Monthly Archives: April 2023

Rapid unscheduled disassembly is the internets new favorite way to say the big rocket blew up.

SpaceXs Starship exploded dramatically in midair over the Texas coast on Thursday morning during its first integrated flight test. The rapid unscheduled disassembly, as SpaceXs social media accounts put it, happened just before the Super Heavy first stage would have separated from the rest of the vehicle (to be fair, it did separate, in a way).

Its unlikely that the Super Heavy will be reused after todays test flight.

Prior to launch, SpaceX had warned observers that it might take several tries to get Starship a spacecraft meant to carry 100 people or 100 tons of cargo into space and ultimately intended to carry CEO Elon Musks dreams of a Mars colony into orbit.

Following a few short delays, the worlds largest rocket it stands 400 feet tall and packs about 17 million pounds of thrust blasted off from SpaceXs launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas, early Tuesday morning. Moments later, the rocket had cleared Max Q, the point in the flight where the rocket experiences maximum mechanical stress. Things looked nominal until they werent.

Four minutes into the flight, right on schedule, the rocket started the rotation that was supposed to separate the Super Heavy booster from the Starship vehicle. The rocket was meant to land on a ship in the Gulf, which is pretty standard SpaceX fare these days, while Starship would have gone on to a powered belly landing in the water off Hawaii.

But instead of separating, the whole rocket kept turning cartwheels in midair, while a commentator declared calmly that everything after clearing the launch tower is icing on the cake. Then the whole thing blew up.

Below, SpaceX employees popped bottles of champagne while the crowd cheered. Read more on the test flight and the Starship rocket here.

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"Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly": Image Shows the Moment ... - Inverse

In the classic run of The Twilight Zone(check the SYFY schedule for airdates), Rod Serling delivered one of the most blistering twists in storytelling history with the episode I Shot an Arrow into the Air. The 15th episode of the first season begins with a crewed mission to an unexplored asteroid. Disaster strikes and half of the eight-person crew is killed when their craft crashes on the asteroids surface. Slowly, the rest of the crew perish, trying to survive on an alien world, until only one remains.

The 1968 filmPlanet of the Apes (also written by Serling) has a similar premise. Astronauts on an interstellar voyage waken from stasis and crash land on an alien planet in a star system 300 light years from Earth. There, they encounter populations of intelligent non-human apes and a subclass of primitive humans.

The characters of Battlestar Galactica (streaming now on Peacock!) represent the remnant of humanity leftover after all out war with a cybernetic race of warmongers known as the Cylons. The remaining humans inhabit 12 colony worlds, but theyre searching for a lost colony and their true home: Earth.

RELATED:Where is the Battlestar Galactica cast now? Edward James Olmos, Katee Sackhoff & more

In each case, the protagonists of these stories (not to mention the audience) were in for a big surprise. The last surviving astronaut of that asteroid mission, lived just long enough to learn his spacecraft had malfunctioned and he had crashed right here at home, in the Nevada desert. Having escaped the clutches of the apes, Charlton Heston's Taylor rides the shoreline on a horse and discovers the partially buried remains of the Statue of Liberty. And the humans looking for Earth, they eventually gave up, settled someplace else, and named it Earth in honor of the world they never found. That false Earth is the world youre living on right now.

Each of those stories have one thing in common: by the time the credits roll, weve learned that what the characters took for an alien world was, in fact, Earth all along.

Its a classic trope, and one which has been employed exhaustively, but its never been tried in real life. Imagine our surprise, then, when the Curiosity rover recently stumbled upon what appear to be the remains of a decayed rib cage sticking out of a Martian rock.

Curiosity has been roaming around Gale Crater, a 96-mile impact crater, for more than a decade, taking pictures the whole time. Martian spacecraft track the date based on how many Martian days (Sols) have passed since they landed. Sol 1 is the day they land, Sol 30 is one Martian month later, and so on. On Sol 3798 (That was April 1 on the Earth calendar, but this is no April Fools prank), the rover snapped pictures of a rock with a series of long, slender spikes sticking out of its side.

At first glance, it conjures visions of ribbed newts, a species of salamander with a defense mechanism that would make aliens proud. When threatened, ribbed newts change the angle of their ribs, swinging them forward while keeping the rest of the body rigid. As a result, the ribs pierce the newts skin, protruding from the sides of the body like adamantium claws in need of directions. On their way through the skin, theyre covered in a venomous mucus, turning them into deadly weapons. It isnt the most comfortable defense mechanism but, boy, is it effective.

While Gale Crater is whats left of a massive lake which existed roughly 3.5 billion years ago, it's unlikely that lake was filled with rib-stabbing newts. The images spurred conversation on Twitter, from scientists and enthusiasts alike. Nathalie Cabrol, an astrobiologist studying Mars ancient lake beds said she has never seen anything stranger in over 20 years studying Martian geology. She went on to explain that the formation, strange as it is, is likely the result of ripples in the rock and a whole lot of erosion. But if theres one thing weve learned about Mars, its that things arent always what they seem.

This certainly isnt the first time humans have found an unusual rock formation on Mars and thought it might be something weird. The red planet is famous for having a gigantic face on its surface and it has only been a few months since astronomers found what looks like the face of a bear in severe need of therapy, staring up from the surface of Mars. Each one is a surprise, but that they exist at all, shouldnt be surprising.

