This one image communicates so much about Titan - thick atmosphere, surface lakes and an otherworldliness. It's an unsettling combination of strangeness yet similarity to Earth.

The image of the lake was captured by the Cassini spacecraft on July 8. The probe was looking for this image since it arrived to Saturn in 2004. Previously, Cassini detected liquid methane lakes using infrared data, but this picture shows the 400,000-square-kilometer Kraken Mare lake in a way that has never seen before. So beautiful. [Wired Science]

What's especially great is the half-assed trustworthiness of the ad: The creator worked on it for 40 years! He's a scientist! He uses words like "fuselage!"

My secret space craft is the result of my professional experience and imagination while serving the U.S. military in advanced aeronautics as a scientist. The craft harnesses a revolutionary propulsion system and its fuselage is fabricated with the most advanced material. While considerably safe, I am certain you will make it safely to Titan but there will not be enough fuel to get home. This is for someone unique that has always wanted to see the universe first-hand and has perhaps a terminal view on life here at home. Here's your shot at romantic history.

Unfortunately, this is a Laika-style journey: You ain't coming back from this one. That is, if you actually get off the ground. [CNET]

Titan—which has a payload of one ton and can reach 10.5 feet— is made by Kuka Roboter GmbH. What does this mean: Using a total of nine motors, it can lift five times its own weight, and can manipulate almost anything you can throw at it in a factory. This includes tasks that previous to its release in 2007, required two robots, like raising the frame for an entire car completely unaided. All while maintaining full positioning precision in 3D space, according to the company.

To give you another idea of its power: The second axis of the Titan—powered by two motors—can withstand a static torque of 60,000 newton meters. Any powerful car would only develop 600 Nm. [Kuka]

Wingspan: 350mm
Length: 400mm
Mass: 17g
Flying speed: 1.8 ms-1
Flapping frequency: 6 Hz
Flying Time: 12 min
Wing Material: Mylar foil
Structure: balsawood
Motor: 2g pager motor
Camera: 1.2g pinhole camera
Energy storage: 3g Li Polymer cell
Actuators: shape memory alloy wires
Base station: 3GHz PC
Sensors: pinhole camera

Based on the DelFly, an Earth-based robot capable of autonomous flight, with hovering, take-off and landing capabilities. Scientists say the ExoFly can be adapted to fly in the more dense atmosphere of Titan too, so expect a black monolith to appear on the Moon anytime now. [New Scientist]

Instead of using the typical heavy cranes and tugs, they do their jobs very cheaply using computer models of the ship's intricate ballast systems, heavy cutting and drilling tools, pumps (and more than a bit of personal risk.) And salvage like this, recognized as a form of legal modern piracy, is compensated by a percentage of the value of the loot they save. Generally millions for jobs only days long. Here's how they flipped her around:

This is the best feature I've read in a long time. It's worth checking out. [Wired, Illustration by Don Foley/www.newsinfographics.com]

The phone itself will have WM5 (darn, no WM6), a Qualcomm MSM7500 400MHz processor, 256MB ROM, 64MB RAM, 2.8-inch touchscreen, EV-DO Revision A, Wi-Fi, 2-megapixel camera with auto-focus, Bluetooth 2.0, microSD and an internal antenna. Those of you who long for the days of a gigantic antenna poking you in the thigh will have the option of attaching an external antenna as well.

The date for launch? Looks like late next month. – Jason Chen

Spec Sheet (PDF) [Boy Genius Report via Boy Genius Report]

The Titan will have EV-DO Revision A, Bluetooth, 2-megapixel camera, right-sliding body, and the notification lights for caps and function. Only an evolutionary increase over the 8525, but a welcome one for CDMA users who have been stuck with the last generation for a while now. – Jason Chen

FCC [via Engadget Mobile via Phone Arena via Uber Gizmo]

The result is a waterproof, anti-shock, and anti-static drive that can withstand 2,000lbs of pressure. The 1GB model costs $197 and the 2GB runs $247, which is less expensive when you consider it's a (semi) handmade product that is limited to 100 units produced.

By creator Slava Tyukalov, who brought us this cool mouse. Hit the jump for a video of an SUV plowing the Titan.

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