Modern warfare

THE RETURN OF THE TUNNEL BOMB: A MEDIEVAL TACTIC ON THE MODERN BATTLEFIELD

There has been an explosion of underground warfare in the last five years. From sophisticated cross-border Hezbollah attack tunnels discovered in northern Israel to defensive tunnels that criss-cross the urban battlefields of Syria, Iraq and the Philippines, a tactic familiar to history buffs has emerged as a characteristic of modern war. That’s why a group of scholars and practitioners recently gathered at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya in Israel for the first Subterranean Challenges in War and Peace conference and the inaugural meeting of the International Working Group on Subterranean Warfare. One of the many characteristics of subterranean warfare discussed at the conference stood out in particular—the use of tunnel bombs.

Tunnel bombs—or tunnel-borne improvised explosives devices (TBIEDs), to borrow from the nomenclature used to describe the many manifestations of improvised explosive devices—are exactly what they sound like: tunnels dug under enemy forces or fortifications for the purpose of blowing them up from underneath. And when executed effectively, the results can be devastating.

Nuclear security

Germany Aims To Close All Nuclear Plants By 2022

Germany is going forward with its plan to phase out nuclear reactors by 2022 as another nuclear power plant is going offline on December 31.

Power company EnBW has said that it would take the Philippsburg 2 reactor off the grid at 7 p.m. local time on New Year’s Eve.

This leaves Germany with six nuclear power plants that will have to close by 2022.

In the wake of the Fukushima disaster in Japan in 2011, Germany ordered the immediate shutdown of eight of its 17 reactors, and plans to phase out nuclear power plants entirely by 2022.

The Philippsburg 2 reactor near the city of Karlsruhe in southwestern Germany has provided energy for 35 years. The Philippsburg 1 reactor—opened in 1979—was taken offline in 2011.

Over the past few years, nuclear power generation in Germany has been declining with the shutdown of its nuclear plants, while electricity production from renewable sources has been rising.

International security

MoD proposed Russian membership of Nato in 1995, files reveal

Russia could have become an “associate member” of Nato 25 years ago if a Ministry of Defence proposal had gained support, according to confidential Downing Street files which also expose Boris Yeltsin’s drinking habits.

The suggestion, aimed at reversing a century of east-west antagonism, is revealed in documents released on Tuesday by the National Archives at Kew.

Presented by Malcolm Rifkind, then defence secretary, to a Chequers strategy summit, the plan was to dispel Kremlin suspicions of the alliance’s eastwards expansion.

In 1995, Yeltsin was president and the cold war over. Relations were in flux as a Russia tried to come to terms with shrunken international borders.

Health security

Zero gravity could cure cancer, 4 cancers had 80/90% of cells die off

Everyone can agree that cancer is a horrible disease and that it needs to be cured as soon as possible. But what if the answer to the cure lies in gravity?


Joshua Chou, a biomedical engineer from the University of Technology Sydney in Australia, seems to think so, and his experiments also seem to be reflecting that answer. Chou has conducted several experiments in the lab and aims to explain that zero gravity has the ability to cure cancer cells.

Chou's work is centered around finding out how the cancer cells find each other in the human body and develop into tumors, He believes that once gravity is removed out the equation that the cancer cells won't be able to "sense" each other and therefore develop into larger tumors.

Chou and his team have created the first microgravity device in Australia to test their theory out, and so far "When placed in a microgravity environment, 80 to 90 percent of the cells in the four different cancer types we tested - ovarian, breast, nose and lung - were disabled" - said Chou.

Spy work

Will the digital age kill off spying? CIA in crisis as facial recognition, biometrics and AI make it increasingly difficult for agents to maintain their cover abroad 

U.S. spies are no longer being tailed by foreign governments in about 30 different countries because advances in facial recognition, biometrics and artificial intelligence have made it almost impossible for the agents to hide. 

Whereas governments would once physically follow CIA officers, facial recognition at airports and general CCTV surveillance in those countries makes it far easier to track people.

It comes as U.S. intelligence agencies face a growing crisis in intelligence gathering, as developments in technology are making it increasingly more difficult to protect operatives and mask their digital footprints.

In one attempt to tackle the crisis, the CIA created a multi-million dollar program called the Station of the Future, intelligence officials revealed to Yahoo News. 