RELATED: Astronomers find the face of a cracked-out bear on the surface of Mars

If you take one desert planet, muss its hair with liquid water and volcanic activity, then turn down the lights, lock the doors, and leave it to the whims of wind-blown sand for a few billion years, youll end up with just about every geological formation you can imagine, and a few you cant. This isnt even the first time weve found something bone-like on Mars. Back in 2014, Curiositys MastCam imaged what looked like a loose collection of scattered bones, partially buried in Martian soil. One rock in particular sticks out among the rest, thanks to its striking resemblance to a femur.

If found on Earth, these rocks might trick a paleontologist for a minute, but theyd figure it out pretty quickly. On Mars, though, its pretty clear that geology is at work. Is it possible that life arose on Mars in the past? Yes! And were working hard to find out. Is it possible that Martian life not only existed but was complex enough to adapt large bodies and leave fossilized bones behind? Hell, we dont know. No one does. But probably not. If they did, there should be a lot of them and todays kids will grow up to become alien paleontologists, the coolest job that has ever existed. Its more likely that theyll grow up to become alien geologists and finally explain how weird rock formations like these are created.

You know how the old saying goes: never attribute to dope alien creatures that which is adequately explained by physics.

Watch Battlestar Galactica streaming on Peacock, and learn that the real Earth was the friends we made along the way.

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Did the Curiosity rover find alien bones on Mars? - Syfy

SpaceX has released a simulation video of Mission to Mars, showcasing Elon Musks vision of what the future of space travel could look like, including a colony on the Red Planet.

The 5-minute animation starts off showing Starbase, SpaceXs base on the Gulf Coast of Texas, before the Starship rocket takes off. Built from shiny stainless-steel, with its nostril embellished with fins and ten metres taller than the giant Saturn V rocket, Starship seems to be poised to revolutionise space travel. Capable of transporting thousands of tonnes in weight and greatly reduce back and forth travelling between space and Earth, the fully reusable rocket holds the key of Musks settlement of a colony on Mars.

Soon after take-off, the rocket breaks in two, the 33-engine first stage returns to base and smoothly lands back at the orbital launch tower, while the 50-metre-tall upper stage docks onto a tanker in Earth orbit to fuel up for the long journey ahead.

The video pans over Mars orbit then switches to a from-land view that shows there are total of four ships approaching the planet, leaving bright tails behind them. After a perfect landing, the doors of the rocket open and four astronauts gaze at the domed habitat in the middle of the human settlement seemingly flourishing on the Red Planet.

In February 2022, Musk detailed his vision of the future of space travel and of humans becoming an inter-planetary species. His ambitious goal envisions the creation of a colony on Mars, an insurance coverage, he said, where humanity would be protected from existential dangers on Earth. Starship is capable of doing that, Musk said. Its capable of getting a million tonnes to the surface of Mars and creating a self-sustaining city and I think we should try to do that as soon as we can.

The critical threshold for Mars is to have a city that is self-sustaining, he continued, recognising the difficulty of the ambition and even acknowledging that if any ingredient is missing, however minor it may be, the city would die out. If Earth stops sending shuttles to Mars, Musk envisioned, a colony on the Red Planet could be in jeopardy.

A few months later, SpaceXs chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell announced that people will reach Mars by the end of the decade, within 5 or 6 years to be more precise. While the company has ambitious plans, two start-ups have partnered to beat Musk to Mars, pledging a trip in 2024.

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SpaceX releases simulation video of trip to Mars - Travel Tomorrow

POLAND - 2022/01/21: In this photo illustration, HBO MAX logo is displayed on a smartphone with stock market graphics in the background. (Photo Illustration by Omar Marques/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

A new workplace comedy has entered into the streaming game! The upcoming Max animated comedy dystopian series Fired on Mars premieres Apr. 21 on the streaming service formerly known as HBO Max. The service has been switching their focus from family-based programming to adult animation withFired on Marsarriving on the platform at perfect time.

The series explores the precarious relationship between work and selflight years away from Earth. Jeff Cooper, the lead character, finds himself adrift in an office colony and is forced to reinvent himself and find meaning in a dangerous, alien, yet all-too-familiar corporate landscape.The animated series is based on the 2016 short film of the same name from newcomer writer/directors Nate Sherman and Nick Vokey. This movie will join the same slate of adult animated series that will live on the platform including the upcoming Clone High reboot.Are you looking to find out whos voicing the characters on the show? Read on to find out!

Previously, it was reported that SNL alum Pete Davidson would lead the series but has since not been mentioned in any current promotional media as the lead. The remaining cast of Fired on Mars has not yet been revealed.Want to see what to expect before the episodes are released? Look on to find out!

Watch the trailer below on the official Max YouTube channel:

Let us know in the comments below if you plan on watching! You can stream all eight episodes of Fired on Mars starting Apr. 20 on Max. Make sure to keep up todate with Hidden Remote for more Fired on Mars news and coverage.

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Fired on Mars cast: Who stars in the animated comedy series - Hidden Remote

In SYFYs The Ark (airing Wednesday nightson SYFY, and streaming next day on Peacock!), the surviving crew of the colony ship Ark One are on a one way trip to Proxima Centauri b, humanitys new home, but only if they can get there alive. While the circumstances of their departure from Earth werent ideal, there is something appealing about the opportunity to see another world up close. One way to do that is to hop a ship off planet and endure the grueling trip to another world. Another option is to stay on the couch, crunching popcorn, while you globetrot around Mars in your jammies.

