Tech stuff

The Ingenuity Martian Helicopter

Introduction If anyone had told me a few years ago that there would soon be a helicopter flying on Mars, I would have thought them crazy. But now, in 2021, we have such an event happening. Sure, it’s a small vehicle, but it is extremely useful, and a probable forerunner of things to come. Makes…

Flying Humans

Those of you who have read the first two books in the Milijun series will be familiar with the sentient flying robots called RNasia. This month I thought we’d put the boot on the other foot, so to speak, and check out Flying Humans. Whilst Superman is the fictional extreme of this mode of…

The Latest and Strangest in Robotics

Time this month to have a look at what’s happening in the field of robotics. Just a list to peruse at your own leisure and let your mind run riot. Walking Cars This looks like a great rescue vehicle in certain circumstances. Hyundai says its Elevate concept marks the first “Ultimate Mobility Vehicle,” a neat…

Perseverance on Mars

Introduction It seems that every time we land on Mars the search for water and life gets stronger. The well-named Perseverance spacecraft is no exception. The vehicle is a car-sized rover designed to explore the crater Jezero as part of NASA’s Mars 2020 mission. It was made by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and launched on…