Engineering (Page 2)

A guide to the structures, machines, and systems that power and connect our world.

Latest in Engineering

Smiling man standing next to Barbie Power Wheels Dream Camper next to gas pump at gas station

Handyman adapts Barbie Dream Camper to handle soaring gas prices

an illustration of an astronaut holding a plastic bottle with a straw

Futuristic canned space drinks could spice up that three-year trip to Mars

By Mack DeGeurin

Photo of the Sphinx in front of the Great Pyramid of Giza on a sunny day

The Great Pyramid of Giza is surprisingly earthquake-proof

Caution tape blocks the entrance of a bathroom.

7 ways toilets have killed people

By Andrew Coletti

Traditional Irish bagpipes fitted to connect with an amplifier

Inventor plays homemade electromagnetic bagpipes in rock band

Crescent outline of Mars taken by Psyche spacecraft

Mars shines in ethereal photo from Psyche space probe

Artist's impression showing the Sun blasting matter towards Earth. Around Earth is a magnetic field, with a bright patch pointing towards the Sun, curved around Earth like a shield. Looking down on the process is the Smile spacecraft. It's view of the X-rays emitted at the edge of Earth's magnetic field is highlighted

SMILE spacecraft will use X-ray vision to study the northern lights and more

Two images. On the left of photo of a boy with dark curly hair wearing an orange shirt poses with a black and white electric guitar. On the right, is a black and white electric guitar.

Meet the college student crafting electric guitars from scratch

By Laura Kiniry

Close up of an airplane toilet with the lid open.

Why airplane toilets are tiny engineering marvels

By Popular Science Team

Goose flying behind wind turbine

Birds avoid wind turbines painted like venomous snakes

Spiral loop of a green steel roller coaster with a coaster on the track.

How to stay safe riding roller coasters

By Sara Kiley Watson

Hand grabbing Altoids tin next to another tin filled with a tiny computer

This guy crammed a laptop into an Altoids tin

Solar Impulse experimental plane flying over pyramids in Egypt

World’s largest solar-powered aircraft crashes after losing power

Hamster running on exercise wheel in cage

Clever kid builds phone charger powered by pet hamster

Line of Cybertrucks in parking lot

Cybertruck recall warns that its wheels may fly off

a team of vets puts a wire frame on a turtle's shell

Vet constructs ingenious contraption to help a tortoise hit by a car

By Margherita Bassi

Glowing blue algae arranged in different shapes

Glowing algae could power the lamps of the future

Black and white photo of Curiosity rover's robotic arm drill lifting a stone off the ground on Mars.

For 6 days, NASA’s Mars rover battled a rock

Close up of oyster shells

Want stronger concrete? Just add oysters.

a warning sign in front of a building for explosions

The world’s largest explosion lab is ready for big booms. And yes, it’s in Texas.

By Mack DeGeurin

Man sitting next to C-3PO replica head

Man 3D prints a chatty C-3PO head powered by AI

Lockheed X-59 aircraft in flight over Mojave Desert

NASA’s new supersonic X-59 aircraft shows off its dizzying acrobatics in new video

A brain implant to treat depression gets FDA greenlight to start trials

By Mack DeGeurin

an graphic rendering of a time capsule shaped like a cylinder

Do not open until July 4, 2276: U.S. buries a ‘zombie-proof’ time capsule

By Margherita Bassi

a man sails a homemade boat

Man builds 12-foot-long sailboat with materials from hardware store

Nervous humans are GM’s secret weapon for self-driving cars

By Kristin Shaw

Blue solar power car driving up hill

Man builds solar-powered car from e-bikes that can hit 30 mph

Side by side photos of white boot made from mushroom mycelium and a close up of the material itself

This shoe is made entirely from mushroom ‘brains’

a man dries a gray playstation console with a blue towel

Tinkerer transforms a filthy 1990s PlayStation into the ‘ultimate PS1’

By Mack DeGeurin

Close up of woman holding EpiPen Launcher

Woman builds EpiPen cannon, because why not?

Aerial view of Perge stadium from ancient Rome

‘Doors to Death’ reveal how Romans upgraded a stadium for bloodsport

The Artemis II crew—(clockwise from left) Mission Specialist Christina Koch, Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, Commander Reid Wiseman, and Pilot Victor Glover—pause for a group photo with their zero gravity indicator “Rise,” inside the Orion spacecraft on their way home on April 7, 2026.

From crying to dentistry: 6 odd skills astronauts need to go to space

By Mack DeGeurin

Virtual tour screenshot of Captain's Chair room inside USS Cassin Young

Visit a WWII destroyer without leaving your sofa

The roof of Crossrail Place features glulam timber beams joined with steel connectors, demonstrating advanced structural engineering and the fusion of functionality with modern British architectural design. The exposed framework highlights craftsmanship, material innovation, and the interplay between timber and steel within London’s contemporary infrastructure, United Kingdom.

The skylines of the future will be made of wood

By Matt Simon / Grist

3D printed suitcase in airport security line

3D-printed suitcase includes foldout table, cup holder, and a secret snack compartment

Artemis patch against capsule window in Orion with Earth beneath it

Why you can’t see space junk in Artemis II photos

a black machine with a red blob of jello on top.

