Gryphon Attack Glider

Formerly known as The ESG Gryphon Personal Flying Wing this has to be the ultimate in Spy Gear! It has a maximum glide speed of 135 mph and has a heads up display and even on board oxygen for those high altitude launches. This one can carry a payload of 100lbs of on board gear and has hard mount points for hooking up tactical bombs or missiles! With a glide range of 125 miles and a radar cross section of a seagull (or Stealth Bomber) you can glide into North Korea take out The Great Leader and like Ace Rimmer be back in time for a smoked kipper for breakfast. Only thing is you’ll need an extraction team as landing is achieved by separation from the wing which will activate your parachute.

•  It weighs only 30 pounds and can be fully weaponized for assault and rescue. It has a 6-foot jet-wing that is steered with handheld rotary controls connected to its rudder. And it can hide more than 100 pounds of combat gear in a built-in compartment.
• The Gryphon attack glider, designed to penetrate combat zones at 135 miles per hour, could revolutionize the art of parachuting. It has got to be at the top of James Bond’s Christmas list this year.
• A vision straight out of "Batman," the carbon-fiber stealth glider quadruples the speed of similar craft — and there are quite a few special forces soldiers who would like to jump out of a plane at 30,000 feet and give it a whirl.
• Its helmet has a heads-up display and provides on-board oxygen for the jump. To land, a soldier separates the wing from his pack and releases his parachute to slow his descent. The wing remains attached to the soldier by a cord and lands before him.
• You might wonder who would volunteer to test-pilot a glider traveling at such high speeds. At ISNR London, a security conference, I had the opportunity to meet Erich Jelitko, who not only conceived the ultimate boy toy but also enthusiastically test-pilots the glider.
• A former special forces operator and German army paratrooper instructor, Jelitko has made more than 50 jumps with the glider.
• He took me through a test flight of a simulation of Paris. He demonstrated the glider’s agility by flying through the legs of the Eiffel Tower — not an easy feat at high speed. Soldiers also can opt to train on other city simulations from New York to London.
• Currently, planes and pilots are put at risk because soldiers need to jump close to combat areas. Typical high altitude, high-opening, or HAHO, jumps from around 27,000 feet allow soldiers to travel only about 30 miles after exiting the aircraft.
• The Gryphon could increase that range fourfold, creating an attack corridor of nearly 125 miles. Unaffected by headwinds or crosswinds because of its favorable lift-to-drag ratio, the glider would allow elite units to reach targets with increased speed, precision and stealth.
• The Gryphon’s built-in oxygen supply system allows soldiers to jump from up to 30,000 feet. And with temperatures at that altitude sometimes reaching minus 64 degrees Fahrenheit, every second counts. Even in upwind conditions, the Gryphon could reduce HAHO jump duration to a third, from an average of 45 minutes to just 15, vastly reducing the risk of exposure to extreme cold.
• The Gryphon’s designers, SPELCO GbR, are even planning to affix a relatively cheap and small turbo jet, which is used for unmanned military drones. Harnessing that jet, the glider would allow soldiers to jump lower, maintain altitude and travel farther than is currently possible.
• With its stealth technology and high speed, the Gryphon will provide maximum surprise and safer entry into target areas. And with the Gryphon virtually invisible to ground and airborne radar, enemy forces would struggle even to detect it.
• The stealth and speed capabilities also could be handy for agile hostage rescue operations and rapid reaction to moving targets. SPELCO is developing an electronic system to automate some of the steering to make it easier to fly, more like an airplane. If it succeeds, the average bungee jumper — and not just elite forces with specialized training — can have a go, too.
• And those commercially available Gryphons could mean that friendly neighborhood Batmen might be just around the corner.

Erector Spykey – Kit spy Robot

Erector Spykee – Kit Robot

This DIY kit Robot has caterpillar type tracks and has a camera, Wi-Fi and an in-built microphone. Spykey even comes with its own software to enable it to be controlled from anywhere on the net. It has a functional webcam and a VOIP (Skype compatible) speaker phone. We only wish it would come in black or a Darth Vader model. 

While the Spykee set can be built into three different robot models and is compatible with other Erector sets, the most intriguing aspect of the $280 kit for me is the telepresence capability: Spykee serves as a fully functional webcam and VOIP speakerphone; it’s even Skype compatible. 

How Undersea Cables are Laid by Cable Ships?

Recently there was a disruption on the SEA-ME-WE 4 cable connecting SEACOM to London through the Mediterranean Sea.Due to this we had various questions asking us exactly how undersea cables are laid. This short video explains the process SEACOM took while laying the undersea cable.With the global explosion of world-wide telecommunication, the demand for underwater communication has become increasingly requisite. Underwater cables are laid from specially designed cable ships which can stock thousands of miles of coiled cable in their holds. The special amplifiers, spaced about 25 miles apart, within these undersea cables, are used usually to boost up the voltage of the signals carried in them in order to prevent the losses in the cable.
However, the cable ships must take necessary measures while laying out the fiber optic cables in the sea bed to ensure that they do not break and the amplifiers do not get damaged, and can work for many decades uninterruptedly. 

