http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Condensation trails that airplanes produce mean not only a white-streaked sky on some days, but an increase in the amount of high-level clouds and, by extension, warming temperatures, according to a Penn State researcher. http://phys.org/news280745967.html Space & Earth Fri, 22 Feb 2013 08:59:36 EST news280745967 (Phys.org)—Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed new techniques for stretching carbon nanotubes (CNT) and using them to create carbon composites that can be used as stronger, lighter materials in everything from airplanes to bicycles. http://phys.org/news269519766.html Nanotechnology Mon, 15 Oct 2012 11:36:12 EST news269519766 Hitachi, in collaboration with The Nippon Signal and the University of Yamanashi, have successfully prototyped a boarding gate with built-in explosives detection equipment as part of efforts to increase safety in public facilities such as airports. The prototype boarding gate efficiently collects minute particles which have affixed themselves to IC cards or portable devices used as boarding passes, and can detect within 1-2 seconds the presence of explosive compounds using internalized equipment. With this method, it is possible to inspect 1,200 passengers per hour. The technology is expected to contribute to the prevention and containment of carry-on explosives as it inspects immediately prior to boarding without disrupting the flow of passengers, and provides increased security without affecting convenience. http://phys.org/news268469693.html Technology Wed, 03 Oct 2012 07:55:06 EST news268469693 Until now most adhesives have been manufactured from petroleum-based materials. However, they can also be obtained from renewable raw materials -- for example from proteins, natural rubber, starch, or cellulose. Fraunhofer researchers are working on new formulas for industrial applications. http://phys.org/news260452794.html Chemistry Mon, 02 Jul 2012 13:00:00 EST news260452794 Picture walking up to the Dillard's counter, two shirts in one hand, smartphone in the other. There's no need to reach for your wallet, because all of the credit card information has been stored in your phone. One tap of the phone against a small mobile reader next to the cash register, and you're out the door. http://phys.org/news259579012.html Technology Fri, 22 Jun 2012 10:30:01 EST news259579012 (Phys.org) -- Some might say that University of Washington oceanographers did well to only lose one of 21 underwater probes, given that they were deployed near the notorious Bermuda Triangle, where boats and airplanes have been known to disappear without a trace. http://phys.org/news259400082.html Space & Earth Wed, 20 Jun 2012 08:34:51 EST news259400082 Claus Mortensen is a private Kenyan rancher with a passion -- endangered rhinos -- and now a mission: to save his herd from slaughter by ruthless poachers who sell their horns to Asia, where they are prized as a miracle drug. http://phys.org/news255929976.html Biology Fri, 11 May 2012 04:40:01 EST news255929976 The European Union will maintain its carbon tax imposed on airlines operating in its airspace, the Danish climate minister said, despite retaliatory trade measures by China. http://phys.org/news250518668.html Space & Earth Fri, 09 Mar 2012 12:31:27 EST news250518668 The largest solar storm in five years was due to arrive on Earth early Thursday, promising to shake the globe's magnetic field while expanding the Northern Lights. http://phys.org/news250348184.html Space & Earth Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:09:53 EST news250348184 It doesn't happen often, but structures like bridges, airplanes and buildings do fail, sometimes catastrophically. What are the odds, and how can it be prevented? Cornell physicists are using computer modeling to find out. http://phys.org/news249631933.html Physics Tue, 28 Feb 2012 06:12:31 EST news249631933 Volcanic ash can severely damage airplanes, and eruptions such as the 2010 Eyjafjallajokull eruption may result in major disruption to air travel. Improved forecasting of ash cloud locations and concentrations could benefit the aviation industry and reduce delays, but forecasting is challenging because eruptions and atmospheric transport of volcanic ash are complex processes. http://phys.org/news248448421.html Space & Earth Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:27:17 EST news248448421 A potent solar flare has unleashed the biggest radiation storm since 2005 and could disrupt some satellite communications in the polar regions, US space weather monitors said Monday. http://phys.org/news246548027.html Space & Earth Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:34:06 EST news246548027 Shell is deploying ships and mobilising planes on Thursday to clean up an oil spill at a major field off Nigeria, the company says, with some 40,000 barrels estimated to have leaked into the sea. http://phys.org/news243763703.html Space & Earth Thu, 22 Dec 2011 08:08:36 EST news243763703 Wolfram Alpha, the online search service launched two years ago, now lets inquiring minds in the United States find out what flights happen to be overhead at any given moment. http://phys.org/news240856910.html Technology Fri, 18 Nov 2011 16:42:08 EST news240856910 (PhysOrg.com) -- In what to some might seem almost ludicrous, (think Dr. Stranglove,) a British team of geo-engineers are set to launch a giant balloon a half mile into the sky pulling with it a water hose that will then spray water pumped from the ground, into the air. But this is only the beginning; the idea is to see if such a system is feasible. The real goal is to see if it might be possible to send such a giant balloon much higher, say twice as high as airplanes fly, so as to release aerosols into the atmosphere to mimic the impact volcanoes have when they erupt. That is to cause a planetary cooling effect, to offset the warming effect of all the carbon emissions still being pumped full time into air. And that’s not all, the project dubbed Stratospheric Particle Injection for Climate Engineering (SPICE), is being backed by the British government, via the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. http://phys.org/news234168754.html Space & Earth Fri, 02 Sep 2011 07:53:01 EST news234168754 (PhysOrg.com) -- Radiation risks to airplanes and spacecraft are likely to increase when the Sun moves from its present grand solar maximum to lower levels of activity, says research from the University of Reading. http://phys.org/news232704257.html Space & Earth Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:40:03 EST news232704257 Airplanes undergo significant stresses during take-off and landing, and parts often become detached, putting subsequent runway users at risk. Until now, airport staff have had to monitor runways without technical assistance – an activity that is prone to errors. A new radar system is set to increase safety at airports. http://phys.org/news231394117.html Technology Mon, 01 Aug 2011 05:20:01 EST news231394117 (PhysOrg.com) -- Since the 1970s, passenger travel by vehicles and airplanes has grown rapidly in industrialized countries, and the International Energy Agency has predicted steady, though slower, travel growth until 2030 and beyond. However, a new study of eight industrialized countries has shown that passenger travel seems to have peaked in the early 2000s, just before the recent rise in fuel prices. The results suggest that demand for travel has reached a saturation point, which could mean that future projections of carbon dioxide emissions and fuel demand could be lower than previously thought. http://phys.org/news213292110.html Other Sciences Mon, 03 Jan 2011 15:48:46 EST news213292110 For airline passengers everywhere, good news. Scientists have successfully tested a liquid explosive detection system that may eventually keep dangerous substances off airplanes. This comes barely two years after a plot to make bombs out of liquids aboard planes taking off from London was foiled. http://phys.org/news153054607.html Technology Thu, 05 Feb 2009 11:10:44 EST news153054607