Eric Adams
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Content @jobyaviation. Career: Wired, Insider, PopMech, Gear Patrol, TheDrive, more. Alum: Men’s Health, PopSci, Air & Space/Smithsonian. Award-winner.
Articles by Eric Adams
That Time an Underwater Mountain Nearly Took Out a Nuclear Sub
The Deadly Crash of the USS San FranciscoAlamy / Smudge Whisker On January 7, 2005, the USS San Francisco, a nuclear-powered submarine, set sail from its home port in Guam for Brisbane, Australia. Its crew of 137 had a grueling schedule of training and drills planned, along with some shore time. The ship and its sailors were prepared for the trip.
Avenging the Concorde: Inside NASA’s quest to break the sound barrier
For more than seven decades, speed has been the hallmark of commercial aviation. But while we have the capability to push those speeds from around 500 mph to even greater extremes thanks to faster-than-sound supersonic flight, doing so comes with a stiff penalty: ear-splitting, glass-rattling, baby-waking sonic booms.
NYC's mayor-elect wants police department to resume beat cop patrols on streets
NEW YORK — As Mayor-elect Eric Adams prepares to dictate policy for the nation’s largest police department, he has kept a romantic vision at the heart of his plans for the polarizing 35,000-officer-strong force. Adams, who spent 22 years as a reform-focused police officer before climbing to the mayoralty on a public-safety message, said he believes a crucial step to healing the NYPD’s deep rifts with some communities is to return beat cops to the city’s streets.
With Jon Karkow's Passing, Aviation Loses a Star
I flew with aeronautical designer and test pilot Jon Karkow on just one occasion, during a test flight of the Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer above the Mojave Desert in October of 2004, while I was covering the program for Popular Science. Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett was at the controls of the single-seat experimental aircraft, which he commissioned for a record-setting round-the-world solo flight; Karkow and I flew chase in a twin-engine Beechcraft.
The Hair-Raising, Record-Setting Race to 331 MPH
When SSC North America boss Jerod Shelby reached race driver Oliver Webb after Webb attempted to set a speed record in the company's new 1,750-horsepower SSC Tuatara, the 29-year-old Brit was sitting on the ground with his head in his hands. "He looked at me and said, 'Jared, I'm done. I'm never doing this again,'" says Shelby. "During the drive a blast of wind had knocked him completely over to the side of the road, onto the rumble strips. He was shaking.
How to Design a Supersonic Plane for the (Fairly Rich) Masses
One would think that 2020 is, perhaps, not a great year to bring up reviving supersonic passenger travel. Thanks to Covid, nobody is flying, and airlines are parking entire fleets of aircraft. Plus, anything that highlights the economic divide is going to get dragged on Twitter for sure. A new Concorde? Hold my beer. Unfazed, Denver-based aviation startup Boom Supersonic last week unapologetically unveiled a subscale prototype for the high-speed commercial airliner it has been developing since 2014.
The 5 Best Portable Jump Starters
Jump-starting cars has always been a bit of a hair-raising experience. Whenever I do it, I’m a nervous wreck, paralyzed with fear that I’ll booger up the connection somehow and blow up both cars in the process. That’s never happened, of course, but it doesn’t change the fact that electricity is a scary thing.
A New Air Taxi Model Takes Design Cues From a Far-Flying Bird
Air-taxi startup Beta Technologies debuted its new aircraft Friday with a dramatic helicopter airlift of the sleek white model across Lake Champlain from Burlington, Vermont to Plattsburgh, New York. Code-named Alia, the electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) airplane is the successor to Ava, a smaller prototype the company used to experiment with propulsion strategies and learn about the tricky aerodynamics of small, electrified, vertical-lift flight.
Meet the Concours Club, a Cutting-Edge Racecourse and Resort Rolled Into One Original
Photo: Courtesy of the Concours Club. One of the most technologically sophisticated racetracks in the world will soon open in Miami, complete with state-of-the-art vehicle-tracking systems and tons of high-tech safety features. But it also happens to be quite challenging, with no less an authority than Indy 500 champ Hélio Castroneves advising in its design. But you won’t see Castroneves battling it out there in his Indycar, nor any Formula One, NASCAR, or other pro series machine.
Covid-19 Casts a Dark Cloud Over the Flying Car Future
The electric air taxi business—spurred along for years by Uber’s Elevate initiative and also known as flying cars—is flying into a cloudy unknown: The murky pall of the Covid-19 pandemic and its related, brutal economic downturn. Given how plummeting revenues and homebound consumers have gut punched the established airline and automotive industries, it’s easy to lose all hope for a newcomer that requires an especially long runway to take off.
