Weekend Edition: A profusion of aircraft propulsion tech: Propfans, hydrogen and HyperDrive

[New Atlas logo]( Welcome to our weekly wrap of the best stories to grace the pages of New Atlas over the last seven days. Sit back, relax and enjoy the Weekend Edition. Darren Quick Editor-in-Chief Aircraft [GE resurrects the propfan aircraft engine, cutting fuel burn by 20%]( [CFM's ultra-efficient open-rotor Rise engine will fly aboard an Airbus technology demonstrator within 5 years or so]( GE once thought super-efficient propfans were the future of air travel, until low fuel prices in the late 1980s moved fuel consumption down the list of priorities. Now, it's bringing them back with the CFM Rise, promising 20% fuel savings. [Read more]( Aircraft [Airbus pursues new technology for 100% hydrogen-powered airliner]( [Diagram of the hydrogen-powered aircraft]( Airbus is looking towards a greener aviation future, revealing major projects to build hydrogen jet airliners with not only a complete hydrogen-fueled propulsion system, but also a hydrogen Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) to generate electricity onboard. [Read more]( Aircraft [MagLev Aero unveils "breakthrough" HyperDrive eVTOL propulsion system]( [MagLev Aero says its ring-shaped propulsion technology can make eVTOLs significantly quieter and more efficient]( A fascinating eVTOL project is about to come out of stealth, showcasing a "breakthrough HyperDrive propulsion technology" that MagLev Aero claims is "dramatically more quiet, efficient, safe, sustainable and emotionally appealing to the mass market." [Read more]( Mobile Technology [App will turn a smartphone into an accurate thermometer]( [Joseph Breda is part of a team that has developed an app that turns a run-of-the-mill smartphone into a thermometer]( Since the advent of COVID-19, people have been more sensitive to checking for signs of fever. Now, researchers from the University of Washington have developed an app that turns a regular smartphone into an accurate, easy-to-use thermometer. [Read more]( Science [Molecular mechanics of aging cells may be key to stimulating hair growth]( [New research has exposed the molecular mechanics underlying hair growth and has found that aging or senescent cells may be key]( A new study into the molecular mechanisms underlying hair growth has found that aging cells may be key. Their findings potentially open the door to developing new hair loss treatments that harness the innate abilities of these often-maligned cells. [Read more]( Environment [Hunga Volcano eruption produced record-breaking lightning show]( [A new study has revealed how the eruption of Tonga's Hunga Volcano in 2022 produced a record-breaking lightning show]( The eruption of Tonga’s Hunga Volcano on January 15, 2022, produced a record-breaking amount of lightning. The information gathered about the eruption can be used to better monitor aviation-related hazards arising from these sorts of eruptions. [Read more]( Environment [Cambridge reactor converts plastic waste and CO2 into useful chemicals]( [Cambridge's new solar reactor can convert carbon dioxide from air and flue gas, as well as plastic waste, into useful chemicals]( CO2 emissions and plastic waste are two major environmental problems, but a Cambridge device may help tackle both at once. The team demonstrated a new version of their solar reactor, which uses sunlight to convert CO2 and plastic into useful chemicals. [Read more]( Medical [First-of-its-kind noninvasive CRISPR method knocks out anxiety gene]( [Researchers have developed a noninvasive method of delivering CRISPR gene editing technology to the brains of mice, knocking out a gene that causes anxiety]( Researchers have used a novel, noninvasive method to overcome the challenge of delivering CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing technology into the brain, knocking out a gene that causes anxiety and opening the door to the development of new medications. [Read more]( Bicycles [Pinion combines an ebike motor and sealed gearbox in its new MGU]( [The Motor.Gearbox.Unit (MGU) sits at the heart of the Pinion E-Drive System]( For 11 years now, German company Pinion's sealed mid-mount gearbox has offered a tougher alternative to derailleurs. It's now been combined with a motor, resulting in a two-in-one ebike module called the Motor.Gearbox.Unit – or MGU for short. [Read more]( Architecture [Incredible competition imagines skyscraper design without constraints]( [Nomad Metropolises, by China's Chufeng Wu, Chang Lu, Bozhi Zheng, Duo Wang and Shuxiao Zhang, has won this year's eVolo Skyscraper Competition. The project envisions