Jay Dickson, an image processing scientist at the Bruce Murray Laboratory for Planetary Visualization at Caltech, led the project to build a global mosaic of Mars, using data from NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The project was funded as part of NASAs Planetary Data Archiving, Restoration and Tools (PDART) program, whose aim is to develop new tools and resources from existing NASA data.

RELATED:'The Ark' writer Rebecca Rosenberg on perspective as only woman in SYFY series' 4-person writers' room

I wanted something that would be accessible to everyone. Schoolchildren can use this now. My mother, who just turned 78, can use this now. The goal is to lower the barriers for people who are interested in exploring Mars, said Dicksonin a statement.

The mosaic was created by stitching together more than 110,000 images taken by the MROs black and white Context Camera. In fact, the MRO has three cameras onboard, each of which is useful for different types of work. The Mars Color Imager (MARCI) produces a low-resolution global map of Mars every day. It doesnt have the sorts of surface features that are fun to look at, but its useful at tracking weather patterns across wide areas and over extended periods. The High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) provides full color, high-detail images of small areas, on the same scale as a kitchen table. If they represent two extremes of the imaging spectrum, the CTX sits somewhere in the middle. It doesnt provide color, but it does gather data at the right scale for this kind of global surface map creation.

Images from the CTX have a resolution of roughly 270 square feet (25 square meters) per pixel, making this mosaic the highest resolution global image of Mars ever created. If you tried to print the whole mosaic to make your own scale model of the red planet, youd need an area about the size of the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, according to JPL. Thats about 900 feet in diameter, in case youre not a fan of collegiate level athletic architecture. Suffice it to say, you could spend a while walking around the virtual red planet.

Building the mosaic was no easy feat and took tens of thousands of hours over the course of six years to complete. The MRO has been in orbit around Mars since 2006 and has been absolutely crushing its job as space paparazzi ever since. In the course of its orbit, it has seen the planet from almost every conceivable angle, and there arent any instructions for stitching thousands of images into the ultimate planetary panorama. Building a mosaic like this is like putting a puzzle together, except most of the pieces have duplicates, some pieces are the wrong shade, and others are missing entirely.

RELATED: See Mars Jezero Crater for yourself in this stunning video tour

To make the job manageable, Dickson created an algorithm to sift through images, identify features, and use those features to stitch images together. When it was done sifting through the MRO data, Dickson had the foundation of his mosaic, but there were still 13,000 images the algorithm couldnt parse. He stitched those together himself manually, one at a time. By the time the project was finished, every single image had been put in its proper place. Any remaining gaps represent areas which hadnt yet been imaged at the time of the project or images which were obscured by clouds or dust.

Already, more than 120 peer reviewed scientific papers have reverenced the mosaic, demonstrating the value of these sorts of tools for research, but you dont need an advanced degree to use it. The MRO mosaic is designed to be as user friendly to as many people as possible. Users are presented with a list of popular destinations, including Jezero Crater, hometown of the Perseverance Rover, with the click of a button. Once you land at your destination, you can click around, zoom in and out, then jump to the next port. You could even circumnavigate Mars manually, like some sort of virtual interplanetary Magellan. Embark here for Gale Crater, Olympus Mons, and all stops between! What are you waiting for? The water is frozen and mostly trapped underground. But still!

If Mars is too near a destination, you can catch the last ship to Proxima Centauri b on The Ark!The Season 1 finale airson SYFYthis Wednesday, April 19, at 10 p.m. ET. Catch up on the story thus far with Episodes 1-11 streamingon Peacock. The series wasofficially renewed for a second seasonearlier this week.

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Thanks to NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, you can now circumnavigate the Martian surface - Syfy

Elon Musk was at the news epicenter Thursday, from stripping Pope Francis of Twitter verification to Tesla's drag on stocks and the explosion of the world's largest rocket. Three utterly disparate stories dominated global news in a way that underlined the extraordinary influence of the one person who connects them all -- Musk.

"Elon Musk has outsized capability to sway the news cycle," University of Florida assistant media professor Andrew Selepak told AFP.

Twitter owner Musk, who has seen his $44 billion investment in the site shrivel, had pledged to get rid of what he described as a "lords & peasants system."

Musk's switch does away with verifying who is behind accounts, with the checks now simply indicating who has paid a monthly subscription fee.

The removals coincided with the disappearance of "state-affiliated" and "government-funded" labels from media accounts, according to a review by AFP as of 0600 GMT Friday.

The removal followed spats in recent weeks between Twitter and news organizations that had objected to those labels, saying they cast doubt on their editorial independence.

Musk congratulated his SpaceX team on an "exciting" test of the next-generation spacecraft designed to send astronauts to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

Despite the failure to complete the flight test and reach orbit, SpaceX and Musk, the founder and CEO of the private space company, declared it a success.

Starship malfunctioned and began spinning out of control, exploding four minutes after lift-off in what SpaceX euphemistically called a "rapid unscheduled disassembly."

Meanwhile, Wall Street stocks ended lower on Thursday following lackluster corporate results from electric vehicle maker Tesla and several regional banks.

Shares of Tesla slumped after reporting a drop in quarterly earnings and hinting the Musk-led company could face further profit pressures from more price cuts on its vehicles.

As Twitter, Tesla and SpaceX deal with turbulence, Musk is a common denominator, noted independent tech analyst Rob Enderle.

"The CEO is supposed to be the mature member of the staff who keeps the train on the tracks," Enderle told AFP.

"Musk is the opposite of that, he often lacks maturity and knocks the train off the tracks."