Public security

Thank the Second Amendment: Texas church shooting stopped in its tracks by armed hero

Many Democrats and liberal media figures sneer at the “good guy with a gun” narrative when it comes to the debate over gun control, dismissing it as a myth clung to by Bible-thumping rednecks. Yet, if there was ever a single incident to remind us just how wrong they are, it’s the tragic church shooting that was thankfully stopped in its tracks on Sunday.

An armed intruder interrupted a morning service at West Freeway Church of Christ near Fort Worth, Texas, disrupting the ceremony and shooting several worshiping Christians. At least two people are dead as a result, including the suspect, and one injured.

But things could have been much, much worse. Two armed people attending the service intervened and shot the attacker in his tracks after just seconds, undoubtedly saving many lives.

Election security

Russiagate Investigation Now Endangers Obama

Former US President Barack Obama is now in severe legal jeopardy, because the Russiagate investigation has turned 180 degrees; and he, instead of the current President, Donald Trump, is in its cross-hairs.

The biggest crime that a US President can commit is to try to defeat American democracy (the Constitutional functioning of the US Government) itself, either by working with foreign powers to take it over, or else by working internally within America to sabotage democracy for his or her own personal reasons. Either way, it’s treason (crime that is intended to, and does, endanger the continued functioning of the Constitution itself*), and Mr. Obama is now being actively investigated, as possibly having done this. The Russiagate investigation, which had formerly focused against the current US President, has reversed direction and now targets the prior President. Although he, of course, cannot be removed from office (since he is no longer in office), he is liable under criminal laws, the same as any other American would be, if he committed any crime while he was in office.

Nuclear security

Today, Everyone’s a Nuclear Spy


Tracking nuclear threats used to be the sole province of secret agents and analysts at high-powered government intelligence agencies. Not anymore.

Today, the world of new nuclear sleuths is straight out of the Star Wars bar scene.

Peering into the hidden nuclear activities of North Korea, Iran, and other suspected proliferators are journalists, hobbyists, professors, students, political-opposition groups, advocacy groups, nonprofit organizations, for-profit companies, think tanks, and former senior government officials with informal links to international weapons inspectors, American policy makers, and intelligence leaders.

Among this wildly eclectic mix of individuals and organizations, some are amateurs. Others have extensive expertise. Some are driven by profit, or political causes. Others are driven by a mission to protect the United States and reduce global nuclear risks. Nearly all harbor an obsessive interest in nuclear secrets and finding creative ways to unlock them.

Climate security

Bank of England chief Mark Carney issues climate change warning

The world will face irreversible heating unless firms shift their priorities soon, the outgoing head of the Bank of England has told the BBC.

Mark Carney said the financial sector had begun to curb investment in fossil fuels – but far too slowly.

He said leading pension fund analysis "is that if you add up the policies of all of companies out there, they are consistent with warming of 3.7-3.8C".

Mr Carney made the comments in a pre-recorded BBC Radio 4 Today interview.

The interview, by presenter Mishal Husain, is one of several items on the programme which are focusing on climate change, on the day the show is guest edited by environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg.

Mr Carney added that the rise of almost 4C was "far above the 1.5 degrees that the people say they want and governments are demanding”.

WWII history

Nazi Germany's King Tiger Heavy Tank: Super Weapon or Super Flop?

Nazi Germany's Tiger is arguably the most famous tank of World War II. With its thick armor and devastating 88-millimeter gun, the Mark VI—or Tiger I—soon earned a devastating reputation on the battlefield.

Designed as a breakthrough tank for breaching enemy defenses, and allocated to a handful of special heavy tank battalions, the sixty-ton Tiger I seemed to have it all: firepower, armor and for an early 1940s vehicle that weighed as much as today's M-1 Abrams, it was fairly agile. With its square, castle-like shape and long cannon, the Tiger I even looked deadly. But Hitler's generals and weapons designers were not satisfied. With Teutonic perfectionism, they complained that the Tiger I's KwK 36 gun was not the most powerful version of the 88-millimeter cannon (not that Allied tankers would have noticed the difference). Even before the Tiger I debuted on the battlefield (floundering in the swamps near Leningrad in an ill-advised attack in September 1942), work had begun on a successor.

Enter the Tiger II, or Konigstiger (King Tiger). At seventy-five tons, it was bigger than its predecessor. Its longer-barreled (and thus higher velocity) KwK 43 88-millimeter cannon could penetrate five inches of armor at a range of two kilometers (1.2 miles). With Sherman and T-34 crews having about two inches of frontal armor between them and eternity, no wonder a supersized Tiger must have seemed the devil on treads.

