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Army Emphasizes Importance of Collaboration in New C2 Effort; John Murray Quoted
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Army Emphasizes Importance of Collaboration in New C2 Effort; John Murray Quoted

U.S. Army Futures Command (AFC) hosted a virtual event where members of the defense industry and academia discussed a project that aims to bolster joint all-domain command and control. The Army's Project Convergence will leverage partnerships with industry, academia and joint force partners to exceed adversaries in terms of C2 performance, the Army said Friday.

“There's a lot of smart people in the Army, but there's a lot more smart people that are outside the Army helping us solve problems and thinking about how to solve problems in different ways,” said Gen. John Murray, commanding general at AFC and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient.

The roundtable discussion took place last Tuesday and emphasized the importance of a multisector approach to the project. Partners will develop and implement interoperable concepts under the effort. Envisioned as a long-term effort, Project Convergence will run across multiple years.

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FY2021 NDAA Directs DoD to Brief Congress on CJADC2 Progress, Resource Allocations
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FY2021 NDAA Directs DoD to Brief Congress on CJADC2 Progress, Resource Allocations

Congress has mandated Pentagon officials to submit quarterly reports that will brief the House and Senate defense committees on steps taken to advance the Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) effort, C4ISRnet reported Saturday.

The fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act directs the Department of Defense chief information officer, the Joint Chiefs of Staff vice chairman and service-branch representatives to provide details on the “distribution of responsibilities and authorities” among the CJADC2 cross-functional team as well as the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the armed forces.

The DoD must also provide a resource allocation report for CJADC2 and validate program requirements by April 21, 2021. In addition, the FY 2021 NDAA requires the DoD secretary to include projected CJADC2 implementation and development costs in the FY 2022 budget request.

Congress requires Pentagon leaders to brief lawmakers on CJADC2's status as well as other efforts to identify gaps in the department's C2 capabilities by Oct. 21, 2021.

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Microsoft Launches Top Secret Cloud Service; Tom Keane Quoted
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Microsoft Launches Top Secret Cloud Service; Tom Keane Quoted

Microsoft has developed a new cloud service to protect agencies’ data that is classified as “top secret,” the company announced Monday. The company will continue to work with the US Government on accreditation for Azure Government Top Secret. 

“The broad range of services will meet the demand for greater agility in the classified space, including the need to gain deeper insights from data sourced from any location, as well as the need to enable the rapid expansion of remote work,” said Tom Keane, corporate vice president of Azure Global.

Azure Government Top Secret regions provide the same capabilities as Azure commercial, Azure Government and Azure Government Secret, with a higher level of integrated security. Microsoft’s new solution will enable a continuum of compute from mission cloud to tactical edge.

Microsoft’s ‘top secret’ cloud option will enable federal agencies that manage sensitive data to gain greater flexibility in modernizing their legacy information technology systems. The company will leverage tools that work across a wide range of skill levels, from business analysts to developers to data scientists.

“Microsoft is focused on mission enablement. Missions are enabled with workloads. Workloads live within enclaves that house varied levels of data. Microsoft is enabling seamless, secure, cost-contained agility across mission workloads at scale,” said Carroll Moon, CTO of CloudFit Software.

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DoD Improves Command-Centric Operational Framework; Paul Fredenburgh Quoted
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DoD Improves Command-Centric Operational Framework; Paul Fredenburgh Quoted

The Joint Force Headquarters-Department of Defense Information Networks (JFHQ-DoDIN) has improved at implementing its command-centric operational framework, 

“Operationalizing the secure, operate-and-defend mission area is at the heart of outmaneuvering adversaries in the cyber domain as we establish priorities for and direct network operations, security actions and unified defensive efforts across DoDIN. Along with processes and technology, we are working to operationalize all cyberspace operations forces,” deputy commander Brig. Gen. Paul Fredenburgh said.

JFHQ-DoDIN was designed to unify network efforts globally. The division achieved full operational capability in 2018, and JFHQ-DoDIN has continued to improve across a variety of commands, including integrating intelligence.

Within the last year, JFHQ-DoDIN has continued to mature operations, and has organized parts of the division into areas of operation. The Department of Defense (DoD) has identified specific commanders or directors responsible to secure, operate and defend those areas of operation.

