nedko.m - Slashdot User

Submission + - Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 satellite data released by the government (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by nedko.m on Tuesday May 27, 2014 @05:19AM

nedko.m writes: The Malaysian government has released the raw data used to determine that the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 crashed into the southern Indian Ocean. The data was first released to relatives of passengers, who have been asking for greater transparency, before copies were also provided to media.

The document released on Tuesday comprises 47 pages of data, plus notes, from British firm Inmarsat. Flight MH370 went missing on 8 March as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. There were 239 people, mostly Chinese nationals, on board. No trace of the aircraft has been found, nor any reason for its disappearance.

The satellite data released includes the hourly "handshakes" between the plane and a communications satellite that led investigators to conclude that the plane ended its journey far off Australia.
"Inmarsat and the DCA have been working for the release of the data communication logs and the technical description of the analysis," Malaysia's civil aviation authority said in a statement.

Submission + - NASA's "Opportunity" Rover Finds New Evidence For Once-Habitable Mars (space.com)

Submitted by nedko.m on Sunday June 09, 2013 @03:08AM

nedko.m writes: NASA's Mars rover 'Opportunity' found clay minerals in an ancient rock on the rim of the Endeavour Crater on Mars. The discovery suggests that neutral-pH water — slightly salty, and neither too acidic nor too alkaline for life — once flowed through the area, probably during the first billion years of Martian history. Opportunity's latest discovery fits well with one made recently on the other side of the planet by the rover's bigger, younger cousin Curiosity, which found strong evidence that its landing site could have supported microbial life in the ancient past. Such observations could help scientists map out Mars' transition from a relatively warm and wet world long ago to the cold and dry planet we know today

Comment Re:Hurry up (Score 1) 166

by nedko.m on Monday June 03, 2013 @02:33PM (#43898503) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: How To Begin Simple Robotics As a Hobby?

That, I think, is a bit pricey. Thanks for the suggestion anyway.

Comment Re:A "Robotics" project sounds way to generic (Score 1) 166

by nedko.m on Monday June 03, 2013 @02:29PM (#43898455) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: How To Begin Simple Robotics As a Hobby?

Thank you for the provided references! The (initial) "end goal" was actually mentioned in the original post - I would like to start off with a simple soccer robot, capable of detecting the ball, moving towards it, and "kicking" it, and then try to make it do a bit more interesting stuff. Since I've never worked with any hardware other than that of a PC (various desktop computers and laptops over the years), that's the actual area in which I need more particular advice - which solutions available on the market (that meet the low-budget criterion) to check out.

Comment Re:Lego Mindstorms kit (Score 2) 166

by nedko.m on Monday June 03, 2013 @02:23PM (#43898391) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: How To Begin Simple Robotics As a Hobby?

Could either of you give a bit more details about a particular kit that you have got in mind, please?

Submission + - Ask Slashdot: How To Begin Simple Robotics As a Hobby?

Submitted by nedko.m on Monday June 03, 2013 @04:21AM

nedko.m writes: I would describe myself as more of a "software guy" rather than somebody who likes to play with hardware much, but I've wanted to start doing basic robotics projects as a hobby for quite a while now. However, I was never sure where to start from and what the very first steps should be in order to get more familiar with the hardware aspects of robotics. For instance, I would like to start off with a simple soccer robot. Any suggestions on what low-budget parts should I obtain, which would provide me, subsequently, extensibility to a bit more elaborate projects?

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