The first rocket completely on a new type of fuel – naphthyl – will be launched from the Vostochny cosmodrome in the fall. The Gonets-M and Skif-D satellites will go into orbit on it. Ruslan Mukhamedzhanov, General Director of the Center for the Operation of Ground-Based Space Infrastructure (TsENKI, part of Roscosmos), spoke about this at the Army-2022 forum.

“The first launch on naphthyl from the Vostochny Cosmodrome is planned for this fall“, he said.

According to Mukhamedzhanov, it will be the launch of the Soyuz 2.1b carrier rocket with three Gonets-M communication satellites and the Skif-D demonstration satellite for broadband Internet access, which will be the first device under the Sphere federal project.

The Director General of TsENKI recalled that work on the transfer of the Soyuz launch complex to naphthyl at the Vostochny cosmodrome was carried out in several stages. First, the necessary technological equipment was installed, then last fall, specialists from the Vostochny Space Center and the Research Institute of Launch Complexes named after V.P. Barmin (TsENKI branches) connected it to the operating systems.

Autonomous tests, the CEO noted, were completed in December last year. In particular, naphthyl filling systems and an automatic process equipment control system were tested. “To complete the full transition cycle, it is necessary to conduct comprehensive tests that take place directly during the preparation of the launch vehicle for launch, when it is installed in the launch system”, Mukhamedzhanov added.

SpaceX has said anyone can hack into its Starlink satellite network and is willing to pay them up to $25,000 to find specific vulnerabilities. The announcement came after cybersecurity expert Lennert Wouters revealed that he successfully hacked a Starlink terminal using a $25 chip. Wouters said his attack could render Starlink terminals unusable and allow arbitrary code to run on them.

SpaceX, in turn, congratulated Wouters on his successful hacking attempt in a six-page document entitled “Starlink Welcomes Security Researchers (Find Bugs)”. “We find the attack technically impressive, and this is the first such attack that we are aware of on our system,” the document says. However, the hack carried out by Wouters using a homemade chip should not worry Starlink users, as it will not have a direct impact on the satellites, SpaceX added.

In-house engineers are always trying to hack Starlink to improve service and make the network more secure, according to a SpaceX document. Security researchers can conduct their own testing, and if they discover a vulnerability and report it, they can receive a monetary reward, the company notes. The award ranges from $100 to $25,000. But SpaceX has conditions: bug hunting must not disrupt user services, physical attacks on large-scale infrastructure are prohibited, as well as email spoofing (forgery of the sender’s address in emails).

Member of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies Joenia Wapichana proposed to tokenize gold and use blockchain to prevent illegal mining and sale of this precious metal.

According to Vapichana, the country should be able to account for gold mining activities on its territory. The bill introduces new legislation aimed at transactions with precious metals and their transportation.

The bill will also help fight illegal mining activities in the country.

The legislator noted that about half of the gold in the country is mined illegally. She added that illegal mining activities have worsened the environmental impact of the mining industry.

These operations are accompanied by mercury pollution, violence and deforestation, which has been frequently reported in the national and international press, as well as civil society organizations that fight to protect the forest and guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples.

Therefore, Vapishana proposed to create a single system based on the blockchain, in which information about the mined gold will be entered, and through which its sale will be carried out. To do this, it is necessary to make the necessary amendments to the legislation of the country, the deputy added.

The idea of ​​tokenizing natural resources also came up this summer with the government of the Central African Republic (CAR). It believes that this will attract funds from foreign investors and accelerate the adoption of crypto assets in the country. In 2020, Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire suggested that within a few years, asset tokenization will gain popularity as it is an effective way to increase liquidity.