After revolutionizing the auto industry, sending his own rocket to space and building a fortune, the eccentric billionaire bought Twitter late last year and fired its top executives.

He promotes himself as a champion of free speech but has been accused of being autocratic and bullying, as well as of endorsing misinformation on the platform.

The 51-year-old is among the richest people in the world.

- To Mars... and beyond? - Born in Pretoria, on June 28, 1971, the son of an engineer father and a Canadian-born model mother, Musk left South Africa in his late teens to attend Queen's University in Canada.

He transferred to the University of Pennsylvania after two years and earned bachelor's degrees in physics and business.

Musk abandoned plans to study at Stanford University in California.

Instead, he started Zip2, a company that made online publishing software for the media industry.

He banked his first millions when he sold Zip2 to US computer maker Compaq for more than $300 million in 1999.

Musk's next company, X.com, eventually merged with PayPal, the online payments firm bought by internet auction giant eBay for $1.5 billion in 2002.

After leaving PayPal, Musk embarked on a series of ever more ambitious ventures.

He founded SpaceX in 2002 and became chairman of Tesla in 2004.

Musk enterprises include tunnel-drilling The Boring Company and Neuralink, which is focused on linking human brains and computers.

He has said he wants to make humans an "interplanetary species" by establishing a colony of people living on Mars.

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From Wall Street to the Vatican, no one has been spared Twitters paid blue tick policy - The Economic Times

On April 3, NASA revealed the four astronauts who will travel around the moon on Artemis II. With a 2024 target launch date, Artemis II marks NASAs first crewed mission to the moon in over 50 years.

NASA isnt alone in its quest to rediscover the moon and more. Other countries and private companies are also planning space missions, with several hinting at sending humans to Mars. NASA has sent robotic explorers to Mars for decades but never an astronaut.

The rush to propel humans into deep space raises questions and perhaps even causes panic for some. Former NASA employees provide insight into the ongoing space mania and its implications.

Artemis IIs anticipated 10-day flight is a first step in establishing a long-term presence on the moon. The crew will fly around the moon to confirm that the Orion spacecraft functions properly in deep space while carrying humans. On future Artemis missions, some crew members will venture off the spacecraft to probe the lunar surface.

NASA is targeting the lunar South Pole for these moonwalks, a region of the moon where humans have never touched down. The lunar South Pole interests scientists because its known to contain ice, as shown by satellite images. Water on the moon could potentially be used as rocket fuel once broken down into liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

In its Moon to Mars program, NASA claims lunar exploration is a stepping stone toward sending astronauts to the red planet.

Stephen West, a senior flight dynamics engineer at Space Exploration Engineering and former NASA employee, said skills and techniques gained from moon missions are transferable to Mars missions. He explained that NASA historically dedicated more energy to spacecraft maintenance than to training astronauts to explore cosmic terrain.

The Artemis missions will emphasize exploration over maintenance. Once we get people [to the moon] theyre going to need to have a lot more agility in terms of where they go, in terms of how they can replan their operation, and those are all analogous to what well do on Mars. Both human expeditions will be doing field geology, you know gathering samples, finding samples, he said.

But West said the contrasting environments on the moon and Mars make some people skeptical about whether travel to the moon helps us get to Mars. The moon has no atmosphere, while Mars has just enough atmosphere (1 percent of Earths at sea level) to make landing a challenge. The presence of an atmosphere results in massive heat generation during a descent onto Mars with a peak temperature of about 2,370 degrees Fahrenheit. While the car-sized Curiosity rover successfully completed this landing with the help of a heat shield, larger spacecraft required to carry people and their supplies will generate much more heat.

Philip Metzger, a planetary physicist at the University of Central Florida with nearly 30 years of experience working at NASAs Kennedy Space Center, is more confident the Artemis missions will help prepare for missions carrying humans to Mars. The moons harsher environment provides opportunities to troubleshoot unforeseen challenges that could arise on Mars missions. We can find the answers, we just cant find the questions, he said. By doing these operations on the moon first, its gonna show us what we dont know, what we havent even thought about yet.

Metzger projects people will walk on Mars by 2030, and Elon Musk will have achieved his million-person Martian colony by 2060. Metzger said the biggest hurdle is economic sustainability. But according to models hes run, its doable if Musk fronts the initial costs. Once Mars residents establish a thriving economy, they can pay back Musk and become financially independent. Metzger said this economy is achievable with industries that wont require shipping large amounts of cargo from Mars back to Earth, such as building software.

Both West and Metzger see echoes of the Cold War space race in todays international space competition. NASAs Artemis Accords establish a framework for countries to conduct space travel peacefully. China and Russia were not among the 23 countries who signed the Artemis Accords. Were walking into some uncertainty, but were not going to get more certainty until we move forward, said Metzger. These new international norms are going to develop by setting precedent.

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Interpreting the space travel craze | WORLD - WORLD News Group

Meme coins have recently burst onto the cryptocurrency scene, capturing the attention of the crypto community and the wider public. These digital assets often showcase amusing or captivating mascots, taking inspiration from popular internet memes. Meme coins have demonstrated their potential for generating substantial returns for investors who can effectively identify the right ones and time their investments accordingly. However, the intrinsic value of these coins is sometimes debated by experts.

As the DeFi market evolves, meme coins have secured a niche, attracting a diverse range of investors, from beginners to experienced market players. This article will explore six top meme coins to consider investing in for 2023: DigiToads, Dogecoin, Shiba Inu, Floki, Dogelon Mars, and Vita Inu.