Burj Khalifa

Burj Khalifa , known as Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration, is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is the tallest man-made structure in the world, at 829.8 m (2,722 ft).

Construction began on 21 September 2004, with the exterior of the structure completed on 1 October 2009. The building officially opened on 4 January 2010,and is part of the new 2 km²  development called Downtown Dubai at the 'First Interchange' along Sheikh Zayed Road, near Dubai's main business district.

In March 2009, Mohamed Ali Alabbar, chairman of the project's developer, Emaar Properties, said office space pricing at Burj Khalifa reached US$4,000 per sq ft (over US$43,000 per m²) and the Armani Residences, also in Burj Khalifa, sold for US$3,500 per sq ft (over US$37,500 per m²).He estimated the total cost for the project to be about US$1.5 billion.

The project's completion coincided with the global financial crisis of 2007–2012, and with vast overbuilding in the country; this led to high vacancies and foreclosures.With Dubai mired in debt from its huge ambitions, the government was forced to seek multibillion dollar bailouts from its oil-rich neighbor Abu Dhabi. Subsequently, in a surprise move at its opening ceremony, the tower was renamed Burj Khalifa, said to honor the UAE President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his crucial support.

Records

• Tallest existing structure: 829.8 m (2,722 ft) (previously KVLY-TV mast – 628.8 m/2,063 ft)
• Tallest structure ever built: 829.8 m (2,722 ft) (previously Warsaw radio mast – 646.38 m/2,121 ft)
• Tallest freestanding structure: 829.8 m (2,722 ft) (previously CN Tower – 553.3 m/1,815 ft)
• Tallest skyscraper (to top of spire): 829.8 m (2,722 ft) (previously Taipei 101 – 509.2 m/1,671 ft)
• Tallest skyscraper to top of antenna: 829.8 m (2,722 ft) (previously the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower – 527 m/1,729 ft)
• Building with most floors: 163 (previously Willis (formerly Sears) Tower – 108)
• Building with world's highest occupied floor
• World's highest elevator installation (situated inside a rod at the very top of the building)
• World's longest travel distance elevators
• Highest vertical concrete pumping (for a building): 606 m (1,988 ft)
• First world's tallest structure to include residential space
• World's second highest outdoor observation deck: 124th floor at 452 m (1,483 ft) When it first opened, the observation deck was the highest outdoor observation deck in the World, but it has since been surpassed by Cloud Top 488 on top of Canton Tower.
• World's highest installation of an aluminium and glass façade: 512 m (1,680 ft)
• World's highest nightclub: 144th floor
• World's highest restaurant (At.mosphere): 122nd floor at 442 m (1,450 ft) (previously 360, at a height of 350 m/1,148 ft in CN Tower)
• World's highest New Year display of fireworks.
• World's second highest swimming pool: 76th floor (world's highest swimming pool is located on 118th floor of Ritz-Carlton Hotel at International Commerce Centre, Hong Kong).

  Facts
  Official Name	Burj Khalifa
  Former / Other Name	Burj Dubai
  Type	building
  Status	Completed
  Country	United Arab Emirates
  City	Dubai
  Proposed	2003
  Start of Construction	2004
  Completion	2010
  Global Ranking	#1 tallest in the World
  Regional Ranking	#1 tallest in Middle East
  National Ranking	#1 tallest in UAE
  City Ranking	#1 tallest in Dubai Figures Height: Architectural 828.0 meter / 2717 feet Height: Occupied 584.5 meter / 1918 feet Height: To Tip 829.8 meter / 2723 feet Height: Observatory 452.1 meter / 1483 feet Floors Above Ground 163 Floors Below Ground 1 # of Elevators 58 Top Elevator Speed 10 m/s Tower GFA 309,473 m² / 3,331,140 ft² # of Apartments 900 # of Hotel Rooms 304 # of Parking Spaces 2957

  The below image is the picture taken from Burj Khalifa..

List of tallest buildings and structures in the world

The world's tallest man-made structure is the 829.8 m (2,722 ft) tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai,United Arab Emirates. The building gained the official title of "Tallest Building in the World" at its opening on January 4, 2010.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, an organization that certifies buildings as the "World’s Tallest", recognizes a building only if at least fifty percent of its height is made up of floor plates containing habitable floor area. Structures that do not meet this criterion, such as the CN Tower, are defined as "towers".

There are dozens of radio and television broadcasting towers which measure over 600 metres (about 2,000 ft) in height, and only the tallest are recorded in publicly available information sources.

