In Spain more than 40,000 tourist apartments have ‘disappeared’. The question is whether we are facing the end of their bubble

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The tourist rental business is no longer what was. Or that at least is the message that the real estate market seems to be sending, according to recent reports published by two organizations that (from different perspectives) know the sector well: the Bank of Spain and Fotocasa. The first warns in his annual report 2025, published just a few weeks ago, of the departure of tens of thousands of homes from the vacation rental market. The second, Fotocasa, speak directly of a “puncture” of the business, with a “flight of owners”. The big question is… Why? Cycle change? It is still too early to talk about a change of cycle, but the latest data from Fotocasa Research and the Bank of Spain (BE) suggest that something is changing in the country’s vacation rental market. Although tourism still booming and it’s not crazy that Spain reaches this year for the first time the 100 million of foreign visitors, the market is emitting signals that suggest that renting an apartment on Airbnb, Booking, Vrbo or Holidu is no longer the business it was a couple of years ago. Interest in buying apartments for tourist rental is falling and the number of landlords who decide to put their homes up for sale to leave that market increases. What do the figures say? That something is moving in the sector. Still very timid, but perceptible. The percentage of buyers who acknowledge that they are looking for a home to use as a vacation rental is reducing little by little. If in 2024 they represented 3.4%, in 2025 that percentage was reduced to 3% and the latest survey, corresponding to the first semester, places it at 2.8%. “Although the tourist modality continues to represent 3% of purchase operations linked to a second residence or directly to investment, the trend shows a progressive reduction in interest in this model,” comment the platform, which sees a loss of “attractiveness” of the sector. Is it the only indicator? No. The market also suffers at the other end, that of the sellers. Fotocasa Research has detected an increase in the number of landlords dedicated to tourist rentals who are trying to get rid of their homes. That is to say, there are fewer people interested in entering the vacation rental market… but also more people who are already in it and want to leave. The trend is once again tenuous, but eloquent. In 2024, 1.8% of the owners who went to real estate agencies to sell their homes dedicated them to vacation rentals. In 2025 the percentage was very similar (1.6%), but this year it has risen to 3.1%. “It represents practically doubling the weight recorded two years before and shows that more and more owners are choosing to abandon the tourist rental segment,” they explain from Fotocasa. And what does the Bank of Spain say? In your latest annual reportpublished a few weeks ago, the BE confirms that vacation rentals are deflating. To be more specific, its technicians documented an increase in the number of tourist apartments between 2021 and 2024, which placed the total stock at 400,000 homes that last year. In 2025, however. The average was 355,000 homes. The latest data from the INE show that in May they were advertised on online platforms in Spain 341,001 homes tourist, also far from the 381,837 registered a year before. That means between 40,000 and 50,000 fewer homes on the market. In some regions thousands of properties have been erased in recent years or even more than 10,000, such as happens in Alicante. What is the reason? For María Matos, spokesperson for Fotocasa, there is little mystery. If vacation rentals “are losing part of the attractiveness they had in recent years” it is mainly due to three factors. First, because investors are “reorienting” their strategies, looking for “stable alternatives.” Second, vacation rentals have lost profitability compared to a few years ago. And third (but not least), the changes at the regulatory level. “It responds to a context of greater regulatory uncertainty in which the regulations have been modified throughout the year,” comment Matos. The truth is that in recent years both the central government and some regional and municipal administrations have taken steps to prevent the flight of housing from residential to vacation rentals and, in the process, alleviate the rise in rents. Weight of tourist homes in the rental market of: Urban Area Center of the tourist area Malaga 29.9% 44.6% Las Palmas de Gran Canaria 12.9% 26.9% Seville 12.1% 44.9% Santa Cruz de Tenerife 9.6% 8.2% Palm 7.6% 0.7% Valencia 5.7% 9.8% Barcelona 4.0% 22.2% Madrid 2.8% 14.9% Saragossa 1.4% 14.9% Total Spain 10.8% 10.8% Has it changed that much? Yes. BE himself recognize that “regulatory limitations” on vacation rentals have taken their toll on the market, as has the transfer of homes to the seasonal rental market. It comes with taking a look at the newspaper archive to find town councils and autonomous communities that in recent years have applied moratoriums to the granting of new tourist rental licenses or toughened its regulations. The most forceful change was applied last year by the Government when it activated a single short-term rental registry, although this measure received a blow of the Supreme Court a few months ago. Another important regulatory change is that, since April 2025reinforces the weight of neighborhood communities when deciding whether or not they can operate housing for tourist use in their buildings. Will it be noticed in the market? Just because tourist apartments lose strength in the market does not mean that the price of residential rentals will go down. The B.C. remember that, in general, its weight is limited in the Spanish market. According to their calculations, vacation homes represent 1.5% of the total housing stock, although that percentage has fine print. If we talk about the rental market, its relative weight rises to 10% and if we refer to specific regions with strong tourist demand, that footprint skyrockets. In … Read more