In 2023, DigiToads stands out as a distinctive and exciting choice among the meme currencies fighting for attention. This ERC20 token project aims to develop a recognized currency for usage across various web3 platforms while having a noticeable effect on the Amazon rainforest. DigiToads is motivated by a dedication to both financial innovation and environmental protection.

The DigiToads team has promised to donate 2.5% of all proceeds to organizations that concentrate on replanting trees and restoring habitats for Amazonian species to realize these lofty objectives. DigiToads differs from other meme currencies in that it has a dual emphasis on the natural and digital worlds, making it a desirable choice for investors who want to make a difference while still seeking sizable profits.

This exciting new ICO provides a comprehensive trading course through its Toad School, an instructional platform open to owners of three or more TOADS NFTs. In addition to enabling users to navigate the cryptocurrency world, this project also promotes a feeling of exclusivity and value within the DigiToads community.

Beyond its dedication to teaching and conservation, this DeFi coin has produced the Swamp metaverse. In this immersive virtual environment, gamers may engage in combat, breed DigiToads, and train them. Toad NFTs, represented by these digital amphibians, are available for users to buy, trade, and collect. Additionally, investors are free to stake these cool NFTs and get an extra layer of income.

DigiToads has now progressed to its fourth presale stage, Lilypad 4, with an impressive 76% of tokens already sold. Early participants have seen the presale price increase by 100%, securing them a profitable position. Given that there are six additional stages and corresponding price boosts ahead, investors joining at any stage stand to gain substantial profits once the coin goes live.

Setting TOADS apart from its meme coin counterparts is its strong great reputation. The project features a transparent, doxxed team currently undergoing the KYC procedure, as well as audited smart contract codes. Furthermore, the recent announcement of a listing on the prominent BitMart exchange is poised to enhance the adoption of the DigiToads project and make it a highly credible crypto.

>> Buy DigiToads Now <<

As the first meme coin, Dogecoin opened the stage for a plethora of additional cryptocurrency ventures. Dogecoin, introduced in 2013 as a humorous spin on Bitcoin, has developed into a dependable, well-liked digital currency with a solid community foundation. Dogecoin has endured because of its enduring Shiba Inu mascot and lighthearted attitude, making it one of the top meme currencies to invest in 2023.

One of the projects greatest assets is the enthusiastic and active community that has pushed Dogecoin into the public eye. The participation of well-known individuals like Elon Musk, who has often tweeted about Dogecoin, has increased the coins appeal and drawn new investors to the project.

Dogecoins comparatively cheap transaction costs and quick confirmation times compared to other cryptocurrencies make it an appealing choice for investors. This enhances Dogecoins attractiveness as a virtual currency by enabling it to be used for smaller transactions and micro-tipping.

Another good crypto to buy featuring a fun and engaging ecosystem is Shiba Inu. Often known as the Dogecoin Killer, SHIB was introduced in August 2020 as a decentralized alternative to Dogecoin to give users more freedom and autonomy. Shiba Inu is a meme currency with great growth and usage potential thanks to the projects native token, SHIB, which has attracted significant attention and a devoted fanbase.

The developing ecology of Shiba Inu is one of the primary characteristics that distinguish it from other meme currencies. The project features ShibaSwap, a decentralized exchange that enables token trading and yield farming. Investors now have more faith in Shiba Inus long-term prospects thanks to this platform, which has contributed to solidifying its position as a significant competitor in decentralized finance (DeFi).

Shiba Inu is also progressing in the expanding NFT market and is ambitious to develop a specific NFT marketplace that will increase the projects usefulness. Shiba Inu is showcasing its agility and dedication to remaining relevant in a constantly shifting crypto ecosystem by taking advantage of the rising popularity of NFTs.

Shiba Inu is also developing a Layer 2 blockchain network, which will increase the projects scalability and performance.

Floki has sparked the interest of the cryptocurrency world as one of the intruguing meme coins to watch in 2023 because of its Viking-themed branding and unique methodology. This project, which takes its name from Elon Musks pet Shiba Inu called Floki, aims to forge its path in the meme currency market by fusing a humorous attitude with an emphasis on usefulness and growth.

The Floki team is dedicated to creating an extensive ecosystem that distinguishes the project from other meme currencies. One example of this is the debut of FlokiSwap, a decentralized exchange that enables users to easily trade, stake easily, and farm tokens. By offering these essential DeFi services, Floki is demonstrating that it is a project with real-world use and room for growth rather than simply a silly token.

The use of NFTs is another crucial component of Flokis approach. The project is developing FlokiNFT, an NFT marketplace that seeks to support a variety of digital goods, including gaming equipment, collectibles, and works of art. Floki hopes to establish itself as a cutting-edge participant in the expanding NFT sector with this project.

With its Floki University platform, which aims to provide users with information and tools, Floki prioritizes education. Offering classes on different facets of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology is a move that shows how committed the project is to build an educated and active community.

Dogelon Mars distinguishes itself as a project with a future vision and extraterrestrial aspirations in the constantly developing meme currency ecosystem. Dogelon Mars intends to become the digital currency for a new space exploration and creativity age. Its name combines Elon Musks plans for Mars colonization with Dogecoins Shiba Inu mascot.

The $ELON native coin, which drives the whole ecosystem, is the heart of the Dogelon Mars project. The project has implemented several tactics, including token burning and rewards redistribution, to promote sustainable development and long-term success. This strategy aims to provide investors and Dogelon Mars holders with a secure and profitable environment.