Drug smuggling

Uruguay seizes 6 tons of cocaine worth $1B in country’s largest bust

Naval and customs officers in Uruguay seized a staggering six tons of cocaine this week, with authorities calling it the country's biggest bust ever.

The National Armada said in a press release that on Dec. 26 officers at the Montevideo port were checking four shipping containers with soy flour destined for Lome, the capital of Togo in West Africa.

Authorities said a scanner flagged “abnormalities” in the shipment, which turned out to be a total of 4,003 bricks of cocaine – about 4.4 tons of the drug. One container contained 3,089 bricks of cocaine, each weighing about 2.4 pounds.

Officials estimated the value of the drug shipment at $1 billion in the European market.

According to news reports, the export firm had not transported much soy flour in the past, and the flour isn't widely consumed in Africa, raising suspicions that led to a careful search of the containers.

Nearly a third of the cocaine consumed in Europe is smuggled there via Africa, local media reported.Uruguay customs director Jaime Borgiani said it was not known exactly where the cocaine originated from, but it was loaded on to trucks Tuesday at a ranch about 180 miles from Montevideo.

Economic security

Disaster for Brussels as study predicts EU’s share of world trade to collapse

THE SHARE of world trade occupied by EU member states is to collapse in the coming decades according to a new study in a dramatic blow to Brussels.

Currently the 28 EU member states make up a little over 22 percent of world gross domestic product (GDP). This is down on the over 36 percent the same nations possessed in 1960.

However according to a new survey this will fall further, to just 9.9 percent in 2100.

The real figure is likely to be even lower as the study doesn’t incorporate the UK upcoming withdrawal from the EU.

Britain is set to leave the EU on January 31, with Boris Johnson having secured a Parliamentary majority for this objective.

The study was conducted by the University of Denver’s Pardee Centre.

Nuclear security

Nuclear power plant in UAE risks sparking arms race, expert warns

Four nuclear reactors being built in the United Arab Emirates could spark a nuclear arms race in the Middle East and leave the Persian Gulf at risk of a Chernobyl-style disaster, a leading nuclear scientist has claimed.

In a report, Dr Paul Dorfman, chairman of the Nuclear Consulting Group, warned the UAE's Barakah nuclear power plant lacks key safety features, poses a threat to the environment, is a potential target for terrorists and could be part of plans to develop nuclear weapons.

"The motivation for building this may lie hidden in plain sight," Dr Dorfman told the Telegraph. "They are seriously considering nuclear proliferation."

Dr Dorfman, who is also an honorary senior research associate at University College London's Energy Institute, has served as a nuclear adviser to the British government and led the European Environment Agency response to the Fukushima disaster.

Weapons

America's Next Super Weapon: 'Electromagnetic' Artillery Shells?

If the U.S. Army has its way, America’s next secret weapon may be an electromagnetic pulse artillery shell that paralyzes an enemy city.

These special shells won’t carry high explosive. Instead they will emit EMP bursts, or some other non-kinetic technology, to disrupt the computers, radio communications, Internet links and other ties that bind modern societies. And do so without creating any physical damage.

This is sort of a twenty-first-century version of the neutron bomb, that notorious Cold War weapon designed to kill Soviet soldiers through a burst of radiation, while inflicting little damage to property. Except this weapon targets the radio frequency networks that keep a nation functioning.

The concept is expressed in a single paragraph in a new Army research proposal:

Extensive use of wireless RF [radio frequency] networking for critical infrastructure and communications systems provides an alternative attack vector for the neutralization of an adversary’s underlying industrial, civil, and communications infrastructure without the destruction of the hardware associated with those systems.

War on terror

Putin thanks Trump for foiling new year attacks

Russia's President Vladimir Putin has thanked US counterpart Donald Trump for intelligence that helped foil "acts of terrorism" on Russian soil, according to a Kremlin statement.

Mr Putin and Mr Trump spoke on the phone on Sunday, it said.

The Kremlin said the information came via intelligence services, but it provided no further details.

Russian media is reporting the discovery of a plot to attack St Petersburg over the new year period.

Tass news agency says two Russian nationals have been arrested and plans to attack a mass gathering were seized, according to a spokesperson from the FSB, the Russian intelligence agency.

Mr Putin and Mr Trump have spoken on the phone and in person various times since the latter took office.

