesday approved construction of the Hualong One pilot nuclear power unit, a domestically-developed third generation power project.
Hualong One draws more than 20 years of experience of China's nuclear power operators using the advanced design philosophy, said a statement released after a State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.
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Discovery of new plant switch could boost crops, biofuel production
East Lansing MI (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
A team of Michigan State University researchers has discovered a switch that regulates plant photosynthesis - the process that lets plants store solar energy and use it to grow and produce food.
Photosynthesis stores energy in two forms that are used to power plants' metabolism. The amount of energy flowing into each of these must be perfectly balanced to match the needs of plants' metabol ...
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Post-Fukushima Nuclear Restart Plans Foiled by Japanese Court
Moscow (Sputnik) Apr 17, 2015 -
A Japanese court ruled against restarting nuclear power reactors at the country's Takahama plant, derailing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plans to relaunch atomic energy generation four years after the Fukushima disaster.
Situated in the Fukui prefecture, the Takahama plant was given approval by Japan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) for plans to restart two reactors. The court ruling on ...
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ORNL contributes to major UN bioenergy and sustainability report
Oak Ridge TN (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
A major United Nations report on bioenergy and sustainability released Tuesday concludes the sustainable production of bioenergy can be an important tool for addressing climate change.
Two researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory contributed to the multinational UN document, which offers science-based evaluations of bioenergy issues including food and energy ...
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Light in a spin
Johannesburg, South Africa (SPX) Apr 17, 2015 -
Light must travel in a straight line and at a constant speed, or so the laws of nature suggest. Now, researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg have demonstrated that laser light traveling along a helical path through space, can accelerate and decelerate as it spins into the distance.
This is the first time that angular acceleration has been observed with light, and ...
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