The JFHQ-DoDIN will continue to protect the DoD component capabilities to enable power projection and freedom of action across all warfighting domains.

JFHQ-DoDIN has integrated four primary frameworks to ensure that networks are secure and that personnel can access relevant information, which are underpinned by the command-centric operational framework. 

The force has worked to organize the battlespace to gain unity of command and speed when taking action and leverage a cyber risk assessment methodology. 

Additionally, JFHQ-DoDIN will focus on relevant threats to make informed decisions on the network by using automation and an intelligence-driven methodology, as well as work with partners across the department to develop a process to address requirements to secure the network.

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CMMC-AB Board of Directors Begins CEO Search
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CMMC-AB Board of Directors Begins CEO Search

The CMMC-AB Board of Directors has collaborated with JDG Associates to conduct the search for the organization’s first CEO. CMMC-AB recently entered a contract with the Department of Defense (DoD) to become the exclusive accreditation body to build the CMMC ecosystem in support of the DoD’s CMMC requirements. 

The AB accredits the assessors that will inspect the networks of contractors. The body also supervises the training and consulting landscape by licensing teaching organizations and charging consultants for CMMC-specific training.

With the signed contract, the AB will be able to increase speed of the CMMC roll out. The new statement of work reflects the AB’s first memorandum of understanding (MOU). The contract will also enable the AB to hire more staff and finalize its search for a CEO. 

The CMMC-AB Board of Directors will begin its search for an innovative leader to serve as the first chief executive officer of the 501.C(3) corporation. The successful candidate will have support from the Board of Directors to develop the corporation that will support the DoD. 

As the CMMC-AB Board seeks to engage the broader community in their search efforts for a CEO, JDG Associates will conduct and manage the search process. 

Katie Arrington, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and a 2020 Wash100 Award recipient, delivered her keynote address during Potomac Officers Club’s Fall CMMC Forum. She discussed scoping maturity and the CMMC timeline. 

If you missed Potomac Officers Club’s Fall CMMC Forum on November 17th, you can still access the OnDemand footage by visiting Potomac Officers Club’s Event Archive. 

Following Arrington’s address, Potomac Officers Club’s Fall CMMC Forum featured an expert panel that addressed the requirements and priorities of implementing the certification, including scoping of CMMC assessments, supply chain impacts and C3PAOs. 

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NASA Announces Priorities for Artemis Moon Landing; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted
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NASA Announces Priorities for Artemis Moon Landing; Thomas Zurbuchen Quoted

NASA has identified its science priorities for the Artemis III mission, which have been included in a recent NASA report, the agency reported on Monday. 

“The Moon holds vast scientific potential and astronauts are going to help us enable that science,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. “This report helps outline a path forward toward the compelling science we can now contemplate doing on the lunar surface in conjunction with human explorers.”

The Artemis III Science Definition Team is composed of federal employees and consultants with expertise in lunar science. The team will work to define science objectives for all aspects of the Artemis III mission, including sampling strategies, field surveys and deployable experiments.

In addition, the Artemis III Science Definition Team prioritized investigations that will help NASA understand the risks and resources of the Moon’s South Pole, as well as outline the highest science priorities of the lunar science community.

The team also provided context by assessing what science goals could be executed during the Artemis III surface mission. NASA will develop a mission operations plan when human landing system capabilities, a landing site, and other architectural details come into sharper focus. The procedures and operations techniques developed for Artemis III also will inform future Artemis missions.

“The team’s hard work will ensure we’re able to take advantage of the potential of the Artemis III mission to help us learn from the Moon as a gateway to the rest of the solar system,” said team co-chair Renee Weber, chief scientist at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, who led the effort.

NASA’s Science and Human Exploration and Operations mission directorates will work together to integrate recommendations into the science strategy of the agency’s Artemis Plan as plans move ahead for the Artemis III crewed launch in 2024.

Artemis III has the potential to enable the science community to make significant progress on many of the identified priority science goals, including increasing our understanding of how the Moon formed and evolved, how it interacts with the Sun, and how water and other resources arrived at the Moon, are transported, and currently are preserved.

“Science will be integral to Artemis missions, and we look forward to planning missions of human and scientific discovery that draw on the thoughtful work of this team,” said Kathy Lueders, associate administrator for NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. 