Data security

EU crisis: Von der Leyen under pressure over Germany scandal after phone wiped of evidence

Mrs von der Leyen, Germany’s former defence minister and a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, only took up her new post at the Commission at the start of the month. She insisted she has nothing to hide - but she is nevertheless being investigated by a German parliamentary committee, to whom she is scheduled to give evidence next month.

The controversy centres on how lucrative defence contracts were awarded to outside consultants without proper oversight, as well as claims that the deals were facilitated by a network of personal contacts, according to Politico.

Grilled by German newspaper Spiegel on the matter, she insisted she was not concealing anything, adding: "I've turned in both mobile phones that I used as defence minister.

"You'll have to ask what happened to them there. The devices belong to the ministry, so they had to be returned."

She said she had only learned about the data deletion “from the papers”, adding: "I haven't been in the ministry since July 17th.”

The committee investigating the contracts, which will question Mrs von der Leyen on February 13, believes text messages on the device may shed light on what if anything she knows about the scandal.

Outer space

China launches its largest rocket ever, the Long March-5

China launched its largest-ever rocket this week: The Long March-5 Y3 rocket took off from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in south China’s Hainan Province, carrying a Shijian-20 satellite. The launch took place at 8:45 p.m. Beijing time on Friday night, as reported by China’s state news agency Xinhua. Just over half an hour later, the satellite achieved its planned orbit and the China National Space Administration (CNSA) declared the mission a success.

The rocket stands at 57 meters (187 feet) tall, and is 5 meters in diameter around its core stage, with four boosters each of which is 3.35 meters in diameter. This makes the Long March-5 the largest Chinese carrier rocket to date, with a total weight of 870 tonnes and producing thrust of over 1000 tonnes at takeoff.

The two-stage rocket can carry a payload of up to 25 tonnes into low Earth orbit. Alternatively, for more distant launches it can carry 14 tonnes into geostationary transfer orbit, which is an elliptical orbit that is used to reach the geosynchronous orbit which holds most satellites.

Economic security

Here’s how China became the world’s No. 2 economy and how it plans on being No. 1

China is on the cusp of keeping a big promise — a vow to double its GDP and income in a decade and take the country to the forefront of the global economic power structure.

The nation now faces the challenge of keeping the momentum going in the face of mounting challenges.

The ascension began in the late 1970s with a move to more open markets. It continued through aggressive central planning, utilizing the advantages of cheap labor, a devalued currency and a robust factory system to spread its products around the world.

All of that changed the economy from slumbering rural decay to a prospering diverse superpower. The country now seems on a inexorable path to No. 1.

China has climbed to No. 2 in the world, with a GDP of $13.1 trillion that, while still trailing the U.S., keeps getting closer. Forecasters expect that growth just north of 6% in 2020 will get to the stated goal of doubling the economy from 2011-20.

Radiation safety

U.S. tests ways to sweep space clean of radiation after nuclear attack

The U.S. military thought it had cleared the decks when, on 9 July 1962, it heaved a 1.4-megaton nuclear bomb some 400 kilometers into space: Orbiting satellites were safely out of range of the blast. But in the months that followed the test, called Starfish Prime, satellites began to wink out one by one, including the world’s first communications satellite, Telstar. There was an unexpected aftereffect: High-energy electrons, shed by radioactive debris and trapped by Earth’s magnetic field, were fritzing out the satellites’ electronics and solar panels.

Starfish Prime and similar Soviet tests might be dismissed as Cold War misadventures, never to be repeated. After all, what nuclear power would want to pollute space with particles that could take out its own satellites, critical for communication, navigation, and surveillance? But military planners fear North Korea might be an exception: It has nuclear weapons but not a single functioning satellite among the thousands now in orbit. They quietly refer to a surprise orbital blast as a potential “Pearl Harbor of space.”

Maritime security

Japan to send warship, aircraft to Middle East to protect vessels

Japan will send a warship and patrol planes to protect Japanese ships in the Middle East as the situation in the region, from which it sources nearly 90 percent of its crude oil imports, remains volatile, a document approved by the cabinet showed on Friday.

Under the plan, a helicopter-equipped destroyer and two P-3C patrol planes will be dispatched for information-gathering aimed at ensuring safe passage for Japanese vessels through the region.

If there are any emergencies, a special order would be issued by the Japanese defence minister to allow the forces to use weapons to protect ships in danger.

