CleanTechnica analysts argue that China's advantage in electric aviation lies not in individual aircraft but in the combination of high-speed rail, battery industry, and government programs. China produced over 80% of the world's battery cells in 2025, and the high-speed rail network reached 50,400 km and will grow to 60,000 km by 2030.
BHP has operated two Wabtec FLXDrive battery locomotives, each rated 4,400 hp with 7 MWh batteries, for nearly a year on the Jimblebar–Port Hedland line in Australia's Pilbara. BHP ordered two more Progress Rail locomotives for comparative trials in fiscal 2027.
Natura Resources received a batch of FLiBE salt coolant from the US Department of Energy on September 18 for its MSR-1 molten salt demonstration reactor under construction at Abilene Christian University in Texas. The salt, with 99.99% lithium-7 enrichment, was used in the MSRE experiment from 1965 to 1969.
Lockheed Martin presented Germany's first F-35A Lightning II at a ceremony in Fort Worth on September 18. Berlin will buy 35 fighters under a 2022 deal worth $8.8 billion to replace Tornado in the nuclear mission. First deliveries to Germany are due in late 2027, with full operational capability in 2029.
The LANSCE accelerator modernization project (LAMP) at Los Alamos National Laboratory received CD-1 approval from NNSA and enters the design phase. The upgrade will replace outdated systems, including the drift-tube linac, and extend the facility's operation to 2050. Cost estimate is $687 million to $1 billion.
Congress has directed the US Air Force to analyze options by March 1, 2027: restart C-17 Globemaster III production, extend the life of 220 existing aircraft, or create a new NGAL transport. C-17 production ended in 2015, and restarting the factory is estimated to cost billions of dollars.
Researchers from Maynooth University in Ireland have created a molecular computer based on DNA that works without electricity. The Scaffolded DNA Computer system, described in Nature on September 16, executed 10 programs, including 100-bit calculations, using self-assembly of DNA strands.
Scientists modeled Phobos's gravitational field around the 9 km Stickney crater to determine whether the moon was a captured asteroid or formed from debris of an impact on Mars. Estimates point to a porous core with possible water ice; Japan's MMX mission is to launch in late 2026 and return samples.
Scientists suggest the GW231123 signal from a black hole merger with masses 100 and 130 solar masses was amplified by gravitational lensing. Then the final black hole's real mass is about 140, not 230 solar masses, and it does not fall into the 'mass gap'. There is no direct evidence of lensing; the theory is purely theoretical.
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology isolated nitrogenase from the archaeon Methanocaldococcus infernus, found at hydrothermal vents. The enzyme begins breaking down only at 90 °C and partly survives at 98 °C, producing ammonia only at high temperatures.
Scientists at Cambridge and OHSU found tumors release the antioxidant protein PRDX1, depriving T cells of reactive oxygen species needed for activation. Blocking PRDX1 in mice strengthened the immune response and improved immunotherapy efficacy.
The single-celled organism Spirostomum ambiguum contracts to a quarter of its length in under 5 ms, about 100 times faster than a human blink. Calcium ions trigger the contraction, driven by a fishing-net-like network of centrin and Sfi1 proteins. The finding could aid fast artificial muscles.
Northwestern University physicists created a mathematical model showing when differences between network elements increase stability. The effect was confirmed in models of power grids, neurons, flocks, metamaterials, and ecosystems; the work was published September 17 in Science.
Scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys showed that increasing levels of the SORLA protein reduces brain atrophy and tau accumulation in mice with tauopathy, while its absence worsens damage. The results were published in Science Advances and point to a potential target for Alzheimer's therapy.
Hyundai plans to produce "tens of thousands" of Ioniq 5 robotaxis for Waymo at its Georgia plant. The first vehicles with Waymo's sixth-generation autonomous driving system will be delivered in Q4 2026. Company head José Muñoz called robotaxis a separate profitable business line.
