How Star Wars’ BB-8 Droid Works

While Star Wars might take place in a galaxy far, far away, the technology behind one of its breakout stars, the adorable rolling BB-8 droid, is actually available right here on Earth. Instead of relying on CGI to animate the droid in the upcoming “Force Awakens” film, director JJ Abrams decided to build out an actual, working model and enlisted the help of start-up Sphero. …

Mapping Every Street Light with SeeLight

Only 10% of traffic lights are currently accompanied by either audio cues or tactile paving, making it difficult for blind pedestrians to navigate busy intersections. Hoping to change that, a new app called SeeLight—which is available for free on the iTunes app store—is on a mission to map out every single street light in the world. The app can then send helpful information to the …

“Flaming” Auroras in Sweden

Capturing the Aurora Borealis is nothing new for nature photographers, but it’s possible nobody else has seen anything close to what astrophotographer Göran Strand did one night in Sweden. In a video called “Flaming Aurora,” Strand was able to catch the Northern Lights as they pulsated with neon energy, lighting up the entire sky at one point. The video is absolutely mesmerizing and features both …