secret

Hadrian’s toilet reveals a new secret about the durability of Roman concrete

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One of the best kept secrets of the Roman Empire is What was special about your concrete? so that Agrippa’s Pantheon has been there for 2,000 years (and what remains). From time to time science and archeology believe you have discovered the secret and for example, a button: this half-finished work in Pompeii left clues. We have found the umpteenth attempt to explain why concrete is no longer made like it used to be in an emperor’s toilet. The discovery. To date the explanation for the resistance of Roman concrete is in the reaction between lime and volcanic ash (a pozzolanic reaction), but a new study adds one more ingredient to the recipe: natural carbonation and the progressive formation of calcite were also important for this construction material to withstand the passage of time so well. In addition to the ingredient, the curious thing is where they took the sample from: from the concrete collector located under one of the seats of one of the common latrines in the western complex of the Canopus, in Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli. From a toilet. Why is it important. Because beyond the pozzolanic reaction, what really holds concrete together over the centuries is calcite. So the formation of calcite over centuries also helps the structures of these latrines to remain standing two millennia later. Knowing this mechanism opens the doors to the design of modern cements that are more durable. Context. Before we thought that all the merit fell on the reaction between the lime and the ash and be careful, that explanation is still valid, but it is not the only one. Furthermore, previous research such as this MIT study from 2023 pointed out that the white fragments of lime present in the concrete were proof that the Romans used a “hot mix” technique, which gave this construction material the ability to self-heal when cracks appeared. In detail. From 3D images, the team rebuilt in detail the internal composition of the material and what chemical processes it underwent over the centuries. Thus, they verified that calcite was formed through a slow reaction between lime, humidity and carbon dioxide in the air (carbonation) and that mineral progressively filled cracks and pores, making the concrete denser and blocking the passage of potentially harmful substances or even water. The volcanic rock fragments also reacted with the lime in the edge area, which strengthened the bond. Yes, but. The main limitation of this study is that it is based in a single sample from an indoor environment, so the conclusions obtained cannot be directly extrapolated to other Roman concretes studied outdoors or in marine environments, where Different self-repair mechanisms have been described with salt water. We will have to wait for the results to be replicated in other samples and sites before reaching a general conclusion. In Xataka | Almost 2,000 years ago a Celtiberian soldier visited the most remote frontier of the Roman Empire. Then he returned to Soria with a souvenir In Xataka | The latest victim of mass tourism (and perhaps Game of Thrones): Hadrian’s Wall Cover | Jl FilpoC and Mineralized carbonates contribute to the millennial durability of Roman concrete. Advanced Science

Tokyo has four times the population of Madrid and traffic jams are non-existent. The secret is called Shako Shomeisho