The success of Dogelon Mars is significantly attributed to its emphasis on civic engagement. The project aims to build a strong, committed community that shares its interplanetary vision and helps it come true. To foster a feeling of community and enthusiasm for the projects ambitious future goals, this involves holding events, competitions, and other efforts that include and benefit community members.

Introduced in 2021, Vita Inu (VINU) is another cheeky dog-themed meme coin designed for the VINU Ecosystem and native to the Vite DAG chain. VINU boasts high transaction-per-second (TPS) capabilities and smart contract functionality.

The guiding philosophy of VINU is centered around fostering a fun, engaging, and viral ecosystem where users can make new friends while learning about the incredible world of cryptocurrency. In partnership with the Vite network, Vita Inu aims to contribute to developing extensive DAG ecosystems, enabling the seamless, secure, and efficient movement of various cryptocurrencies.

Currently under development, the Vinuverse will offer a comprehensive range of features, including a fully immersive VR World, the VinuSwap Dapp, NFTs, staking, rewards, events, merchandise, etc.

Similar to SHIB, the total supply of VINU is quadrillion, making it difficult for the token to raise during the market turbulence. However, the intensive burning events can greatly help the token maintain its momentum.

In the realm of the dog-dominated meme coin world, DigiToads emerges as a trailblazer, offering genuine real-world utility, a deflationary mechanism, a transparent team, and substantial growth potential. Although the coin has not yet been launched, early investors have already experienced considerable returns, and their profits are expected to continue to grow even further leading up to the launch.

Therefore, if youre curious about what crypto to buy, particularly searching for cheap altcoins with massive growth ahead, dont miss this intriguing latest ICO.

For More Information on DigiToads visit the website or join the community for regular updates.

Disclaimer:This is a paid release. The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily represent those of Bitcoinist. Bitcoinist does not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of information available in such content. Do your research and invest at your own risk.

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6 best meme coins to buy in 2023 | Bitcoinist.com - Bitcoinist

BYLINE: Robert C. Jones Jr.

Newswise One misstep and Ved Chirayath would have been a goner. Cut off from civilization and his cell phone useless, he knew that medical aid would never reach him in time if he were bitten by one of the countless sea snakes that surrounded him.

Theyre curious creatures, the University of Miami researcher and National Geographic Explorer said of the highly venomous snakes. Theyll swim right up to you and lick you. And when they sleep, they sleep head down in the rocks. So, my real concern was not to step on one.

But despite the very real prospect of death, Chirayath concentrated on the task at hand: mapping a colony of stromatolites in Australias snake-infested Shark Bay.

He would spend the entire two months of that 2012 field campaign navigating around the deadly snakes, the thought of dying only occasionally entering his mind. His unquenchable thirst for knowledge allowed him to stay focused.

Its that same thirst that drives him today in his quest to explore Earths last unexplored frontier: its oceans.

We have mapped more of Mars and our Moon than we have of our planets seafloor, and we know more about the large-scale structure of our universe and its history than we do about the various systems in our oceans, said Chirayath, the G. Unger Vetlesen Professor of Earth Sciences at the Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science. And we know so much more about our universe because we can see very far into space and in different wavelengths.

Peering into the deep ocean, however, is another matter. Light penetrates only so far below the sea surface, and ocean waves greatly distort the appearance of undersea objects.

But using a camera he invented that literally sees through ocean waves, Chirayath is removing those distortions and helping to reveal the trove of deep secrets hidden by our oceans. Mounted on a drone flying above the water, FluidCam uses a technology called Fluid Lensing to photograph and map the ocean in remarkable clarity. From American Samoa and Guam to Hawaii and Puerto Rico, he has used the device to map more than a dozen shallow marine ecosystems such as coral reefs at depths as low as 63 feet.

That still pales in comparison to the average depth of the ocean, which is nearly 4,000 meters. And 99 percent of the habitable volume of our planet is in that region, said Chirayath, who also directs the Rosenstiel Schools Aircraft Center for Earth Studies (ACES).

So, he created the more powerful MiDAR. The Multispectral Imaging, Detection, and Active Reflectance device combines FluidCam with high-intensity LED and laser light pulses to map and transmit 3D images of the sea floor at greater detail and depths.

Recently, he used MiDAR to conduct multispectral mapping of corals in Guam, validating the airborne images during subsequent dives.

Still, even MiDAR will not illuminate objects 4,000 meters deep. But install the device on a robot sub that can dive thousands of meters deep, and the possibilities of imaging the seafloor in the same detail and volume that satellites have mapped land are limitless, according to Chirayath.

It keeps me up at night, he said of MiDARs potential. He envisions his creation, awarded NASAs invention of the year in 2019, exploring not only the Earths deep oceans but worlds beyondfrom sampling minerals on Mars to looking for signs of life beneath icy ocean moons like Jupiters Europa.

Stargazer

Chirayaths fascination with studying and surveying the ocean deep was born out of his love of the stars.

He grew up in Los Angeles, looking up at the stars and contemplating the possibility of life on other planets. As a youngster, he would attend open house events at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in nearby Pasadena, learning from the scientists and engineers who were building the Cassini space probe that explored Saturn and its intricate rings.

I knew at 5 years old that I wanted to work for NASA and make a contribution to discovering other worlds, Chirayath said.

By the time he was a teenager, astronomy had been his passion for more than half his life. It was also an escape, a methodology, he said, to deal with some of the challenges he faced at that time. I was homeless for about three years, and I used that time to sit on top of a mountain and do as much astronomy as I could, Chirayath noted.

