The Hispano-Suiza 18.Sb is a rather quirky but powerful 18-cylinder aero-engine that kinda got lost in history! It was designed originally as the Hispano-Suiza 18R to compete in the 1929 Schneider Trophy for seaplanes. It was ordered by the French Air Ministry who needed a 1200 horsepower...
Happy New Year everyone! What does the New Year hold for us, in the Mechtraveller worlds of engineering and technology? Well, off the top of my head, there are a few anticipated/scheduled events and a couple of predictions… Autonomous cars in London – We know Waymo has...
This is some interesting engineering. Have you wondered, as you watch your Amazon parcel “just 5 stops away”, what our world would look like if we suddenly lost GPS? It’s not just you, and a squillion delivery drivers. It would effect all transport systems (apart maybe for...
The Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge towers 625 metres over the Beipan River in China’s Guizhou province, which is known for its dramatic mountains. After three years of construction, the massive 2,890-meter-long* suspension bridge was finally opened to traffic on Sunday (28 Sep), dramatically cutting the 2 hours...
London’s Science Museum has today (20 Sep 2025) opened its new ‘Space’ gallery showcasing some historic pieces of space equipment, together with some new technologies from the UK space industry. The ‘stars of the show’ are two historic space vehicles: the Soyuz TMA-19M Descent Module and the...
A Texas-based start-up, Venus Aerospace, is developing a next-generation rocket engine that could power hypersonic* aircraft. This includes passenger aircraft flying from conventional runways. They aim to reach speeds between four to six times the speed of sound. At Mach 4, passengers could leave London and arrive...
Lord Montagu of Beaulieu has presented award certificates at the National Motor Museum (NMM) to students who successfully participated in the Mechanix course and restored a classic Hillman Super Minx personally donated by National Motor Museum’s Chief Executive, Jon Murden. Jon Murden says, “About a year ago...
The Renault Filante Record 2025 is an electric demo car developed to maximise energy efficiency and set a new record for power consumption and range with an 87 kWh battery, i.e. the same capacity as on a standard Renault Scenic E-Tech car. You might think that’s a...
The truth is, all of Britain’s canals are ‘industrial heritage’ in their own right, but they all have some unique pieces of engineering & architecture that stand out. The Union Canal, running between Falkirk and Edinburgh, is no exception. I took a narrowboat on a short trip...
The hype over the Hyperloop concept may have died down in recent years, but there are still engineers working to make it a reality. A Swiss team from EPFL, the School of Business and Engineering Vaud (HEIG-VD) and Swisspod Technologies, claim to have broken the record for...
Over 300,000 historic items from the Science Museum Group* collection have been carefully moved into a new facility at the National Collections Centre in the Science and Innovation Park near Swindon in Wiltshire. The new Hawking Building, named after Prof. Stephen Hawking, is not a museum. It...
The Fontinettes Boat Lift (Ascenseur à bateaux des Fontinettes) in Arques, Pas-de-Calais. is a magnificent piece of 19th century engineering and architecture. It was built in the late 19th century at Fontinettes* to replace a set of five locks on the Neuffossé canal which linked/s the canalised...
If all is going as planned, the giant Iowa-class battleship USS New Jersey (BB-62) is on her way back down the Delaware River today, returning to her permanent mooring on the Camden waterfront after a 91 day visit to the Philadelphia Navy Yard for maintenance and repair....
The Musée des Arts et Métiers (Museum of Arts and Crafts) in Paris is almost the French equivalent of the Science Museum in London, and it is absolutely packed with the most fascinating historic, scientific, mechanical, experimental and industrial exhibits. Be prepared to allocate plenty of time...
This is a niche blog about technically-minded travel. It reflects my own interests in the mechanical, technical, historical, engineering, transport and military world.
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