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Spain has an extension of 506,030 square kilometers and 48.35 million people live there. Japan has an area of 377,974 square kilometers where 124.5 million people live. In the city of Madrid it is estimated that they live 3.23 million peoplewhile in Tokyo a total of 14.22 million people. The difference is even more striking if we take into account population density. In Madrid there are 5,265.91 inhabitants/km², while in Tokyo it rises to 6,501.58 inhabitants/km². Which of the two cities is hell to drive? If you cast an eye on photographs of Japanese citiesyou may have noticed that there are many, many people walking and on public transport. But how many cars do you see on the street? The answer is simple: very few. If we attend to the 2021 dataSpain had 29,875,896 million cars in use, while in Japan there were 76,702,773 cars. How can it be that a country with a much smaller surface area and that is on its way to tripling our population? don’t be a car hell If it has a density of cars per person very similar to ours (629 cars/1,000 inhabitants for Spain compared to 609 cars/1,000 inhabitants for Japan)? They have achieved this, of course, by forcibly limiting the number of cars that can be owned in large cities where, logically, a greater number of cars should accumulate. As? The secret is Shako Shomeisho Although the car density per inhabitant is very similar to that of Spain, the truth is that it plummets if we focus on large cities. In Japan it is estimated that each household owns 1.06 cars of the total. That figure plummets to 0.32 vehicles per household in Tokyo. The big Japanese city is, in fact, the rich city where cars are used the least. According to Deloitteonly 12% of daily trips in Tokyo are made by car, while 17% are made by bicycle. Figures that cannot be understood without two express prohibitions: that of parking on the street and that of buying a car… without space to park it. And a little luck. Andre Sorensen, professor of urban planning at the University of Toronto, says that part of Tokyo’s success in achieving this low vehicle density begins with a coincidence. At the beginning of the 20th centuryonly 15% of Japanese lived in cities. That figure is now 91%. Tokyo (above) and Rotterdam (below) two examples of cities rebuilt after World War II. Source: Google Maps The explosion came with the end of World War II. The cities were devastated and the growth in Tokyo was so chaotic that buildings began to grow uncontrollably, one close to the other. You can compare with photographs from Google Maps how Tokyo grew, completely uncontrolled with countless tiny plots, and how Rotterdam grew, with planning studied to combine green areas in residential areas. Sorensen explains that this population explosion caused the flourishing of narrow streets that made it difficult for vehicles to pass through and store them. The wave of workers to the cities forced the institutions they will turn to public transport and in 1957 the first measure was taken to harshly regulate car use in cities. And, in turn, a good reason to discourage its use. Since then, a law has been applied that prevents parking cars on the street. What is common in any European city is strictly prohibited in Japan. The fine is also not nonsense. They apply penalties of up to 200,000 yen for leaving the car parked irregularly, which entails a fine of more than 1,200 euros. Just a few years later, in 1962, the Shako Shomeisho. This name refers to the certificate that the buyer of a car must present when purchasing the vehicle. This guarantees that that person has a place to park the car. That is, you have a parking space where you can park your car every night. If you do not have a garage space, you will be prohibited from buying a car. Kei Cars, like this Daihatsu Copen, do not need to have a parking certificate except in Tokyo and Osaka This Shako Shomeisho does not apply to Kei Carssmall Japanese cars that measure less than 3.4 meters in length, 1.48 meters wide and 2.0 meters high and with engines less than 660 cc that cannot exceed 64 HP of power. The problem is that street parking options are minimal and parking in a public parking lot is very expensive. Shako Shomeisho the price of land has skyrocketed of the parking lots. In fact, the expensive thing is not buying a car, the expensive thing is getting the chance to buy a car. Is something similar to what happens in Singapore with a subtle difference: there are spaces available to park cars in Tokyo that sell for more than one million euros and the advertisements themselves already reflect the performance that can be obtained by allowing the rental of vehicles by the hour. And it must be taken into account that not all parking spaces are valid. The garage where the car is stored must be less than two kilometers from the habitual residence and to obtain the certificate it must be possible to corroborate this with plans or, even, the entrance and exit measurements of the garage are required. If the car is too big, the buyer may have problems getting the certificate approved by the authorities and may not have anywhere to park it… or rent it. The solution can go through rent the garages But there are neighborhoods where monthly rents can easily go above 500 euros (about 77,000 yen). In some very specific places in the most expensive neighborhoods, the spaces They are quoted with rents above 700 euros (110,000 yen). As it could not be otherwise, houses for sale are offered with skyrocketing prices when the combination “downtown” and “parking space” go hand in hand. With offers that exceed 3.5 million euros (550 million yen) for 130 m2 houses… And with space … Read more

Apple ousts Nvidia and becomes the most valuable company in the world for a few hours. The secret is in the spending of AI

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Two years ago the surprise came and Nvidia overtook Apple becoming the most valuable company in the world for the first time. Since then the title has changed hands on several occasions, although Nvidia has retained it practically uninterrupted since mid-2025: good times are going on for Jensen Huang’s team, with stratospheric benefits thanks to the AI ​​race in which he is one of the great beneficiaries. But last night, in just a few hours, a company that is not going through its best moment: sue OpenAI for theft of trade secrets, immersed in full transition of its CEOwith a talent drain and lagging behind in AIonce again emerged as the most valuable company on the planet despite all of the above. Surpass from Apple to Nvidia. Although fleeting, this reorganization of the ranking of the technological giants constitutes a warning to sailors about the expectations placed on AI. what has happened. During the Friday session and how AOL collectsApple was valued at $4.88 billion, above Nvidia’s $4.86 billion, which fell 3.5%. It was a hit and miss: at closing, Nvidia’s capitalization reached 4.92 billion, thus barely surpassing Apple’s 4.89 billion. Fleeting but significant: Apple returned to the throne for the first time since April 2025. Why is it important. Beyond the stock market anecdote, this turmoil reflects a change in the narrative about who truly benefits from the AI ​​boom. One of the large and immediate direct beneficiaries is Nvidia and its leadership reflects this. Toni Meadows, Chief Investment Officer at BRI Wealth Management, declares for Reuters that Apple is less dependent on capital spending intensity and is better positioned to monetize AI through services, the closed ecosystem and hardware upgrades. Nvidia rises with certain fluctuations because it is directly exposed, but Apple is better positioned to reap its rewards with less risk. Context. Nvidia has just broken historical records: in October it became the first company in the world to exceed a valuation of $5 trillion: it looked down on the rest of the magnificent seven. The reason? Chips for AI. Apple, on the other hand, has earned the label of lagging behind: it does not invest in its own models and is laying all its eggs in Google basket. However, in 2026 there is an increase of 20% so far this year. In detail. The catalyst for this movement has been Siri: last month Apple got its act together and renewed its assistant with the new Siri AI. It arrived late to the party, but it starts from a privileged position compared to some rivals and new startups: the personal data that each iPhone and the ecosystem houses. Of course, you have to discover how to take advantage of that information without compromising the privacy of users. The future. What happens from now on will depend on whether Apple manages to turn the promise of monetization into tangible results. Or what is the same: if the new and late Siri manages to stand up to Gemini in the Android ecosystem or compete in features with ChatGPT. For Nvidia, the future involves demonstrating that the colossal spending on AI infrastructure by its clients (hyperscalers such as Microsoft, Google or Amazon) continues to translate into large orders for chips, and that the bubble of an investment that, for the moment, does not offer a sufficient return does not burst. The next quarterly results will be the best thermometer to verify if this rotation of investors towards those who monetize AI with less risk is consolidated. In Xataka | Apple sues OpenAI for stealing trade secrets: “Lol, I have access”, the message of the engineer who uncovered the scandal In Xataka | The European Commission, on Siri AI: “The decision not to launch it in Europe is Apple’s and Apple’s alone” Cover | Applesphere

