NASA’s JPL’s Cassini space probe comes startling close to a rare stellar mystery today.

The Cassini space probe will soon complete its four-year primary mission to study Saturn, its rings, and its moons. Though close to its June completion, the Cassini mission’s operators will be busy today, as the spacecraft makes a very close flyby of one of Saturn’s more interesting moons, Enceladus.

What interests scientists most about Enceladus is the giant geyser at its south pole. While the moon itself is a mere 500 kilometers in diameter, the geyser, which is composed mostly of micrometer-sized ice particles, extends almost three times that distance into space. The geyser makes Enceladus one of the most geologically active bodies in our solar system.

Though the flyby seems daring, at one point coming as close as 50 kilometers to the surface near the moon’s equator, it will be four times that distance when it reaches the outskirts of the plume of vapor and particles. Though the ejected matter leaves the geyser at approximately 400 meters per second, the small size of the particles shouldn’t pose a problem to the space probe at the speed and altitude where it will encounter them.

The team hopes to use Cassini’s particle analysis equipment to get a better understanding of what kinds of materials are spewing from the planet’s interior. While some of the particles are pure water ice, other components include gases like carbon dioxide and methane. Analyzing the composition will help scientists quantify and understand any differences between the plume and the envelope of material that surrounds the entire moon and understand how the plume itself was formed.

Should today’s flyby conclude successfully, other, more daring flybys may be planned for the craft’s proposed extended mission cycle to begin in August of this year.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has created a movie explaining and illustrating Cassini’s mission and can be found here (flash multimedia).

USAF wants 300 PlayStation 3s for “research”

Sony, Toshiba and IBM have long touted the Cell Broadband Engine (Cell/B.E.) to be supercomputer material. The designers of the Cell/B.E. said many times that the processor may be used in a variety of applications, ranging from entertainment to industrial.

Now, the U.S. Air Force is planning to put the Cell/B.E. to the test, and oddly enough, it plans to procure its processor samples by purchasing 300 PlayStation 3 consoles.

As written in its presolicitation notice posted late February, “The Air Force Research Laboratory is conducting a technology assessment of certain cell processors.”

While there are many other ways to obtain a Cell/B.E., some of which more capable than the one offered for videogames, but even the U.S. Air Force has a budget.

“The processors in the Sony PlayStation 3 are the only brand on the market that utilizes the specific cell processor characteristics needed for this program at an acceptable cost,” detailed the notice.

Strangely, the 40GB PlayStation 3 model requested by the U.S. Air Force specifies the inclusion of four USB ports – twice as many on the retail 40GB PS3 – and slots for Memory Stick/SD/Compact Flash, which are only available on the 60GB and 80GB machines.

New research into nuclear’s feasibility shows that it simply does not make for a sole fossil fuel replacement.

The death knells of the Earth’s dwindling fossil fuel supply have helped to prompt a growing push for alternative fuels. Whether it be cellulosic ethanol powering the next generation of hybrid vehicles or microbial hydrogen driving advanced fuel cells, America’s top technology corporations are making massive investments in alternative energy. Basically, alternative energy advocates remain split about what is the best solution — solar power, wind power, biofuels, hydrogen, and nuclear power are seen as the best bets.

Not holding out much hope for an exotic solution, many have turned in the last few years to seriously considering nuclear as a potential replacement to fossil fuel demand. The result has been resurgence in nuclear efforts. In the U.S. an application has been filed by NRG Energy for the first new nuclear plant in 30 years. In Canada, a nuclear research reactor taken temporarily offline was quickly brought online after swift legislative action.

However, despite the growing enthusiasm there has already been one major hiccup. The record drought that has been plaguing the U.S. Southeast is threatening to cripple the nuclear industry in this region, as many of the plants require large amounts of water.

Now, a new research study, conducted by Physicist Joshua Pearce of Clarion University of Pennsylvania puts another dent in nuclear efforts. Professor Pearce’s research, published in Inderscience’s International Journal of Nuclear Governance, Economy and Ecology, indicates that while nuclear research and small-scale growth remain promising, large scale growth remains non-viable.

Professor Pearce is actually an advocate for nuclear power. He warns that his research should not be misinterpreted. Professor Pearce suggests that the nuclear power industry focuses its efforts on improving efficiency. He gives two easy ways to accomplish this. The first is to utilize only the highest grade ores, saving on refining energy costs. Secondly, he suggests the industry adopt gas centrifuge technology for ore enrichment, which is considerably more efficient than the currently used gaseous diffusion methods.

