Ecology News: 10 August 2025 - 16 August 2025

Satellites Powered by Water? The Revolutionary Propellant Changing Spaceflight
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Satellites Powered by Water? The Revolutionary Propellant Changing Spaceflight

Water propulsion for satellites can use steam propulsion (resistojet), electrolysis to hydrogen and oxygen for combustion, or water-plasma/ion thrusters for high-ISP propulsion. Momentus Space’s Vigoride uses a Microwave Electrothermal Thruster (MET) that microwaves water with solar power to boil it into plasma
August 16, 2025
Perovskite Solar ‘Stickers’ Are Almost Here: How Flexible Laminates Could Turn Walls, Cars & Roofs into Power Plants
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Perovskite Solar ‘Stickers’ Are Almost Here: How Flexible Laminates Could Turn Walls, Cars & Roofs into Power Plants

A flexible perovskite module with WVTR ≈ 5.0 × 10⁻³ g/m²/day retained 84% of its power after 2,000 hours at 85°C/85% RH (Damp-Heat). Japan is subsidizing Sekisui Chemical to build a 100 MW film-type perovskite plant by 2027 to help reach about
August 15, 2025
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Technology News

  • AI deepfakes push victims into jail as evidence goes unchecked
    January 9, 2026, 3:48 AM EST. Melissa Sims says her ex-boyfriend used AI-generated texts to frame her, landing her in a Florida jail for a bond violation after she called police during an argument. The texts disparaged him and were not verified, prosecutors later dropped the bond violation, and she went to trial on a battery charge eight months after the initial incident. Judges and experts warn that AI-generated deepfakes-texts, video and images-pose a growing risk to the justice system, with detection tools lagging behind. Drexel's Rob D'Ovidio notes the difficulty of spotting synthetic material; he demonstrated with an AI-generated photo and several detectors giving divergent results. Officials urge a framework and more due diligence before charging, while Sims' case shows the real-world harms of unverified evidence.