“93% of all foldables that have been sold in Spain are Samsung”

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The foldable phone market is no longer at the point where Samsung had to explain why a folded screen might make sense. That phase is far away. Since that first Galaxy Fold of 2019 to the most recent generations, the category has gone from raising very basic doubts to occupying its own space within the high range. The question, now, is another: what to do with a family that has gained ground, that already has competitors looking at the same terrain and that hints that its next step may not be limited to repeating the known format. That’s where your own conversation comes in. David Alonso. The director of Mobile Experience at Samsung Electronics Iberia spoke with Xataka in Madrid after a meeting focused on the history of the brand’s folding devices. Its reading is relevant because the South Korean company is not speaking from outside the category, but from a position that it claims is dominant in the country. Samsung no longer has to prove that foldables exist, now it has to defend why they are still its territory The figure that the firm puts on the table helps to understand where it is speaking from. As Alonso defended during the meeting, with data provided by the company at the end of the first quarter of 2026, “93% of all foldables that have been sold in Spain are Samsung“It is a very high figure, but it should also be read with caution: it does not in itself describe the future of the category, but rather the starting point from which the company interprets this new phase. Having arrived earlier and, among other things, having built a recognizable family gives it an advantage. Samsung has begun to leave clues on networks about the next move of its folding family Samsung’s argument is based on a simple idea: trust was not given, it had to be built. It’s a reasonable way to count the journey. We are talking about an expensive category, with a folding screen as a differentiating element and with an initial history marked by very specific doubts. Alonso formulated it as a learning experience accumulated over seven generations. “Since then there have been seven generations, seven generations of folding, because the family has been increasing. And what have we learned during this time? Well, we have learned several things. First, that trust is earned, because in the end it is true that it was a category that has created doubts.” That tour also changed the way the foldable was presented. The first Fold clearly aimed at productivity, with a larger interior screen and a logic closer to the mobile that opens to work, read or do several tasks at the same time. Then came the Flip, that moved the axis towards another type of user: less focused on gaining screen space and more attracted to a compact, different format and more linked to social uses. This expansion of the family helps to understand why the brand is no longer talking about a single folding product, but rather about a category with different paths. There is also an economic reading behind this bet. The director of Mobile Experience at Samsung Electronics Iberia defended during the conversation that the segment of more than 1,500 euros is the one that is growing the most in the market and linked it to a greater demand from the premium user. In this vision, product quality, user experience and integrated artificial intelligence increasingly weigh in the purchasing decision. The arrival of other manufacturers changes the balance of that conversation. For Samsung, the fact that there are more competitors in folding products serves as proof that the category has a long way to go. So we could say that if more brands enter the same field, the manufacturer that arrived first no longer competes only against the user’s initial doubt, but against alternatives that try to appropriate part of the story. Alonso himself put it this way during the interview. “For us, the next milestone is to continue maintaining ourselves as a benchmark in the market. Because one thing has happened that is very important, which is that competition has arrived, which for us is very important, because when competition comes it means that there is opportunity and that we are doing something well, right? If not, we would be totally alone, which is not good.” That’s why the teasers published Now they have more weight than a simple campaign. What was seen on social networks points to an evolution of the Galaxy foldable experience and suggests that the next step may move in the field of format. All this, together with the fact that part of Samsung’s launches in recent years have been concentrated between July and August, invites us to look towards an upcoming presentation, but at the time of publishing this article there are no official announcements. Images | Xataka | Samsung In Xataka | Samsung is ahead of the presentation of the Galaxy Z Fold8 by showing the design change of the foldable. At last

