so, the @KLM duty manager claims there is some sort of a global system failure affecting many airlines. She claims it's not a hack. Sounds weird... Not sure what to do. Wonder whether there are any other journos heading for @SKAO who are stuck getting to Cape Town...

So, @KLM has just ruined a trip South Africa I have been really looking forward to. Delays at #heathrow, non-existent customer service. I will miss my connecting flight from Amsterdam to Cape Town, which means I will miss the departure for my press trip to @SKAO tomorrow

Despite its controversies, #Starlink is actually really useful. This Girl Scout trip could have turned into a nightmare without a recently enabled satellite 911 text messaging service. www.space.com/space-explor...

A #starlink satellite photobombs an Earth Observation spacecraft's view of a top secret airbase in #china. Despite the growing numbers of satellites in orbit, sources tell us such incidents are still very rare. www.space.com/space-explor...

How difficult is it to hack a satellite? A duo of white hat hackers have shown how to hijack a satellite running NASA's open-source flight software in a presentation at the Black Hat USA conference last month: #cybersecurity #space #satellites #hacking spectrum.ieee.org/satellite-ha...

Could Donald Trump's #GoldenDome really protect America against a full blown #nuclear attack? Some experts are sceptical: www.supercluster.com/editorial/tr...

The inside story behind the demise of the UK Space Agency. www.space.com/space-explor...

What a year! Another award nomination, this time for #DefenceMediaAwards in Best Technology Submission category for my story for Shephard Media about Ukrainian defence tech innovators. www.shephardmedia.com/news/landwar...

Amid all the depressive stories I tend to write these days, one can still find the "technology does good" snippets that make one feel a little better about the world. In Namibia, an endangered desert population of elephants is now safer thanks to satellite data. www.space.com/astronomy/ea...

This @supercluster.com op-ed sums up all my issues with the ESA astronaut reserve pool and the arrangement with the American Axiom Space. www.supercluster.com/editorial/op...

What will #NASAbudget cuts mean for Europe's eternally troubled flagship #Mars exploration rover #ExoMars? Can ESA still make it to the launch pad by 2028 or is praying for the U.S. Congress to reject the proposal ESA's only hope? www.space.com/space-explor...

Really enjoyed writing this story for @spectrum.ieee.org - old #smartphones could be hacked to work together as a surprisingly effective data center. The approach could help tackle the growing #ewaste problem. spectrum.ieee.org/smartphone-d...

If there is one space project I would like to see take off and succeed, it's this Ukraine-led EO satellite constellation. spacenews.com/ukraine-and-...

Fascinating images released at this briefing showing the potential of Rubin. But when I submitted a question (via Zoom) asking about impact on Rubin of potential NSF budget cuts, it was rejected: "Only science questions." A reporter in the room was also similarly rejected. 🤔

Can Europe's #Exomars mission survive NASA's withdrawal? How much would it cost to replace NASA's contribution and is Europe capable of doing that? My new mini-investigation project for Space.com. Anyone with insights into this problem, please do get in touch!

Europe has not been to the moon since 2006 and has never attempted a landing. It might be about to join the #moon rush, but unfortunately only after everybody else has made it through the finish line. #Europe #spaceexploration www.supercluster.com/editorial/ha...

Poland will launch their reserve #astronaut to space, having forked out cca 70 million euros to SpaceX and Axiom for a trip brokered by European Space Agency. How on Earth is that something to celebrate in the current climate and with the size of the European space tech gaps?

From google maps to syncing power grids and time-stamping financial transactions, #GPS underpins many indispensable technologies of today. Yet, it's insanely vulnerable to disruption by #jamming and #spoofing. This company thinks they know how to fix it. www.technologyreview.com/2025/06/06/1...

Hi my dear contacts. I am writing a story for Supercluster about Europe's moon exploration programme. Europe seems to have been largely missing from the recent moon race. What's going on? Happy to talk to sources anonymously.... Please get in touch... #moon #space #exploration #europe

Ukraine depends on U.S. space tech and Europe is nowhere near ready to be able to step in as a fully-fledged alternative. #ukraine #strategicautonomy My latest story for @supercluster.com www.supercluster.com/editorial/uk...

Can in-orbit refuelling and servicing be the answer to the satellite air pollution problem? Could the space industry shift from one-use-only, disposable products to something more sustainable? What do you think? #spacesustainability www.space.com/space-explor...

This is the first part of my two-part feature for @spectrum.ieee.org about my trip to #Ukraine. It's a bit of a hybrid format combining my reflections on the experience and reporting on the advances in air raid defence technology. #SlavaUkraini spectrum.ieee.org/ukraine-air-...

🔎Steve Connor Award for #InvestigativeJournalism #ABSWawards 📣Meet the #finalists 🎉🎉🎉 👉 Sophie Borland @bmj.com 🔗zurl.co/b1r2k 👉 @oliveheffernan.bsky.social @investigates.thejournal.ie 🔗zurl.co/u5ER7 👉 @terezapultarova.bsky.social @arstechnica.com 🔗zurl.co/lh85B zurl.co/gWdMb

Crucial research into the effects of rocket and satellite air pollution on Earth's atmosphere is reportedly being cut by Trump administration. The cancellation will be a major setback for the emerging research field. #satellite #airpollution #Trump #NOAA www.space.com/space-explor...

How can we build plagiarism machines if you don't let us plagiarise? Come on, be reasonable www.thetimes.com/uk/technolog...

