ReportWire

Tag: engineer

  • NASA’s Artemis II moon launch delayed after technical issues during rehearsal

    [ad_1]

    NASA’s Artemis II moon launch delayed after technical issues during rehearsal

    MINUTES. SANIKA ALL RIGHT. SLOWLY BUT SURELY. THAWING OUT HERE. CAM. WELL, LET’S TALK ABOUT A MAJOR SETBACK FOR NASA IN THE QUEST TO GO BACK TO THE MOON. THESE ARE LIVE PICTURES FROM PAT 39, WHERE THE ARTEMIS TWO MISSION WILL REMAIN GROUNDED FOR AT LEAST ANOTHER MONTH. WE BROKE THE NEWS ON SUNRISE AFTER NASA CHIEF JARED ISAACMAN MADE THE ANNOUNCEMENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA OVERNIGHT. AS WE REPORTED YESTERDAY, CREWS WERE WORKING THROUGH A NUMBER OF ISSUES DURING DRESS REHEARSAL, BUT WE’LL NOW NEED MORE TIME TO FIX THE ROCKET IN ORDER TO LAUNCH WESH TWO. MEGHAN MORIARTY IS LIVE AT KSC, WHERE NASA IS EXPECTED TO GIVE US AN UPDATE IN LESS THAN AN HOUR NOW. MEGHAN, ALL EYES ON THIS. AT 1:00, NASA MISSION SPECIALISTS ARE EXPECTED TO BREAK DOWN WHAT HAPPENED DURING WET DRESS REHEARSAL. THE CHALLENGES THAT THEY HAD THERE, AS WELL AS WHAT’S NEXT FOR ARTEMIS TWO. NOW THAT WET DRESS REHEARSAL, WE HAVE BEEN EXPLAINING IT TO YOU FOR DAYS, BUT JUST A REMINDER, IT’S THAT CRITICAL TEST THAT IS A SIMULATED LAUNCH AND PRACTICE COUNTDOWN AHEAD OF THE REAL DEAL. AND IT’S DESIGNED TO IDENTIFY PROBLEMS GIVING NASA A CHANCE TO FIX THINGS BEFORE THE LAUNCH, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE’RE DOING HERE. NASA SAYS THEY PUSHED THROUGH SEVERAL CHALLENGES DURING THE TWO DAY TEST THAT STARTED MONDAY AND WENT INTO THIS MORNING, ADDING THAT THEY MET MANY OF THE PLANNED OBJECTIVES. BUT TEAMS DID ACTUALLY DETECT THAT HYDROGEN LEAK PRETTY EARLY INTO FUELING. THEY DID PUSH THROUGH, BUT ULTIMATELY DETERMINED THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE TOO BIG OF A RISK TO CONTINUE. NOW, HYDROGEN LEAKS, THOUGH THEY’RE NOT UNCOMMON. WELL, IT SHOWS THEY’RE IN A VERY PRECARIOUS SITUATION. HYDROGEN IS INSIDIOUS. IT’S THE SMALLEST MOLECULE. IT CAN EASILY LEAK. THIS CAUSED MANY ISSUES DURING THE ARTEMIS ONE COUNTDOWN. ARTEMIS ONE WAS THAT UNCREWED TEST FLIGHT IN 2022, AND IT ALSO SUFFERED SUFFERED HYDROGEN LEAKS DURING TESTING, WHICH DELAYED ITS LAUNCH DATE. NOW, WHILE TEAMS DETECTED THAT LEAK EARLY ENOUGH, THEY ALWAYS EXPECT A SMALL AMOUNT OF HYDROGEN THAT WILL BE RELEASED DURING THIS PROCESS, ESCAPING SOME OF THOSE SEALS. BECAUSE IT’S SUCH A SMALL MOLECULE. HOWEVER, AS THEY WENT THROUGH THAT TESTING, THEY REALIZED THAT IT WOULD EXCEED NASA’S SAFETY LIMIT. SO NOW THEY’RE TARGETING A LAUNCH IN MARCH. AGAIN, THAT NEWS CONFERENCE IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN AT 1:00. WE’LL NOT ONLY BE STREAMING IT ON WESH.COM, BUT WE WILL BRING YOU THE UPDATES STARTING ON WESH 2 NEW

