Recently near Timmins, Ontario Canada, researchers found a small pocket of water that is estimated to be 2.64 billion years old.  The water was found one and a half miles below the earth’s surface, in the oldest known part of the North American crust, the Canadian Shield.  The depth of this pocket of water is the exciting part due to the fact that it was left untouched and untampered with by standard erosion and seismic activity, which means this pocket of water contains the gasses from that period 2 and a half billions years ago, giving us a glimpse at environmental conditions of ancient Earth.

However rather than just teaching us about the Earth’s past, it makes scientists excited over the possibility that there also could be untouched pockets of water on Mars.  The researchers found the Timmins pocket had as much hydrogen gas the water found within hydrothermal vents.  That level of hydrogen has been known for creating unique ecosystems that thrive in strange and harsh environments.  This information could definitely be used to advance scientists beliefs that there could be alien life living under the surface of mars.

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The idea behind this tiny remote-controlled craft, as designed by aerospace engineer Larry Friese, is similar to what we see with hovercraft or with the “air boats” that are used to transverse certain waters in the southern United States. Instead of having part of the boat below the surface of the water and having a propeller spin away to push you forward, you have an airplane-style propeller above the water that effectively pushes the air and thrusts your craft forward. Meanwhile, the entirety of your waterbound vehicle stays above the surface of the water.

The FrankenDrone USV works in much the same way. It has that propeller out the back and then its flotation pontoons sit on the surface of the water, allowing it to skim across even the shallowest of ponds. Steering is done by swiveling the propeller to either side. The USV could then be used for any number of purposes, attaching cameras, microphones, lights or whatever else.

The project is currently seeking funding via Kickstarter with a goal of $25,000. Check out the video to see the FrankenDrone in action.

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From speed boats to jet skis, there are certainly plenty of great on-the-water recreation methods out there. Just in time for the summer, comes a very unique revolutionary water toy, the Quadrofoil. Developed by three Slovenian designers in just six months, the Quadrofoil concept has had such good reception that it is already planning a production run of 100 units this year. A concept to marketing time of less than a year is impressive without a doubt, and from 2013 onward the creators plan to produce roughly 10,000 a year.

So what is the Quadrofoil exactly? It is a two-person electric craft that essentially uses for hydrofoils to ‘float’ right above the surface of a body of water. This means you don’t create huge wakes, and, in part thanks to the electric design, it has minimal impact on the marine wildlife within the waters.

The downside of this current model is two-fold though, first it costs $19,100 US Dollars and an additional $6,370 deposit to reserve a spot on the coveted waiting list. The second part of the downside? The device runs on a 3.7 kW electric motor, and can only top up to 25mph (22 knots). Alright, so this is still an impressive craft, and 25MPH is still plenty fast enough to have a ton of fun on the water, but personally if I were to spend $20,000 on a water craft, I’d wait for a second generation model and probably get something a little more practical. The developers are already working on the next version, which will be much faster from the sounds of it.

The great news about the current model Quadrofoil is that it’s 3.7 kW motor is low enough in power that you don’t have to register it, have a PWC license, insurance or navigation permit in the European Union. As for the states? It’s hard to say how the device will be classified at this point.

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What you see in the above picture is Robojelly, a robot jellyfish designed by the researchers at Virginia Tech, which could be very useful in the future for underwater surveillance or search and rescue operations. You might be thinking that there is nothing new about a robot inspired by nature, but the robot jellyfish has a new trick up its sleeve. Theoretically, the Robojelly will go on working without ever running out of energy, as long as it’s in water.

The Robojelly is powered by hydrogen and is made up of materials called shape-memory alloys. Just in case you are preparing to refer to Wikipedia, shape-memory alloys are materials which are capable of returning to their original shape when heat is applied. The robot mimics a jellyfish’s movements via eight moving segments wrapped in platinum-coated carbon nanotubes.

When the oxygen and hydrogen in the water react with platinum powder, heat will be produced. The alloys will change shape due to this heat and propulsion occurs all thanks to the opening and closing movements of the segments.

The research paper has been published in the journal of Smart Materials and Structures and the project was led by Yonas Tadesse. According to him, “To our knowledge, this is the first successful powering of an underwater robot using external hydrogen as a fuel source”.

In the video, you will find an electricity-powered version of the Robojelly swimming in a water tank. The hydrogen-powered robot needs more work to be done on it and has only been tested while it’s clamped to the tank’s bottom. They are currently working to increase its maneuverability.

So, this is a robot which can stay underwater for a very long time as it can refuel itself from the water around it. That’s certainly very innovative. And yeah, almost forgot, the research is US Navy-backed, and you know what that means. Enemy submarines beware!

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If you’ve ever dreamed of flying around with a jetpack, that dream will soon become a reality… if you happen to have $99,500 burning a hole in your pocket. As a quick refresher, the
JetLev R200 jetpack straps onto your back, sucking in the surrounding water and spitting it out at such force that you get launched several feet in the air. You’ll be tethered to a small autonomous boat that contains the propulsion engine, fuel, and all doo-dahs that make this system possible. The water gets channeled from this boat to your jetpack via a 33-foot hose.

How much power does this generate? Quite a bit, actually. The Jetlev can generate up to 500 ft-lbs of thrust from its four-stroke 250hp engine, though that’s been dialed down to 430 ft-lbs for some inexplicable reason. Even then, a 150-pound user can get up to 28 feet in the air, traveling at up to 22mph. You get about one hour of full throttle smiles via the 26-gallon tank; cruise more slowly and it’ll last two to three hours.

Is this useful? Not in the least. It’s meant to be a recreational toy and that’s exactly how it’s going to be sold. Yeah, it’s a rich man’s toy, but if being rich means I get a jet pack, then I want to be rich. Expect Jetlev to ship about 70 units starting this month to North and South America, Caribbean, Asia-Pacific, and South Africa. Later in the year, they’ll start shipping to Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, and other Central America and Asia Pacific markets.

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Let me explain.

As a kid, the idea of a jetpack was nothing short of the coolest thing people could ever possibly create. And the idea was simple enough: Strap some firepower to your back and fly anywhere.

But my mental image of the jetpack has taken a bit of a beating lately, and the Jetlev is doing nothing to reverse that trend.

First off, firepower seems to be passé. It started with the Solo Trek XFV in 2000, a jetpack that used wind turbines rather than spitting streams of fire. Fine, NASA’s on board. It can’t be that bad. At least it’s a start.

Somewhere along the line, though, someone got the idea that jetpacks should be powered by water. Enter Super Mario Sunshine in 2002, a video game where Mario trades his dinosaur for a water-powered jetpack. It’s iffy, but it’s self-contained, gets him around and serves its purpose of cleaning up the island.

Then that “Kick Ass” movie a year or two ago. I don’t think a real, fuel-burning jetpack has ever looked lamer than with that nerdy kid flying it while wearing a scuba suit. And the water theme continues.

Now, the Jetlev has taken the worst aspects of all of these upsetting jetpack wannabes and made them tourist-friendly. It’s tethered to a modified jetski by an oversized garden hose that only allows riders to hover at 30 feet above the water.

The jetski pumps water up the hose and through the downward-facing nozzles behind the rider’s shoulders, giving lift and forward momentum up to 22 mph. But there is not a single practical application of this $99,500 embarrassment aside from letting drunken college students parasail in front of the boat rather than behind it. You can’t even use it to clean up the island since doing so would run the jetski dry and cut your “fuel supply.”

In reality, this is nothing more than a glorified fire hose that’s been robbed of its life-saving purpose. For shame.

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