Omoda and Jaecoo already sell more cars than Citroën, Nissan or Ford in Spain. And they are very clear that their secret is not in the price

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In the first half of 2026, Omoda has sold 13,208 cars according to data from Anfac. Jaecoo has placed 6,590 units on the market. Between both companies there are only six cars on the market (the Omoda 5 and Jaecoo 5 have electric versions) but their numbers are higher than those of Citroën, Ford or Nissan, companies more than established in our country and that have been great bestsellers. AND Francesco Colonnesevice president of Omoda&Jaecoo Iberia, is very clear about why. Shot. “This year we will reach close to 40,000 units.” That is the objective they have within Omoda&Jaecoo for our country, according to Colonnese who has expressed his reading of the market in The Country. The numbers, of course, point to this because in the first half of the year they already touched 20,000 units, already close to just under more than 25,000 units with which they closed last year. The situation of Omoda and Jaecoo is just the certification that three Chinese companies have arrived in Spain to occupy a relevant position in the market. Its cars are the basis of the almost 14,000 units that Ebro has put on the market so far this year. BYD has already registered 22,860 units (double than last year). MG, the leader, is in a technical tie with last year, signing 25,137 units. And in Europe, which was still resisting Chinese brands, BYD already sells more cars than Citroën. “They have to get their act together”. The reasons why Colonnese believes that Chinese manufacturers are gaining ground in Spain are very clear: “European manufacturers have to step up. When someone arrives who raises the level of quality and technology in cars, you have to try to provide the same service; you can’t stay with what you have because, suddenly, you go from being super modern to super old, from technological to analog…” In his words, the vice president of Omoda&Jaecoo Iberia defends that price is not the only reason why its cars are growing at a devilish rate. “It’s not that the customer buys from us for 3,000 euros less, but because we provide double the electric range. Until the Chinese arrived, until we arrived, (the plug-in hybrids) had 40-50 kilometers of electric range, now they have 150 kilometers.” a good business. This defense of the plug-in hybrid makes a lot of sense for the company. At this time, Omoda has sneaked in the Omoda 7 and to Omoda 9 among the 10 best-selling cars with this technology in Spain. Cars that, as we told you in these tests (previous links), we liked for their low consumption and high technological load. Yes, but. Although Colonnese assures that its customers buy them for “the quality of our cars, which have technology everywhere, something that was not common in the sector”, the truth is that Omoda&Jaecoo, like the rest of the Chinese brands (five of the 10 best-selling plug-in hybrids in Spain are Chinese), offer products much cheaper than the competition. Equal equipment, as we tell in this BYD Seal U testthere is no possible comparison with other models. But part of this advantage in the market comes because Chinese cars with combustion engines, unlike electric cars, do not pay the extra tariffs that were imposed in 2024. They have become, as we already warned, the Trojan horse with which to quickly gain market share. The times. What is indisputable is that Chinese manufacturers are monetizing investments and arrival in our country in record time. Their cars offer a more technological image that quickly adapts to current customer tastes. That, in a world that advances at a devilish pace, is key because a car has been designed for a decade if we add the development time and the time that this car had to be on the market. From Chery (owner of Omoda&Jaecoo) they have long defended that That ability to adapt and solve problems is key. Instead of launching a car that is as refined as possible but developed over years, what Chinese manufacturers prefer is to launch a very solvent product and apply subtle changes if necessary in record time. These very short development times are what are dynamiting the industry and putting traditional manufacturers on the ropes. At Toyota they are clear that they need to be more agile to compete and The Renault Twingo has been designed in China to have it on the market as soon as possible. Photo | In Xataka | Europe has focused on stopping Chinese electric cars. The real threat is in its cars with combustion engines

One of the most advanced yachts in the world keeps its biggest secret below deck: cryogenic tanks at -253 ºC