“We have been believing all our lives that cats are nocturnal and it is normal for them to wake us up”

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Those of us who have cats know that playing and meowing in the middle of the night are included in the package, but the reason why they do it is not what you are thinking. The fact that your cat decides that 5 in the morning is the perfect time to do parkour on your head is not because it wants to annoy you nor because it is a nocturnal animal. We have spoken with Noelia Hernández, feline educator from Feline Codeto find out what is behind this behavior. They seem nocturnal to us, but they are not.. The first thing to understand is that the popular belief that cats are nocturnal animals is not entirely true. “Cats are activated by the rising and setting of the sun. They are crepuscular in that sense,” Noelia tells us. The fact that some cats have peaks of activity around midnight and then very early in the morning makes us perceive them as nocturnal, especially in summer when the nights are much shorter. In reality, cats sleep at night, what happens is that they wake up much earlier than we do. It is the complaint that Noelia most often hears in her consultations: “Many times, sunrise is when they have the highest peak of activity. It is something recurrent in tutors: ‘he wakes me up too early’.” “Cats are activated by the rising and setting of the sun. They are crepuscular” An evolutionary question. The fact that the peaks of activity are at these times has to do with their natural hunting instinct. The cats They have evolved to hunt when it dawns and when it duskwhich is when their usual prey are most active. These hunting “schedules” are also why their vision has developed to allow them to see in low light conditions. what’s happening. If your cat wakes you up in the middle of the night, it is probably due to a lack of stimulation during the day, a poorly enriched environment and an incorrect play routine: “During the day we go to work, to the gym, to shop… We arrive, we do a poorly executed mini play session and on top of that completely dependent on us.” Because this is one of the problems that this behavior causes: our cats do not know how to play alone. “Many cats do not know how to resort to autonomous play, they only know how to resort to the play that we tutors give them with canes and other toys,” says Noelia. Another factor is the lack of environmental enrichment. Cats, especially those that live indoors, need a series of adaptations in the environment focused on their well-being such as offering them different smells, surfaces to scratch or allowing them to climb high. If we also add that many people have a cat and spend many hours alone, they are the perfect ingredients for early morning parkour. And let’s not forget the heat factor: “In summer they can be more active at night because it is the only time of day when you can live in general,” says Noelia with a laugh. How to avoid it. “With a well-structured sequence of games, a well-enriched environment and a good understanding of the cat’s needs, these episodes of ‘I get up at 5 or 6 in the morning’ can be reduced,” says Noelia. First, to encourage autonomous play, it is important to offer them a variety of toys and above all not to always leave the same ones, but to change them: “Toys must be rotated so that they can manage themselves at night if they need it.” Furthermore, when playing with our cat it is not about making it run after a toy like crazy and that’s it, it has to be done well. He cat hunting cycle It has five phases: stalking → chase → capture → bite/ingestion → rest. If we stay on the principle “We do not lower those hormones that have been prepared for the hunt and together with the arrival of dawn and of course, they wake us up.” To make it complete, you have to let him catch the toy and finish by giving him food or a snack. “With a well-structured play sequence, a well-enriched environment and a good understanding of the cat’s needs, these episodes can be reduced” Commitment and understanding. Being woken up by your cat at four in the morning is not pleasant, no matter how you look at it, but getting angry or punishing it is not going to solve anything (in fact, punishment will make the situation worse). get worse or cause other new problems). For Noelia, it is a matter of commitment and understanding: “There must be commitment on the part of the guardian to understand his cat, let him express his nature and give him tools so that he can channel alone autonomously when he has these types of needs, without waking up the guardian.” Image | Amparo Babiloni, Xataka In Xataka | If the question is how long can you leave your cat home alone, the answer is: less than you think.

