🚀 SpaceX catches rocket mid-air, 5-kW laser takes down heavy drones, is dark matter a myth?

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SpaceX launched its massive Super Heavy-Starship rocket on Sunday. Giant “mechazilla” mechanical arms successfully caught the descending first stage while the upper stage continued its journey into space.

Using pincer-like arms known as “chopsticks,” the spectacular capture marked a major milestone in SpaceX’s push to develop fully reusable and quickly re-launchable rockets, a feat unmatched by earlier space programs that relied on disposable rockets. Dive deeper into this Must-Read.

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🚀 SpaceX uses giant arms to catch Starship rocket mid-air in groundbreaking test

The 397-foot-tall rocket launched from SpaceX’s Boca Chica facility on the Texas Gulf Coast at 8:25 a.m. EDT, delivering a stunning sunrise spectacle as its 33 methane-powered Raptor engines roared to life, sending a torrent of flaming exhaust.

Three minutes and 40 seconds after liftoff, the Super Heavy booster separated, flipped, and reignited 13 Raptors to head back toward the Texas coast, while the Starship upper stage continued its ascent into space powered by six Raptor engines.

The remarkable capture, a pivotal step in SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s pursuit of “rapid reusability,” occurred while the Starship upper stage was still en route to space and preparing for splashdown in the Indian Ocean, simulating future landings on Earth, the moon, or Mars. Splashdown was anticipated an hour and five minutes after liftoff.

🚁 Boeing’s 5-kilowatt laser weapon takes down heavy drones in landmark CLWS test

Boeing’s laser system took down bigger Group 3 drones in a joint US-Saudi exercise, proving it can stop advanced threats.

The Compact Laser Weapon System (CLWS) used a 5-kilowatt laser to engage and defeat Group 3 drones, which are larger and can carry heavier equipment, during a test at the Red Sands Experimentation Center in Saudi Arabia.

Two Boeing engineers quickly integrated the system with the Army’s Forward Area Air Defense (FAAD) Command and Control (C2) network, using radar cues to run demonstrations with representatives from US Army DEVCOM and U.S. Army Central Command.

⚛️ Gravity can exist without mass and dark matter could be myth, says study

According to the theory of general relativity, a galaxy must have a certain amount of mass to be held together by gravity. However, scientists don’t see enough visible mass in many galaxies in the universe, yet gravity keeps such galaxies intact. How’s this even possible?

This is where the concept of dark matter comes into play. Scientists believe that galaxies have invisible mass in the form of matter that doesn’t interact with light. The gravity holding these galaxies exists because of this invisible mass.

For decades, this explanation has supported the existence of the hypothetical dark matter. However, a new study claims that gravity can exist even without mass, potentially eliminating the need for dark matter altogether.

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