SpaceX's successful disaster

Space launched the Starship SN10 prototype. As in previous launches, the rocket climbed to the assumed altitude and started free falling. But this time, during the landing attempt, everything went perfectly. Starship returned from free-falling to vertical position and landed on the ground.

It is the first time Starship managed to do that, but the test was not  a complete success. A  couple of minutes after the landing, the rocket exploded. Although SN10 did not survive, Space X is making noticeable progress. So maybe the next time, the rocket will pass the entire test.

Microsoft Mesh

During the Ignite conference, Microsoft announced the AR and VR collaboration platform called Mesh. It is a collaborative platform that allows anyone to have shared virtual experiences. It's like Microsoft Teams of the future. Participants can be in the same place, even though they are not physically together. At the moment, the platform uses virtual avatars taken from the AltspaceVR social network. But in the future, people will be able to appear as themselves.

Microsoft Mesh is a super cool idea that looks like taken from a sci-fi movie, but as some people say - the future is now.

Image credits: SpaceX

Ideal MacBook Pro?

There are new rumors surrounding the upcoming MacBook Pros and it looks like it might be the best MacBook Pro ever. Here is the list of rumored features:

• Apple's custom M1 chip,
• New flat edged design,
• Mini LED  14-inch and 16-inch displays,
• SD Card Reader
• MagSafe charging connector,
• HDMI port,
• No Touch Bar,
• Scissor keyboard.

If those rumors are true, and the new chip is as fast as everyone is expecting it to be, this might be the best MacBook Pro ever.

Image credits: MacRumors

Perseverance landed

NASA's probe Perseverance survived the Mars atmosphere and successfully landed on the surface. The landing sequence was an engineering masterpiece. At first, the probe free-fallen through the Mars atmosphere. Then, deployed parachutes to decelerate. When the spacecraft was close to the surface, it fired onboard thrusters to slow itself down and hovered above the ground. Then the Perseverance was lowered down on cables to the surface.

Now, when the rover is on Mars, it can start its primary mission:

• studying Mars' Habitability,
• seeking Signs of Past Microbial Life,
• collecting and Caching Samples,
• preparing for Future Human Missions.

Also, during this mission, NASA will test a drone called Mars Helicopter. If it works, it will be the first time we will be flying (not just falling) on Mars.

New iPhones rumors

It's this time of year when we start getting rumors about upcoming tech. This time it's about iPhones. Let's start with iPhone 13:

• Always-On Display With 120Hz ProMotion,
• Touch ID integrated into a screen,
• Stronger MagSafe,
• Support for astrophotography,
• Grippier phone's back.

There are also rumors that foldable iPhone will have 7-inch display and will be released in 2023.

Image credits: NASA

CD Project Red hacked

CD Project Red has fallen victim to a ransomware attack. Hackers got access to the company's internal network and stolen some data. In the end, they encrypted everything. The hackers are threatening to release or sell the data if their demands are not met. If that happened, it would be a big blow to CDP Red. The stolen data contains source codes of the games (including the unreleased Witcher game), alongside internal legal, HR, and financial documents.CDP Red has confirmed the attack and stated that they will not negotiate or give in to the hacker's demands. Hearing that, Hackers haven't waited long and sold the stolen data on the Dark Web.

Earth's "invasion" of Mars begun

The two probes successfully reached Mars's orbit within 24 hours. The first one - Hope - is from the United Arab Emirates. The second one - Tianwen-1 - is from China. Both countries reached Red Planet for the first time. Now we are waiting for the Perseverance probe, which should reach its destination later this month.

Disney+ gains subscribers

A couple of weeks ago I reported that Netflix has 200M subscribers. I also mentioned fast-growing competitors like Disney+. This week Disney has confirmed my words, as Disney+ gained 95M subscribers in 14 months. This growth is unprecedented, even Disney thought they would achieve the 90M mark by 2024. If Disney keeps this momentum, it might become the most popular streaming service even this year.

Jeff Bezos steps down as CEO

Jeff Bezos announced that he is going to step down as Amazon CEO later this year. Andy Jassy, the CEO of Amazon Web Services (AWS), will replace Bezos as Amazon CEO. Bezos motivates his decision by wanting to focus on other projects like Blue Origin, and Bezos Earth Fund.

Another Starship test

SpaceX has launched the Starship rocket for the second time. Once again, it climbed to a target altitude of 10km. After that, the engines shut down, and the rocket started free-falling back to the ground. Unfortunately, like in the previous test, the rocket didn't quite stick the landing. It touched the ground when the rocket was still recovering from belly dive into a vertical position, which ended with a spectacular explosion.

It might seem like a failure, but SpaceX learned a lot. The same Situation was with Falcon 9 rocket - Space X failed many landing during tests, but now they are perfect.