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Naval Research Lab Brings Coastal Science Expertise to Gulf Coast Tech Bridge
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Naval Research Lab Brings Coastal Science Expertise to Gulf Coast Tech Bridge

Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) has partnered with Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command and Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division to foster multisector collaboration in the Gulf Coast region.

The newly formed Gulf Coast Tech Bridge will work with private companies and academic institutions to study and develop technologies on coastal sciences, meteorology, oceanography and assured maritime access, the U.S. Navy said Friday.

NRL's Ocean Sciences Division brings expertise in ocean physics and coastal sensing technologies to Gulf Coast Tech Bridge that will support efforts in Florida, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi.

The U.S. Navy creates Tech Bridge networks through the NavalX program that connects the service branch with non-traditional innovation opportunities. Tech Bridges allow the Navy's industrial and academic partners to look at emerging naval technologies.

“We want to enable our scientists and engineers to transform their discoveries into commercial products,” said Joe Calantoni, a  research physicist with NRL's Ocean Sciences Division.

The Navy also recently stood up another Tech Bridge in Honolulu, Hawaii.

DHS’s Troy Edgar: TSA’s Move to USCG’s Financial Mgmt System Will Standardize Procedures
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DHS’s Troy Edgar: TSA’s Move to USCG’s Financial Mgmt System Will Standardize Procedures

Troy Edgar, chief financial officer of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), said the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) recent transition to the U.S. Coast Guard’s shared-services system will help standardize business processes, Federal News Network reported Friday.

Edgar told the publication in an interview that TSA’s move to the Coast Guard’s enterprise financial management system in October comes as part of efforts to enable all DHS components to use common procedures across disparate software systems.

According to Edgar, TSA is in the “post implementation stabilization” phase and is monitoring progress after concluding a 30-day transition period to the Oracle-based system.

“My vision for TSA, once they’re stable and they’re in a normal production mode, is we’ll start adding enhancement processes on top of it, that would be on reporting, and then eventually [robotic process automation],” he noted.

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GSA’s Allen Hill, Laura Stanton on Plans for Enterprise Contract Vehicles in 2021
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GSA’s Allen Hill, Laura Stanton on Plans for Enterprise Contract Vehicles in 2021

The General Services Administration (GSA) plans to issue a Civilian Enterprise Office Solutions (CEOS) contract as it works to develop the Polaris vehicle for small businesses, FCW reported Friday. The CEOS will serve as a counterpart to the Defense EOS blanket purchase agreement, which covers the transition of Department of Defense operations to the cloud-based Microsoft Office 365 suite.

Allen Hill, acting deputy assistant commissioner for category management at GSA's Office of Information Technology Category, said at an AFFIRM-hosted event that the agency plans to take “a more strategic approach” in establishing the types of services it will include in the CEOS award.

“Next year, our goal is to get the agencies to where they’re meeting the milestones. Our hope is that all are at that point,” he noted.

Laura Stanton, assistant commissioner of ITC, added that the GSA is concurrently planning to release a draft of the Polaris contract  “in the fairly near future”.

She previously said that GSA plans to award the 8(a) Streamlined Technology Acquisition Resource for Services III governmentwide acquisition contract in 2021. In June 2020, GSA said in its STARS III presolicitation notice that it estimates the vehicle to reach a ceiling value of $50B.

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Michael Brown: DIU Now Focuses on Drone Swarming Tech
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Michael Brown: DIU Now Focuses on Drone Swarming Tech

Michael Brown, director of the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), said at a recent AFWERX event that his organization has been working to study drone swarming technologies, DoD News reported Friday. 

He said autonomous drone swarming is something the military has to be concerned about due to the technology's potentially dangerous uses by terrorists.

Brown talked about DIU's collaborative work with USAF at an AFWERX event panel where Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett, was also present.

DIU previously worked with USAF on predictive maintenance technology, an artificial intelligence application that now supports the entire U.S. military. The AFWERX program aims to internally foster technological innovation across USAF.

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KBR Wins Contract to Deliver Energy Efficient Ammonia Technology; Doug Kelly Quoted
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KBR Wins Contract to Deliver Energy Efficient Ammonia Technology; Doug Kelly Quoted

KBR has been awarded a contract for an ammonia synthesis loop by Monolith Materials for its fertilizer project, KBR reported on Monday. 

"KBR's energy-efficient ammonia technology is the first choice of ammonia producers globally. We are excited to be part of Monolith's environmentally transformative fertilizer project in Hallam," said Doug Kelly, KBR president, Technology. "Our sustainable process technology solutions are leading the energy transition industry globally."

Under the terms of the contract, KBR will provide a technology license, basic engineering design package, proprietary equipment and catalyst for a 930 metric tons per day ammonia synloop project. 

The company’s project will use hydrogen as feedstock from an emission-free, commercial-scale facility developed by Monolith Materials to produce both carbon black and ammonia from natural gas, air and 100 percent renewable power. The process will convert natural gas into carbon and hydrogen with zero carbon oxide emissions.  