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At first glance, Breakthrough It could seem like another superyacht destined to attract attention due to its dimensions. It measures 118.80 meterswas built by Feadship and is part of that category of boats in which each meter is usually accompanied by swimming pools, terraces and private spaces. The difference is that here the real claim is not on the external postcard. The point that makes this project something exceptional is below deck: a cryogenic system designed to bring liquid hydrogen at -253 ºC in a luxury vessel. The project was not born as Breakthrough, but as Project 821, the name with which Feadship unveiled it at its Amsterdam shipyard in 2024. The Dutch shipyard defines it as the first superyacht with a hydrogen fuel cell system, a statement that should always be attributed to the company to maintain rigor. The idea was not only to build another large ship, but to explore how far a non-combustion electricity generation technology could be taken within a platform of more than 100 meters. The “secret” of the yacht is below deck Carrying liquid hydrogen on a yacht is not simply about changing one tank for another. Feadship details that Project 821 incorporates a 92 m³ cryogenic tank for about four tons of hydrogen, integrated into a dedicated and very isolated room. The problem is that liquid hydrogen takes up much more space than a conventional fuel when the available energy is calculated: the shipyard speaks of between eight and ten times more volume compared to a non-fossil diesel equivalent. That hydrogen does not burn like a conventional fuel. It passes through 16 PowerCell systems that function like small power plants: They combine hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity, and the exhaust is water vapor. The resulting energy powers an architecture integrated by ABB, with direct current electrical grid, intelligent energy management and Azipod thrusters. This means that hydrogen does not directly move the yacht, but rather produces the electricity that allows it to move and keep its on-board consumption active. As we can see, its most ambitious part is designed not to be seen, but the boat does not give up showing itself as a large superyacht. Feadship highlights that it incorporates more hull openings than any other Feadship to date, with 14 balconies, seven platforms and nine hull doors. The Edmiston listing completes the picture with a swimming pool, three hot tubs, Nemo lounge, spa, cinema, hospital, touch-and-go helipad and three elevators. At this point, the question is obvious: Does Breakthrough always run on hydrogen? No. Feadship does not present it as a yacht capable of doing everything with its fuel cells, but as a hybrid boat that uses that energy in specific scenarios. The shipyard talks about a week of silent operation at anchor or sailing at 10 knots in protected areas without fossil fuels. It is an interesting figure, but it also marks the limit: hydrogen serves to reduce noise and local emissions in certain uses, not to completely replace the conventional system. The reason is physical, not commercial. Even on a 118.80 meter yacht, there is not enough space to carry the liquid hydrogen necessary for a complete ocean crossing. That’s why Breakthrough combines its fuel cells with MTU generators capable of running on HVO, a second-generation biofuel, within a hybrid architecture. The project was also an exercise in integration. Feadship maintains that there were no specific class, Flag State or IMO regulations for hydrogen storage and fuel cell systems on such a project, so it worked with Lloyd’s Register to develop specific equipment, protocols and safety procedures. ABB completes that part from the electrical side: it integrated the 3 MW system with the Onboard DC Grid network, energy management and Azipod thrusters. The other big challenge is outside the boat. It is one thing to design a yacht capable of using liquid hydrogen and quite another to create the infrastructure to safely supply it. Air Products announced in 2025 which had supplied Breakthrough with liquid hydrogen in what was the first bunkering of this type in the Netherlands. The data is important because it remembers that the technology does not depend only on the tank, fuel cells or propulsion: it also needs ports prepared to handle fuel at extreme temperatures. In Xataka The future of war at sea is hybrid: Navantia is clear about how to win it with its new ship for the United Kingdom Breakthrough demonstrates that a technology that is difficult to store, regulate, integrate and supply can leave the laboratory and enter a real ship. It may remain an exception for years, available to very few. Still, its value lies in having brought one of the most complex conversations in maritime energy to a hull that is already sailing. Images | Feadship In Xataka | Norway gives the green light to the construction of the world’s first tunnel for ships: a colossal engineering feat that has been waiting for 150 years (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 One of the most advanced yachts in the world keeps its biggest secret below deck: cryogenic tanks at -253 ºC was originally published in Xataka by Javier Marquez .

Every year a veterinarian, a jurist, a psychoanalyst and a gardener meet. They are the secret owners of rearmament in Europe