Electric Trucks Could Prove Pivotal In EV Survival Through Downturn
Bollinger B2 Chassis Cab Courtesy Bollinger The spread of the coronavirus pandemic has already been devastating for the automotive industry overall, with sales falling off a cliff, factories shuttered, and few signs of recovery any time soon. It will take months and years for the full scale of the impact to be known, but one of the victims expected to be hardest-hit will be electric vehicles.
Volkswagen Goes For Style and Substance With Atlas Cross Sport
Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport Image courtesy Volkswagen There are two kinds of SUV folk: Those who need them, and those who want them. For the former, every millimeter of cargo space counts, every third-row seat represents one extra kid they can tote. For the latter, it’s all about convenience, comfort, and presence. These folks like slightly larger cars that have good visibility and match their personalities a bit—i.e., no econobox will do.
Can You Still Pull A Heist In Audi’s Epic New S8 Sedan?
Audi's new S8: A supercar in disguise, and a technology tour-de-force. @ericadams321 On the week I had the Audi S8 to drive, there was precious little that I could actually do with the poor thing. The stay-at-home orders had begun proliferating, places were closed. and we were frantically adapting to a variety of bewildering new realities. In fact the only thing I could think of to do with this car was, well, go on a crime spree.
This 30-Year-Old Sci-Fi Epic Is a Saga for Our Times
In 1992, German filmmaker Wim Wenders released an epic, globetrotting cinematic adventure called Until the End of the World.
The Air Force's Venerable F-15 Gets a Makeover
An updated version of the US Air Force’s trusty F-15 Eagle fighter jet had its first flight test recently and demonstrated its bag of tricks with a dramatic, nearly vertical “Viking takeoff”. The flight, from manufacturer Boeing’s facility at Lambert International Airport in St. Louis, is the first of many needed to bring the workhorse into the 21st century. The new F-15, which first entered service in 1976, isn’t intended for American fighter jocks—at least not right away.
As Other Carmakers Retrench, Volvo's Battery Lab Plugs Away
The coronavirus pandemic continues to send shock waves through every industry, and the automotive world is no exception. For manufacturers attempting to pivot to a more sustainable model, an especially pressing question is: Can electric cars survive? With total vehicle sales expected to drop by more than 20 percent this year, it’s anybody’s guess. Consider the headwinds EVs are facing. Car companies are cutting R&D budgets to stay alive.
Kia And Porsche Dominate World Car Award Winners
Porsche's Taycan electric sport sedan, which claimed best luxury and performance car nods in the ... [+] World Car Awards program. @ericadams321 Kia Motor Corporation claimed two big wins at the World Car Awards program, which saw its winners announced this morning via live stream. The company’s Telluride SUV won the top title of World Car of the Year, while its Soul EV claimed the World Urban Car title.
Coronavirus Claims A Spontaneous Public-Art Masterpiece: Graffiti Highway Is No More
Apr 6, 2020,02:24pm EDT|38,812 views A Jeep Gladiator on the Graffiti Highway @ericadams321 An abandoned, mile-long stretch of rural highway that ran through the ghost town of Centralia, Pa.—a site that had become a popular tourist attraction in recent years thanks to its relentless tagging by graffiti artists—has been closed permanently. The decision comes as a direct result of the spread of coronavirus, according to The Daily Item, a Susquehanna Valley newspaper.
A Rest Stop Where Flying Cars Can Recharge
If it weren’t for the racket from a helicopter landing on the roof, the complex of heavily modified and interconnected cargo containers in a corner of Burlington International Airport would be a great place to hang out. The structure has a sleek wood-lined lounge, two cozy bedrooms, and a view from the front porch of Vermont Air National Guard F-35 fighter jets rocketing down the runway. The scene smacks of a villain’s lair.
With A Sublime Design, Alfa’s Stelvio Sport Hits Nearly All The Right Notes
Alfa Romea Stelvio Sport Tiago Soares Photography There’s no crossover/SUV on the market—with the possible exception of the outrageously over-the-top Lamborghini Urus—that’s quite as distinctively designed as the Alfa-Romeo Stelvio. But where the Lambo works to upend every convention with razor-sharp angles and dramatic creases and cuts, the Stelvio is the opposite. It’s all smooth curves and elegant lines. There’s no drama in the Stelvio—just beauty.