    NASA’s Artemis II moon launch delayed after technical issues during rehearsal

    Updated: 2:30 PM EST Feb 3, 2026

    Editorial Standards ⓘ

    NASA’s Artemis II mission has been postponed to March following technical issues identified during a wet dress rehearsal. The mission was originally scheduled for launch this Sunday, Feb. 8. During the rehearsal on Monday, engineers spent several hours troubleshooting a liquid hydrogen leak, according to NASA.The head of NASA, Jared Isaacman, announced on X around 2 a.m. that hydrogen leaks had been discovered during fueling of the tank. Beyond the liquid hydrogen leak, teams encountered several additional issues, including:A recently replaced valve for the Orion crew module hatch pressurization system required retorquing.Closeout operations took longer than planned.Cold weather affected several cameras and other equipment.Intermittent audio communication dropouts occurred across ground teams.A research chemist monitoring the process at the space center said NASA will need to figure out what was going wrong. NASA explained that the launch was mainly delayed to allow teams to review data and conduct a second wet dress rehearsal. While the new launch window is set for March, there is no specific launch date yet.NASA held a news conference Tuesday at 1 p.m. to discuss the issues and the upcoming launch further.Watch the full conference below:

    NASA’s Artemis II mission has been postponed to March following technical issues identified during a wet dress rehearsal.

    The mission was originally scheduled for launch this Sunday, Feb. 8.

    During the rehearsal on Monday, engineers spent several hours troubleshooting a liquid hydrogen leak, according to NASA.

    The head of NASA, Jared Isaacman, announced on X around 2 a.m. that hydrogen leaks had been discovered during fueling of the tank.

    Beyond the liquid hydrogen leak, teams encountered several additional issues, including:

    • A recently replaced valve for the Orion crew module hatch pressurization system required retorquing.
    • Closeout operations took longer than planned.
    • Cold weather affected several cameras and other equipment.
    • Intermittent audio communication dropouts occurred across ground teams.

    A research chemist monitoring the process at the space center said NASA will need to figure out what was going wrong.

    NASA explained that the launch was mainly delayed to allow teams to review data and conduct a second wet dress rehearsal.

    While the new launch window is set for March, there is no specific launch date yet.

    NASA held a news conference Tuesday at 1 p.m. to discuss the issues and the upcoming launch further.

    Watch the full conference below:

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • Real big fish: Rose Parade float sets Guinness World Record

    [ad_1]

    In the pantheon of parade float achievement, world-record titles are coveted.

    The longest parade float, a paper dragon in Gutian, China, spanned a half-mile in 2012. The heaviest, dubbed the “Gnarly Crankin’ K9 Wave Maker,” was an actual swimming pool on wheels that weighed in at nearly 150,000 pounds.

    Faced with some stiff competition, one savvy float-building team at this year’s Rose Parade still managed to reel in a Guinness World Record title by setting its sights on something decidedly fishier.

    On New Year’s Day, a towering 34-foot-tall mechanical seahorse — the centerpiece of the UPS Store float — came rolling down Colorado Boulevard, hooking the “Director Award” for design and the title for the tallest float before Guinness adjudicators also determined it to be the world’s largest animatronic fish.

    “As the structure started to take shape, it became clear just how tall and ambitious it was,” said Katie McCormick, a spokesperson for floatbuilders Artistic Entertainment Services.

    The whole thing was sort of a happy accident, she said. Over the summer, representatives for the UPS Store reached out to Guinness World Records after realizing it could qualify for a title.

    Designed by Charles T. Meier and engineered by project manager Kyle Amerine, the massive seahorse nodded as it coached over a dozen fin-flapping baby sea creatures as they performed a synchronized swimming routine. Measuring roughly 55 feet long and 18 feet wide, the float featured a dense seascape of corals, fish and oversize sea stars, some spanning 4 feet in diameter.

    “It’s just huge and impressive when you look at it on the parade route,” McCormick said.

    The UPS Store float won the “Director Award” for design, the title for the tallest float, and was determined to have been the world’s largest animatronic fish.

    (Jason Armond/Los Angeles Times)

    Like most Rose Parade floats, the platform was brought to life by hundreds of volunteers — many skipping sleep on New Year’s Eve — who embellished it with corn husks, lentils, sesame seeds, orange slices and red carnations.

    Rain on parade morning muddied things for engineers and decorators. Like in 2006, when stormy weather last hit the Rose Parade, some floats failed mid-route, McCormick said.

    “We’re really hoping it doesn’t rain for another 20 years, let me put it that way,” she said.

    But despite its water-sensitive glues and exposed hydraulics, the seahorse completed its route intact. Engineers took special care to protect the animatronic systems on a structure that rose nearly twice as high as many traditional floats.

    Much of the float will be dismantled and reused as crews shift their focus to next parade season.

    For McCormick, the Guinness title marked a rare milestone.

    “In my 18 years, this is the first world record we’ve been part of,” she said. “It’s a testament to the mechanics and engineering that go into bringing a float like this down Colorado Boulevard.”

    [ad_2]

    Gavin J. Quinton

    Source link

  • Paraplegic Engineer Becomes the First Wheelchair User to Blast Into Space

    [ad_1]

    A paraplegic engineer from Germany blasted off on a dream-come-true rocket ride with five other passengers Saturday, leaving her wheelchair behind to float in space while beholding Earth from on high.