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In 1916, in the midst of the First World War, the German Empire created the Kriegsrohstoffabteilungan office dedicated to coordinate private companies to fuel the war effort. It was one of the first great modern experiments of war economy: industrial families, private capital and the State working side by side to sustain the conflict. More than a century later, Europe once again looks to those same dynasties to build its new military muscle. The silent heirs of rearmament. I told the story last weekend the financial times. Every year, in a discreet business hotel in Germany, a peculiar group gathers: a veterinarian, a stairlift salesman, a jurist, a psychoanalyst, a landscape gardener and several academics. At first glance they have nothing in common. However, they all share an access key to one of the most important companies on the new European military map. They are the shareholders by Wegmannthe extended and fragmented family that controls half by KNDSthe Franco-German giant behind the tanks Leopard 2 and Leclerc. For decades they were almost invisible. Now they are on the verge of an operation that can make them multimillionaires. The IPO of a war giant. It so happens that KNDS is preparing its IPO with an estimated valuation of between 15,000 and 20,000 million of euros. The plan goes through a complex reorganization: the German State wants to buy cabout 40% of the private part, while France would also reduce its participation to maintain a balance between both governments. The rest would remain floating in the marketan industrial and political operation at the same time. KNDS has become a centerpiece of European rearmament since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and Berlin wants to ensure it maintains direct influence over a key enterprise for the continent’s military future. The rearmament business and its dividends. While Europe multiply budgets military and accumulating debt to finance new purchases, the private owners of KNDS have already begun to reap the benefits. Only in November did they distribute an extraordinary dividend of 1,000 million of euros together with the French State. Another additional distribution will arrive before the IPO. Annual dividends have nearly doubled since 2021, passing from about 34 million to 65 million in 2024. The company’s revenue also skyrocketed: from 2.7 billion in 2021 to 4.4 billion last year. European rearmament is generating new fortunes, and many of them are falling on names almost unknown outside very specific circles. An industrial history from more than a century ago. The origin of everything dates back to 1882when Wegmann was a railway carriage manufacturer in Kassel. As the decades passed, the company entered the military industry until manufacturing tanks in World War I and be part of the industrial machinery of the Third Reich in the Second, using forced labor. After the war she returned to the railway sector, although the rearmament of West Germany in 1955 took her back to the military business. Over there their relationship began with the Leopard 1, precursor to the current Leopard 2. Since then, the company was linked to the military history of Germany and, by extension, Europe. The Bode family and the problem of inheritance. A good part of the shareholding structure remains in the hands of the descendants by August Bodethe industrialist who took part in the company in 1912. Today at least twelve of his heirs retain more than a third from Wegmann Holding. The main figure It’s Felix Bodemember of the KNDS council and visible representative of the family. Together with his brother Stephan, they could share about 1.2 billion of euros if the maximum valuation is met. For decades, the Bodes have been the custodians of this industrial heritage, although within the family not everyone seems to share the same attachment to preserving it. Leopard 2 The Braunbehrens and the great branch of capital. The other large shareholder family is the von Braunbehrensa lineage much more intellectual than industrial. Among its members are musicologists specialized in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, philologists and academics. His shares, inherited from former Wegmann partners, have ended up pooled in a charitable foundation linked to Heidelberg. That foundation owns 24% of Wegmann Holding and could receive up to 2.4 billion of euros with the operation. It is one of the most curious images in this history: part of the money from European rearmament could end up financing studies on historical almanacs and traditional carpets. A company that almost disappeared. The path to this point was not always ascending. In 2015, the merger between German division and the French Nexter It was seen within the sector as a defensive move. KNDS was born in part to avoid falling into the hands of Rheinmetall, which had been trying to absorb it for years. At the time, the tank business seemed stagnant. The war in Ukraine changed everything. The Leopard returned to the center of European military debate and production needs grew rapidly. What a decade ago seemed like just another industrial company is today one of the nerve centers of the new continental defense. The paradox of the new European military cycle. There is no doubt, history leaves a curious image: while European governments approve pmulti-million dollar achievements of military spending and appeal to collective security, a group of discreet heirs, many long removed from day-to-day industrial life, is about to capitalize a good part of that new cycle. They are not businessmen made in the heat of war. They are heirs of an industrial chain that has been going through the great European conflicts for more than a century. For years his wealth remained almost motionless, managed in quiet meetings and buffet lunches. Now rearmament has put new value on that old heritage. The end of a century-old relationship. Inside by KNDS Many see this sale as the closing of an era. Younger generations no longer feel the same connection to the company that their parents and grandparents did. The idea of ​​guarding a strategic industry for generations seems to dilute. … Read more