At 16, he detected an exoplanet one and a half times the size of Jupiter and 150 light years from Earth in the constellation Pegasus, doing so with a consumer digital camera he modified and attached to a telescope. His refashioned scope allowed him to employ the transit photometry method for detecting exoplanets. Whenever a planet passes directly between a star and its observer, it dims the stars light ever so slightly. Chirayaths modified telescope detected just such a dip in light.

Earth- and space-based observatories that look continuously at stars for weeks and even months at a time use the technique. It took Chirayath three years to locate the planet, but his patience paid off in the form of a scholarship he won and used to help study theoretical physics at Moscow State University in Russia.He later transferred to Stanford University, where he earned his undergraduate degree.

To help pay the bills while he attended college, he worked as a fashion photographer for Vogue. His pictures have also appeared in Elle, The New York Times, and Vanity Fair.

He earned his Ph.D. in aeronautics and astronautics from Stanford University, reconnecting with his passion for astronomy and always asking himself, What can I do with small telescopes? How can I make an impact? How can I develop new technologies and explore our solar system?

He came to the University of Miami in 2021 after a decade-long career at NASAs Ames Research Center, where he founded and led its Laboratory for Advanced Sensing, inventing the suite of next-generation remote sensing technologies that are now the cornerstones of his work at ACES.

While at NASA, he also created NeMO-Net, a single player video game in which players help NASA classify coral reefs. The space agency awarded Chirayath with its 2016 Equal Employment Opportunity Medal for organizing its first participation in the San Francisco LGBT Pride Parade.

The urgency to map

His fluid lensing mapping of the ocean promises to improve the resilience of coastal areas impacted by severe storms as well as assess the effects of climate change on coastal areas around the world.

While his origins are in astronomy, today he is more of a marine scientist than an astrophysicist. Still, the two fields are incredibly similar, Chirayath pointed out. Theyre both very difficult to study and require thinking beyond our terrestrial comfort zone. I love them both, and they can easily coexist. You can have large space observatories, and they can even help one another. A lot of the technologies that Ive created were inspired by things I learned in astrophysics and applied astronomy. But theres not that curiosity for understanding our own planet in a way that there is for space, and Im hoping to change that.

He applauds the $14 billion James Webb Space Telescope, which has been taking the deepest infrared images of our universe ever taken.

But weve never invested $14 billion into an ocean observatory, into something that looks critically at a piece of the puzzle that if we miss, we do so at our own peril, Chirayath explained. Im one of the many technologists who are looking inward and saying, This is what we understand about the universe and its large-scale structure, but a lot of the questions that are being posed to understand our universe and whats in it can also be posed for the ocean. If we dont map it, if we dont understand it, if were not able to characterize it, then when it fails or changes, humans may not be a part of the future.

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Ved Chirayath is on a mission to map the worlds oceans - Newswise

2001: A Space Odyssey is a name that is engraved into the emblems of science fiction. A film that has revolutionized the sci-fi genre and has been an inspiration to countless movies and TV shows. The movie's awe-striking visuals and cinematography are way ahead of their time and remain very relevant to pop culture to this day. 2001: A Space Odyssey has influenced films like Star Wars, Alien, and Interstellar, and its mesmerizing score has sparked the music industry into a renaissance.

The Kubrick Masterpiece has paved the way for several incredible sci-fi and space travel movies like Contact (1997) and Moon (2009), taking the space genre in cinemas to new heights. Today's world is home to some great films with similar immersive experiences to 2001: A Space Odyssey. And so we have curated for you a list of Movies to Watch if You Loved 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Silent Running is a sci-fi space drama directed by the visual effects maestro Douglas Trumbull. The movie is based on aspects like space journey, the future world, environmentalism, preservation, etc., and strongly links to 2001: A Space Odyssey. The world has seen the extinction of its flora and fauna, and the only existing plants and animals are now aboard a spaceship surviving inside domes. One such dome comprising a forest is tended by the botanist Freeman Lowell who has formed a deep connection with the living beings. Due to increasing expenses, the ship's crew are ordered to destroy the forests and return to Earth. Lowell refuses to abide by the orders and eventually flees with the ship with the help of his companion robots.

The movie focuses on his journey toward the unknown, filled with dramatic events to preserve the last surviving plants and animals. Silent Running is a thought-provoking film that emphasizes nature preservation and sheds light on isolation. An incredibly shot film with amazing visual effects that gives a certain vibe of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

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The popular classic sci-fi horror film Alien was released in 1979 and was directed by Ridley Scott. The film focuses on a crew of the mining spacecraft Nostromo who answers a distress call on a distant planet on their way home. After landing, they discover a hive colony of eggs inside a strange ship. The horror aspects start when a facehugger hatched from the eggs attacks one of the crew members and plants an alien form inside him. The alien creature bursting out from the attacked individual starts stalking and killing the other crew members one by one.

The story is paced with jump scares and thrilling twists. The film revolutionized the sci-fi space genre by incorporating horror aspects to it. Even though the movie's core doesn't really relate to the one of 2001: A Space Odyssey, the film's blend of thriller and space certainly helps create the unique atmosphere.

The lesser-known successor to the highly acclaimed 2001: A Space Odyssey is our current pick, 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984). The film, directed by Peter Hyams, is based on the later events of Kubrick's film and follows the crew of the spacecraft Leonov on their journey to Jupiter. The crew ventures to Jupiter to investigate the lost ship Discovery One and unravels several mysteries surrounding it. The film answers the secrets of the monolith and brings down curtains to the incredible duology.

