The Malaysian Insider :: Features
The Malaysian Insider :: Features |
| Concorde’s successor revealed at Paris Air Show Posted: 21 Jun 2011 02:16 AM PDT
The Zero Emission Hyper Sonic Transport (ZEHST) concept (picture), unveiled ahead of the Paris Air Show this week, uses rocket power to transport passengers above the Earth's atmosphere, dramatically cutting flight times. It is powered by three engine types which would allow it to take off as a normal plane using jet engines, before using rockets to shoot into the outer atmosphere and supersonic "ramjets" when it reaches its cruising altitude, at around 32km. Passenger jets today travel at an altitude of some 11km, some 36,000 feet. With such a high altitude, the aircraft's ground speed would be more than twice that of the now-defunct Concorde, speeding around the planet at Mach 4 – four times the speed of sound, or around 5,000km/h. All of the propulsion methods would be green, with the jet engines using biofuels and the rockets using liquid hydrogen and oxygen – according to EADS, all of this technology is in place, although an unmanned prototype is unlikely to appear before 2020. The final product could be in the skies by 2050, EADS predicts, and although it's anyone's guess as to what Concorde's successor will look like when it is finally produced, the group is reported to believe that the design of the 1960s aircraft remains a strong base. Boeing, the US rival of EADS-owned Airbus, is also planning a hypersonic jet. The Paris Air Show runs through June 26 in Paris. – AFP Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
| Japanese supercomputer becomes world’s fastest Posted: 21 Jun 2011 12:32 AM PDT  The "K computer" at the RIKEN laboratory in Kobe, western Japan. — AFP pic The K Computer has achieved 8.162 quadrillion calculations per second, or 8.162 petaflops in computer jargon, according to developers Fujitsu Ltd. and the state-funded Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, known as RIKEN. In doing so K Computer overtook China's Tianhe-1A of the National Supercomputing Centre in Tianjin, which became the world number-one in November and is capable of operating at 2.566 petaflops. The K Computer's performance was recognised by the Top500 List of Supercomputers released on Monday at the 2011 International Supercomputing Conference in Hamburg, Germany, Fujitsu and RIKEN said in a statement. It is the first Japanese supercomputer since 2004 to become the world's fastest, a symbolic moment for a nation proud of its cutting edge technology. NEC's Earth Simulator was the world's fastest machine between June 2002 and November 2004. K Computer's developers say the machine will be powerful enough to tackle complex calculations relating to climate research and disaster prevention. "Use of the K computer is expected to have a groundbreaking impact in fields ranging from global climate research, meteorology, disaster prevention, and medicine, thereby contributing to the creation of a prosperous and secure society," the statement added. K Computer is still being configured and has been assembled since October 2010 at a RIKEN's facility in Kobe, western Japan, where it should be completed by June 2012, the statement said. It is made up of 672 computer cabinets currently equipped with of 68,544 computer processing units (CPUs), Fujitsu and RIKEN said in a press release. When finished, the machine will have more than 80,000 CPUs and be able to operate at 10 petaflops. Fujitsu and RIKEN chiefs said in statements that the project, launched in 2006 with a total budget of about ¥112 billion yen (RM4.25 billion), had overcome supply chain difficulties caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that devasted the country's northeast Tohoku region. Fujitsu chairman Michiyoshi Mazuka said he was grateful to "our partners in the Tohoku region for their commitment to delivering a steady supply of components, even though they themselves were affected by the disaster." RIKEN president Ryoji Noyori said: "I very much believe that the strength and perseverance that was demonstrated during this project will also make possible the recovery of the devastated Tohoku region." Noyori, the 2001 Nobel laureate in chemistry, told a news conference later: "I am glad because the world number-one spot, by such an overwhelming margin, has proven that our country's industrial technology remains sound." "After all, we must aim for the top in research." The project's budget was slashed by ¥11 billion in late 2009 under a belt-tightening drive by the centre-left government. A minister in charge of administrative reform asked at that time: "What is the reason for seeking to be the world number one? Can't you make do with second place?" But the K Computer may find it hard to survive intensifying competition as a 1,000-petaflops supercomputer is under consideration in the United States while China continues to invest heavily in supercomputer development, the Yomiuri newspaper said. — AFP-Relaxnews Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by USA Best Price. |
PARIS, June 21 – International aviation group EADS has revealed a concept for a Concorde replacement which could allow travel between Paris and Tokyo within three hours.| You are subscribed to email updates from The Malaysian Insider :: Features To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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