The carbon is used to produce carbon black, which can be used to produce tires, belts/hoses, plastics, batteries and inks and the hydrogen to produce ammonia for fertilizer and chemical applications. KBR's ammonia technology features low energy usage, higher reliability and lower capital costs. 

About KBR

KBR is a global provider of differentiated professional services and solutions across the asset and program life cycle within the government and technology sectors. KBR employs approximately 28,000 people worldwide with customers in more than 80 countries and operations in 40 countries.

KBR is proud to work with its customers across the globe to provide technology, value-added services, and long- term operations and maintenance services to ensure consistent delivery with predictable results. At KBR, We Deliver.

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Quantum Acquires Square Box Systems to Expand Data Portfolio; Jamie Lerner Quoted
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Quantum Acquires Square Box Systems to Expand Data Portfolio; Jamie Lerner Quoted

Quantum has acquired Square Box Systems, a specialist in data cataloging, user collaboration, and digital asset management software, Quantum reported on Monday. 

"This acquisition will not only help our customers make better business decisions based on their data, but it represents another key step in Quantum's transformation by adding data enrichment technology to our portfolio,” said Jamie Lerner, president and CEO at Quantum. 

Quantum’s acquisition of Square Box Systems will expand the company’s portfolio that classifies, manages and protects data across its lifecycle by adding technology advancements to further enrich video, digital images and other forms of unstructured data. 

The purchase will also strengthen Quantum's ability to provide software solutions to help companies expand business value within data, both on-premises and in the cloud.

"There is huge untapped value contained in video, digital images, and other valuable file data… We are also adding a growing, profitable software business unit with strong gross margins that is in the late stages of transitioning to a cloud-based SaaS business,” Lerner added. 

Square Box Systems' CatDV is an agile media management and workflow automation software platform that helps organizations with large volumes of media and metadata to organize, communicate and collaborate more effectively. 

CatDV has integrated artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to simplify cataloging and analysis of digital assets, including video, images, audio files and PDFs. The company’s solution also enables advanced search across local and cloud repositories and provides access control across the full data lifecycle for secure sharing and data governance.

"Joining forces with Quantum makes CatDV much stronger: becoming part of a larger organization with its visionary leadership team, whilst gaining access to an amazing pool of talent, gives CatDV more opportunity to better serve our existing and future customers,” Dave Clack, former CEO of Square Box Systems and general manager, Cloud Software and Analytics at Quantum said. 

Quantum expects the initial financial impact of the transaction to be accretive to current business operations and additional guidance will be provided with Quantum's release of its fiscal Q3 FY2021 financial results.  

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DISA Releases Final Solicitation for $11B DES IT Consolidation Contract
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DISA Releases Final Solicitation for $11B DES IT Consolidation Contract

The final solicitation for the $11.7 billion Defense Enclaves Services (DES) IT consolidation contract has been released, FedScoop reported on Monday. The contract from the Defense Information Services Agency (DISA) will be a single-award contract to consolidate the networks of 22 non-warfighting agencies in the Department of Defense (DoD). 

The project falls under the scope of the Fourth Estate Network Optimization (4ENO) initiative. DISA will be the single service provider to the agencies, once a contractor develops networks, help desks and other technical components of the IT systems.

The final solicitation includes answers to a variety of questions from contractors submitted in the draft phase of the proposal and appendixes with technical details about agency IT systems that the awardee would need to consolidate.

The scope of the contract includes network operations and management, infrastructure, transition, cybersecurity, technical refresh support and engineering and innovation services for a SSP network environment with all fourth estate agency users. DES will also support Defense Agency and Field Activities mission partners’ legacy operations and sustainment requirements as separate task orders.

“The network will consist of Non-classified Internet Protocol Router Network (NIPRNet) and Secure Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet) domains, and will use the DISA DoDNet as the technical baseline for standardization between agencies upon transition,” the request for proposal (RFP) reads. 

DISA expects to complete the migration and sustainment of Phase I agencies by fiscal year 2025 and migration of Phase II agencies by FY 2026 under the DES indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract. 

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CISA, FBI, MS-ISAC Release Advisory on Cyber Threats Targeting K-12 Distance Learning
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CISA, FBI, MS-ISAC Release Advisory on Cyber Threats Targeting K-12 Distance Learning

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), FBI and Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) have issued a joint advisory on cyber threats that target remote learning operations in the kindergarten through twelfth-grade category.

The joint cybersecurity advisory released Thursday states that there have been continued reports of ransomware attacks on K-12 institutions and students as of December 2020. FBI, CISA and MS-ISAC expect the attacks to continue through the 2020-2021 academic year.

Fifty-seven percent of MS-ISAC’s reported incidents represent K-12 schools in the August to September period, according to the advisory.