China has just regulated something that really matters: whether AI ends up being our friend or our girlfriend

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China has decided to put limits on a very specific type of AI: that designed to look like a person. Doubao (ByteDance) and Qwen (Alibaba) have announced that they will disable their custom AI agents before the regulations come into force imminently. Tencent had already done it with its Yuanbao model, but behind all these closures there is a much deeper idea. The blackout of anthropomorphic AI already has a date. Doubao has already warned its users that its personalized AI agents will stop working on July 15 due to “product adjustments” and that three months later they will not be able to access the stored conversations with said chatbots. With Qwen things will be even faster: the agents will disappear on July 10, and the rest of the functions will do so five days later. These measures are taken before the entry into force of the new Provisional Measures for the Administration of Anthropomorphic Interaction Services with AI, recently published by the Chinese government. In Xataka Millions of teenagers have turned AI into their go-to psychologist. It is an unprecedented challenge for medicine Conversational chatbots, yes… The interesting thing about the regulations is that they do not regulate generative AI in general. Leave assistants out to work, study, research or serve customers. What it regulates are the systems that “simulate personality traits, thought patterns and human communication styles to provide a sustained emotional interaction.” The problem therefore is not that AI can be more or less powerful, but that it comes to simulate the behavior of a person. …company chatbots no. The functions that disappear from these platforms are those that allowed a generalist chatbot to be turned into a fictional character, a friend or even a romantic partner. This personalization gave these AI agents a fixed personality, a memory and a characteristic conversational style that reinforced interaction with it. They were therefore not tools to replace the current search engine, but rather systems designed to trap the user in an increasingly personal and intimate relationship and conversation. Beware of emotional dependence. Here the Chinese regulation does not try to identify dangerous risks such as those traditionally discussed, for example, with the European Union regulation. Instead what it monitors are interactions in which there is an emotional dependencea potential addiction and even manipulation by these systems. In fact, these systems are prohibited from fostering emotional bonds that could lead to irrational decisions. All of this is stopped by regulations to avoid the potential deterioration of personal relationships. AI must analyze itself. According to the regulation, AI must intervene when it detects these types of situations. If a user shows too extreme emotions towards these chatbots or if it is perceived that there may be risks to their integrity, the AI ​​should encourage them to seek help or even activate certain emergency protocols. You should also warn if you see excessive usage and remind the user to rest after two hours of continuous talk. In a certain sense, these regulations are reminiscent of the “digital welfare” mechanisms that have been imposed on mobile apps that try to limit the use of social networks. In Xataka "As pathetic as it sounds, ChatGPT is my only friend": more and more people confess to having an AI as a friend Protection for vulnerable people. The measures pay special attention to underage users and also to older people. For example, these types of chatbots are prohibited from offering intimate virtual relationships, such as couples or artificial relatives, and they require parental consent. There is also an obligation to take precautions when the users are elderly, since this group is especially exposed to loneliness and a possible emotional dependence. AI should stay just that: be an AI. Although there have been advances in the psychological impact of these models in their relationship with people, this is probably the first major regulation that does not attempt to control how powerful AI models are, but rather how capable they are. to establish personal relationships with users. This discussion will probably end up reaching Europe and the US, and is a touchstone for a technology that has certainly been infiltrating the personal sphere for some time. Image | Andy Kelly In Xataka |Telling the AI ​​what worries you was only the first step: there are already bots that pose as registered psychiatrists (function() { window._JS_MODULES = window._JS_MODULES || {}; var headElement = document.getElementsByTagName(‘head’)(0); if (_JS_MODULES.instagram) { var instagramScript = document.createElement(‘script’); instagramScript.src=”https://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js”; instagramScript.async = true; instagramScript.defer = true; headElement.appendChild(instagramScript); – The news China has just regulated something that really matters: whether AI ends up being our friend or our girlfriend was originally published in Xataka by Javier Pastor .

the AirTag rival with up to 600 days of battery life and compatible with any Android