Professor Pearce feels that plants must also adopt technology for capturing and distributing their waste heat. He points out that nuclear plants dump large amounts of heat into their surroundings, a practice which both wastes energy and can cause significant harm to the environment. Professor Pearce believes that current nuclear weapon stockpiles worldwide should be dismantled and their nuclear fuel “down-blended”. He points out that this could produce a bounty of nuclear fuel.

The not-so-good news which Professor Pearce points out is that nuclear is simply not a viable candidate for large-scale growth. In order for nuclear power to maintain growing future power demands and the shrinking fossil fuel power supplies, between 2010 and 2050 a growth rate of over 10 percent a year would be necessary according to Professor Pearce. This, he says, is simply not possible.

Professor Pearce points out that such a growth program would simply cannibalize older plant’s power output to provide the power needed to maintain the processes involved with building the new plants and refining ore for them, leaving no power for human needs. Large-scale growth would require massive power investment in terms of plant construction, plant operation, mining infrastructure expansion, and energy investments to refine ore. Professor Pearce says the books simply don’t balance — these power needs could not be met by the energy produced from the refined ore.

He points to a significant problem with large scale growth. Large-scale growth, barring the discovery of new reserves would necessitate the use of lower grade uranium. This sets an additional limit on growth. As Professor Pearce points out, “The limit of uranium ore grade to offset greenhouse gas emissions is significantly higher than the purely thermodynamic limit set by the energy payback time.”

Professor Pearce also points out to environmentalists and global warming skeptics alike that nuclear power is hardly an “emission-free panacea”, as he puts it. All aspects of plant operation, including plant construction, mining/milling of uranium ores, fuel conversion, enrichment, fabrication, operation, decommissioning, and long-term and short-term waste disposal, require massive amounts of energy provided by fossil fuels. The burning of these fossil fuels will create large amounts of greenhouse emissions, a criticism oft-leveled against the solar and wind power industries by nuclear advocates.

While emissions are certainly troublesome, the simple energy requirements infeasibility, if accurate, would almost certainly nix the large scale expansion of nuclear power in its current form. If Professor Pearce’s research withstands the test of review then it offers little choice but to pursue his suggested strategies — develop more advanced nuclear power on a smaller scale and pursue other alternative energy solutions as a major source of capacity.

It turns out mom was right, when she told you to take your vitamins.

Bacteria have been a hot topic in research these days. It turns out that the little guys, oft vilified for their pathogenic brethren, can provide exciting solutions to many alternative energy and material purification problems. Researchers have used bacteria for everything from purifying water, to data storage, to microbial biofuel and hydrogen production.

Now researchers have made an exciting new microbiological breakthrough involving a very special type of bacteria. It has been known for some time that the bacteria, Shewanella, found commonly in water and soil, produces electricity when it digests organic matter. This led to researchers taking special interest in its potential as a natural generator. However, a major roadblock to such alternative energy plans was the fact that it was unknown until now is exactly how the bacteria accomplished its electrical generation, or whether the process could be governed.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have now discovered that the vitamin riboflavin (known commonly as vitamin B-2), provides the bacteria with much of its generating capabilities. The research was led by Daniel Bond and Jeffrey Gralnick, of the University of Minnesota’s BioTechnology Institute and Department of Microbiology.

Professor Bond explained the importance of their discovery, stating, “This is very exciting because it solves a fundamental biological puzzle. Scientists have known for years that Shewanella produce electricity. Now we know how they do it.”

Their research, which will be published in the March 3 issue of the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences” opens the door to an exciting new chapter in alternative energy. By boosting the Shewanella bacteria’s riboflavin intake with vitamins, the bacteria’s electrical output dramatically increases. These bacteria can transform organic waste byproducts such as lactic acid into electricity, offering both a waste disposal and an alternative energy solution.

The research team discovered riboflavin’s effects when bacteria growing on their electrodes began to increase in electrical output. The team discovered that the increase was do to the accumulation of riboflavin on the electrodes, a substance the bacteria naturally produce. As the riboflavin built up, the bacteria’s electrical output increased to a maximum of 370 percent of the original levels.

Potential uses include waste water microbial fuel cells and, according to researchers, a natural fuel source for ocean floor probes. Professor Bond remarks, “Bacteria could help pay the bills for a wastewater treatment plant.”