Giant Jell-O measures crowd volume in wobbles

By Mack DeGeurin

A colorized historical photograph captures a group of railroad workers posing with a large steam locomotive on a wooden trestle bridge. The workers, a diverse group including several men in rough work clothes and hats, are clustered around the front of the black engine, which features a prominent cone-shaped smokestack. The trestle bridge curves through a dense evergreen forest with a rocky hillside in the background, illustrating the challenging terrain of early American railroad construction.

7 captivating photos of train travel’s first century

A retro-style color illustration depicts a cross-section of a futuristic multi-tiered moving sidewalk system. A group of elegantly dressed commuters from the mid-20th century stand on an elevated, reddish-brown platform that is supported by a series of visible white mechanical rollers. The illustration shows three parallel platforms layered at slightly different heights to indicate varying speeds, with a dark subterranean tunnel and a stationary train car visible in the lower-left corner.

In 1871, cities almost got moving sidewalks. Why are we still waiting?

By Bill Gourgey

A side view of the command center when engineers would keep tabs on the Voyager’s journey (left). Members of the Artemis II launch team, including personnel with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems participate in an emergency escape or egress demonstration simulation for the Artemis II mission inside Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy on August 12, 2024. (right)

NASA’s 1977 computers aboard Voyager are still working in interstellar space

By Mack DeGeurin

an orange rocket lifting off against a blue sky. puffy white smoke is at its base

Space now has 10 toilets

By Laura Baisas

a smiling man in a yellow hooded sweatshirt wears a virtual reality headset over his eyes

Skull vibrations could be your next password

By Laura Baisas

A regular size Cadbury Mini Egg compared with The Mega Mini Egg. The giant chocolate egg clocks in at 121 pounds.

World’s largest Cadbury Mini egg weighs as much as an emu

By Laura Baisas

two soldiers standing in a dirty field wearing exoskeletons on their legs

Ukraine’s military brings exoskeletons to the front line

By Mack DeGeurin

Little baby and stack of diapers on bed, closeup

Japan makes breakthrough in dirty diaper recycling

The World's Largest Dinosaur attraction in Drumheller, Canada

World’s Largest Dinosaur needs a new home

a row of collared t-shirts in rainbow order. red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple

Walmart and H&M are trying to turn carbon dioxide into clothes

By Mack DeGeurin

A colorized historical photograph of prolific inventor Beulah Louise Henry, known as "Lady Edison," seated at a desk. She is dressed in a formal purple satin dress and pearls, operating a complex, specialized typewriter of her own design. She is looking down at a sheet of paper she is feeding into the machine.

Inventor Beulah Louise Henry’s unstoppable rise to becoming ‘Lady Edison’

By Shoshi Parks

Two men standing next to boiler setup in pump station

Volunteers spend 30 years restoring a Victorian sewer pump station

a bright red robot with large black wheels sits outside of a fire station

Autonomous firefighting robot can drive straight into a 1,000 degree blaze

By Mack DeGeurin

the front of a steam locomotive. it is black and reads "union pacific 4014"

World’s largest steam locomotive heads out on tour

By Laura Baisas

A DIY Lego mechanical typewriter sitting on a desk

Man builds functional typewriter out of Lego bricks

a turtle wearing a 3D printed wheel chair

A 3D-printed wheelchair is helping this turtle walk again

By Mack DeGeurin

Minamitorishima island in Pacific Ocean seen from above

Japan eyes distant island for nuclear waste dump

Man pointing with stick at chalkboard diagram of AM radio setup

Watch a classified FM radio training video from WW2

Researchers holding smartphone up to computer monitor to test world's smallest QR code

World’s smallest QR code is thinner than a lightwave

Handing winding a series of brass gears that comprise an interplanetary clock device

What time is it on Mars? This analog ‘Interplanetary Clock’ can tell you.

Hand pointing at DIY electric chessboard with bunches of wires underneath it

Man builds electrified chessboard that shocks players for bad moves

a truck spraying a pothole in front of a house

Asphalt-spraying truck fixes potholes in minutes

By Mack DeGeurin

Nike yellow basketball shoes on parquet floor during basketball match of Ukrainian Superleague Parimatch SEASON 2020/21 BC "Kharkiv Sokoly» - MBC "Nikolaev", 31.01.2021, Ukraine, Kharkov, Palace of Sports "Lokomotiv"

Physics discovery explains why sneakers squeak

Interior of classic opera house

Color plays an unsung role in how we enjoy concerts

Lisbon, Portugal - September 24, 2021: TAP Air Portugal Airbus A330-900neo airplane at Lisbon airport (LIS) in Portugal.

Techno DJ jailed after selling 60,000 fake plane parts to major airlines

Crane placing final part of cross atop Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona, Spain

After 144 years, world’s tallest church finally finishes exterior

An 1870 sepia-toned photograph of Crawford Market in Mumbai, featuring its prominent stone clock tower and Gothic-style architecture with arched windows. In the foreground, people walk along a dirt road near a horse-drawn carriage and a vintage street lamp.

The history of clocks is one of tyranny and revolution