A Tech Briefs TV video demonstrates NASA’s rotary-wing “air taxi” concept. The vehicles, in theory, have the capacity for vertical take-off and landing, eliminating the need for long runways.

Transferring data using light passed along fiber optic cables has become increasingly common over the past decades, but each pulse currently contains millions of photons. That means that in principle, a portion of these could be intercepted without detection. Secure data is already encrypted, but if...

"We want to build on the spirit of innovation in the USA," said President Barack Obama in his opening speech at the Hannover Messe trade fair in Germany. Following the official opening, President Obama, accompanied by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, was given a tour of the Rittal...

An air data probe intended to improve investigation of sonic booms is flying on the F-15B aircraft at NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center. NASA's goal for sonic boom research is to find ways to control and lessen the noise from shockwaves so that federal regulators will allow commercial...

Virginia Tech researchers are urging changes in how commercial aircraft engines are designed in the wake of a possible new threat to passenger aircraft safety: drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, being sucked into turbofan engines at high speeds. Such an impact would be...

NASA, working with government and industry partners, is testing a system that would make it possible for unmanned aircraft to fly routine operations in United States airspace. The tests engage the core air traffic infrastructure and supporting software components through a live and...

NASA’s Leading Edge Asynchronous Propeller Technology (LEAPTech) project will test the premise that tighter propulsion-airframe integration, made possible with electric power, will deliver improved efficiency and safety, as well as environmental and economic benefits. NASA researchers will...

The U.S Department of Energy has recently announced up to $4 million available this year to accelerate the development and deployment of wireless charging systems for light-duty electric vehicles (EVs).

Through the DOE's SunShot Incubator program, over $12 million in funding is available to accelerate innovation in solar energy and manufacturing - supporting advancements in hardware, reductions in soft costs, and the development of pilot manufacturing and production projects.

Creating a scientific field just out of societal and policy need is a bold concept. But Los Alamos National Laboratory and Indiana University researchers say that for the emerging field of sustainability science - sorting among theoretical and applied scientific disciplines, making sense of...

The National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) has won the 2011 GreenGov Presidential Award for Green Innovation. NREL’s Green Data Center was recognized for its innovative design that minimizes its energy footprint and reduces costs, without compromising service quality.

The DOE has announced the availability of up to $10 million in funding for energy-saving lighting technologies. DOE is seeking applications for research and development projects to drive down the cost and improve the quality of solid-state lighting products through manufacturing...

The Department of Energy has announced the availability of up to $12 million in funding for energy-saving lighting technologies. The DOE will invest in projects to accelerate research and development of solid-state lighting technologies like LEDs and OLEDs.

The EPA is introducing new ENERGY STAR requirements for home dishwashers and furnaces, and evaluating how to best address and encourage smart grid functionality in ENERGY STAR specifications like refrigerators and air conditioning units.