Page 3 - Issue 1 2023

FROM THE
EDITOR'S
DESK

Extra-terrestrial signals
Less is more Extra-terrestrial signal
search is underway using
the southern hemisphere’s
biggest radio telescope.
elcome to 2023, a year with more
Breakthrough Listen is
promises but also greater challenges. an initiative to find signs
WIt will hopefully be a year that leaves of intelligent life in the
the trauma of the past few years behind. universe using a powerful new instrument deployed to the MeerKAT
radio telescope in the remote Karoo. The new search for techno
I have good news for our readers. We are signatures – indicators of technology developed by extra-terrestrial
streamlining EngineerIT with fewer pages in intelligence – expands the number of targets searched by a factor of
every issue, but now two issues per month, 1,000. Read more
with more weblinks to take you to many more
interesting and technically relevant articles. Nuclear fusion: The
“Simply put - less is more.” “holy grail” of energy
production
Each edition has a highlight theme which rotates Physicists have pursued
the technology for decades
on a six-weekly basis. The three themes are:
- Software, data and services as it promises a potential
source of near-limitless clean
- Infrastructure and networks energy. On Tuesday 13 December 2022, researchers confirmed that
- Automation, measurement and electronics.
they had overcome a major barrier - producing more energy from a
fusion experiment than was put in.
In addition to the themed articles, EngineerIT will Nuclear fusion is described as the “holy grail” of energy production.
cover news and articles on a wide spectrum of It is the process that powers the Sun and other stars. It works by taking
engineering, technology and science topics to keep pairs of light atoms and forcing them together - this “fusion” releases
readers ahead of developments in South Africa, on a lot of energy. It is the opposite of nuclear fission, where heavy atoms
the African continent and the world. are split apart. Fission is the technology currently used in nuclear
power stations, but the process also produces a lot of waste that
EngineerIT will continue to be available as an continues to give out radiation for a long time. It can be dangerous and
E-book and in PDF format, with active links to must be stored safely. Read more
advertisers’ web pages, and many more articles.
Sprites, elves, trolls
Subscription to EngineerIT remains free and I and pixies
No, we’re not talking fairy-
invite you to share the subscription link on the
front page with your colleagues and friends. tale creatures. Sprites, elves,
trolls and pixies are all types
of transient luminous events
I welcome your comments and interaction.
(TLEs) – bursts of red and blue
Call me on 082 781 4631 or drop me a mail at light that occur high above
hansv@nowmedia.co.za.
thunder clouds and last for
as little as a fraction of a second. Named for their fleeting nature, eye-
Welcome to 2023 and EngineerIT. witnesses reported strange flashes above thunderstorms for more than
a century before scientists accidentally caught one on film during a
Regards test for a rocket mission in 1989. Since then, scientific campaigns have
captured stills and high-speed recordings of sprites and other TLEs
Hans van de Groenendaal around the world. Scientists have many unanswered questions about
Editor the phenomena. Read more

EngineerIT | Issue 1 2023 | 3