Goodyear's reCharge Concept Tire Regenerates Burned Off Rubber
If Goodyear scientists have their way, replacing complete tires every year or so simply because a few millimeters of rubber wears off will become a thing of the past. The company this week unveiled a far-out concept for a tire that will automatically generate its own tread, continuously replacing the rubber that sloughs off from daily use. Called reCharge, the concept looks at how to curb the waste that plagues Goodyear’s industry: About 250 million tires were scrapped in the US in 2017.
Flying Car Developers Get a Boost From the Air Force
Though the visions laid out by the developers of new electric vertical-lift aircraft have been fairly mundane so far—air taxis, cargo delivery—it was a matter of time before someone started sexing up those flying car fantasies. How soon before they appear in a Bond film? When will the military get their mitts on them? Though the first remains an open question, military interest came into clearer focus this week.
Here’s What You Can Really Expect From the Self-Driving Cars of the Future
Click here to read the full article. It was, frankly, the most boring car ride of my life. The Chrysler Pacifica minivan drove me around several city blocks in Mountain View, Calif., all on its own, with mechanical precision and granny-like caution.
Bell's New Design Could Make Helicopters Quieter-and Safer
Since helicopters appeared some 80 years ago, they’ve used a single high-speed tail rotor to counteract the torque of the main rotor, stabilizing the aircraft in flight. But that rotor is both the key source of noise for helicopters and a big safety risk while on the ground. Now veteran helicopter manufacturer Bell has a design to replace the mechanically driven tail rotor assembly with four much smaller, shrouded electric fans.
How a Street-Smart Supercar Got Ready for the Racetrack
Late in the night at Daytona International Speedway last month, a January chill settles over the usually warm Florida coast that hosts the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race. Just under the halfway point, in the garages and pit lanes of the Acura race teams, something equally discordant has materialized: Nothing. It was quiet, serene even–well, except for the endless Doppler-shifting roar of racecars rocketing past the start/finish line of the legendary racetrack.
Airbus' Blended-Wing Maveric Hits the Skies
Since commercial air travel took off in the 1950s, much has changed—tighter seats, safer flights, the rise and fall of seat-back screens—but not the nature of the planes themselves. The tube-and-wing design, after all, is reasonably efficient and structurally sound. And what other shapes would fly? Cubes? Probably not. But one idea that's been in the air since the 1990s is catching a second wind, thanks to a new effort by Airbus.
Cadillac Brings Super Cruise to the New 2021 Escalade
If HBO’s Entourage ever comes back on the air—and hopefully it won’t—there will likely be a new character in the lineup along with the boys: a semi-sentient Cadillac Escalade. Because no vehicle could be better for wandering between parties than a glitzy-glamor seven-seat SUV that can handle the highways of Los Angeles all by itself. Well, kind of.
Hyundai's Luxury SUV Mixes Mics and Math for a Silent Ride
As far as highways go, this one in South Korea is relatively smooth. No serious potholes or pavement cracks, but plenty of little bumps and divots. The newly unveiled Genesis GV80 SUV easily absorbs these imperfections, and so the only disruption inside the minimalist, seven-seat cabin is a whisper of wind noise. Notably missing from the acoustic picture is rushing air’s stalwart companion, roaring tires.
Aston Martin's $189,000 DBX SUV Conquers the Arabian Desert
When you take an Aston Martin into a turn, the only thought in your mind should be how to get out of it as fast as possible, preferably with tires smoking and the back end swinging out just enough to help you carry more speed through the curve in the road without losing control. Making it happen is a question of combining the throttle, brake, and steering just so, keeping everything pointing the right way. So that’s what I’m thinking as I hang an arcing left, but the calculus is a novel one.
Bell and Hyundai Soar Into the Air Taxi Race
So far, development of the electric vertical-lift aircraft that will enable our dreams of future urban air taxis has largely been the purview of small aviation startups. The "bigs," Boeing and Airbus, have acquired or partnered with smaller firms, while automakers—who bring expertise in mass-production if not flying—have mainly stayed on the sidelines. That changed in a big way this week at CES.
How the US Prepares Its Embassies for Potential Attacks
Tuesday’s attack by Iran-backed Shiite militia supporters on the US Embassy in Baghdad, followed by Friday’s US killing of the top Iranian commander in the same city, sparked fears of an intense escalation of hostilities in the region. Analysts say US embassies and consulates are prime targets in the wake of these events, and personnel could be in jeopardy. “Iran isn’t going to let this go unanswered,” notes security analyst Brett Bruen, a former US diplomat.