vertical cities made up of rotating affordable housing]( This year's winners of the eVolo Skyscraper Competition have been announced. Highlights include rotating affordable housing, an ocean-cleaning plastic skyscraper, and tree-like towers to help keep watch over the Amazon rainforest. [Read more]( Outdoors [Flat-pack camper pod pitches and stacks into off-grid micro shelter]( [Cube camping the wilderness]( A camper alternative that digs a nook between ground tent, pop-up trailer and tiny home, the Caboose & Co Maverick camper cube is an intriguing shelter for on- or off-grid living. It packs flat for easy transport, setting up in under five minutes. [Read more]( Science [3,000-year-old sword a shining example of Bronze Age weaponry]( [The sword has been provisionally dated to the 14th century BCE]( At a recent excavation in the Donau-Ries region of Germany, a bronze sword has been unearthed that's reported to be more than 3,000 years old, and is so well preserved that the archeologists who discovered it said that it almost shines. [Read more]( Energy [Chinese scientists push lithium batteries up to a record 711 Wh/kg]( [An impressive leap in lithium battery density has been claimed by Chinese researchers]( Tesla's 4680 cells, for comparison, measure somewhere between 244-296 Wh/kg. So the extreme-density cells recently tested in Beijing represent a huge leap forward from the status quo – even if they're solely focused on maximizing a single metric. [Read more]( Space [NASA detects life's rarest building block in water ice of Saturn's moon]( [Enceladus as imaged by the Cassini spacecraft]( A new discovery has boosted the chances of life soon being found on another world. NASA has announced the detection of phosphorus, the rarest element that’s essential to life, in the oceans of Saturn’s moon Enceladus. [Read more]( Technology [You can now use your phone to ID skin conditions]( [Dr Google will examine your rash and suggest matching conditions and treatments]( Got a rash or spot to check out? Take a photo! Google Lens can now save you from wading through hundreds of images of skin conditions, letting you search for your own much more easily and delivering results for diagnosis and recommended treatment. [Read more]( Technology [GPS alternative taps cosmic rays for underground or underwater navigation]( [Scientists have demonstrated a proof-of-concept for a new navigation system that can work underground and underwater by tracking particles from cosmic rays]( GPS doesn’t work as well inside buildings, underground or underwater. Now engineers in Japan have developed and tested an alternative technology that uses cosmic rays to track movement beneath a building with precision of a few meters. [Read more]( Aircraft [NASA's X-66A transonic plane doesn't have a perfect wing, but it tries]( [The X-66A is a modified MD-90 aircraft]( Meet the X-66A, NASA's Sustainable Flight Demonstrator full-scale single-aisle research plane, featuring transonic truss-braced wings and designed to explore net-zero aviation emissions and more economical passenger flight near the speed of sound. [Read more]( Outdoors [Origami solar panel collapses small for fast, light travel anywhere]( [Sego Innovations is looking to launch a solar panel that instantly compacts to 1/8 its expanded size]( Reaching far beyond cutesy paper sculptures, origami has underpinned some cutting-edge breakthroughs. Sego Innovations uses it to create the most packable solar charger around, with a panel that packs down to an eighth of its size in about a second. [Read more]( Automotive [$1.6-million SOD 6x6 RV is brutish but hospitable rustic-chic explorer]( [SOD marries a rugged 6x6 truck chassis with a comfortable, well-appointed motorhome to create the Peak 6x6]( Stone Offroad Design crawls up-mountain with its Peak Series, showing it's truly mastered the art of blending ultra-rugged vehicle chassis with ultra-luxurious living amenities. The Peak 6x6 pairs a MAN six-wheeler with a rustic-modern living area. [Read more]( Health & Wellbeing [‘Smart drugs’ are not so smart when used by people without ADHD]( [A new study has examined the effect that taking ADHD medication when you don't have ADHD has on cognitive performance]( A new study may have bad news for people who take so-called ‘smart drugs’, usually prescribed to treat the symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), thinking they will increase workplace or academic productivity. [Read more]( You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at [newatlas.com]( (or [gizmag.com]( before August 2016). [Update profile]( | [Unsubscribe]( Copyright New Atlas © 2022