2016

SUnknown5 Incredible Body Painting Artists Craig Tracy, Cho San, Nikki Shelley, Kay Pike, Gesine Marwedel

Tue, May 17, 2016

Artists use the human body as their canvas for realistic and avant garde paintings that leave the model barely discernible.

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SUnknownHow the First Spacewalk Nearly Ended in Disaster - Alexei Leonov Voskhod 2

Tue, Sep 19, 2017

Voskhod was a Vostok spacecraft modified to carry two cosmonauts. It was barely capable of carrying a crew of two and proved to be an inadequate design. While its two missions were nominally successful the Voskhod was on the brink of disaster for most of the flight in a number of ways.

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SUnknownV Bombers - Vulcan, Victor & Valiant - The Last British Bombers

Mon, Nov 27, 2017

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SUnknownHow the Real Soviet Rocketmen Changed the World

Mon, Jun 25, 2018

The leaders of the Soviet space program owed their success as much to their political skills as connections as to their technical ability. Two just barely survived Stalin's purges. Later, as the space race heated up, changes in Soviet leadership lead to the rocket scientists moving in and out of favor causing radical shifts in the technologies of the space program.

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SUnknownHow the Atomic Race Was Won

Thu, May 23, 2019

In addition to the United States, Japan and Nazi Germany had programs to develop nuclear bombs. And America's program, which included Canada, was founded on the United Kingdom's prior work (just like radar). But the UK, Japan, and Germany ail suffered from limited scientific talent, loss of facilities to military action and over all limited resources. The Soviet program, which did not begin until after World War Two, was substantially aided by information stolen from the American program.

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SUnknownHow safe are nuclear weapons?

Fri, Jun 28, 2019

To date it is thought there has never been an unintentional nuclear bomb detonation. But there have been hundreds of accidents involving nuclear weapons. Since future accidents are likely, it is critically important that nuclear bombs follow the always never rule for safety. Paul describes the safety mechanisms that have been added to United States nuclear bomb designs since 1953.

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SUnknownWhat Fossils Will We Leave Behind in 65 Million Years?

Tue, Sep 03, 2019

Paul discusses what will be left of human civilization in 65 million years should we befall a mass extinction event like the dinosaurs. Pretty much anything we've built will fall to corrosion and erosion and be obliterated except for some tiny hardened objects like gemstones. More likely our impact on the environment would hint an our existence through carbon dioxide levels, species extinctions and nitrogen levels.

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SUnknownWhat Happened to the Soviet Supersonic Jump Jets?

Tue, Dec 10, 2019

Work on VTOL jets was confined to the west until Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev saw a demonstrator at an airshow. But the Soviet military was uninterested so Yakovlev proceed with work on his own initiative and eventually fielded the Yak 38 with the aircraft carrier Kiev. But it had limitations that made it impractical for combat. Yakovlev followed with the world's first supersonic VTOL jet, the Yak 41 which had limited deployment before it was canceled due to post cold war budget constrains.

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SUnknownProject Suntan - The Lockheed CL-400

Thu, Dec 26, 2019

The CL-400 was an above top secret, hydrogen fueled, spy plane concept devised by the legendary Kelly Johnson at Lockheed. It was an Air Force project intended to replace the CIA's vulnerable U-2 by flying higher and at supersonic speeds. The plan was dropped over concerns about the hydrogen engine and morphed into the iconic SR-71. But that was after a massive hydrogen production facility was completed which eventually was a valuable asset to the space program.

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SUnknownHypersonic Missiles vs ICBM's - Which is better?

Wed, Apr 29, 2020

Hypersonic nuclear missiles have been touted in the news media as disrupting the balance of power. While these weapons are virtually unstoppable with current technology, so are ICBMs in the large numbers that currently exist. So for now the mutual assured destruction doctrine remains intact. In addition, hypersonic technology is extremely challenging to engineer as Paul explains.

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SUnknownHow Prepared Are We for a Carrington Level Solar Storm?