The researchers do warn that in order for the technology to be cost-effective for home and business use or for transportation, significant biological and fuel cell design obstacles would have to be overcome. For now, the technology provides a great deal of niche potential for the waste water industry, they say.

For those curious of why Shewanella outputs electrical current, here’s why. The bacteria needs to digest certain soil metals such as iron to survive and thrive. In order to properly absorb them it directs electrons into the metals to change their properties, making them more digestible. Says Profesor Gralnick, “Bacteria have been changing the chemistry of the environment for billions of years. Their ability to make iron soluble is key to metal cycling in the environment and essential to most life on earth.”

Such bacteria could also be applied to ship surfaces and used in a reverse process to prevent corrosion by outputting iron. The U.S. Navy is interested enough in this application to provide the team with a grant to explore the technology further.

The research was primarily funded by the Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and Cargill. The University of Minnesota’s College of Biological Sciences and the Institute of Technology were also involved with the project.

The very useful Shewanella bacterium has also been found to produce carbon nanotubes under the proper conditions.

Yeah, the critics have already had their shot at the VUDU, but now that the latest software update has towed in support for HD streaming, Engadget HD figured it prudent to dedicate a review specifically to the high-definition capabilities of the movie set-top-box. Eager to see if it’s worthy of being connected to your HDTV? Come on over, the water’s fine.

Yeah, the critics have already had their shot at the VUDU, but now that the latest software update has towed in support for HD streaming, Engadget HD figured it prudent to dedicate a review specifically to the high-definition capabilities of the movie set-top-box. Eager to see if it’s worthy of being connected to your HDTV? Come on over, the water’s fine.

Canon’s eye-based biometric photo watermarking system hits the Patent Office

Image attribution is big business on this tangled web of ours, but embedding digital watermarks into images is a costly and time-consuming procedure for most photographers — which is why this Canon patent application is so intriguing. The filing describes a “Registration” mode for digital cameras that embeds biometric data captured from your iris in the image automatically as a watermark — you simply set yourself as one of up to five users, look into the viewfinder for a moment so the camera can scan your eye, and start taking photos. The system embeds the metadata in batches to avoid slowing the camera down while you’re out in the field, and it sounds like the system can be modified to simply generate a verification code instead of a true watermark, preserving image quality. Of course, this is just a patent application, so there’s no word on when or where we might see this tech pop up, but you know photographers will be all over this when it finally hits.

[Via Photography Bay, thanks Eric]

Canon’s eye-based biometric photo watermarking system hits the Patent Office

Image attribution is big business on this tangled web of ours, but embedding digital watermarks into images is a costly and time-consuming procedure for most photographers — which is why this Canon patent application is so intriguing. The filing describes a “Registration” mode for digital cameras that embeds biometric data captured from your iris in the image automatically as a watermark — you simply set yourself as one of up to five users, look into the viewfinder for a moment so the camera can scan your eye, and start taking photos. The system embeds the metadata in batches to avoid slowing the camera down while you’re out in the field, and it sounds like the system can be modified to simply generate a verification code instead of a true watermark, preserving image quality. Of course, this is just a patent application, so there’s no word on when or where we might see this tech pop up, but you know photographers will be all over this when it finally hits.

[Via Photography Bay, thanks Eric]

Sure, there’s always the pukelight for good times around the house, but sometimes you’ve just got to do some damage — which is where The Torch from Wicked Lasers comes in. The 4100-lumen flashlight is being considered for the Guiness Book of World Records, and can ignite paper, light cigarettes, melt plastic, and even fry an egg — but only has a fifteen minute battery life. Check a video of The Torch taking out a pile of plastic bags after the break, and hit the read link for even more high-candlepower destruction.

[Via I4U News]

We’ve already seen nanoparticles put to use to help diagnose cancer (in mice), and it now looks like researchers have found another, potentially bigger use for ‘em — namely, to blast those cancer cells away altogether. That’s apparently possible by mixing two so-called nanothermite composites that act as a fuel and an oxidizer, which in turn generate combustion waves that can hit velocities ranging from 1,500 to 2,300 meters per second (or somewhere in the neighborhood of Mach 3). Being on the nano-scale, however, the researchers say the explosives can be used safely within the human body and, indeed, they say they have 99% success rate in tests on animal tissue. If all goes as planned (a relatively big “if”), the researchers say the technology could be ready for use in two to five years.

[Via Futurismic]