Friction between Iran and the United States has increased since last year, when US President Donald Trump pulled the US out of a 2015 international nuclear deal with Iran and re-imposed sanctions on it, crippling its economy.

In May and June, there were several attacks on international merchant vessels, including the Japanese-owned tanker Kokuka Courageous, in the region, which the US blamed on Iran.

Environment security

INTERPOL exposes global marine pollution crimes

An INTERPOL-led global law enforcement operation involving 61 countries has identified thousands of illicit activities behind severe marine pollution as well as hundreds of violations and exposed serious cases of contamination worldwide.

Codenamed 30 Days at Sea 2.0, the month-long (1-31 October) operation gathered more than 200 enforcement authorities worldwide for concerted action across all continents.

Illustrating the severe global extent of marine pollution crime, preliminary operational results have already revealed more than 3,000 offences detected during 17,000 inspections.

The offences – such as illegal discharges at sea, in rivers, or in coastal areas – were found to have been committed primarily to avoid the cost of compliance with environmental legislation.

As part of Operation 30 Days at Sea 2.0, INTERPOL hosted an Operational Command Centre (OCC) in Singapore to focus on the illegal trade in plastic waste, a key threat to marine environment security. The OCC brought key countries together to trigger investigations into cases of illegal export or import of plastic waste.

Drones

FAA announces new system for remotely identifying and tracking drones

The Federal Aviation Administration is implementing a new system that will allow comprehensive nationwide tracking of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)—commonly known as drones. The new system will enable regulators, law enforcement, and other interested parties to track drone movements and in some cases obtain identifying information. All new drones will be required to comply with the proposed rules within three years after the regulations go into effect—but that's still months away.

The lack of a comprehensive system for drone identification and tracking has been a long-standing barrier to the adoption of commercial drone technology. Companies like Amazon and UPS, for example, have long dreamed of making package deliveries using unmanned vehicles. But such efforts were blocked by law enforcement agencies worried about unidentified drones being used for terrorism, drug smuggling, or other crimes.

The new proposal will create a comprehensive realtime database with information about almost every unmanned vehicle in the sky. That will allow law enforcement to quickly identify registered vehicles. And it will make it easier to catch vehicles that are flying without authorization.

Air defense

Russia developing air defense systems based on new physical principles

Russia is developing air defense systems based on new physical principles, Air Defense Force Chief Lieutenant-General Alexander Leonov said on Wednesday.

"Eventually, there are plans to arm air defense troops with systems based on new physical principles, which are currently being developed," the general said in an interview with the Defense Ministry’s Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper.

New physical principles are a notional term used to underline that the weapon’s destructive factors are based on processes and phenomena that were not earlier applied for military purposes. The weapons based on these principles include laser and microwave guns, sonic weapons, electromagnetic bombs and others.

Weapons

The Hypersonic Age Is About To Make Snipers Super Soldiers

Russian weapons manufacturer Lobaev Arms has announced that they can produce small arms ammunition with a muzzle velocity of 2,000 m/s.

According to Lobaev co-cofounder Vladislav Lobaev, “we are intensely researching this topic. I think that, with a certain degree of government funding, we are in a position to produce sniper rounds traveling at 2000 meters per second within a year. That is already hypersonic speed.”

Snipers have to account for a host of external ballistics factors including wind values, elevation, and even air density to maximize accuracy. These estimations have to be made under frequently narrow time constraints and vary in complexity depending on target distance and the severity of environmental factors.

But hypersonic rounds translate into potential performance gains on several fronts. Everything else being equal, their drastically faster travel speeds would make it easier for snipers to line up their shots by minimizing the impact of external factors. Hypersonic rounds would also give the target less time to move out of the bullet’s travel path. Lobaev told a Russian defense publication that speeds over Mach 5 would “allow shots at up to 1,000 meters without any adjustments.”

Aerospace

Boeing 737 Max: new 'troubling communications' sent to regulators

The embattled US aircraft maker Boeing has reportedly sent US regulators “troubling communications” related to the development of the 737 MAX – on the same day that the CEO, Dennis Muilenburg, was forced to step aside.

According to a senior Boeing executive, the documents include new messages from Mark Forkner, a senior company test pilot who complained of “egregious” erratic behavior in flight simulator tests of Boeing’s MCAS anti-stall system, and referred to “Jedi mind tricks” to persuade regulators to approve the plane.

The executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Seattle Times that the Forkner communications contain the same kind of “trash talking” about Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) regulators as the earlier messages released in October.

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The release is likely to deepen the sense of crisis enveloping Boeing, which has taken more than $8bn in costs and lost more than 20% of its market value since the 737 variant was grounded in March following two crashes. Last week, the company said it would temporarily halt production of the troubled jet.

Nuclear security

Scientists warn that giving control of nuclear weapons to artificial intelligence could lead to nuclear war

Scientists have warned that control of nuclear missile being handed to artificial intelligence could lead to a 'Terminator-style' apocalyptic war.

Top nuclear scientists have warned that the technology could turn on humans like in the famed Arnold Schwarzenegger 'Terminator' films.

A report by experts at Cornell University warns that an increasing 'automation bias' could allow machines to 'slip out of control.'

Russia and China may be putting more faith in the technology in order to catch up to America's capabilities, despite unfathomable risk.  

It says military powers might be lulled into believing AI is the safest route but the technology can bring 'insidious risks that do not manifest until an accident occurs.' 

The scientists note that Russia has already started developing an autonomous nuclear torpedo, called Poseidon or Status-6, which they believe could start a trend.

Law enforcement

Police take over drug dealers’ phone numbers and text users in new fight against county lines gangs

Police are seizing control of drug dealers' phone numbers and texting users themselves in an attempt to combat county lines gangs.

Officers in Sussex have become the first in the country to test a pioneering new tool that allows them to get phone lines turned over to their control

Drug dealing telecommunications restriction orders (DDTROs) mean that officers can disrupt the flow of messages between dealers and users, and therefore the flow of drugs.

Detective Superintendent Jo Banks, the senior detective leading the fight against county lines drug gangs in Sussex, said : "It's a disruptions tool. But actually what we are then doing is messaging out to the users from that line to say what the alternatives are for them to actually get some help and try and get out of providing that demand for the drugs line in the first place.

Outer space

Lasers learn to accurately spot space junk

Chinese researchers have improved the accuracy in detecting space junk in earth's orbit, providing a more effective way to plot safe routes for spacecraft maneuvers.

"The possibility of successfully navigating an asteroid field is approximately 3,720 to one!" exclaimed C-3PO as Han Solo directed the Millennium Falcon into an asteroid field in "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back." Earth's orbit is nowhere near as dangerous, but after more than half a century of space activity, collisions between jettisoned engines and disintegrated spacecraft have formed a planetary scrapheap that spacecraft need to evade.

Scientists have developed space junk identification systems, but it has proven tricky to pinpoint the swift, small specks of space litter. A unique set of algorithms for laser ranging telescopes, described in the Journal of Laser Applications, has significantly improving the success rate of space debris detection.

Innovations & technologies

Airborne Device Detects Multiple Submerged Submarines

An Italian company that specializes in aerospace, defense, and security, has recently developed a new airborne system capable of detecting and tracking multiple underwater submarines. Developed by Leonardo, The Ultra-LIght SonicS Enhanced System (ULISSES) has recently successfully completed a live sea trial in Italian waters. The system managed to accurately locate several, simulated submarines by processing signals sent from 64 sonobuoys in the water. 

The successful sea trails have cleared the way for the system to go into production by next year. 

One of the most important technologies utilized in submarine warfare is sonar. Until the invention of sonar technology, the second submarine would submerge underwater they would effectively become invisible. Thanks to sonar technology, it is possible to listen to other submerged submarines and locate their location.

Submarines utilizing sonar works by sending out a “ping” that would bounce off underwater objects and sensors onboard the submarine will detect the angle and time it took for the “ping” to return to the submarine. Throughout the years, sonar technology has developed and advanced, however the general concept of sonar technology stayed the same. 

Weather security

Scientists develop a new method to predict El Niño’s extreme weather 2x early

El Niño, which roughly translates to little boy in Spanish, was originally coined by fishermen off the coast of South America to signify the emergence of warm water in the Pacific Ocean near the beginning of a new year.


The events caused by El Niño, which is an abnormal warming of ocean temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific, can have a global impact as it triggers extreme weather conditions.

Scientists have only been able to forecast El Niño weather events around six months in advance. However, a new method could help predict the turbulent weather forecast a year early, giving the public advance warning of conditions that might contribute to extreme and dangerous weather. The previous lead time was six months.

A study, published in the journal PNAS this week, uses an approach to forecast El Niño based on the events that took place during the year before.