Sat, Jul 18, 2020

Coronal mass ejections are capable of disabling the world's electrical grids. Since the last major storm in 1989 scientist have paid close attention and learned a great deal. In particular, all CMEs are not the same. They can have very different properties and diverse effects on earth. Likewise, electric grids in different regions are effected differently by each CME. Technologies for dealing with CMEs are being introduced and engineers are refining their tactics. For now the best strategy seems to be to let the power surges flow freely though the electrical grids to avoid buildups that cause damage in individual locations..

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SUnknownHow Long Can the B-52 Continue in Service?

Tue, Sep 29, 2020

Developed in the 1950s the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is likely to continue in service until the 2050s. Already grandchildren of the original pilots are flying it. Over it's first six decades its electronics and the ordinance it carries have changed radically. Now it's radar is due for n upgrade. And for the fourth, fifth or is it sixth time, the Air Force says it will soon announce the winners of its re-engine project.

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SUnknownNASA's Mega Hubble - The Roman Space Telescope

Sun, Nov 29, 2020

When the National Reconnaissance Office offered NASA two unused spy satellites that are larger and a near perfect fit for the infrared survey telescope NASA was planning, the choice was obvious. One scheduled for launch in 2025 to the L2 Lagrange point will be called the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. The second is uneducated but Paul suggests placing it in a Mars orbit where it can produce high resolution images of Mars and asteroid belt objects.

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SUnknownSpace Factories - Building 3D Printed SpaceCraft in Space

Mon, Mar 08, 2021

The need for larger orbital platforms is pushing engineers to start manufacturing them in orbit. But the cold and vacuum of space adds some unique challenges. Initial tests in space are already ongoing with more planned and many ideas now on the drawing board. Paul provides a rundown of progress so far and some of the more promising ideas under consideration. Robotic assembly and 3D printing will likely be keys to success.

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SUnknownSidewinder - The Weapon That Changed Air Combat

Sun, May 09, 2021

Post World War Two William Burdette McLean developed a proof of concept antiaircraft missile that married an infrared proximity fuse with a heat seeking guidance system. This project produced the Aim 9 Sidewinder missile. But the Sidewinder's subsequent success did not mean it avoided a troubled birth.

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SUnknownProximity Fuze - The 3rd Most Crucial Development of WW2

Thu, May 20, 2021

At the start of World War Two anti aircraft guns were virtually ineffective against enemy aircraft. Esitimates were that between one and twenty thousand shells were fired for each plane shot down. The problem was getting the shell to explode when it was close to the plane. A successful top secret project produced the proximity fuse which proved effect not just against aircraft but against ground targets when used in aerial bombs and artillery shells set to air burst.

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SUnknownAmerica's lost stealth helicopter - RAH 66 Comanche

Sat, May 22, 2021

The RAH 66 Comanche was the world's first and so far only stealth helicopter design. It included a long list of new and innovative design features but these proved to be its undoing as problems developed with some features while the army continued demanding more. With the end of the cold war a succession of production cuts lead to cost increases and eventual cancellation after just two prototypes were produced.

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SUnknownWhat They Really Had Planned for Apollo

Sun, Oct 17, 2021

In 1965 NASA planners envision a five phase Apollo program that would continue to capitalize on the huge investment in Apollo. Only the first two phases, the moon landings and exploration missions with the lunar rover were completed, though Skylab was based on phase three.

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SUnknownHow Pratt & Whitney Changed Aviation

Thu, Nov 17, 2022

Pratt and Whitney built nearly half the aircraft engines used by the Allies in World War Two. This is the story of how the company formed to produce air cooled radial piston aircraft engines and the performance characteristics that made their engines so popular.

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SUnknownDARPA's Little Secrets that Changed the World

Thu, Aug 29, 2024

A concise summary of DARPA's Vietnam era project Igloo White which introduced the concept of the electronic battlefield and the first aerial reconnaissance drone.

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