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The ecosystem of lost item trackers has a new member. If until recently Apple with its AirTag and Samsung with its SmartTag dominated the market with their own users, the rules of the game have changed thanks to the new network Google “Find my device”. Taking advantage of this giant deployment, Motorola has now made official the launch in Spain of the new Moto Tag 2 from Motorola (which was presented a few months ago), its new and promising smart locator that you can buy for 37.99 euros. Motorola Moto Tag 2 Locator The price could vary. We earn commission from these links The perfect companion for your keys, suitcases or backpack At the design level, the new Moto Tag 2 no different from the previous generation. Motorola bets on a spherical, minimalist and extremely compact aestheticdesigned to fit perfectly on conventional keychains or to hide without problems at the bottom of a suitcase. It has IP67 certificationwhich gives you complete dust resistance and the ability to withstand immersion accidental drops in water, something vital if you plan to wear it attached to your pet’s collar or on the outside of a backpack. Being natively integrated into Google’s global network, works with any Android smartphone of the market, breaking the compatibility walls of other brands. Furthermore, it is equipped with ultra-wideband (UWB) technologyso that you can use the millimeter precision that stands out so much in the Apple AirTag. It works with a CR2032 button battery standard that guarantees up to 600 days of life, a battery that you can also easily replace yourself when it runs out. Lastly, it is possible to highlight its integrated multifunction button which not only serves to receive alerts, but also works to find your phone or as a remote trigger for your phone’s camera. ⚡ IN SUMMARY: motorola moto tag 2 locator ✅ THE BEST Full opening: It doesn’t tie you to a specific brand of phone; If today you have a Pixel, tomorrow a Xiaomi or a Motorola, your locator will continue to work exactly the same. Selfie and alert button: Using the Tag itself as a remote control to capture photos from a distance gives it an extra utility that its rivals do not have. ❌ THE WORST Android exclusive… By completely depending on the Google ecosystem, iOS (iPhone) users will not be able to take advantage of it. Taking advantage of UWB… The high-precision guidance compass will only be activated if your Android phone has an ultra-wideband chip, something that is usually reserved for high-end devices. 💡 BUY IT IF… You are an Android user and you are looking for a reliable, durable tracker with the largest coverage network in the world to secure your suitcases on vacation. ⛔ DON’T BUY IT IF… You primarily use Apple devices, where AirTag continues to offer a more organic integration with iOS. Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Motorola In Xataka | It looks like a card, but it’s a tracker for iOS and Android so thin it can fit in your wallet or passport In Xataka | The best Airtag for Android. Which one to buy? Tips and recommendations

“leaving it to cool on the counter is a bad idea”

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The potato omelet that didn’t fit in the refrigerator; the tupperware of rice that we left to warm up and spent the entire afternoon on the counter; the platter full of barbecue things that was on the table throughout the meal. Spain has a problem with storing food properly in the refrigerator and summer increases it exponentially. And that’s why, in recent days, the idea has been circulating on the internet that a simple rule can solve everything: “put away cooked food within two hours,” they tell us. But the problem is not that: the problem has never been in ‘if’ you cool it, but in ‘how’ you do it. The two hour rule. Let’s start here: this rule is basically the international consensus of the WHO, the FDA, the EFSA and the AESAN for decades. That is, there is no new study, report, or regulatory change that motivates the ‘revival’ of the rule. What there is is heat. And that’s important: because when the environment exceeds 30-32 °C, the safe window is reduces by half. And at that time, of course, we have to consider that vacations broaden exposure to “danger zone” for that mixture of ‘preparing food in advance’ and transporting it in ‘tuppers’. The data is clear: in 2023, Spain notified 818 foodborne outbreakswith 10,125 cases, 414 hospitalizations and 13 deaths. Between 2018 and 2022, we accumulate 27,637 cases. between the 31% occur at home and, as we will see, inadequate refrigeration is the first contributing factor. Because? This is why I say: poor refrigeration, food prepared too early and cooled slowly. In other words, the problem is “letting things cool down”: to the extent that the “danger zone” is between 4 and 60 degrees; The sooner you get the food below 4, the better. “But hey, just reheating it is enough, right?” It is true that reheating well helps, it works against vegetative cells; not against toxins already formed that withstand the heat. The case of rice is well known: he Bacillus cereus It disappears with heat, but its spores survive cooking and, at room temperature, produce a toxin that is very difficult to eliminate. And what do we do? What they say the OCU and the CDC It’s simple: divide into shallow containers and refrigerate while hot, “as soon as it stops burning.” And, above all, have common sense. Image | Kevin Wang In Xataka | What’s really happening with white rice (and to what extent we should care)

Apple is knocking on Chinese doors looking for RAM. According to the Bank of America, it is pure theater

