Hasta La Gadget!

NASA‘s latest Landsat satellite launch has been given the green light to fly today, with the new Earth-monitoring orbiter expected to blast off just after 10am PST on Monday. The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) has been running for more than forty years, adding to scientist’s long-term understanding of the changes in our local environment; Landsat 8 will launch atop an Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The Landsat satellite operations began in 1972, though the eighth-gen model is considerably upgraded from its predecessors. Sensors include the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) which independently gather data on land, oceans, areas of ice buildup, and more, with greater accuracy over previous iterations.

For instance, the OLI uses a fixed long detector array that can monitor the width of the entire “strip” the Landsat is currently following, rather than the sweeping sensor that used mirrors to track side to side in the old system. That’s expected to be more accurate, have less chance of breaking down thanks to a reduction in moving parts, and increase the vital signal-to-noise ratio.

In fact, the satellite will take sixteen days to map the entire surface of the Earth, moving north to south in its orbits, and building up a full picture in narrow bands. Altogether, it weighs around 6,000 pounds, and is around the size of an SUV.

NASA and the satellite’s manufacturers, Orbital Sciences Corporation, have equipped Landsat 8 with sufficient fuel for ten years of constant operations, though its design life is just half that. Long-running monitoring from the program isn’t new, however; Landsat 5 was tagged for shutdown in December 2012, around a quarter of a century later than its program intended.

NASA gives Landsat launch the green light for today is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The multi-billion dollar legal war with Samsung would not have taken place had Apple CEO Tim Cook had his way, with reports claiming the current chief exec was against Apple founder Steve Jobs’ “thermonuclear” war with its Korean rival. Cook, who was Apple’s Chief Operating Officer until he was made CEO, was supposedly concerned about Samsung’s vital role as a parts supplier, Reuters reports, which has become critical to Apple’s operations.

According to anonymous insiders familiar with Apple and Samsung’s troubled history, Steve Jobs was quick to anger when he believed Samsung was copying iPhone and iPad strategy for its own Galaxy series. Cook’s concerns regarding parts supply stability arose then, the sources say, though it’s unclear to what extent the yet-to-be-CEO acted upon them.

Perhaps surprisingly, the attitude between the two companies – beyond the public relations rhetoric – is actually said to be reasonably calm. Legal experts with access to both firms claim “the temperature isn’t that high,” likely a side-effect of the fact that, legal battle aside, Apple and Samsung are still heavily locked into each others’ businesses.

Those businesses see Samsung – a major player in the NAND flash industry – continue to supply memory for Apple’s iPhone, iPad, and other devices, as well as manufacturing the ARM-based chips that power those devices. However, the privileged position of chip co-designer has been lost, and there has been long-standing speculation that TSMC will usurp Samsung’s role as processor manufacturer.

Cook’s public comments on legal matters have been more reserved than those of the outspoken Steve Jobs. Speaking to NBC last December, the CEO said that Apple “loves competition” as it “makes us all better,” though did reiterate that Apple “wants people to invent their own stuff.”

Apple’s Tim Cook opposed Samsung “thermonuclear” war say sources is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

MOSCOW, Feb 11 (Reuters) – An explosion at a Russian coal mine on Monday killed nine people and eight more were feared trapped under rubble at the pit in the northern Komi region, the Interior Ministry said.

The Emergencies Ministry had said earlier on Monday that nine miners were feared trapped and that at least eight had been saved.

The blast, at a mine owned by a division of one of Russia’s largest steel producers, Severstal, was caused by a buildup of methane gas, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

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ALLAHABAD, India — Anxious relatives were searching for missing family members Monday in a northern India city that is home to one of the world’s largest religious gatherings, unsure if their loved ones were caught in a stampede that killed 37 people or had simply gotten lost among the tens of millions of pilgrims.

People thronged to the main hospital in Allahabad to see if their relatives were among 37 dead and 30 people injured in Sunday evening’s stampede at the city’s train station. Tens of thousands of people were in the station waiting to board a train when railway officials announced a last-minute change in the platform, triggering the chaos.

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What Do This Week’s Big Blizzard and Hurricane Sandy Have in Common? Climate Change! reports Andrew Freedman at Climate Central. In both cases, increased moisture from warmer coastal ocean temperatures helped create torrential precipitation, while increased sea levels and storm power created destructive storm surges that caused flooding in areas. How many times does Nature have to repeat this lesson, folks, before we, and our government get it?

@@ Can’t join the Feb 17th FORWARD ON CLIMATE rally at Washington DC ? Oh yes you can — right here!

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