    Severely injured in a mountain bike accident seven years ago, Michaela Benthaus became the first wheelchair user in space, launching from West Texas with Jeff Bezos’ company Blue Origin. She was accompanied by a retired SpaceX executive also born in Germany, Hans Koenigsmann, who helped organize and, along with Blue Origin, sponsored her trip. Their ticket prices were not divulged.

    An ecstatic Benthaus said she laughed all the way up — the capsule soared more than 65 miles — and tried to turn upside down once in space.

    “It was the coolest experience,” she said shortly after landing.

    The 10-minute space-skimming flight required only minor adjustments to accommodate Benthaus, according to the company. That’s because the autonomous New Shepard capsule was designed with accessibility in mind, “making it more accessible to a wider range of people than traditional spaceflight,” said Blue Origin’s Jake Mills, an engineer who trained the crew and assisted them on launch day.

    Among Blue Origin’s previous space tourists: those with limited mobility and impaired sight or hearing, and a pair of 90-year-olds.

    For Benthaus, Blue Origin added a patient transfer board so she could scoot between the capsule’s hatch and her seat. The recovery team also unrolled a carpet on the desert floor following touchdown, providing immediate access to her wheelchair, which she left behind at liftoff. She practiced in advance, with Koenigsmann taking part with the design and testing. An elevator was already in place at the launch pad to ascend the seven stories to the capsule perched atop the rocket.

    Benthaus, 33, part of the European Space Agency’s graduate trainee program in the Netherlands, experienced snippets of weightlessness during a parabolic airplane flight out of Houston in 2022. Less than two years later, she took part in a two-week simulated space mission in Poland.

    “I never really thought that going on a spaceflight would be a real option for me because even as like a super healthy person, it’s like so competitive, right?” she told The Associated Press ahead of the flight.

    Her accident dashed whatever hope she had. “There is like no history of people with disabilities flying to space,” she said.

    When Koenigsmann approached her last year about the possibility of flying on Blue Origin and experiencing more than three minutes of weightlessness on a space hop, Benthaus thought there might be a misunderstanding. But there wasn’t, and she immediately signed on.

    It’s a private mission for Benthaus with no involvement by ESA, which this year cleared reserve astronaut John McFall, an amputee, for a future flight to the International Space Station. The former British Paralympian lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident when he was a teenager.

    An injured spinal cord means Benthaus can’t walk at all, unlike McFall who uses a prosthetic leg and could evacuate a space capsule in an emergency at touchdown by himself. Koenigsmann was designated before flight as her emergency helper; he and Mills lifted her out of the capsule and down the short flight of steps at flight’s end.

    “You should never give up on your dreams, right?” Benthaus urged following touchdown.

    Benthaus was adamant about doing as much as she could by herself. Her goal is to make not only space accessible to the disabled, but to improve accessibility on Earth too.

    While getting lots of positive feedback within “my space bubble,” she said outsiders aren’t always as inclusive.

    “I really hope it’s opening up for people like me, like I hope I’m only the start,” she said.

    Besides Koenigsmann, Benthaus shared the ride with business executives and investors, and a computer scientist. They raised Blue Origin’s list of space travelers to 86.

    Bezos, the billionaire founder of Amazon, created Blue Origin in 2000 and launched on its first passenger spaceflight in 2021. The company has since delivered spacecraft to orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida, using the bigger and more powerful New Glenn rocket, and is working to send landers to the moon.

    Copyright 2025. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

    [ad_2]

    Associated Press

    Source link

  • 2025 SHPE National Convention Brings 12,000 Attendees to Philadelphia for a STEM Career Fair, University Village, Leadership Workshops & More

    [ad_1]

    One of the country’s largest STEM gatherings, the four-day convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center connects top talent with industry leaders, academics, and career opportunities.


    PHILADELPHIA, September 12, 2025 (Newswire.com)
    –
    SHPE: Leading Hispanics in STEM, the nation’s largest organization for Hispanics in science, technology, engineering, and math, will host its 2025 National Convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center from October 29 to November 1. The four-day event will feature the highly anticipated Career Fair and introduce new offerings, including University Village and the LeaderSHPE Wardrobe.

    The event will host the top talent in STEM. Some 12,000 students, professionals, industry leaders, and academics are expected to attend, making it one of the country’s largest STEM gatherings. Thousands of jobs will be offered at the Career Fair, October 31-November 1, with recruiting by more than 150 leading companies, including Bank of America, Chevron, Wells Fargo, 3M, Accenture, Amazon, Apple, Boston Scientific, Caterpillar, Delta, Ford, Intel, Microsoft, Texas Instruments, and Honda.