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Apple is in the same adventure as the rest of the companies that sell consumer technology: the adventure of getting RAM memory. Although during the beginning of the RAM and storage crisis it seemed that Apple was the only one that could endure the blows, reality ended up hittingdemonstrating that if they had not raised prices it was because they had plenty of stock in advance. When that stock disappeared, we saw reality: model withdrawals, price increases and, more recently, new price increases with a whopping 20% ​​more on iPad and Mac. The problem for those from Cupertino is that the key moment of the year is approaching: the launch of the iPhone 18 Pro and the rumored foldable iPhone, and there the price is going to be crucial. That’s why they find themselves looking for RAM and storage even under the rocks, with China being the market in which they have put the magnifying glass to see if memory from manufacturers like CXMT can fit your products. But of course, there is a problem: the United States and, above all, the Bank of America, which says that All this about Apple looking for RAM in China is a little theater. Teatrillo to get better prices A few days ago we said that Apple was knocking on doors. If Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron don’t open because they are so busy neglecting the consumer segment in favor of AI, then we have to ring new bells. With the cushion on the latest and new key products on the starting grid, Apple’s escape route seems to have a name: CXMT. ChangXin Memory Technologies is a Chinese DRAM manufacturer founded in 2016 that, since then, has been polishing its product lines, making significant advances to catch up with its large South Korean competitors in different DRAM models and technologies. That said, it is estimated that Apple is striving to bring positions closer together with CXMT to ensure supply, but this has caused Bank of America to raise an eyebrow. And even worse: CXMT is on a certain list of the US Department of Commerce. In a recent report, Bank of America analyzes the market situation, exposing that there are misconceptions about the memory chip sector and stopping, curiously, at Apple’s intention to approach the Chinese manufacturer. The bank sees positive the continuous and massive spending of Big Tech to make data centers, but when it comes to buying memory from China, they are not so positive. According to the bank, Apple’s recent efforts are just a movement, a little theater, to gain bargaining power against the usual suppliers. This makes sense. Apple is no longer Nvidia, but it is still a very big fish in the consumer sector and buys a huge amount of components from different manufacturers. If Apple reached an agreement with CXMT, it would have an impact on the accounts of suppliers such as Samsung or SK Hynix. Because in the end, that’s what this is all about: that the big fish has much more decision-making and negotiating power than the small one. When Valve wants to do its Steam Machine, You should accept what they offer you. at the price they offer it and without question, but Apple is, in the field of hardware, much more important than Valve and would have some negotiating power. For Bank of America, it’s all about that strategy because they believe that the memory that the Chinese can create is, currently, valid only for more modest deviceslike a hypothetical iPhone 18e, not for the top of the range like the iPhone 18 Pro, the iPads with M processors or, above all, the Macs. And more important than the institution’s analysis is the fact that CXMT appears on the Pentagon’s blacklist of Chinese Military Companies. According to the Financial Times, Apple has been pressing to the Government to being able to buy memory from CXMT without consequencesbut if tomorrow, for whatever reason, the Chinese company enters the other Pentagon blacklist (in which American companies are prohibited from trading), Apple would be in serious trouble. In the end, no matter what happens, what is certain is that we, the users, will be the ones we end up paying the consequences. And products like the aforementioned Steam Machine, but also what is projected PS6low-end mobile phones, Raspberry Pi, nintendo switch 2 either the new xbox They are examples of what we can expect: prices -very- rising. Image | Laurenz Heymann (edited) In Xataka | In 2007, Steve Jobs went on stage with an iPhone that barely worked: he was saved by a script that did not allow even a detour

The Milky Way is 10% larger than we thought, and we have discovered it by looking at explosions in other galaxies