Even though the film failed to reach the heights of its predecessor, 2010: The Year We Make Contact (1984) still managed to create a concrete footing in terms of cinematography, screenplay, special effects, and suspense.

The modern-day sci-fi film Annihilation is a horror thriller directed by Alex Garland. The film follows Lena Double (Natalie Portman), a biologist and former soldier who, searching for her husband, volunteers to enter an environmental disaster zone named "The Shimmer." Four scientists, including Lena, are sent into the mysterious, rapidly growing ecological zone to discover its secrets. They encounter strange phenomena and mutated creatures inside the area, and as they venture more and more, they face intense psychological effects.

Their journey to search out the root cause is filled with thrillers and horrors. The film sheds light on alien creatures and philosophical themes and keeps a constant sense of mystery. The film's unique cinematography and story remind us of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Based on the novel by Andy Weir comes the sci-fi adventure film The Martian. The film, directed by Ridley Scott, focuses on Mark Watney(Matt Damon), a NASA astronaut left alone to survive on Mars. The film starts with a group of astronauts on a mission on Mars when suddenly they are hit by a massive storm where Mark is impaled and assailed away. Mark is left alone to survive until the next mission arrives after his crew leaves him, presuming his death.

The movie portrays Mark's survival on the unhabitable planet through his wit and mental strength. As Mark faces issues with his acuity, like growing food, reestablishing communication, ensuring a safe habitat, etc., back on earth, NASA plans a dangerous mission to rescue him unharmed. The film is a representation of space survival and facing alien issues with ingenuity, which relates to 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Sunshine is a sci-fi thriller directed by Danny Boyle and released in 2007. The film follows the Icarus II mission crew, tasked to revive the sun and save humanity from mass extinction. Sun is dying, and Earth is about to face its eternal doom; in such circumstances, the Icarus II spacecraft is on a mission to reignite the sun using a bomb. With Cillian Murphy leading the cast, the crew aboard the ship faces hurdles one after another as they proceed toward their goal.

With issues like system failures, accidents, making contact with Icarus I, etc., the crew must give the ultimate test of perseverance to save life on Earth. The film is an intense space thriller, and its suspense creates a similar atmosphere to 2001: A Space Odyssey.

From the famed director Robert Zemeckis, comes the classic sci-fi film Contact. The film, released in 1997, is a drama thriller that follows Dr. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster), a SETI scientist who has worked all her life searching for Extraterrestrial intelligence. While facing many hurdles and skepticism, Dr. Ellie and her colleagues finally detect a signal of Extraterrestrial intelligence. They perform a seemingly impossible task with the help of a billionaire and send Dr. Ellie to make contact with Extraterrestrial life.

The film includes aspects like alien contact, space journey, skepticism, etc., and creates a great deal of mystery and suspense throughout. Contact incredible sci-fi film viewers would love to watch if they liked 2001: A Space Odyssey.

One of the cinematic feats of Christopher Nolan, Interstellar is a mind-bending sci-fi thriller adventure film. Favorite to many sci-fi lovers, Interstellar follows the story of Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), a former NASA pilot who is tasked to lead a mission to find a habitable planet. The Earth is now prone to disasters and droughts, and humanity suffers from intense food shortage; in such circumstances, Cooper and a team of scientists and two robots, TARS and CASE, venture on an immersive and dangerous interstellar journey. Along with their search for a habitable planet, they face intense time dilation, effects of relativity, gravitational anomalies, etc., and at times they are met with tough choices.

The movie brilliantly brings up concepts like black holes, wormholes, interstellar journeys, etc., and beautifully portrays the emotions and sacrifices of the characters. The movie's outwardly cinematography and screenplay are something that lovers of 2001: A Space Odyssey would love to enjoy.

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Moon is a sci-fi mystery film directed by Duncan Jones and released in 2009. The sci-fi drama follows the story of Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell), who has been living on the Moon with a robot named GERTY for almost three years, working for a Helium mining company Lunar Industries. As he nears the end of his contract of three years with the company, Sam starts to face hallucinations and delusions. Suddenly he suffers a severe accident at his mining site, and after his recovery, he starts to discover several mysteries, which leads him to question the reality of his existence. Unearthing the company's dark secrets, Sams plans to return to Earth by himself.

The film is a brilliant representation of isolation, identity, psychological toll, living in space, etc. The film has incredible visual effects and screenplay and is a must-watch for the fans of 2001: A Space Odyssey.

From the great Andrei Tarkovsky comes one of the greatest sci-fi films to ever hit the silver screen, Solaris. This masterpiece of a sci-fi mystery was released in 1972 and focuses on the story of Kris Kelvin (Donatas Banionis), a psychologist tasked to investigate the strange abnormalities instilled by the planet Solaris. Kris is sent to the space station orbiting the planet Solaris after reports of the crew facing psychological events and hallucinations. After arriving, Kris also starts to face these occurrences, where he meets his wife, Hari, who has been dead for years. Upon further investigation, he begins to unravel the psychological mysteries of the planet, which also affects his psyche.

The film brilliantly explores human consciousness, the deeper meanings of life, and the impacts of memories. The film's imagery is exceptional, and its atmosphere and screenplay are like no other. This thought-provoking masterwork is a must-watch for any sci-fi fan and is a worthy contemporary to 2001: A Space Odyssey.

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10 Movies to Watch if You Loved 2001: A Space odyssey - MovieWeb