Captain Kirk and his crew may someday be followed on their travels across the universe at warp speed by the rest of us. If engineers and scientists meeting for a one-day international conference next week have their way, the starship Enterprise's warp drive will no longer be the stuff of science fiction but a viable means of travelling vast distances at faster than the speed of light.

Anyone wanting to boldly go on a trip to a far-off galaxy should not hold their breath though. Engineers and Scientists admit there is little chance of anyone building a warp drive this century, but there is serious academic interest in the subject. 

....click the link to read more

The USMC is expected to publish the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) request for proposal (RFP) at the beginning of the coming year (2008), and select manufacturers for the new family of vehicles by the end of March. Initial engineering and  operational capability originally scheduled for 2010 was recently pushed back to 2012, as the services are focused on the acquisition of heavier and more urgently needed Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle (MRAP) in the near term.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia could order 24 Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets from BAE Systems <BAES.L> for about 1.5 billion pounds ($3.06 billion), the Middle East Economic Digest (MEED) reported on Friday.

Saudi Arabia and Britain announced in September a 4.43 billion pound deal for 72 of the Eurofighters.

"The kingdom is set to decommission a number of aircraft and is thinking about a possible order for 24 more Eurofighters," MEED quoted an adviser to the Saudi government, that it did not identify, as saying.

"There is a need for new aircraft given the situation in the region, particularly the issue of Iran," the adviser was quoted as saying.

China’s success in shooting down one of its own satellites last January has given new energy to engineering efforts in the United States to develop and launch more — and cheaper — satellites.

Significantly, the new approach to satellites is getting a boost not just from giant aerospace corporations but from small, entrepreneurial engineering companies. Entrepreneurs have also been behind other recent efforts to move ahead in space, including the Ansari X Prize, the $10 million competition that put a pilot in space without government financing in 2004.

The efforts of the entrepreneurs are also seen as crucial to keeping the United States at the forefront of space technology as Russia, Europe and increasingly China become more technically adept.
....click the link to read more

Engineering cars with bulletproof vest, and mine-proof shoes…these are no longer sci-fi. Days ago, Chery presented itself at the 2007 International Criminal Investigation, Drug Suppression and Anti-terrorism Equipment Expo & Technical Exchange Fair with two models, the Tiggo3 and the Eastar bulletproof cars . Succeeding the Eastar, the Tiggo3 , combining the advantages of bulletproof vehicle, armored bank vehicle, special purpose vehicle, and ordinary passenger vehicle earned tremendous attention from the participants of the expo with its excellent bulletproof, anti-robbery, anti-smash, anti-crash, anti-theft and cross-country performances. Particularly, those who are from the army and the police showed greater interest to the two Chery models.

So much so that an order for 200 units has been placed by 

Sateh Afrique from South Africa

....click the links to read more 

 Australian pilots flying the new generation of fighter jets now under development will wear bespoke, high-tech helmets equipped with a feature that gives airmen simulated X-ray vision.

 ....click the link to read more

 A major engineering feat as --

The Delta IV Heavy - the US military's biggest satellite launcher - which has flown for only the second time. --

 Unique engineering to produce devastating results ??---

 Good to see it safe and sound on terra firma and with a few tales to tell --

Engineers breathed easy as the shuttle Discovery glided to a safe landing here Wednesday, bringing to a close an eventful mission that combined challenging space station construction and emergency repairs. 

Engineers and scientists move a step closer --  the ultra-high-energy particles appear to originate at the centers of some galaxies, researchers say.

 Time to dig deep and get some engineering and manufacturing action on the home front ===

 A Pentagon-sponsored robot race at a former Air Force base here on Saturday revealed that engineering and computer-controlled vehicles, at least to date, have failings that are all too human.

 Exciting discoveries for space engineers -

 In August, NASA’s unmanned  Phoenix Mars Mission blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center and engineers eagerly anticipate the first mission of NASA’s Mars Scout Program. Phoenix will reach the Red planet in May 2008, and is part of NASA’s strategy to “follow the water” on Mars

Tank engineering is not new - check out the creations from history -

It all started in the Fourteenth Century. We have a record of a "pre-tank" machine, called "Fighting Unicorn".

The above link takes you to part one of "Tanks" - If you liked part one - I'm sure that you just can't wait to see part two  

 Engineers and scientists will "see the light" when ----