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Imagine that you have never left your house. What could you draw better? Your own building or the building across the street? The answer is simple. If we look out the window, we can see the building in front in detail, but we have no idea What is it like where we live?. The same thing happens with galaxies. There is data that is easier to analyze from neighboring galaxies than from the Milky Way. Therefore, for a long time, its appearance has been a mystery and its size a very cursory estimate. Thanks to the Gaia missionfrom ESA, we were able to have the most precise map of our galaxy and, with it, understand its structure much better. We know, for example, that it consists of 4 arms, instead of two, as we used to think. Now, through a collaboration between ESA and NASA, we have also discovered the size of the Milky Way. 10% bigger. NASA and ESA scientists have achieved measure the size of the Milky Way through its two X-ray observatories: the XMM-Newton, of the European Space Agency, and the Chandra, of the American one. This type of observatories have been used because the measurement has been carried out through the analysis of X-rays released by gamma ray bursts in other galaxies. Thus, they have seen that the distance between the two outermost arms of the Milky Way is 10% greater than what had been calculated until now. What do X-rays have to do with it? Gamma ray bursts They are the most energetic explosions in the Universe. Although the rays that give it its name stand out, these explosions are usually followed by an emission in the rest of the electromagnetic range known as afterluminescence. Here X-rays stand outwhich can be measured thanks to the ESA and NASA observatories. These X-rays from neighboring galaxies shoot out in all directions, so some can reach the Milky Way and, of course, also the Earth. In the latter case, there are some that arrive directly and others that arrive after being dispersed by the dust clouds in the arms of our galaxy. Detecting these two types of X-rays is what allows us to determine the size of the Milky Way. The importance of angle. The X-rays that travel directly to Earth are the first ones captured by observatories. Next come those that have been dispersed by the dust clouds. As they come from many directions, in the detectors it is seen as a circle in the center of which are the X-rays that arrive directly and, around them, the scattered ones. Although in reality they are several concentric circles. Each of them corresponds to X-rays that have been scattered at the same distance. In the case of galaxies, from the same arm. With all this, calculations can be inferred that allow us to detect how far some arms are from each other. Until now, only estimates had been made, but in this case the distances have been measured thanks to three gamma ray bursts measured in three of the four arms of our galaxy: Perseus, the outer one, and the outer Scutum-Centaurus. To know the size of the Milky Way you only have to measure the distance between the outermost arms. It was observed that the distance between them and the center is 10% greater than what had been measured until now, so the galaxy is larger than we believed. Far from retirement. So much Chandra as XMM-Newton They were launched in 1999. We might think that they are already outdated, but they continue to give us data as important as the size of the Milky Way. The key is knowing how to use the information they can capture. In this case, the calculations have been based precisely on looking out the window towards the neighbor’s house. Because until now we had not seen that we could draw our own building by observing the shadow on the one in front. Images | Magnificent | ESA/Gaia/DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar, ESA/XMM-Newton and NASA/Chandra In Xataka | When stars formed has always been one of the greatest mysteries of the universe. And we are closer to solving it

“If it’s hot, turn it off and wait for it to cool. You can get serious burns.”

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Heat. It’s hot. It’s really hot. And our car notices it. Because when the temperature rises, we go to the beach, the town or the mountains and we load the car, our car notices it. First because we demand more from him than we ask of him the rest of the year. Secondly, because adverse weather conditions must be added to these demands, with very extreme temperatures. The combo is perfect for turning our car into a small oven that heats up and heats up until it reaches, metaphorically, boiling. And when that happens, a red light comes on on the instrument panel and it is best that we get out of the car. In that case, these are the precautions to take. The best, prevent “With the arrival of heat, various components of the car can suffer if they are not checked in time. The engine requires special attention, since high temperatures can cause it to overheat if the cooling system is not in good condition,” explains Francisco Javier Fuentes, mechanic and trainer at Midas. Sources point out that with the arrival of high temperatures, it is common for them to suffer brakes, battery and tires But he is clear that the main reason for breakdown is engine overheating and that to achieve this, the most important thing is to check the components carefully before leaving: “it is key to check the coolant level.” And with the increase in temperatures, having coolant in poor condition or a small undetected leak can trigger almost certain overheating of our engine. The signs, he explains, are clear: “If we observe that the engine temperature increases abnormally, a fault warning light appears, we hear strange noises or notice irregular behavior, we must stop in a safe place and evaluate the situation.” But here lies an important part of how we should act. If we are on a road open to traffic and we have had to stop on the shoulder, the DGT is clear: reflective vest, beacon and we just have to get out of the car If there is a safe and remote place. Otherwise we will have to fasten our seat belts and wait inside for assistance. If, on the other hand, we have been able to stop at a gas station, Midas believes that our best ally is patience and, without rushing, seeing what can be done: “In case of overheating, I never recommend opening the coolant tank while the engine is hot, as there is a risk of serious burns. The best thing to do is to turn off the engine, wait for it to cool and request assistance if necessary.” And it must be taken into account that the coolant works because the water in the car works at a very high temperature (above 100 degrees), especially if the car has overheated due to a breakdown. Opening the tank when it is hot to check its level can cause it to evaporate quickly and cause serious burns. Juan José Ebenezer, mechanical expert and content creator, explains in one of his videos how the system works. It points out that the coolant tank acts in a similar way to that of a pressure cooker. To prevent water from evaporating when it exceeds the 100 degreespressure is applied and if there is excess, the car itself decompresses downwards in a controlled manner. When the driver removes the tank cap, it decompresses, the water begins to boil because it is at more than 100 degrees and it is very likely that it will be expelled upwards, releasing a pressurized jet of water that can cause serious injuries. Photo | Jamie Street and windy In Xataka | The problem is not that the car’s air conditioning breaks down more in summer. The problem is that we don’t look at it the rest of the year.