the “secret” heat shield of the Ariane 6 parts that Airbus manufactures in Spain

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We are used to “aerospace” sounding like almost futuristic materials. Titanium, high-strength aluminum, carbon fiber, alloys designed to withstand extreme conditions. The technology industry itself has turned that idea into a sales argument: just remember how some laptops and cell phones They boast of using “aerospace grade” materials.“to convey lightness, resistance and precision. That is why what happened this week during a visit to the Airbus facilities in Getafe caught my attention. In front of one of the pieces, Veronica Villanuevaresponsible for Manufacturing, Assembly, Integration and Testing at Airbus Space Systems in Spain, pointed to a yellowish surface and said it bluntly: “What you see here is yellowish, this is corkit is the thermal insulator that is put on, it is super curious, right?” The phrase had some revelation, but it was not an anecdote for visitors. The cork was there for a very specific reason: a launcher must not only be able to take off, it also has to protect its structures in a very demanding physical environment. In this case, Villanueva was talking about pieces linked to the Ariane 6. We are not talking about an “Airbus rocket”, but rather a European launcher in which ArianeGroup occupies the central role and Airbus participates by manufacturing several structures and key elements. The cork we saw in Getafe shows that space engineering also has very everyday surprises To understand why this detail was so striking, it is worth taking a step back in manufacturing. Before reaching the cork, many of these structures go through a process based on composite materials, especially carbon fiber and fiberglass. Villanueva explained during the tour that the carbon fiber used in the plant arrives as a prepreg material, that is, already mixed with resin. From there, the machines place layers on a mold until the desired geometry is built. Then will come the curing, the inspection and everything necessary to turn that stack into a piece capable of being part of a launcher. The underlying reason is easy to understand: in a launch, every kilo counts long before reaching orbit. A launcher must lift its own structure, its systems and the load it carries, so any weight savings can have significant consequences. The manufacturing manager defended during the tour that composite materials are especially interesting due to their low mass, their tensile strength and their ability to adapt to changes in temperature. The downside is that they are not as simple or as cheap to manufacture as metal. View of the Airbus production area in Getafe, where some structures linked to Ariane 6 incorporate cork as part of their thermal protection That complexity appears as soon as the structure begins to take shape. After taping, the pieces go through an autoclavea type of large pressurized oven where temperature and pressure are controlled so that the resin solidifies and the whole is compacted. Villanueva explained that the process includes a vacuum bag to extract any air that may have remained between the layers, an important detail because possible defects are not always visible from the outside. In a composite structure, what happens on the inside can be as relevant as the exterior geometry. Verónica Villanueva, responsible for Manufacturing, Assembly, Integration and Testing at Airbus Space Systems in Spain And then, after all that chain of carbon fiber, resin, pressure, vacuum and inspection, the least expected material appears again. Cork is applied to certain areas of the structure as a layer of protection against heat, but not in any way. Raúl Medina, head of launchers at Airbus Space Systems Spain, pointed out the pieces during the visit and gave a very specific measurement: “We can go from 2 millimeters to 5 millimeters thick.” On the indicated pieces, that layer moved within a very specific margin. Detail of an Ariane 6 part manufactured by Airbus in Spain. The light areas show the cork applied as thermal protection; the dark ones, areas without that coating The decision is not made by eye either. Medina summed it up with a very graphic phrase: “This in the end is an art. There are thermal engineers who analyze that you will be exposed to more heat and then, depending on that, more thickness, less thickness or areas without cork“On the surface of the piece, this thermal reading translates into areas with more protection, others with less and others where the material from the cork oak is not directly applied. Raúl Medina, head of launchers at Airbus Space Systems Spain. The idea may sound strange, but it does not appear isolated in the European space industry. In another application, ESA explained it with the Qarman CubeSatdesigned to study atmospheric reentry: its nose was made of cork, although not the kind we find in a champagne bottle, but of an adapted aerospace variety. The difference is in the behavior of the material when heated. First it swells, then chars, and finally flakes off, taking some of the unwanted heat with it. Detail of an Ariane 6 part manufactured by Airbus in Spain. The light areas show the cork applied as thermal protection; the dark ones, areas without that coating The supplier’s lead pointed in the same direction. Villanueva pointed out during the visit that that cork came from Portugal, and Medina added that whoever supplies it to the aerospace industry belongs to the same industrial universe that we associate with the wine and champagne corks. In open sources, that description fits Amorim Cork Solutionspart of the Portuguese group Corticeira Amorim, one of the world’s greatest names in cork. The ESA, in fact, identified Amorim as a supplier of the aerospace variety used in Qarman, although Airbus did not detail there the specific supplier of the parts before us. One of the fascinating things about the space industry is that it always holds some surprises. We can imagine it as a territory dominated by advanced materials, highly controlled processes and pieces designed to the limit, and to a large extent it is. But it … Read more

The secret weapon to cool cities is exactly the one that Spain uses the least: trees

