MAROKO133 Update ai: US’ B-52 fleet to get active electronically scanned array radar to pu

📌 MAROKO133 Update ai: US’ B-52 fleet to get active electronically scanned array r

America’s venerable B-52 bomber fleet is to receive a brand-new radar system for the first time in decades. A type of Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA), the new system is considered the modern gold standard in the field.

The new radar is called AN/APQ-188, and it’s derived from a fighter radar already used on F/A-18s and F-15s. This upgrade is considered essential if the B-52 is going to stay useful into the 2030s–2050s.

The first B-52 with this radar has now arrived at Edwards AFB for testing, which is a big milestone after years of delays. The B-52’s older radar, the AN/APQ-166, is an older mechanical type that physically rotates to operate.

It is seen as less reliable than more modern systems, as it has more moving parts that can fail. This system is also easier to jam, and not the best for imaging ground targets.

To this end, it is limited for modern, more networked battlespaces. While it was good back in the Cold War, this radar is now widely considered obsolete.

B-52 to get some new toys

By contrast, AESA has few if any moving parts. Instead, it has hundreds or thousands of tiny transmit/receive modules and can steer its beam electronically.

The system can also do multiple things at once, providing a longer detection range, sharper images (like radar “photos”), and it is much harder to jam. The system also provides faster target updates and can support electronic warfare and communications.

According to reports, this radar has much higher reliability, which is why every modern fighter and bomber is moving to AESA. The choice of radar is a good one, given that similar systems have been proven and mature.

So why has the B-52 had to wait so long for a new radar system? The first reason is that the nose cone (radome) is massive, with the current radar system sitting low, not centered within it, and there is a big structural bulkhead above it.

For this reason, the new radar system needs to be angled downward to fit and has a limited ability to “look up.” The current setup is great for bombing missions, but it complicates integration with the new radar system.

Another complication is that the radome needs to be transparent to radar signals. It also cannot distort radar signals and must be able to survive weather, heat, cold, and bird strikes.

Should extend operations until at least 2050

The new radar will provide the B-52 with much better targeting and sharper ground imaging. It will also provide the aircraft with much improved long-range weapon guidance and ground-target tracking.

The radar will also boost the B-52’s self-defence capabilities and improve its electronic warfare resilience. According to The War Zone (TWZ), this new radar is just part of a package of upgrades for the aging aircraft.

Other planned improvements include new Rolls-Royce F-130 engines, new mission computers, and new displays and touchscreens. Existing airframes will also receive updated electronic warfare systems and new communications and networking.

These upgrades are deemed necessary to keep all existing 75+ airframes viable and allow them to remain in operation until at least 2050. They will enable the B-52 to better operate alongside the new B-21 “Raider” stealth bomber.

“This phase of the program is dedicated to getting it right at the start so that we can execute the full radar modernization program,” Troy Dawson, Vice President of the Boeing Bombers division, has explained in a statement.

🔗 Sumber: interestingengineering.com

📌 MAROKO133 Eksklusif ai: Twist it, torch it, and freeze it: China’s new ceramic s

Researchers from the Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics in China have reportedly developed a new ceramic that can be twisted, frozen, torched, and crushed without shattering. This new material could have important applications in various industries, including space flight.

Ceramics are excellent materials for handling heat, but tend to be fragile by their very nature. They don’t melt, burn, or soften easily, making them ideal for applications in engines, spacecraft, and hypersonic vehicles.

However, they are brittle, so bending or shocking them tends to make them shatter or crack. Heat them too long, and their internal structure coarsens, ruining performance.

One potential compromise is something called an aerogel, but this is not a silver bullet. Aerogels are better than ceramics at being a heat insulator because they are composed mainly of air.

However, they tend to be more fragile than traditional ceramic materials. In an ideal world, engineers would love to be able to have a ceramic that behaves mechanically like a sponge but thermally like a furnace brick.

Bendy ceramics are now a thing

To this end, the Lanzhou team set out to develop a ceramic aerogel that does just that. Through trial and error, they were able to develop an aerogel that can be squashed almost flat (98% compression). This material can also spring back like rubber when compressed.

The material is also stable under a wide range of temperatures, from liquid-nitrogen cold (32 °F/−196 °C) to red-hot (2,732°F/1,500 °C). It also insulates better than most high-temperature ceramics.

Traditional ceramics are brittle due to their atomic structure. They rely on strong, directional ionic/covalent bonds, which makes them great for heat resistance but terrible for flexibility. Once a crack starts, it races through the material.

At higher temperatures, atoms tend to migrate, and crystals grow inside their structure too. To overcome this, the team developed a new “high entropy” trick.

Instead of using one main metal oxide, they use five different metal atoms randomly mixed on the same crystal lattice. This forms a kind of atomic “chaos” that prevents heat from propagating easily through the aerogel.

This also means the material can’t readily “relax” when at high temperatures. They also found that the new ceramic aerogel is very elastic, something that shouldn’t be possible.

Important applications in industry

This is because the microstructure of the aerogel is something akin to a nanofiber network comprised of fibres around 250 nanometers thick. These are effectively woven into a 3D spring-like scaffold with large empty spaces between them.

This structure means the aerogel can be compressed readily as the fibers bend, buckle, and slide over one another. This also spreads the stress out over the material, reducing the chance of catastrophic failure of its structural integrity.

According to the team, this new material can have important applications in things like hypersonic vehicle skins. It could also be useful as insulation in things like turbines, as it doesn’t readily crack.

It could also be used for spacecraft heat shields, seals, and gaskets in extreme environments. This aerogel would also be useful for aerospace components that must survive vibration and heat.

You can view the study for yourself in the journal Advanced Science.

🔗 Sumber: interestingengineering.com