Nintendo confirms when the new Switch 2 revision will arrive in Europe. And also that it will have less battery and more weight

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nintendo has confirmed that, starting this fall, a new revision of the Switch 2 will arrive in Europe. The idea is that, to comply with European regulations, the user can more easily replace the console’s battery. Although this change We already knew him for a few monthsNintendo has now offered more details about the release window of this new revision and how it affects the rest of the devices. Why is this happening now? The European Union approved in 2023 battery legislation that requires consumer products with integrated batteries to allow them to be easily removed and changed starting in February 2027. Nintendo, like any manufacturer selling hardware in the region, has to adapt before that date, and that is why it has already begun to make moves. In detail. According to has explained Nintendo itself through its official technical support, starting this summer several of its products in Europe will begin to be replaced “in a phased manner” by versions with replaceable batteries. The company assures that there will be “no difference in operation” between the current and revised models, although we will surely have to wait for this new revision to end up reaching stores to confirm that statement. The calendar you have shared is the following: Joy-Con controllers (some colors): since this summer, without changes in weight or battery capacity. Nintendo Switch 2 console: since autumn, weighing about 411 grams (10 grams more than the current model) and up to 548 grams with the Joy-Con 2 attached (14 grams more). Its battery goes from 5,220 mAh to 5,172 mAh, around 1% less capacity. Joy-Con 2 (separately): since this winter, with 2 grams more weight for each controller, without changes to the battery. Switch 2 Pro Controller: from this winter, with a 16% smaller battery (897 mAh compared to the current 1,070 mAh), although the controller will weigh 7 grams less. N64 and GameCube controllers for Switch 2: in early 2027, with slight changes in weight and, in the case of the GameCube controller, a slightly larger battery. Between the lines. Not all Nintendo products will go through this process. As they collect from VGC, the original Switch, the Switch Litethe OLED switchthe classic Switch Pro controller and other retro accessories such as NES, SNES or Mega Drive controllers. In addition, the user will not be able to choose which version they buy, so when the stock of the current model runs out, stores will begin to offer the revision with a replaceable battery. On the other hand, Nintendo has also announced that it will put battery replacement kits on sale for each product, although it has not yet given a date or price. Goodbye to the original Switch in Europe. As the company tells us, Nintendo has decided not to launch a new version of the original Switch in Europe. And instead of adapting it to the regulations, it will directly remove this console from sale in the region when appropriate. That doesn’t mean it’s now, but maybe in Europe we can already prepare for the end of Nintendo’s transition to Switch 2. And now what. Availability will not be the same in all European countries at the same time, according to recognize Nintendo. Furthermore, as could not be expected otherwise, Spain is among the markets where these reviews will arrive, as confirmed by the company. From here, what remains to be seen is whether these slight changes in weight and autonomy generate any real difference in the daily use of the console. In Xataka | In 1993, no one could find the supposed red ninja from ‘Mortal Kombat’. There was a reason: it didn’t exist yet

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