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Madrid is not only one of the five cities with the most trees and green areas in Europe according to the European Environment Agency, but the FAO has been doing it for six years recognizing it as “Tree City of the World”. And yet, it is at the bottom of the continent in ‘useful cup’ (with only 9.4%). It has many trees, but they are useless. And that, far from being a Madrid curiosity, is the best possible summary of the great Spanish problem with urban trees. What happens to the trees? The short explanation is that they are the cheapest cooling tool available. It’s not a secret. However, the lesson we need to learn is not a crude “we need more trees.” That is what explains the ‘contradiction’ of Madrid. We need more trees, yes. But we need trees of the right species, covering the right layers, planted where they are needed and provide more, and well watered. That is, we need a comprehensive plan that stops seeing trees as inconveniences and begins to see them as opportunities. How do we know all this? The work of Mohammad A. Rahman, Senior Lecturer in Urban Horticulture at the University of Melbourne It is very useful to study how they really work the trees. The results are contradictory, but very interesting. According to their work, for example, the trees in Melbourne (a city with a temperate climate) reduce the radiant heat absorbed by pedestrians by up to 18 degrees compared to an open street with the same characteristics. In the cold climate of Munich, layered vegetation (the combination of trees, shrubs and ground cover) reduces heat stress in summer by up to 8 degrees. In Hong Kong, on the other hand, where the climate is subtropical and humid, dense vegetation increases the humidity of the environment and limits cooling. That is why researchers are beginning to agree that, even maximizing the use of trees, it is difficult for trees cut more than 20% of future urban warming. But be careful, 20% is a lot. Above all, because Spain has a lot to do. According to ISGlobalthe Spanish cities are at the bottom in canopy coverage on urban land: 5.5% in Seville, 8.4% in Barcelona or 9.4% in Madrid compared to 33.3% in Berlin or 23.3% in Frankfurt. To give us an idea, the average of the 93 cities was 11% and only Athens (with 3%) was below Seville. We need to take this seriously. Historically, Spain has bad care of its urban trees. And that “evil” can be summarized in very few words (“few resources, bad management and political decisions isolated from any current technical knowledge”), but it has a very difficult solution. Fundamentally because all this evidence translates into “planting more trees is cheap and saves lives”; but its implementation systematically fails. Image | Ch Photography In Xataka | In Spain, cutting down urban trees seems like a national sport. These Swiss have just proven it wrong

Europe’s secret weapon to win the electric battery war is not in the mines: it is in the garbage

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The race for European energy sovereignty is being fought far from the large open pit mines. The new battlefield is located in a much more unexpected place: the garbage heap. The companies Vianode and Cylib they have forged an alliance to convert old batteries from scrapyards into high-performance components for new vehicles, the continent’s latest attempt to achieve supply chain independence. However, this scientific advance collides head-on with a real political earthquake. As anticipated at the time Reutersthe European Commission is evaluating whether to reverse or delay its star measure for five or more years: the ban on selling combustion cars from 2035. While technology shows that stopping dependence on foreign powers is possible, economic fear makes Brussels hesitate. The “unsung hero” at the bottom of the landfill. To understand the magnitude of the project, you have to look at a specific material. How do you define it? Aqua Metals, This is the “unsung hero” of lithium-ion batteries: graphite. This material is essential to create the anode (the negative pole of the battery) that allows energy to be stored and released efficiently. Although it is light compared to metals such as cobalt, graphite represents between 10% and 20% of the total weight of a cell. The underlying problem is geopolitical. Global demand for this mineral has skyrocketed, but Europe depends almost entirely on imports of virgin material controlled by external markets. The situation became critical when China, the world’s largest producer, announced severe restrictions for export. The answer to this vulnerability lies in what the industry knows as “black mass,” the dark dust that results from crushing discarded batteries. In this mixture, graphite can account for up to 50% of the content. Recycling has ceased to be a simple green initiative and has become a matter of industrial survival. Urban water-based mining. How exactly is that scrap metal transformed into cutting-edge components? The German company Cylib has developed its own technology based on water, named OLiC. This system is capable of recovering 90% of critical metals (lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt and manganese) from spent batteries, reducing carbon emissions by 80% compared to traditional mining extraction. This development is not an improvised promise. By mid-2025, Cylib has already marked a milestone together with the Syensqo firm by producing high purity lithium hydroxide directly from this black mass using a proprietary selective solvent (CYANEX 936P). This achievement allowed different battery chemistries to be processed in a single operational line, preparing to more than comply with EU regulation, which will require recovering 80% of lithium by 2031. With the new alliance signed, the graphite recovered by Cylib will be delivered to the Norwegian firm Vianode, which will integrate it into the formulation of its advanced synthetic anodes. Its goal for 2030 is radical: emitting just 1.0 kg of CO2 for every kilo of graphite produced. As Dr. Lilian Schwich, co-founder of Cylib, summarized: “Circular does not mean making concessions. It means a competitive advantage for Europe.” The fracture of the industry in the mirror of 2035. Although recyclers demonstrate that material autonomy is technically viable, pressure from traditional manufacturers has fractured the automotive sector. Giants like Volkswagen or Stellantis They argue that the current goals They are not viable because consumers are reluctant to pay the extra cost of the electric vehicle and the charging infrastructure remains poor. Ford CEO Jim Farley himself publicly admitted that EU demands “are not a sustainable reality in Europe today,” pushing to save combustion engines through the use of synthetic biofuels. But this position is not unanimous. Purely electrical firms see this possible political delay as a strategic error that will give the market to China. Michael Lohscheller, CEO of the electric brand Polestar, was blunt in the face of regulatory uncertainty: “The technology is ready, the charging infrastructure is ready and consumers are ready. So what are we waiting for?” The great European paradox. Europe holds the key to its energy future in its own scrapyards. This year’s pilot plants and commercial agreements demonstrate that the circular ecosystem is a mature reality. The great paradox that remains in the air is evident: What will be the point of building the most advanced battery recycling technology on the planet if, out of fear of competition from foreign markets, Brussels decides to artificially extend the life of the exhaust pipe? European automotive independence may have been born in the trash, but it risks dying in the offices. Image | Pexels Xataka | Keeping combustion engines alive in 2035 leaves us with clear winners. Some called BMW, Porsche and Ferrari

