satellites

The Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite, or VIIRS, onboard NASA's newest Earth-observing satellite acquired its first image this week, a stunning view of Eastern North America from Canada's Hudson Bay past Florida to the northern coast of Venezuela.

The low-Earth orbit satellite known as NPP carries five instruments as it travels at 16,640mph at an altitude of 512 miles. It was launched October 29 from Vandenberg Air Force base in California on a mission to observe Earth's environment and climate.

NASA says the tools aboard the NPP will be used in monitoring that planet's environment, … Read more

Are you heading to a remote part of the world, where you're totally cut off from wireless networks? If so, bring your Apple device along, and you can actually stay connected to the Web.

Iridium Communications announced today that it has brought its AxcessPoint Mail & Web app to iOS. With the mobile Wi-Fi hot spot technology in tow, iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch owners will be able to connect to the Web and check their e-mail on the 90 percent of the planet, where wireless networks aren't available.

There are some hurdles customers will need to overcome … Read more

If you're clinging to flotsam in the middle of the Pacific and need to send an emergency message, DeLorme has a rugged new satellite communicator that can do the job on the cheap.

Its InReach device is a two-way satellite hookup with GPS that lets you send messages from anywhere in the world for as little as $249.95 and a subscription with Iridium's global network from $9.95 monthly.

Used alone, the InReach can send an SOS or up to three preset messages, as well as remote-tracking data; it confirms delivery too. Users can designate recipients such as other InReach devices, e-mail addresses, or Facebook or Twitter accounts before they set out for northern Siberia. … Read more

NICE, Calif.--The ads promise high-speed satellite Internet with "speeds that leave dial-up in the dust." What they don't tell you is that if you want a truly 2011 Internet experience--including a steady diet of cat videos and movies streamed from Netflix--you're almost certainly out of luck.

Having spent some time recently at my mother-in-law's mountaintop property in a very remote part of Northern California, I found myself snowed in and unable to return home. And that forced me to confront the reality of what Internet is like for those who live off the grid. … Read more

SiriusXM's Lynx radio is coming just in time for the holidays, according to CE Outlook. In a call with analysts, Sirius XM CEO Mel Karmazin confirmed that the Lynx 2.0 radio will ship by the end of the year.

The Android-based radio is satellite 2.0-compatible and will be able to access the 30 new channels that SiriusXM debuted last month, and should be able to access the on-demand programming that launches next year. Priced at $249, the plug-and-play device will also be able to receive satellite channels over WiFi and stream music over a Bluetooth connection to … Read more

Kia Motors revealed the prices of the 2012 Kia Rio sedan starting at $13,400 MSRP (plus in $750 destination charges). The Rio comes in three trim levels: LX, EX and SX, all powered by the same 1.6-liter gasoline direct injection (GDI) that boasts 138 horsepower and 123 pound-feet of torque.

The base trim, the LX, comes with a six-speed manual transmission, or customers can upgrade to an a six-speed automatic transmission for $14,500. The top-of-the-line SX trim starts at $17,500 (plus destination charges). All three trims offer an estimated 30 mpg city and 40 mpg highway.… Read more

Hackers are believed to have interfered with two U.S. satellites used to observe the Earth's climate and terrain four times in recent years, according to a draft report to a government covered by Bloomberg Businessweek today.

A Landsat-7 Earth observation satellite system had 12 or more minutes of interference in October 2007 and July 2008, and a Terra AM-1 earth observation satellite experienced two minutes of interference in June 2008 and nine minutes in October 2008, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission wrote in a draft of its annual report due for release next month. … Read more

Antuan catches hell for his review of the Mustang Boss 302, we tell you where to get Satellite Radio 2.0, and we ponder potential problems with direct injection engines.

• Are there problems with direct injection?

• The CNET review of the Mustang Boss 302 that's dividing drivers

• Satellite radio 2.0 features

• CNET's LOLCars gallery!

This week, Donald and Eric consider the future of space, the dark side of romance, and the proper way to dispose of AT-AT excrement. Also, the Keyboard Cat toy plays us out, and in Geek News, Eric confesses his deep hatred of Orcs.

… Read more