Bing Maps Make the Revived Flight Simulator Eerily Realistic
“Hey, I can see my house from up here!” It’s a joke so tired you’ll hear it from someone jumping on a trampoline, but that’s what came into my head as I banked a small turboprop airplane above my neighborhood in the new version of a revived classic, Microsoft Flight Simulator. Because there it was indeed: my house. And my neighbors’ houses, along with the shopping plaza down the road, the hospital complex, the farmland in the distance.
To Train Foreign Service Agents, You Must Build a Fake Town
Were it not for the deadly serious nature of the work conducted there, the State Department’s new Foreign Affairs Security Training Center in Blackstone, Virginia, would certainly be a cool place to hang out. Take the 19 miles of intertwined roads that replicate virtually every type of automotive interchange, intersection, and interstate likely to carry the federal agents tasked with protecting US diplomats and citizens around the world.
How Ford Created the Mach-E, Its Fully Electric Mustang SUV
The Ford Mustang Mach-E—a fully electric SUV “inspired by” the famed two-seat coupe—debuted in Los Angeles Sunday night, kicking off what’s sure to be years of enthusiast debate about whether the high-riding four-door merits the name “Mustang,” in form or function. The character and performance won’t come to light until the car arrives next year.
Tesla Pickup Truck | Tesla Truck Release Date | Tesla Truck Specs
This post has been updated to preface Tesla's announcement of the "Cybertruck" on November 21, 2019, at 8 p.m. The livestream will likely be live on Tesla's website here. We'll update with information as it becomes available. Original post: On November 21, the last day of the Los Angeles Auto Show, Tesla will unveil its long-anticipated pickup truck. CEO Elon Musk announced the event on Twitter last week, indicating that it will take place near his SpaceX factory in Los Angeles.
Cirrus' $2 Million Vision Jet Now Lands Itself, No Pilot Needed
We’re flying about 5,000 feet above rural New York in a Cirrus Vision Jet when the pilot has what appears to be a heart attack. He lets go of the controls and slumps forward in his seat, leaving me—not a pilot—to fly the airplane to safety. I reach behind me, press a big red button in the ceiling of the cabin, stop worrying about the plane and concentrate on trying to resuscitate my fallen companion. Fifteen minutes later, the plane touches down at a remote airstrip.
Polestar’s First EV Is a Track-Happy Challenge to Tesla’s Model 3
I wish I’d seen Joakim Rydholm take the new Polestar 2 electric sedan around the test track in Sweden before my drive, rather than after. The engineer, who designed the chassis and happens to be the program’s chief test driver, hammered the handsome, unassuming sedan through every turn, seeming to squeeze every pound-foot of torque from the 78-kWh battery pack and dual permanent-magnet motors.
The Plan to Boost Drone Batteries With a Teensy Jet Engine
For all the hype swirling around electric aviation, the current state of battery technology and electric powertrains remains a limiting factor for all the drones, air taxis, cargo haulers, and flying cars hoping to take off. Unhappy with that cap on the range, power, and speed of these aircraft, one Florida startup is taking a different tack. Rather than relying on batteries and rotors, UAV Turbines is developing a tiny jet engine.
Volvo's First Electric Car Kicks Off a Plan to Cut Emissions
When Volvo decided a decade ago that it wanted to make a push on safety, the automaker created a plan to eliminate deaths and serious injuries in its vehicles by 2020. Though it admitted earlier this year that the company wouldn’t get there—putting some blame on drivers’ “bad behavior”—today’s Volvos offer a bevy of innovative safety systems. They work to mitigate injuries when cars go off the road, issue distracted driving alerts, and even watch for moose.
Bollinger's Electric Pickup and SUV Are Made for the Mud
More than a decade into the modern age of electric driving, the auto industry has brought batteries to just about every kind of car. Depending on your taste and means, you can take home a city runabout, a startling sports car, a luxury SUV, a pickup truck, and more without leaving any emissions in your wake. You can even do a bit of trail scrabbling in an elevated, all-wheel drive “soft-roader” like the Jaguar I-Pace.
