Discover the Latest Innovations: Hackaday Links for March 9, 2025 – Explore Exciting Tech Trends!

This week in space news was a mix of good and bad, but let’s focus on the highlights! First up, Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 celebrated a major victory by landing successfully on the Moon on March 2. This mission is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program and carried ten scientific experiments, including a GPS receiver that tracked signals from Earth satellites. Thankfully, all the payloads completed their missions before the long lunar night began. Firefly’s achievement makes them the first commercial company to successfully land on the Moon, marking a significant milestone in space exploration.

On a somewhat less encouraging note, Intuitive Machines attempted to land their NOVA-C lander called Athena a day later. While it managed to touch down, it ended up on its side. This type of issue has been surprisingly common in recent lunar landings. Additionally, there was disappointing news about the world’s first private asteroid mining mission, which was lost. SpaceX also faced setbacks this week with their Starship test flight. Shortly after separating from its booster, the Starship exploded. Scott Manley provided a detailed analysis that suggested a fire in the engine bay caused a loss of thrust, leading to the spacecraft’s demise. On a brighter side, the booster was successfully caught by the recovery platform again, which always brings excitement!

Switching gears to the printer world, Brother has come under fire for allegedly locking out third-party ink cartridges through firmware updates. This accusation, made by Louis Rossman—a well-known advocate for repair rights—has sparked concern among users. Brother has denied these claims, saying their updates do not block third-party inks. The situation remains confusing, and users are left wondering what’s really going on. For now, the best move might be to either forgo printers or buy basic models to take apart for parts later.

If you’re a collector of DVDs or physical media, there’s an issue you might want to be aware of. Some DVDs, particularly from Warner Brothers Discovery made between 2006 and 2008, are suffering from “DVD rot.” This condition appears to involve the cover layer peeling away from the disc, causing cloudy spots that obscure data. Warner Brothers has acknowledged the problem and is offering replacements when possible. It’s frustrating, especially for fans of beloved collections like Looney Tunes, but it also gives us an opportunity to binge-watch those classics again!

Lastly, let’s take a fun look back at NASA’s engineering methods in the 1960s. During the Saturn V rocket’s shake test for the Apollo program, engineers used a unique method to test the rocket’s stability. They literally sat on a gantry deck and pushed against the rocket with their legs. Other engineers helped by pushing back, while another team pulled on the command module with a rope. This approach ensured the rocket could handle both its powerful engines and the rigors of Florida’s weather. It makes you wonder what would have happened if they found a problem during the test!