Need to get to Mars? This inflatable shield could help

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Need to get to Mars? This inflatable shield could help

NASA's LOFTID (Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator) aims to help spacecrafts slow down using an inflatable heat shield, which could cool temperatures and allow for heavier payloads.

01:14 - Source: CNN Business

Mission Ahead 15 videos

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Need to get to Mars? This inflatable shield could help

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How a Brooklyn company will make your home greener for free

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This solar startup can harness massive amounts of power from the sun

This solar startup can harness massive amounts of power from the sun

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See how one company is fighting fire -- with fireballs

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Air Company was founded in 2019 by Gregory Constantine and Dr. Stafford Sheehan.

Watch how this company creates jet fuel from thin air

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Former NBA champion is building a unique type of housing in the Bahamas

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Chipotle is testing a robotic tortilla chip maker. See it in action

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The Pillars of Creation are set off in a kaleidoscope of colour in the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope's near-infrared-light view. The pillars look like arches and spires rising out of a desert landscape, but are filled with semi-transparent gas and dust, and ever changing. This is a region where young stars are forming -- or have barely burst from their dusty cocoons as they continue to form. Protostars are the scene-stealers in this Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) image. These are the bright red orbs that sometimes appear with eight diffraction spikes. When knots with sufficient mass form within the pillars, they begin to collapse under their own gravity, slowly heat up, and eventually begin shining brightly. Along the edges of the pillars are wavy lines that look like lava. These are ejections from stars that are still forming. Young stars periodically shoot out jets that can interact within clouds of material, like these thick pillars of gas and dust. This sometimes also results in bow shocks, which can form wavy patterns like a boat does as it moves through water. These young stars are estimated to be only a few hundred thousand years old, and will continue to form for millions of years. Although it may appear that near-infrared light has allowed Webb to "pierce through" the background to reveal great cosmic distances beyond the pillars, the interstellar medium stands in the way, like a drawn curtain. This is also the reason why there are no distant galaxies in this view. This translucent layer of gas blocks our view of the deeper universe. Plus, dust is lit up by the collective light from the packed "party" of stars that have burst free from the pillars. It's like standing in a well-lit room looking out a window -- the interior light reflects on the pane, obscuring the scene outside and, in turn, illuminating the activity at the party inside. Webb's new view of the Pillars of Creation will help researchers revamp models of star formation.

A giant hand? A galloping horse? See stunning image captured by James Webb Telescope

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Watch the first electric Rolls-Royce illuminate its doors and ceiling

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Watch this rocket ignite using fuel that you can eat

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Can't sleep? This band-aid-like sleep tracker can help find out why

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BIOMILQ, a North Carolina-based startup, is working to create "human milk" outside of the body.

See how startup BIOMILQ is making 'human milk' in the lab

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Startup jumping into space race with 3D printed rockets

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This company wants to cut your grocery bill in half

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