Kitty Hawk’s New Flying Car Promises a (Near) Silent Flight
Kitty Hawk, Larry Page’s air taxi outfit, on Thursday showed off its latest concept—an eight-motor prototype that uses an unconventional forward-swept wing, and is purportedly 100 times quieter than a conventional helicopter. The Mountain View, California-based company calls it Heaviside, after noted physicist and electrical engineer Oliver Heaviside, who advanced a variety of theories and innovations in mathematics, electronics, and communications in the early 20th century.
Porsche Taycan Review: The Best Electric Car $150K Can Buy
Top speed in the Porsche Taycan electric sport sedan arrives with very little fuss on Germany's autobahn. When the left lane clears just north of Hamburg, I mat the pedal and the white Turbo S—its profile reminiscent of a stretched 911, atop matching white 21-inch wheels—glides along as the speedometer needle tries to keep pace. The Taycan moves with the thrust of an electric railgun, catching passengers and even drivers off guard with its seemingly unrestrained energy.
The Land Rover Defender Is Back—With a Softer, Smarter Look
For decades, the Land Rover Defender has battled through the world’s rocky riverbeds and tackled its steepest terrain, always identifiable by its angular, utilitarian look. The latest edition of the burly off-roader, unveiled this week at the Frankfurt Motor Show, comes with a more sculpted vibe.
Why the Porsche Taycan's Two-Speed Gearbox Is Such a Big Deal
To go with a 0 to 60 mph time under three seconds, 750 horsepower, and the ability to refill its battery in just over 20 minutes, the engineers at Porsche gave their all-new, all-electric Taycan a two-speed gearbox. And while that feature is unlikely to grace any headlines, it represents a potentially major shift for the electric car market. Apart from the Taycan, every production EV uses a single speed transmission, and gets along just fine.
With the Taycan, Porsche Launches into the Electric Future
The sports car built to slingshot Porsche into the electric future has finally arrived. Today, in simultaneous events held on three continents, the German automaker unveiled the battery-powered, zero-emission Taycan sport sedan. The low-slung four-door arrives in two versions—the base model Turbo and specced up Turbo S—with the kind of stats that should make even petrol-chugging gearheads drool. Think 0-60 in 2.6 seconds in the S, along with 750 horsepower.
Bugatti's Chiron Clocks 305 MPH Thanks to Top-Notch Tires
Environmental regulations may be pushing the auto industry to produce hybrid and electric cars, while consumer preferences demand high-riding, cargo-hauling SUVs and crossovers. But for some, raw speed still trumps all other considerations. Among them are fans of Bugatti, who are no doubt thrilled to hear that the latest vehicle from Volkswagen’s ultra-luxury arm just became the first production car to top 300 miles per hour.
Bell's Self-Flying APT 70 Cargo Drone Hauls a Heavy Load
They say things are bigger in Texas, and it seems that goes for drones as well as pickup trucks and cowboy hats. At least, if Fort Worth-based Bell’s new, autonomous cargo carrier is any indicator. The four-motor, vertical-lift electric UAV is one of the largest commercial cargo drone projects to reach the skies. It stands nearly 6 feet tall and 9 feet wide on the ground (it rests on its tail before transitioning to horizontal flight after liftoff).
Honda's New Airbag Catches Your Head to Save Your Brain
Since their explosive debut in the 1970s, airbags have saved tens of thousands of lives—at least 50,000 in the United States alone—and their impact has only expanded with time. Today, they fire not just from the dashboard and steering wheel but from every conceivable direction. Depending on the type of crash, the gas bags balloon out of the doors, footwells, seats, rear doors, seatbelts, and, for the benefit of pedestrians, even the exterior.
VW's ID Buggy Is an Electric Dune Dominator
In the race toward electrification, some car companies are more motivated than others. Take Volkswagen: Still reeling from the fallout of its Dieselgate scandal, the German giant’s various arms are announcing, developing, and trying to sell EVs at a dizzying pace, from Audi’s E-Tron SUV to Porsche’s Taycan, to a slew of VWs in the pipeline. And funnily enough, VW’s rush to the future has put me a bit back in time, and into a dune buggy.
The Gyrocopter Could Be the Future's Flying Car
Of all the outrageously overengineered machines James Bond has commanded over the decades, perhaps the strangest came in 1967’s You Only Live Twice, when 007 climbed into an aircraft that his friend Tiger Tanaka—and likely the audience—dismissed as “a toy helicopter.” The single-seat, open cockpit gyrocopter may not have looked impressive, but it was enough for Sean Connery's character to bring down four full-grown helicopters (with a little help from a pair of machine guns, heat-seeking...
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