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UNU-MERIT / Innovation & Technology news


Weekly news from the Maastricht Economic and social Research and training centre on Innovation and Technology

Europe's 10bn−euro space vision
28 11 2008 Memberstates of the European space agency (ESA) have agreed a EUR 10bnbudget at their meeting in The Hague. The figure, which covers the nextthree to five years, represents a substantial increase in funding. The new budget will allow ESA to grow its basic science programme, at3.5% a year, whilst at the same time starting a number of newprogrammes. Europe's Ariane 5 rocket, which has come to dominate thecommercial launcher market, will now be upgraded to allow it to carryheavier payloads than its current nine−tonne limit. Ministers agreed toput almost EUR 1.4bn into its ongoing activities at the InternationalSpace Station. The second phase was approved of the world's most ambitiousenvironmental monitoring project, known as GMES. This will take the'pulse' of the planet and requires a series new Earth observationsatellites to be launched. A project to build the next generation ofmeteorological satellites was also funded. In addition, Europe will nowtake the first step in a plan that could eventually lead to a mannedspaceship based on its highly successful unmanned space−stationcargo−vessel, known as the ATV.

Using invisibility to increase visibility
28 11 2008 Research into the development of invisibility devices has spurred twophysicists' thought on the behaviour of light to overcome the seeminglyintractable problem of optical singularities which could soon lead tothe manufacturing of a perfect cat's eye. Thomas Tyc and Ulf Leonhardtshow that it is possible to reflect light from all directions. Cat's eyes and glow−in−the−dark clothing are effective because they sendlight back from where they came to either provide direction to a driveron the road or alert drivers of a cyclist's presence but although thisworks well for light from some angles, it does not work well for all. Physicists measure the effect that materials have on light using therefractive index, with 1 as the speed of light unobstructed in air. Whathappens however when the material forces light down to zero or shoots itup to infinity on the refractive index? These are called opticalsingularities and have long been thought impossible to produce but it iswhat physicists need to understand to create a material that can reflectlight from all directions and thereby create the perfect cat's eye. Tyc and Leonhardt use ideas from one of the latest trends of opticscalled transformation optics to transmute the infinity mark on therefractive index into something more practical. Put simply, thescientists have developed a recipe of materials to create opticalillusions – some can be used for invisibility devices, others to makethings perfectly visible.

Invention: Month−long aircraft flights
28 11 2008 Aerospace giant Boeing wants to build uncrewed planes that can stayaloft for as long as a month, and a new patent application says poweringthem with hydrogen is the way to do it. The aircraft is essentially a liquid−hydrogen fuel tank with a payloadbay and very long wings. This design differs from most other uncrewedaerial vehicles (UAVs), which use their wings as fuel stores, thusrestricting their aerodynamic design. Because the wings don't have toserve double duty, they can be made longer, thinner and more efficient.The craft's fuel tank would store liquid hydrogen in vacuum flasks,thawing it out as needed to fuel propeller engines. Boeing claims such a design could fly for 10 days or more at 18,000metres and for as long as 30 days at lower altitudes, all while carryingpayloads of up to 450 kilograms. Those capabilities should appeal tomore than just the military. Such craft could make it easier to grabhigh−resolution aerial photos for online mapping services or wildlifemonitoring, and could even provide wireless connectivity in remoteareas.

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