Researchers at NHS Blood and Transplant and the University of Bristol found that the MAL gene encodes the Mal protein carrying the AnWj antigen, identified in 1972. MAL became the 47th official blood group system (ISBT 047), giving doctors a genetic way to find rare AnWj-negative donors and patients.
Astronomers using the James Webb telescope re-observed a stellar occultation by asteroid Chariklo and found that the inner ring C1R became denser (opacity rose from 0.303 to 0.431), while the outer ring C2R nearly disappeared. The October 18, 2022 observation first captured rings of a small body in the near-IR at 1.5 and 3.2 µm.
According to Kelley Blue Book, in August the average price of a new EV in the US was $54,813 — only 9.4% higher than the average price of a new ICE vehicle ($50,089). A year ago the gap was 16%, and average EV subsidies fell from $8,200 to $6,600.
Xiaomi unveiled the SkyNomad N70 and N90 crossovers in Beijing on the Kunlun platform. The N70 Pro starts at 209,900 yuan (~$31,000), while the top-end N90 Max Studio with a camper roof costs 299,900 yuan (~$44,700). Hybrid with up to 1000 km CLTC range, Nvidia Thor-U chip and lidars.
A new project proposes launching a mission to Halley's Comet in 2036 with gravity assists at Jupiter and Saturn. The spacecraft is to reach the comet in 2060 before its perihelion.
Amid Nord Stream sabotage and rising hybrid threats, defense and tech companies are developing autonomous underwater vehicles and sensors to protect cables and pipelines. Fincantieri will invest about €600 million in four companies, and Euroatlas has developed the GrayShark AUV.
Tesla has started serial production of its Semi electric truck at its Sparks, Nevada plant, a 1.7 million sq ft facility costing $3.6 billion. Capacity is up to 50,000 trucks per year, with 325 or 500 miles of range and a 548 kWh battery in the base version.
CATL confirmed a goal to begin small-batch production of all-solid-state batteries in 2027. A 2 GWh pilot line in Yibin is to be commissioned in the second half of 2026, but mass adoption in vehicles before 2030 is unlikely.
During its fourth Mercury flyby on September 4, 2024, the BepiColombo probe passed 165 km from the surface and recorded high-energy solar flare particles entering the planet's magnetosphere. SIXS instrument data published in Nature Astronomy may help forecast space weather and protect satellites in Earth orbit.
Scientists developed an electrofiltration membrane RuO₂@PbO₂-M that removes nearly 100% of ammonia nitrogen from wastewater in 1.2 minutes while cutting chemical oxygen demand by 68%. The technology generates ·ClO radicals inside the membrane and requires no added chemical reagents.
Researchers at Southern Illinois University Carbondale use modified yeast to convert PET plastic and plant waste into proteins, vitamins, and flavorings for cookies called µBites. The project was created for NASA's Deep Space Food Challenge for long-duration spaceflight and could aid in disaster zones.
CSL Group built the MV Yampu for Adbri — the world's first self-loading and self-unloading bulk carrier. A hybrid power system with a 6758 kWh battery allows electric propulsion for up to 40% of the route and cuts fuel consumption by 25%, reducing Scope 1 emissions by over 40%.
Northrop Grumman won a US Space Force contract to develop a geosynchronous reconnaissance satellite prototype under the GHOST-R program. The suitcase-sized ESPASat-L platform will carry a TRL-11 optical payload and must be ready for launch within 24 months.
China's Tianwen-3 Mars sample return mission has entered the prototype phase: launch in 2028 on two Long March 5 rockets, drilling up to 2 meters deep, and returning samples to Earth around 2031. Eight candidate sites have been selected to collect about 500 grams of soil.
MIT engineers created a reconfigurable robotic optical lab: a seven-joint manipulator assembled a desktop laser resonator from randomly placed components in 50 operations and about 30 minutes. The system identifies parts by QR codes, aligns them with micron precision, and self-recovers alignment after failures.
