A startup aims to take space sightseers to the edge of Earth's atmosphere, with Space Perspective planning to launch balloon rides from Space Florida. The latest example of space tourism, the six hour balloon trips will include two hours at the very fringes of space, 100,000 feet above sea level.
Google is notorious for making experiments that it eventually shuts down, regardless of the popularity of said experiment. That's especially true with apps or software where the investment and costs are far lower than with physical products. Of late, however, Google has mostly relegated those app experiments to its Area 120 skunkworks team and it is indeed permanently shutting down one such project but not exactly on a whim.
SpaceX has made history twice last week in launching two NASA astronauts and docking the Crew Dragon capsule with the International Space Station, a first for a commercial spacecraft. Although it was just the first of many planned crewed missions, CEO Elon Musk seems intent on making sure the company remembers what it's really all about, launching 100 or more people into space aboard the Starship and its future kin.
The TSA is changing the way you'll go through airport security, with screening updates to try to stem the COVID-19 pandemic ahead of an expected uptick in travel over the summer. The US Transportation Security Administration had already adjusted its policies as coronavirus took hold in states across the country; now, it plans to make new changes nationwide by mid-June.
Coronavirus has cut US air travel to a fraction of what it was, with COVID-19 guidelines including stay-at-home orders reducing flyers to a bare trickle, the TSA has confirmed. With many US states on lockdown by governor order, and the general advice being to maintain social distance and avoid unnecessary travel, the knock-on impact to how many people are passing through airports has been huge.
The Real ID deadline has been pushed back, giving travelers a temporary reprieve from having to swap their driver's licenses and state ID cards in order to fly. Though it promises to bring more security to forms of identification used by airlines to allow passengers onto planes, Real ID has been criticized for confusing travelers and forcing them to visit the DMV in order to apply for the upgraded cards.
Today Delta CEO Ed Bastian sent an internal letter with a list of actions that'll be taken to "protect the financial position of the company". This set of actions includes an "overall capacity reduction in the next few months of 40 percent - the largest capacity reduction in Delta's history, including 2001." While the company will maintain service to London, England, they're also complying with the 30-day ban on travel to and from continental Europe announced the night of March 12th (Wednesday).
A special limited time experience is appearing at Hotel X Toronto in March in which the "Nintendo Switch Suite" is made available. Hotel X Toronto's teamed up with Nintendo of Canada to benefit Starlight Children's Foundation with proceeds from a transformed Presidential Suite. The suite is designed "for social gaming with friends" and will cost guests approximately $500 per night.
There are a lot of factors to consider when your ultimate packing goal is to only travel with one bag. Do you opt for one with wheels, go fashionably hand-carried, or pick a backpack? Over the years I've developed a preference for the latter, and lucky for me there has been a big surge of backpacks over the past couple of years. The options range from startups through to the likes of Tumi, Nomatic, Wandrd, and Boundary Supply, and you'd be forgiven for finding it all overwhelming.
Aggressive controls around travel and CDC testing have been successful so far in keeping coronavirus cases in the US minimal, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said today, though experts there warned that community spread of COVID-19 is "very possible - even likely" in America. The update comes as the US Department of State repatriated 329 citizens on chartered flights from the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
For years, American drivers have looked on enviously at their European counterparts driving pop-up camper vans, but now Mercedes is sharing the love. Unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show 2020 today, the 2020 Mercedes-Benz Weekender is a pop-up camper based on the Metris van but revamped for road trips.
It may have been its best-selling model but the 737 Max could now become the plane that destroys Boeing. The plane has been grounded for almost a year now and it seems it will take more than a year before it can spread its wings again. But even if it finally gets the green light, Boeing might have some trouble restarting its pipelines now that it has put the production of the problematic plane on hold.