    “With about 11 million STEM jobs projected to be available by 2031, there is a great opportunity for attendees to meet someone in Philadelphia who will elevate their careers,” said Suzanna Valdez Wolfe, CEO of SHPE. “National and international corporations return year after year because they get direct access to top talent in one place.”

    Convention Highlights

    • Career Fair: More than 150 companies recruiting, interviewing, and hiring onsite for internships and jobs.

    • Educational Sessions: Specialized tracks include SHPEtinas (for women), Inclusion, SHPETech, Community College, Grad School, and Professionals.

    • Día de Ciencias (Oct. 29): At Esperanza Academy Charter School, SHPE brings science to life for 8th graders, alongside Equipando Padres, a bilingual event helping parents support children pursuing higher education.

    • LeaderSHPE Wardrobe – Engineer Your Look (NEW): With support from Bank of America and Amazon, SHPE will provide attendees with free business and cocktail attire.

    • University Village (NEW): A dedicated space for graduate students featuring a Grad School Expo with 50+ schools, Graduate Track sessions, STEM Research Competition, and 3-Minute Thesis Competition.

    In addition to connecting members with many of the top recruiters and leaders in STEM, the SHPE Convention is one of the most powerful tools for preparing Hispanic students and professionals to become leaders in their field. The four-day event provides attendees with professional and leadership development opportunities through workshops, networking events, competitions, award ceremonies, and more.

    The SHPE Convention will also include the presentation of the prestigious STAR (SHPE Technical Achievement and Recognition) Awards, spotlighting key individuals, corporations, government agencies, and academic institutions that have contributed significantly to support the mission of SHPE.

    Early bird registration runs through September 15, with regular registration until October 14 and late registration through November 1.

    Contact Information

    Helena Poleo
    Communications and Media Specialist
    hpoleo@gmail.com
    (954) 559-3079

    Source: SHPE: Leading Hispanics in STEM

    [ad_2]

    Source link

  • The long road ahead to fix the fire-damaged 10 Freeway

    The long road ahead to fix the fire-damaged 10 Freeway

    [ad_1]

    With traffic again flowing above, construction crews in hard hats and high-visibility vests are busy surveying the scene: the belly of the 10 Freeway in downtown L.A.

    Here, where earlier this month a massive fire scorched the roadway, large timber and steel structures have been erected to take the weight off seven rows of damaged concrete columns.

    But what is actually going on under the freeway?

    For all the accolades officials gave for reopening the 10 in days rather than weeks, state leaders have publicly said little about the precise damage caused by the fire, exactly how Caltrans plans to make fixes and how much the repairs will cost.

    Though the shored-up freeway is safe for drivers again, repairs for the damaged overpass will take months, officials said. None of the damaged columns that hold up the overpass east of Alameda Street have been repaired yet, according to Caltrans spokesperson Michael Comeaux.

    “Columns damaged by the fire will need to be repaired. The repair strategy may vary between individual columns depending on the extent of damage. The repairs will include the removal of any damaged concrete, patching of the damage, and wrapping the columns with steel casings,” Comeaux said in an email.

    Emergency crews raced to clear debris and hazardous materials after the Nov. 11 fire, which arson investigators believe was started intentionally on Caltrans property leased to a company that was subleasing it to a handful of small businesses. There, piles of wooden pallets were stored alongside combustible liquids, which was in violation of state regulations.

    In the following days, construction crews erected the shoring structures and road crews repaired damaged electrical systems, lane striping and signs on the freeway, and some damage to the freeway deck. Currently, engineers are developing a repair plan for the overpass, Comeaux said.

    But Caltrans has declined requests for an interview about the work involved to repair the stretch of freeway, which carries roughly 300,000 daily commuters.

    An engineer with Caltrans who was not authorized to speak publicly said forty-five columns show clear evidence of spalling, the technical term for the cracking and disintegration of concrete when it is exposed to extremely high temperatures. The heat evaporates water molecules inside the concrete, which makes the material weak and brittle.

    Construction crews will have to remove the damaged concrete from each column. In many cases, the engineer said, that damage extends to the reinforcing metal known as rebar that is embedded inside the concrete and spirals around vertical lengths extending from the foundation to the freeway overhead.

    Engineers have identified eight columns where the heat of the fire reached far deeper into the concrete. For those columns, crews will have to remove not only the compromised concrete but also the spiral of rebar, the engineer said.

    Once the damaged concrete and steel have been removed, the columns will be rebuilt, most likely with steel jackets similar to those used in seismic retrofits of bridge columns (an earthquake review in the 1990s did not lead to jackets being placed around the columns at this location). Grout or concrete will then be injected between the jacket and column.

    [ad_2]

    Nathan Solis, Thomas Curwen, Ashley Ahn

    Source link