Category Archives: Engineering

Marine Engineering Advanced Warships

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Marine Engineering

Image source: spendergast.blogspot.com

The USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) is Marine Engineering at its best. It houses more than 4 500 crew members and weighs in at 90 000 tons. With a $13 billion price tag, it’s the most expensive and most advanced warship ever built. It certainly sets the bar extremely high.

Christened in November 2013 and scheduled to be commissioned this year, these super-carriers are expected to be in service until 2065. They are also set to replace some of the Navy’s existing Nimitz-class carriers.

Both classes have a similar-looking hull but the Ford class is miles ahead with new technical and technological innovations. Designed to improve operating efficiency and reduce operating costs, the USS Gerald R. Ford also requires fewer crew; about 600 to be more specific. It’s estimated to save $4-5 billion on operational expenditure making it extremely cost effective in comparison. Continue reading →

Hypersonic Travel Closer Than Ever

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Hypersonic travel

Image Source: The University of Manchester

Hypersonic travel is described as flight through the atmosphere below 90 km at a speed above Mach 5 (5 times the speed of sound). That means traveling from London to New York could only take about 2 hours. The concept has been around for a long time but applying the theory to practice is a different story.

It’s not an impossible task but the problem has always been how to handle the extreme heat at high speeds. Now, thanks to advanced aerospace engineering, a special ceramic has been developed making hypersonic air travel a real possibility. Continue reading →

Kratos Drones Leading the Pack

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Kratos drones

Image credit: Kratos Defense

The future of aerial combat is no longer a figment of our imagination but more a reality. Global powerhouses are turning to drone technology even more to further strengthen their military prowess. Kratos drones are just one of many companies doing some groundbreaking work.

Kratos drones were featured at the recent Paris Air Show offering an insight into the future of unmanned aerial combat. With the associated price tag of a manned fighter jet reaching $100 million, UAV’s could be the low-cost option going forward. Continue reading →

Airbus Racer Set for Take off

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Airbus Racer

Img source: Aviation Week

The new Rotorcraft Airbus Racer from CleanSky 2 initiative is a great example of how far we’ve come but did you know that the concept of vertical flight has been around for centuries? In fact, it was first recorded in China, 400 B.C based merely on a children’s toy made from bamboo. This has certainly led to bigger and better things.

What is the CleanSky 2 Initiative? In a nutshell, it’s the largest European research program aimed at the development of innovative, cutting edge technologies to reduce environmental impact from aviation.  Continue reading →

Boeing Echo Voyager takes the plunge

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Echo Voyager

Image source: boeing.com

From Tesla’s self-driving cars to an autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle called the Echo Voyager. This is where we are at the moment. Technology, human ingenuity and curiosity are what make these projects a reality.

Early adaptations of what lies beneath the big blue have been around for decades. Our interest and curiosity about ocean life and underwater technology were inspired by movies like 20 000 Leagues under the sea, James Bond’s submarine car to more recent deep sea documentaries.

It is a fact that we’ve only discovered about 5% of the world’s oceans. So why are we so focused on space travel if we haven’t even explored most our own planet? Maybe Boeing has the answer with Continue reading →

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