Photograph by Mutant @ netall.ru On December 24, 2012, a strange double helix cloud was spotted just outside Moscow, Russia. A series of amateur photographs were submitted to a Russian site called netall.ru (scroll down to Dec. 24) on the morning of the occurrence. While it is not entirely known what caused such a…
FRACTAL CAULIFLOWER Photograph by Jon Sullivan Romanesco broccoli, or Roman cauliflower, is an edible flower of the species Brassica oleracea, and a variant form of cauliflower. First documented in Italy, it is light green in colour and approximates a natural fractal. Romanesco broccoli’s inflorescence (the bud) has an approximate self-similar character, with…
On December 12, 2012, ThyssenKrupp Elevator team members hoisted an escalator using a rooftop crane to the 101st floor of the One World Trade Center. This is one of 11 escalators and 74 elevators being installed on the project which will include the fastest elevators in the western hemisphere. Technical specialist and ThyssenKrupp Elevator…
DigitalGlobe is a worldwide leader in satellite imagery. Founded in 1993 under the name WorldView Imaging Corporation, it became EarthWatch Incorporated in 1995, before finally becoming DigitalGlobe in 2002. In 1993, the United States Department of Commerce granted DigitalGlobe (then WorldView), the first license allowing a private enterprise to build and operate a satellite…
GREETINGS EARTHLINGS Photograph by NASA/Steve Robinson STS-114 astronaut Soichi Noguchi waves from the Shuttle payload bay, backdropped by the Earth below. During the mission’s second spacewalk, Noguchi and Discovery crewmate Steve Robinson replaced a failed gyroscope which keeps the International Space Station in the proper position in orbit. STS-114 was the first…
THE VAPOR CONE Photograph by Joe Oliva/U.S. Air Force An F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot with the Viper East Demonstration Team from Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., creates a ‘cone’ of condensation on Aug. 21, 2010, as he nears Mach 1 during a flyby at an open house at Volk Field Air National…
After the positive reception from last year’s Top 50 ‘Pictures of the Day’ for 2011, the Sifter promised to highlight the top 25 ‘Pictures of the Day‘ at the end of every quarter, eventually culminating in an epic Top 100 for 2012. That time has come! Below are the top 100 POTDs for 2012.…
On December 5th, 2010 scientists unveiled an unprecedented new look at our planet at night. A global composite image, constructed using cloud-free night images from a new NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellite, shows the glow of natural and human-built phenomena across the planet in greater detail than ever before. Many…
Photograph by NASA Since 1976, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird has held the world record for the fastest ‘air-breathing manned aircraft’ with a recorded speed of 1,905.81 knots (2,193.2 mph; 3,529.6 km/h). That works out to a staggering 36.55 miles/58.83 km per minute. The Blackbird was so fast that its strategy against surface-to-air missiles was…
As the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon needs somewhere to put all of those products. The solution? Giant warehouses. Eighty to be exact. Strategically located near key shipping hubs around the world. The warehouses themselves are massive, with some over 1.2 million square feet in size (111,484 sq m). And at the heart of…
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