Brazil’s secret to becoming the first nation in Latin America with its own supersonic fighter is a number: 40

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In 1909, Canada celebrated the first powered flight of the history of the British Empire. The curious thing is that that plane, the silver dartwas considered Canadian, but had been designed by an international team, built largely in the United States, and then assembled in Nova Scotia. More than a century later, the aeronautical industry continues to operate in a very similar way. The “Brazilian” fighter. When Brazil presented the first Gripen assembled in Latin Americathe focus was on the historic milestone of becoming the first country in the region capable of assembling a modern supersonic fighter. However, the really interesting news appears when you look at what is behind that achievement. The secret is not that Brazil has created its own aircraft from scratch comparable to the large European or American programs, but in something much more complex and valuable: its capacity to progressively integrate in an international industrial chain and absorb technology until increasing national participation in the program is achieved. In other words, the real leap is not in building the entire plane, but in learning to build a significant part of it. The myth of the national fighter. Modern fighter jets are probably some of the most globalized industrial products on the planet. Although the Gripen It is presented as a Swedish plane, the reality is much more complex. The radar Raven ES-05 It is manufactured in the United Kingdom, F414 engine It comes from the United States, numerous electronic components arrive from different countries and part of the intellectual property belongs to foreign companies. In fact, different studies put the British and American share at such high percentages that, depending on how the calculations are made, Sweden alone represents only a part of the set. The Gripen is Swedish in terms of industrial leadership and design, but its manufacturing is deeply multinational. The magic number: 40. Within this international framework appears the data that explains the Brazilian strategy. Sources linked to the program indicate that the objective is for Brazilian national content to reach approximately 40% in the final deliveries of aircraft destined for the Brazilian Air Force. The figure should be interpreted with caution because there is no universal methodology to calculate these percentages and the analysts themselves warn which cannot be directly compared with the industrial quotas claimed by the United Kingdom or the United States. Even so, the data reflects something fundamental: Brazil has not limited itself to receiving aircraft assembled from Sweden. Its objective has been progressively increase the participation of Brazilian companies, engineers and technicians in the production process until the country becomes a relevant actor within the program. Embraer and the transfer of knowledge. The centerpiece of this strategy is Embraer. Thanks to agreement signed with SaabBrazilian engineers participated for years in development activities in Sweden and gained experience in areas that go far beyond simple assembly. The program includes systems integration, structure manufacturing, software development and knowledge related to the production of advanced fighters. The result is that the Gavião Peixoto facilities do not function as a mere assembly line where imported parts are assembled, but as a center where transferring industrial experience that did not exist before in Latin America. The strategic value of assembly. At first glance it might seem that assembling an aircraft designed by another country has limited value. However, the history of the aviation industry demonstrates exactly opposite. The ability to integrate complex systems, manage logistics chains, certify components and maintain advanced aircraft constitutes one of the most difficult steps to overcome. Brazil had already shown relevant capabilities with programs like Super Tucano or the KC-390but the Gripen introduces the country to a much more sophisticated technological ecosystem. Each assembled aircraft provides experience that can later be applied to future national or international developments. The Swedish fighter that is not entirely Swedish either. The paradox is that Gripen itself helps understand Brazil’s position. The plane is often presented as a Swedish national product, but the reality is that it depends from an extensive network international suppliers and technologies. The United Kingdom provides fundamental systems, the United States supplies the engine and numerous critical components, while other countries participate in different subsystems. There are even export restrictions stemming from British and American technologies integrated into the aircraft. In a way, Brazil is following the same model that the main aviation powers already use: no one makes just one modern fighter. More important than buying airplanes. The decision made by Brazil in 2014 during the FX-2 contest It is not explained solely by the Gripen’s capabilities compared to its rivals. The main attraction was Saab’s willingness to share technology and allow much deeper industrial participation than that offered by other proposals. That choice is beginning to yield visible results more than a decade later. Therefore, the first assembled Gripen on Brazilian soil symbolizes something more important than the arrival of a new fighter plane: it represents Brazil’s entry into the small group of countries capable of actively participating in the production of advanced supersonic fighters. And although much of the aircraft continues to arrive from Sweden and other international suppliers, the real story is in that 40%because that is where the knowledge that Brazil had been trying to acquire for years is found. Image | Embraer In Xataka | We tend to assume that the Wright brothers invented the airplane in the United States. In Brazil they believe they have evidence to the contrary In Xataka | A Brazilian has shown that having Internet in mid-flight is possible with Starlink. It has also shown that it is a real danger

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