🛸 Europe’s 1st Martian rover will use nuclear-powered heaters, 3500-year-old Mycenaean armor found battle-worthy, therapy cows prefer healing women over men

INTERESTING ENGINEERING SHOP

NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have signed an agreement to advance the development of the latter’s first Martian rover.

The Rosalind Franklin rover, which is scheduled to launch in 2028, will be equipped with advanced technologies to search for evidence of ancient life on the Red Planet.

The ESA’s maiden rover will use a nuclear-powered device to function in the hostile Martian environment, where temperatures can drop to as low as -100 degrees Fahrenheit. For more on this development, check out today’s Must-Read.

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> AWS Cloud Engineer
> Senior Software Development Engineer

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MUST READ

🛸 Europe’s 1st rover will use nuclear-powered heaters to fight -100°F on Mars

The rover will stay warm using innovative radioisotope heater units (RHUs). These RHUs use decaying isotopes like americium-241 to generate heat and electricity for spacecraft.

This technology provides a more cost-effective and dependable heat source on Mars, particularly during landing operations, compared to solar panel-generated power.

NASA’s Perseverance rover has been functioning on a nuclear-powered system. It converts heat from plutonium-238’s natural radioactive decay into electricity, generating a steady flow. This electricity powers the rover’s computers, research instruments, and other equipment.

🛡️ Greece: Marines test 3500-year-old Mycenaean armor, find it battle-worthy

A suit of armor dating back to the later Bronze Age civilization in Greece represented by finds at Mycenae has entered the spotlight again, this time it has been deemed suitable for extendable combat.

The infamous Mycenaean “Dendra armor,” which is attributed as the oldest intact full-set of body armor in human history, is one of the most prominently known military technological achievements.

This armor was tested by volunteers from the Marines of the Hellenic Armed Forces in a study conducted by Andreas Flouris of the University of Thessaly, Greece. Initially considered ceremonial, the Dendra armor has been now tagged as suitable for combat.

🐄 Where do the guys go? Cuddling cows prefer healing women over men, claims study

A recent study has found that cows used as therapy animals exhibit a clear preference for interacting with women over men. The research suggests that the effectiveness of some therapies might initially be influenced more by the seeker’s gender than by the specific procedures used.

Additionally, the study noted that women reported feeling a stronger emotional connection to the cows.

“In many societies, particularly in the United States, men are often socialized to internalize their feelings and be less emotive,” Dr Katherine Compitus, the lead author of the study, told Interesting Engineering.

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IE QUIZ: THE RESULTS

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The answer is: The connection between 5 and 2 is closed, so number 5 will be filled first.

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