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Adm. John Aquilino Nominated for INDOPACOM Leadership Post
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Adm. John Aquilino Nominated for INDOPACOM Leadership Post

Navy Adm. John Aquilino, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, has been nominated to lead U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, the Department of Defense announced Thursday.

If confirmed, Aquilino will lead a unified combatant command that works with other U.S. government agencies to ensure stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

He previously served in multiple fighter squadrons that flew F-18 C/E/F Hornet and F-14 A/B Tomcat aircraft and worked as an adversary instructor pilot for the A-4, F-5 and F-16N platforms.

His flag assignments include time as director of strategy and policy at the U.S. Joint Forces Command, deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans and strategy and commander of Naval Forces Central Command.

The admiral became U.S. Pacific Fleet’s 36th commander in May 2018, and is the recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit and Air Medal, among other military awards.

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Report: Chinese Scientists Develop Quantum Computer Prototype
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Report: Chinese Scientists Develop Quantum Computer Prototype

A team of Chinese scientists created a quantum computer prototype that can carry out computations 100T times faster than the world's fastest supercomputer and 10B times faster than Google’s 53-qubit quantum computer, China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported Friday.

A study published in the Science magazine states Chinese quantum physicist Pan Jianwei and other researchers created the prototype called “Jiuzhang,” which they claim a quantum computational advantage. The team said the technology could be applied in areas such as quantum chemistry, graph theory and machine learning.

Bloomberg reported the prototype can detect up to 76 photons through a standard simulation algorithm called Gaussian boson sampling.

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Ellen Lord on Defense Acquisition System Directive
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Ellen Lord on Defense Acquisition System Directive

Hon. Ellen Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment and a four-time Wash100 Award winner, said the DoD Directive 5000.01 The Defense Acquisition System supports the National Defense Strategy and the six goals within the A&S office’s mission.

Those goals are enabling acquisition innovation approaches that deliver warfighting capability at the speed of relevant, developing a safe, resilient and secure defense industrial base and recruiting and retaining a diverse acquisition and sustainment workforce.

David Norquist, deputy secretary of the Department of Defense and a fellow two-time Wash100 Award recipient, signed the directive outlining the principles governing DoD’s acquisition process in support of the National Defense Strategy in Sept. 2020. 

Lord said the directive supports the strategy by facilitating the accelerated delivery of technological capabilities needed to develop a more lethal force and focuses on improved weapon systems sustainment.

Ellen Lord on Defense Acquisition System Directive

Join Potomac Officers Club for its 5G Summit on Jan. 7th, 2021 to learn about the impact that innovative technologies and 5G integration have on the private and public sectors, the steps the federal agencies have taken to remain up to speed with the rapid advancement of technology, and the future programs, plans and priorities as the nation aligns with emerging technology.

Hon. Ellen Lord, undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment at the Department of Defense (DoD) and four-time Wash100 Award recipient, will be featured as the keynote speaker.

Don’t miss out on this must see event! Register here for Potomac Officers Club's 5G Summit on Jan. 7th, 2021. 

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Judy Baltensperger, Kevin Cox Share Plans for CISA’s Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation Program
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Judy Baltensperger, Kevin Cox Share Plans for CISA’s Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation Program

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) plans to provide in 2021 an updated Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) program that could help reduce reporting requirements for agencies while helping them improve security, Nextgov reported Friday.

“We want the data to be as complete and accurate, and as timely as possible, so that we can reduce the data calls for [binding operational directives] and [emergency directives], reduce the CyberScope reporting, and get them to trust the data in the dashboard when they're making those risk-based decisions,” Judy Baltensperger, CDM program manager at CISA, said Thursday during an event.

She said most of the pilot agencies have moved their infrastructure to the cloud and that data quality certification will likely be carried out by the summer of 2021.

“What we want to do through the pilots that we've had engaging with the different CSPs, the cloud service providers is make sure that we have a full understanding of the data they have available, look at, for example, how the data that they have available aligns with the CDM requirements,” said Kevin Cox, CDM program manager. “And then make sure that that is available to the agencies, that they have that real-time and near real-time understanding of the protections they have in the cloud."

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