NASA Moon Landing Plume-Surface Interaction Test
Engineers at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia have activated their massive vacuum chamber to address one of the most pressing issues of landing on the Moon: what happens to the dusty surface when a spaceship touches down. They’re primarily looking at how engine exhaust stirs up the ground, or how all that dust, boulders, and soil gets kicked up high during those few frenetic minutes before landing. They want to sort everything out so that future missions won’t have to deal with the mess. This is especially crucial given that NASA is preparing to send people back to the Moon.

DJI Avata 360 Drone Leak
Photo credit: Igor Bogdanov
As December arrives, bringing with it all the Christmas happiness and regulatory red tape we’ve come to expect at this time of year, DJI throws another curveball into the mix. The Avata 360, their most ambitious attempt yet to combine the thrill of FPV with the all-around video recording capabilities we’ve grown to love, has cleared the final obstacle in its quest to enter US markets. Leaks from FCC filings, rumors from the supply chain, and new photographs of the packaging have all but revealed what’s in store: a drone that’s as content flipping between high-octane aerobatics and silky smooth spherical footage as it is evading the ban hammer that swings on December 23rd.

Apple Classic iPod Restoration
A tattered vintage iPod Classic rests on a workshop, its aluminum exterior bent like an overinflated balloon. Scratches mar the surface, and the screen has battle scars from being pushed into a too tight pocket. This little relic from 2007 was purchased on eBay for peanuts, held 80 gigabytes of songs on a spinning hard drive that weighed it down like a boat anchor, and was once an important part of a music lover’s everyday life. It’s now in the capable hands of YouTuber The Retro Future, who is resurrecting yesterday’s technology to become tomorrow’s best companion.

Fallout Operation Sunburst Fan Film
Fans of the Fallout series know the Mojave Desert as a location where it’s never safe to relax…every hill hides a sniper, and every station could be a battleground. A brand-new fan-made animation called Operation Sunburst has turned those distant memories into a brutal battle drama. SODAZ created this 45-minute fan video about the New California Republic declaring war on the Brotherhood of Steel over the Helios One power facility.

2026 Subaru Uncharted EV Production
Subaru has just revealed more information about its 2026 Uncharted EV, a compact crossover that will join the electric lineup. Pricing starts at less than $35,000, with deliveries beginning in early 2026. You’ll be able to choose between three trim levels: the base Premium with front-wheel drive, the mid-level Sport with all-wheel drive, and the top GT, which also has all-wheel drive.

MIT Pickle Robot Company Warehouse
A single robotic arm bursts into action inside a pretty dim trucker trailer, its suction pad latching onto a cardboard box almost as smoothly as a pro would. There’s no fumbling around or dropping loads, which is a solid sign of years of fine-tuning. Pickle Robot Co is led by a group of MIT grads who have spent years honing this routine so that machines can perform it with precision.

JBL Go 4 Bluetooth Speaker
Too many pocket-sized Bluetooth speakers provide music that is faint and distant, requiring way too much effort to hear. Then there’s the JBL Go 4, priced at $39.95 (was $49.95), a small brick-sized device aiming to turn that notion on its head. At less than half a pound and small enough to fit in a coat pocket, it not only provides, but truly delivers, clear, powerful audio that makes you grab for the volume dial rather than throw your hands up in the air in disgust.

Starlink Retail Store Location Vending Machine Iowa
SpaceX has chosen to open its first Starlink retail store in the Nebraska Crossing outlet mall, which comes as a surprise to residents of Gretna, a community nestled in the center of cornfields west of Omaha where internet access isn’t always guaranteed. It opened quietly in late November and inside, you’ll find only the basics, such as satellite dishes, mounting equipment, as well as branded merchandise for those who just want to show off their new broadband connection with some swag.

Pebble Index 01 Smart Ringsmartwatches and appeared to have cornered the market with his Pebble devices. Their E-paper displays had a seemingly infinite battery life. Fast forward more than a decade, and Migicovsky is back at it, this time with a much smaller and more focused design. He has a new company called Core Devices, and they just revealed the Index 01, a smart ring that slips onto your finger.