Iran has entered the Space race!

 Three satellites on one ICBM?

The United States was the first nation to condemn Iran for their achievement of possibly putting up their own spy satellite with two others and what this will mean for the years ahead in mapping and communications having not to rely on others, but there is much more to this success and that will include a manned mission a robot, if not a manned landing on the Moon and much more!

Space is now more complicated than it was fifty years ago with the Moon landings, real or not since there is some doubt how the U.S. got there when we are struggling with our modern tech to do the same?

China and India are leading the way, while Japan has gone its own way and all have proved to be doing and discovering new things that Russia and the U.S. don't want to do, but in the years to come much will be achieved as we exhaust the discoveries within our solar system, even the distant worlds still to be observed beyond Pluto/

Private ventures by Elon Musk will be amazing in going to the outer gas giants, while Boeing has developed and new Space shuttle and Space tourism is some venture for the near future as the ISS is coming to the end of its thirty-year life and the possibility of more than one Moon base becomes a reality?

Space anomalies?

 Outer solar system Hunting.

NASA and other space agencies believe that there maybe one or two pineapple sized black holes near to the orbit of Pluto, while there is also the probability that another cold ice giant lurks in the ort cloud, since it is becoming hard to measure some of these very distant objects.

Planet 9 or X does now not seem anymore to be a priority and more focus is being spent on a Moon base over the International Space station, while the people's republic of China may want to share a Moon base with Russia, but not its new military space station!

In the past year many other nations around the world have joined the space race, with the Gulf states, New Zealand and Africa, they have a plethora of ideas that may change our outlook to be of more interest in the known solar system?

Space tourism is now up and running with the Galaxy flier and Musk has achieved his return rockets, that will prove invaluable on Mars and other places?

A year or two of Changes!

 COVID-19 has changed Everything?

Sickness, lockdown, uncertainty and having to close down our website has taken its toll, but we are back and are hoping to kick on, if not also catch up slowly?

There are many changes because of this Pandemic in travel, transport and technology from medical to the factory floor and sadly many of our older friends and family have succumb to this lack of air disease!

We are moving into space tourism and from electric battery possibilities to gas, but it was Russia who lead the way or already have done it as well as being so advanced in robotics that they are now fitted and operating on the ISS!

Yet the west and Europe still maintains that S-Korea and Japan are the future for these developments, when they are not apart from gaming and even Canada is now responsible for most of that?

Submarines.

Still less Utilised.

The world of the submariner seems to remain in the hands of the military in relation to the commercial procurement of its use in shipping and travel?

Submarines can be developed to move cargo and is used on a limited scale for underwater tourism, but is it not time to harness this extra form of travel over that of air pollution and the expanse of the claimed carbon foot print.

Many robotic small subs are being harnessed daily by the scientific community to explore the depths, to search for sunken treasure and to do seabed pollution investigation.

Sukhoi 100 v Boeing 737 family.

Small to medium Commercial jet airliners.

Without a fact no one can say 'that Boeing has not had commercial success with its 737-100/900 family over the last forty years. Airbus has over the last 25 years, starting with the A330 done and equality good job in competition and taking the market from the Americans with its ever expanding new smaller jets.

But here we want to look at what Russia, post Soviet Union  is doing to take their own place in the groving competative stance of world aviation industry. The Sukhoi 100/200 is the equivalent to the Boeing 737, which the new Russia has employed in great number to replace its own ageing fleet's. 

This aircraft if successful will fill a needed gap, replacing the out dated and long lived Tupolev TU-134/154. There are many other Russian design bureaus such as Antonov with their designs, but Sukhoi has the appeal to western airlines who may want something to replace their favourite DC-9's and the ill fated Boeing 717-1/200's.

The biggest market for such an aircraft is that of package holiday tourism, which will now expand in Europe, as the EU expands into Eastern-Europe and the Caucasus?

Narrow Gauge Railways. Part-Two.

Modern Systems...

(New article now on the Space Page for those who are interested).

Narrow gauge railways have over the last 100 years have been adapted for Metro system travel, such as in Paris, France. While Iceland built a 27 mile long network of narrow gauge railway to help in the building of an energy hydro plant. This is the longest underground service railway in the world.

Nuclear power plants have employed narrow gauge into their systems as well as mainline railways.

Many new engine designs are now available, replacing the improvised tractors and the early steam. Meanwhile many others railways are now great historical tourists pullers, while others like the bog or peat production continue to do both, work and tourism.

IOW Railways.

Isle of wight railways.

Over the years the Isle of Wight  has become the retirement home for London Underground (LUL) ex-tube cars, as they are re-classified. 

Currently they have had a repaint job to fit the Jurassic Park theme, but are they really pulling in the tourist crowds? 

Many people believe that perhaps the re-introduction of steam trains would be a big money spinner, as they are on the Isle of Man, Welsh Mountain's and many other places across the UK. 

Or is it a fitting re-use for these underground cars to be kept going here as they are?