The U.S. Marine Corps is working to update energy security technologies at MC Base Camp Pendleton for augmented command and control across more than 600 facilities.

The update includes repairs, new equipment installation, new utilities and setting up of facility control systems, USMC said Wednesday.

"By installing new LED lighting, boilers, meters and a fiber and radio network, we are significantly reducing Camp Pendleton’s energy consumption," said Lt. j.g. Clayten White, the camp's utilities program manager. 

USMC is pursuing this modernization effort under the Utility Energy Services Contract that aims to improve the energy and water systems at federal facilities and reduce associated consumption.

The government spent $12.7M on the update and will use the resulting cost savings to pay for the effort's expenses over a 13-year period.

A program held by the U.S. Air Force’s AFWERX innovation program highlighted opportunities to rebuild the hurricane-damaged Tyndall Air Force Base as a modern, state-of-the-art installation.

The AFWERX Fusion 2020 event ran from July 28th to 30th and included discussions and proposals of technologies that can be applied to make Tyndall the base of the future, Air Force said Wednesday.

“In working with AFWERX, my eyes have been opened to what’s within the realm of possibility,” said Brig. Gen. Patrice Melancon, executive director of the Tyndall Program Management Office.

The event’s virtual trade proposals tackled the technology areas of base security, installation resilience, operational effectiveness, reverse engineering and additive manufacturing, culture of innovation and airman well-being. AFWERX will unveil the top technology proposals on Aug. 7th. These entries will be eligible for the effort’s succeeding phase.

“Yes, the goal is to select the best solutions and implement these cutting-edge technologies and innovations at the base, but we have an unprecedented opportunity to use Tyndall (AFB) as a template for Air Force bases that are secure, resilient and digitally integrated,” said Lowell Usrey, PMO Integration Division chief.

The U.S. Army has conducted a live-fire test of space-based sensor technologies designed to facilitate a chain of targeting procedures between ground infrastructure and satellites operated by government and commercial entities, Defense News reported Wednesday.

The demonstration, which took place in Germany in March 2020, is intended to inform the Army’s efforts to deploy a space sensor system that utilizes next-generation concepts like machine learning and electro-optical radars to track beyond-line-of-sight targets.

Willie Nelson, director of the Army’s Assured Positioning, Navigation and Timing (APNT) cross-functional team, told the publication that the service also wants to leverage on-orbit sensors, artificial intelligence and a Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN) platform to provide data for simulations and wargaming activities.

“While this was a technical demonstration, at its core it really was more about how do we operationalize this capability and how do we quickly get this into the field as a capability that soldiers can use,” Nelson noted.

The transportable TITAN system can operate with the Prometheus machine learning algorithm designed to ingest various forms of data from platforms such as synthetic aperture radars (SAR) and EO systems.

Nelson said the Army is also looking into deploying SAR platforms and radio-frequency sensing technologies to support the TITAN architecture.

NASA's Ames Research Center partnered with Swift Engineering to test-fly a new solar-powered unmanned aircraft system designed for Earth observation and atmospheric research. The High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE UAS) flew for two hours to demonstrate low-altitude operations, the space agency said Thursday.

The effort is part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business Technology Transfer program. HALE met all systems check, aerodynamic, power and control requirements during the demonstration.

The 72-foot UAS has a payload capacity of 10 to 15 pounds and is built to fly at up to 70,000 feet above the ground. NASA and Swift expect HALE to be able to operate in missions that last over 30 days.

"The successful flight test is an important first step towards realizing a new capability to support NASA science," said Matt Fladeland, a researcher of Ames Research Center.

HALE will go on to undergo high-altitude tests that would determine whether the aircraft will soon receive operational capability status.