Lifeboat Foundation

Safety first. I’ve read about tech saving lives and this is a step forward along with crash detection and AFib detection and more. Our phones are legit becoming rescue and medical devices. Any experience or thoughts?

The extent of satellite support is still not evident when it comes to smartphones, but I am really looking forward to seeing how Android 14 uses this feature. It is also important to understand that all Android phones are built differently, especially when it comes to manufacturers, and while Samsung might be the biggest, with the most amount of influence, it is possible that other companies won’t introduce the feature despite the latest version of Android supporting the feature.

Whatever the case might be, Android 14 is not far away, as the update will make its debut in October alongside Pixel 8 series. You can expect the Tensor G3 to have this support. In addition to that, new flagship phones are going to start popping up, which means that we will see some compelling hardware from a variety of companies and will perhaps also get a look at which phone does support satellite SMS and other satellite-based communication features and which doesn’t.

Continue reading “Android 14 Will Bring Support For Satellite SMS Starting With Pixel And Galaxy Phones, Will Require Supported Hardware” »

Remember what it’s like to twirl a sparkler on a summer night? Hold it still and the fire crackles and sparks but twirl it around and the light blurs into a line tracing each whirl and jag you make.

A new patented software system developed at Sandia National Laboratories can find the curves of motion in streaming video and images from satellites, drones and far-range security cameras and turn them into signals to find and track moving objects as small as one pixel. The developers say this system can enhance the performance of any remote sensing application.

“Being able to track each pixel from a distance matters, and it is an ongoing and challenging problem,” said Tian Ma, a computer scientist and co-developer of the system. “For physical security surveillance systems, for example, the farther out you can detect a possible threat, the more time you have to prepare and respond. Often the biggest challenge is the simple fact that when objects are located far away from the sensors, their size naturally appears to be much smaller. Sensor sensitivity diminishes as the distance from the target increases.”

KUALA LUMPUR, July 20 (Reuters) — Malaysia has issued a license to Starlink, the satellite communications service started by Elon Musk, to provide internet services in the country, particularly in remote areas, its communications minister said on Thursday.

Minister Fahmi Fadzil said in a Facebook post that Starlink, which is operated by Musk’s SpaceX, would begin by providing its services to schools and higher education institutions.

The government was also prepared to work with satellite communications firms, including Starlink, to ensure 100 percent internet coverage in populated areas, Fahmi said.

Last night at 9:09 p.m. PT (04:09 UTC), SpaceX successfully launched 15 V2 mini Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California.

Following a last-second aborted launch attempt the previous night, SpaceX teams performed checkouts of the Falcon 9 and determined another attempt to launch the next-gen satellites was good to go. During the previous attempt, the launch was held early in the countdown due to a “perceived leak” in the second stage, then eventually, the automated abort at T-minus 5 seconds.

Liftoff! pic.twitter.com/CzetVZFGbv

Rocket Lab pulled one of its boosters from the sea after a launch on Monday (July 17), taking another step toward rocket reuse.

The offshore action was part of a mission called “Baby Come Back,” in which an Electron rocket successfully launched seven satellites to orbit from Rocket Lab’s New Zealand site.

To avert the extremely remote risk that debris poses to life, ESA is targeting the reentry at a vast expanse of ocean far away from land.

If the manoeuvres are successful, ESA expects to complete the journey in late July or early August. However, as a first-ever attempt at an assisted reentry, it’s not guaranteed to work. If the plan has to be aborted, Aeolus’ natural descent will continue.

But if the mission is accomplished, it will set a new standard for satellite reentry and space junk mitigation.

Viasat shares plunged sharply Thursday in the wake of the announcement.

The first ViaSat-3, launched last April, was expected to provide space-based internet access to customers in the western hemisphere starting this summer. Two more satellites covering Europe, Africa, Asia and the Pacific are expected to launch over the next two years.

Capable of handling up to 1 terabyte of data per second, the satellites are equipped with the largest dish antennas ever launched on a commercial spacecraft. Each satellite’s reflector is designed to deploy atop a long boom.

New military and commercial craft aim to go far higher than jumbo jets and stay there for months, offering a more flexible alternative to satellites.

IVO Ltd. believes its new ‘Quantum Drive’ defies the laws of motion, and it aims to put it to the test by sending it to orbit on a SpaceX rocket.

US company IVO Ltd., a wireless power technology firm, is set to send an all-electric propulsion system for satellites to space for the first time in October.

Continue reading “Quantum drive that draws ‘limitless power’ from Sun will fly to orbit this year” »