CISA, FBI and MS-ISAC noted that distributed denial-of-service attacks and video conference disruptions are among the cyber attacks reported over the past months. Identified risks and vulnerabilities include social engineering influence, open and exposed ports, student data breaches and end-of-life software.

The agencies also identified the most prevalent ransomware variants including AKO, Ryuk, Nefilim, Sodinokibi/REvil and Maze. The ZeuS and Shlayer malware variants were also common in impacted Microsoft Windows and Mac operating systems, respectively.

The interagency group recommends users to take steps such as software patching, multifactor authentication, network segmentation and regular password changes.

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NASA, ESA Select SpaceX Crew-3 Mission Astronauts
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NASA, ESA Select SpaceX Crew-3 Mission Astronauts

NASA and European Space Agency (ESA) have named three astronauts to serve as crew members for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), which is expected to launch in the fall of 2021. NASA’s Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn will serve as commander and pilot, respectively. ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer will serve as a mission specialist. 

A fourth crew member will be added at a later date, following a review by NASA and its international partners. This will be the third crew rotation mission of SpaceX’s human space transportation system and its fourth flight with astronauts to the space station through NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. 

NASA’s contract with SpaceX is for six total crew missions to the orbiting laboratory. The goal of the program is to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective crew access to the space station and low-Earth orbit in partnership with American aerospace industry. 

Marshburn became an astronaut in 2004. Prior to serving in the astronaut corps, he served as flight surgeon at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and later became medical operations lead for the International Space Station (ISS). Marshburn previously served as a crew member of STS-127 in 2009 and Expedition 34/35, which concluded in 2013.

Before becoming an astronaut, Maurer held a number of engineering and research roles, both in a university setting and at ESA. In 2016, Maurer spent 16 days on an undersea mission as part of a NASA’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) space analog.

Chari became a NASA astronaut in 2017. He is a colonel in the U.S. Air Force and brings extensive experience as a test pilot. He has more than 2,500 hours of flight time. Additionally, Chari was selected earlier this month as a member of the Artemis Team. 

NASA has named the 18 astronauts that will serve as part of the Artemis Team, who will be responsible for helping the agency prepare for Artemis deep-space missions including the planned moon landing in 2024.

The astronauts, which were selected based on eligibility for initial moon missions, will help NASA and its industry partners develop hardware requirements, crew training activities and technologies such as the human landing system.

The team will also engage with the public in support of the Artemis program and future NASA missions.

“We are incredibly grateful for the president and vice president’s support of the Artemis program, as well as the bipartisan support for all of NASA’s science, aeronautics research, technology development, and human exploration goals,” said NASA administrator and 2019 Wash100 Award recipient Jim Bridenstine.

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SpaceX Launches Radio Satellite Aboard Falcon 9; Karen St. Germain Quoted
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SpaceX Launches Radio Satellite Aboard Falcon 9; Karen St. Germain Quoted

SpaceX has launched the SXM-7 satellite for SiriusXM, a satellite radio company, aboard the Falcon 9 on Dec. 13, Space News reported on Monday. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launched from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 12:30 p.m. EST. 

The rocket’s upper stage deployed the SXM-7 satellite into a geostationary transfer orbit 31 minutes after liftoff, and the first stage successfully landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean. That stage made its seventh flight, having previously launched the Demo-1 commercial crew test flight, the Radarsat Constellation Mission and four sets of Starlink satellites.

SXM-7 is one of two new digital audio radio service satellites that SiriusXM ordered from Maxar Technologies in 2016. The satellite weighs close to 15.4 thousand pounds at launch, and will generate more than 20 kilowatts of power. Additionally, SXM-7 will deploy a large antenna that will broadcast programming for SiriusXM subscribers. 

The satellite is intended to replace XM-3, a satellite launched in 2005 and operating at 85 degrees west in geostationary orbit. A second satellite, SXM-8, will launch in 2021 to replace XM-4 at 115 degrees west.

The launch is the 24th orbital mission in 2020 for SpaceX, the most launches the company has performed in a single year. One more Falcon 9 launch is scheduled for this year, carrying a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) on a mission designated NROL-108. That launch is scheduled for no earlier than Dec. 17.

The launch follows SpaceX’s launch of a satellite designed to monitor sea levels across the globe under a U.S.-U.K. partnership in Nov. 2020. The Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base Saturday on a mission to collect sea level data, support ship navigation and inform weather forecasts. 

“The changing Earth processes are affecting sea level globally, but the impact on local communities varies widely,” said Karen St. Germain, who leads NASA's Earth Science Division. She added that the spacecraft will help NASA further understand Earth's planetary changes with regard to sea level and the corresponding impact on coastal communities.

"These data, which can only be obtained by measurements from space, will bring a wide range of benefits to people around the globe, from safer ocean travel to more precise prediction of hurricane paths, from greater understanding of sea level rise to more accurate seasonal weather forecasts, and so much more," noted Alain Ratier, director-general of the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites.

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