Category	Structure	Country	City	Height (metres)	Height (feet)	Year Built	Coordinates
Skyscraper	Burj Khalifa	United Arab Emirates	Dubai	829.8	2,722	2010	25°11′50.0″N55°16′26.6″E
Self supporting tower	Tokyo Sky Tree	Japan	Tokyo	634	2,080	2011	35°42′36.5″N139°48′39″E
Guyed Mast	KVLY-TV mast	United States	Blanchard	628.8	2,063	1963	47°20′31.85″N97°17′21.13″W
Clock building	Abraj Al Bait Towers	Saudi Arabia	Mecca	601	1,972	2011	21°25′08″N39°49′35″E
Mast radiator	Lualualei VLF transmitter	United States	Lualualei	458	1,503	1962	21°25′11.87″N158°08′53.67″W ; 21°25′13.38″N158°09′14.35″W
Twin towers	Petronas Twin Towers	Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	452	1,482	1998	3°09′27.45″N101°42′40.7″E; 3°09′29.45″N101°42′43.4″E
Chimney	Ekibastuz GRES-2 Power Station	Kazakhstan	Ekibastusz	419.7	1,377	1987	52°1′26.3″N75°28′34.5″E
Radar	Dimona Radar Facility	Israel	Dimona	400	1,312	2008	30°58′6.93″N35°05′49.64″E ; 30°58′32.46″N35°05′55.25″E
Lattice tower	Kiev TV Tower	Ukraine	Kiev	385	1,263	1973	50°28′16.49″N30°27′11.97″E
Electricity pylon	Zhoushan Island Overhead Powerline Tie	China	Damao	370	1,214	2009	29°56′2.78″N122°2′10.12″E ; 29°54′41.39″N122°1′26.38″E
Partially guyed tower	Gerbrandy Tower	Netherlands	IJsselstein	366.8	1,203	1961	52°00′36.24″N05°03′12.87″E
Guyed tubular steel mast	TV Tower Vinnytsia	Ukraine	Vinnytsia	354	1,161	1961	49°14′30.04″N28°25′25.25″E
Bridge pillar	Millau Viaduct	France	Millau	342	1,122	2004	44°05′09.97″N03°01′17.94″E
Meteorological tower	Obninsk Meteorological tower	Russia	Obninsk	315	1034	1958	55°06′42″N36°35′34″E
Blaw-Knox Tower	Lakihegy Tower	Hungary	Szigetszentmiklós-Lakihegy	314	1,031	1933, 1968	47°22′23″N19°00′16″E
Dam	Nurek Dam	Tajikistan	Nurek	300	984	1980	38°22′17.09″N69°20′53.57″E
Concrete dam	Grande Dixence Dam	Switzerland	Val d'Hérens	285	935	1965	46°4′49.89″N7°24′13.13″E
Minaret	Hassan II Mosque	Morocco	Casablanca	210	689	1993	33°36′28.71″N7°37′58.16″W
Wind turbine	Two on lattice towers	Poland	Nowy Tomyśl	210	689	2012
Cooling tower	Niederaussem Power Station	Germany	Niederaussem	200	656	2003	50°59′45.91″N6°40′16.79″E
Monument	Gateway Arch	United States	St. Louis	192	630	1965	38°37′28.62″N90°11′5.87″W
Water tower	Main tower of Kuwait Towers	Kuwait	Kuwait City	187	614	1979	29°23′22.75″N48°00′11.57″E
Wooden structure	ATLAS-I at Kirtland Air Force Base	United States	Albuquerque	180	600	1980	35.029898°N 106.557574°W

Solar Powered Touchdown Concept Car

 Touch Down is a futuristic car concept which provides you a glimpse of what a green four-wheel drive may look like 20 years hence. Designed by Guo Ke, the concept recently won the Silver Award of Best Harmonious Beauty at the First “Science & Future” International Concept Car Design Contest. The completely zero emissions car runs on batteries charged by solar or wind power plants. Touch Down’s rear is equipped with a battery tank which contains a total of six high-capacity batteries that can be removed and recharged independently. Green credentials apart, this futuristic car which claims to take you on a ride at the speed of an aircraft has an eye-catching sleek design with a low body and electric motors in its tires allowing in-wheel drive.

YEE flying car concept

YEE is an ingenious vehicle that is capable of transforming into a flying machine instantly. Simply by upturning the front wheels sideways and rear wheels to the outside back, this interesting concept vehicle would take you away from a hectic traffic jam. The concept car has been envisioned to be powered by solar panels spread over its roof.

 

 Three Chinese students from South China University of Technology(SCUT), Jiazhe Pan, Lai and Zhu Wenxi Zexin devised the concept YEE, a flying car, simply. They have created a concept car that can evolve on land and in the air.

For land mode, the wings are folded down and through the small wheels at their ends. Note the flying car has only two “real “ rear wheels.

Although the concept YEE has won the “Gold Award for Best Creative Future ” in Beijing, it is obviously impossible to achieve as presented in the current state of our technologies.