LOCAL: I filmed a bridge under construction on a sunny day. Winds gusting to 21 mph. Perfect visibility. This was much needed. I updated the software on my system, took a small flight test, all go.
This past Friday I had aced my 2025 Recurrent Knowledge Course exam (my mandatory commercial drone knowledge test), so my operator certificate is good for two more years. I was able to fly this over the weekend.
NEWS:
Billionaire class wrecks economy to buy up everything on the cheap, gamble for global fall-out where ill-gains do be like that, or something like that. Tariffs are a supply-side advantage of the ultra-wealthy. Complementarity of trade and incubating emergent externalities and whatnot are preferable to blanket tariffs that reek of indolence and greed, according to my shoddy undergraduate microeconomics notes.
Bluetooth panic is unwarranted.The ESP32 Bluetooth Backdoor That Wasn’t | Hackaday. This is a nice li’l chip. If you like tinkering, you have run across ESP32s.
Russia says hit by ‘massive’ drone attack ahead of crucial talks between US and Ukraine | CNN. This goes back and forth.Russia launches major aerial assault on Ukraine days after US shut off military aid. Ukraine drones force Russian airport restrictions in latest overnight exchange. Russia should just go leave Ukraine. #genius #5Dchess
In lunar lander news, Im-2 sideways, sad face emoji. Blue Ghost, not sideways, drilling the lunar regolith, delivering science data on the daily.
Starship debris rains down over the Bahamas, no bueno.
SCIENCE:
Firefly Aerospace Becomes First Commercial Company to Successfully Land on the Moon – Firefly Aerospace. The last 50 m of descent were autonomous. The Griffin lander is set to disgorge some rovers and gadgets to study natural resources, physical forces, provide communications, and explore the lunar regolith.
SphereX and Punch launch delayed. Why NASA’s SPHEREx Mission Will Make ‘Most Colorful’ Cosmic Map Ever | NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
Im-2 from Intuitive Machines lands on the lunar south polar region 03/06/25, in two days. Check launch schedule. Update: Sideways. They should use an anchor and/or paraglider.
The idea of using coal plants to power AI is…unappealing.
ART: I am working on an oil painting of an aerial I took of downtown Pittsburgh. This is a five-day project due to wet-on-dry needs. It is yet unfinished. UPDATE: One session to go, will complete on Thursday.
Falcon P & O 
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