Vision

The Vision

My fellow prodigies,

You may not know how immense pleasure it gives me to start this blog for all of our kind who are looking to meet under one roof in order to discuss science and technology. Well, you can ask and answer queries and questions over here. And I am here to update you about the latest advancements in this field.
Adios,
Editor.

Sunday, 30 December 2012

Wait for the Light.

Dear Prodigies,
                      We are working on a special New Year article which we seem will interest you a lot. So kindly wait till 4th January,2013 and at 17:30 hrs we are going to publish it. 

Adios,
Editor.

Tuesday, 25 December 2012

Autonomy At Its Best.

My Dear Prodigies,
                      Sorry for the delay in the Christmas Special Post, it happened due to a technical difficulty.
But now it is Here. Autonomy at its Best.

The Airplane has established communication with the tower. It is in constant contact with the Tower while establishing distance, speed and speed of the aircraft carrier. The airplane is now nearing the aircraft carrier and after sometime landed on it. It didn't seem peculiar, did it?
Well, but there it is . The Airplane has NO pilot in it. Didn't it strike you? Yeah, Its the X47B. The latest autonomous drone craft developed by Northrop Grumman Corp. for the United States Military. Northrop Grumman said that it will be the predecessor to The X45 Pegasus, which was company-funded.

Yes, the advancement in Aircraft Technology is here. The X47B has been funded by DARPA's (Defense Advanced Research Project Agency) UCAS (Unmanned Combat Air System) Program. It performed its first flight on Edwards Air Force Base on February 4,2011. It performed its first Carrier Evaluation Test on board the USS Harry S. Truman in February,2012. The Plane has subsonic capabilities.
Some of its features are:-
  • Aircraft Crew- None (The Aircraft is Semi-Autonomous)
  • Length- 38.14 feet
  • Empty Weight-6,349 kg(14,000 lbs)
  • Aircraft Speed- Subsonic
  • Cruise Speed- 0.45 Mach
  • Range- 2,100 NM (3,890 kms)
  • Weapons Bay- 2 compartments
Yeah, The X47B also has armament capabilities. However, analysts have said that it will be used for just surveillance for some time. When the prototype will be given the go ahead, it will be autonomous and will carry artificial intelligence to analyze the situation and will have the power to blow up the Terrorists!
But for the time being, it will take-off and land from Aircraft Carriers. 

During its prototype testing, Engineers built its software interface and commands from scratch for the Controllers to command. A handheld device nicknamed the "Pickle" allows its operator to allow/deny final landing clearance to the Autonomous Aircraft to the aircraft carrier. For its tests, A very reliable and experienced pilot sat in the Plane's cabin but he never once touched its stick. He sat just for a precautionary measure. Once the Plane is on-board the Aircraft Carrier, it is no longer autonomous, a Technician veers the aircraft to its resting spot through a remote device developed by Northrop Grumman.
The X47B arrives on USS Harry S. Truman.

Currently, Northrop Grumman has built and tested two X47Bs and further plans to increase it by 2014. Northrop Grumman has said that it is working on a technology, and by 2014, it will allow the Aircraft to refuel in the air autonomously. The project was initially funded by the Navy for $618 million in 2007, but has since then grown to more than $800 million.
But the real question still lies within, that will air crafts be pilot less and autonomous in the coming future.

I would like to close with this provocative thought :
"Remember,your weapon was developed by the lowest bidder."- Murphy's Laws of Combat.
Adios,
Editor.

Saturday, 22 December 2012

Mornin' Scientists

Fellow Prodigies,
                  I was just browsing through Popular Science magazine a few months ago, when an article struck my view. It was of the increasing importance of blogs in helping people complete their projects and implement them into reality. So I thought of starting Science Cauldron, A place where all of the aspiring people can search for innovative ideas and projects for themselves and can send their projects to Us so that we can publish it. Well, you must have thought that it must have been that same lame and boring blog where the editor boggles up your mind with his "envisaging" ideas and "trends". But hey Guys! I want to clearly tell you that this is not It! It is where you can send me your ideas and ask questions and organize polls and discuss your ideas with other fellow Prodigies. So, I conclude that now please access this blog regularly to be the Iconoclast and Help Change The World.

The Blog will start officially from 25th December, 2012 at 1230 hours (IST).
So people kindly accept my heartfelt Welcome to this Blog.

Adios,
Editor.