Is #China preparing for a war in #space? Is the western world ready to face it? My latest story for @supercluster.com #spacewars www.supercluster.com/editorial/is...

Delighted to be nominated for the British Science Journalist of the Year Awards in the investigative category for my deep dives into abuses of power at the European Space Agency. This nomination is also for all my sources. @absw.bsky.social @arstechnica.com

Last September, a team of European researchers executed a dramatic aircraft chase of a falling piece of #spacedebris - now they have released the first results from these observations that provide new insights into satellite #airpollution. www.space.com/space-explor...

I am in awe of Ukrainian ingenuity and honoured that I have the privilege to cover their defence-tech developments. It's mind-boggling to think how much they have achieved in three years. #Ukraine #drones #defense #innovation #airships spectrum.ieee.org/airships-dro...

I really like "tech that helps stories." In Cambodia, 40-year-old satellite images are now helping to find forgotten mine fields. space.com/space-explor... #demining

Are the next four solar cycles set to be stronger than those we have seen in recent past? What does it mean for space weather, and is it all just bad news? My latest @space.com story: www.space.com/hidden-solar... #spaceweather #solarcycle

A couple of weeks ago, reports emerged of violence at an Antarctic research station among a crew from South Africa. What does the incident mean for future #Mars exploration and how to make sure future astronauts don't murder each other? #Antarctica www.supercluster.com/editorial/do...

Working on this @EandTmagazine story was a disturbing journey. There should be much more public outrage about #foreverchemicals. Fortunately, engineers are working hard to get those carcinogenic #PFAS chemicals out of our drinking water. eandt.theiet.org/2025/01/10/e...

At least three old satellites or rocket bodies fall to Earth every day and it's only going to get worse. Some researchers think it's no good news for the atmosphere or safety of people on Earth. #spacedebris #spacesustainability www.space.com/space-explor...

Within three short years, #Ukraine has become the most mine-contaminated country in the world. Clearing up the lethal war residues will take decades, unless new technologies are developed to speed up the process. My feature in Engineering and Technology eandt.theiet.org/2025/03/24/d...

Delighted to see this story out. The war in #UkraineRussiaWar has sparked an innovation race that is making fast progress towards a sci-fi like world of autonomous killer #drones fighting similar machines made by the adversaries. spectrum.ieee.org/killer-drones

A planned clean hydrogen plant could increase the night sky brightness above the Very Large Telescope, one of the world's most powerful sky observing machines, by a whopping 35 percent. #lightpollution #astronomy www.space.com/space-explor...

The reality of reporting on Ukrainian tech: An engineer requests to have his real name changed for fear of Russian retaliation. He tells you that what powers him is the fact that he has lost too many friends at the frontline. #SlavaUkraini spectrum.ieee.org/ukraine-dron...

1/2 Since #ElonMusk appears to think that it is Ok for an aggressor to take another person's (nation's) property by force, I think it's time for some American ultra-communist guerilla to move into his mansions.

So what else have I been up to apart from getting worked up about geopolitics. Data centres in #space - does it make sense to move power-hungry IT infrastructure into Earth's orbit? What do you think? www.technologyreview.com/2025/03/03/1...

People criticising Zelenskyy absolutely fail to consider cultural differences. It's kind of American cultural imperialism. Yes, the Ukrainians on average are not such smooth operators, but they have very much proven they have some extremely valuable qualities.

A director of a manpower company that supplies the #europeanspaceagency with workers is liking comments by a pro-Russian troll below my LinkedIn posts about visiting #Ukraine ! Unless the profile is stolen, in which case I apologise, I think that is seriously shocking.

Twenty-something-year old Ukrainians are being sent to the frontline to keep Putin out of Europe. Some get killed, some get mutilated, all get traumatized for life. Think about it when you look at yourself in the mirror. Think about it when you look at your kids.

A big power company wants to build a huge industrial complex near Paranal, the top astronomical site in the world (VLT, ELT etc.). Here is a petition for physics/astro professionals 🧪🔭, please consider signing. Even if you're not, pls help raise awareness by sharing the links in the petition. Thx! 🙏

Countries like #Poland and #Czechia should seriously reconsider whether they want to be sending their so-called reserve #astronauts to space with SpaceX. It's a lot of money you are going to plough into Musk's pockets. It should go to domestic R&D.

1/x I managed to sneak out of the defence innovation conference to take a peek at Kiev's UNESCO protected Pechersk Lavra monastery complex. The ancient cave monastery was closed, but one little nugget of information struck me as particularly significant in the current geopolitical context.

One night's worth of air raid alerts for #Kyiv, #Ukraine. They also happen during the day. Yesterday night, a handful of #shahed drones were roaming above the city. Today, there was an alert because of ballistic missiles. Yet, most locals ignore it. The air defence forces has got them spoiled.

Ukraine is standing strong and its drones should make further Russian advances impossible. Therefore, Ukraine can tell the US to stand down and limit its role to a commercial arms supplier handled by EU. Minerals deal should go to EU, US gets nothing. US role as a leader of the Free World is over.

1/x I arrived in #Kiev via Krakow, Poland, to attend the Brave 1 Defence Tech Innovation Forum. Getting to #ukraine is a tedious saga. There is a no-fly zone over the country, so you need to take an overnight train or a bus from one of the neighbouring countries.

1/x I will be travelling to #Ukraine to attend the BRAVE1 Defence Tech Innovation Forum in Kiev next week to report for @ieeespectrum.bsky.social. Over the coming days, I will be sharing my thoughts and impressions here and on my other social media channels. defenseinnovations.tech