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Maxar Technologies, Australian Space Agency Sign Cooperative Agreement; Dan Jablonsky Quoted
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Maxar Technologies, Australian Space Agency Sign Cooperative Agreement; Dan Jablonsky Quoted


Maxar Technologies, Australian Space Agency Sign Cooperative Agreement; Dan Jablonsky Quoted

Maxar Technologies has signed a joint statement of strategic intent and cooperation with the Australian Space Agency, Maxar announced on Wednesday. 

“Maxar is honored to support the Australian Space Agency as it seeks to expand the nation’s role in the international civil space community, and we look forward to contributing technology and expertise from our 65-year heritage in space to projects and programs that enable them to achieve this goal,” said Dan Jablonsky, Maxar CEO.

Maxar and Australian Space Agency will investigate collaboration in areas of mutual strategic interest related to Earth intelligence and space infrastructure capabilities, and space-related Australian education and training initiatives.

These projects may include development of next-generation space robotics, ground stations focused on optimized servicing of large satellite constellations, optical and communications satellites, space-based maritime surveillance and artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies that extract insights from Earth observation data at scale.

The operations of DigitalGlobe, SSL and Radiant Solutions were unified under the Maxar brand in February; MDA continues to operate as an independent business unit within the Maxar organization.

About Maxar Technologies

Maxar is a trusted partner and innovator in Earth Intelligence and Space Infrastructure. We deliver disruptive value to government and commercial customers to help them monitor, understand and navigate our changing planet; deliver global broadband communications; and explore and advance the use of space. Our unique approach combines decades of deep mission understanding and a proven commercial and defense foundation to deploy solutions and deliver insights with unrivaled speed, scale and cost effectiveness.

Karen Dunn Kelley: Final Action Plan for Federal Data Strategy Set for November Release
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Karen Dunn Kelley: Final Action Plan for Federal Data Strategy Set for November Release


Karen Dunn Kelley
Karen Dunn Kelley

Karen Dunn Kelley, deputy secretary at the Department of Commerce, said the final action plan for a strategy that seeks to help agencies leverage data as a strategic asset is expected to be issued in November, FedTech reported Tuesday.

The action plan for the Federal Data Strategy “will help create a framework of consistency across the government,” Kelley said Tuesday at Imagine Nation ELC 2019 in Philadelphia. “Because these practices are aspirational, successfully carrying them out will involve incremental steps. It’s not a Big Bang theory.”

The Office of Management and Budget and three other agencies released in June the draft action plan for the strategy outlining the 16 steps agencies should implement to meet one of the cross-agency priority goals of the President’s Management Agenda.

Kelley also mentioned the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act, which was passed by Congress in January, and how the law advances the use of government data.

Executive Order Establishes Science & Tech Advisory Council
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Executive Order Establishes Science & Tech Advisory Council


Executive Order Establishes Science & Tech Advisory Council

President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order to form an advisory council on science and technology.

The President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology will provide advice on innovation policy and education and offer technical and scientific data to inform public policy with regard to national security, U.S. economy and the country’s workforce.

The 16-member council will seek ideas and information from the private sector, research community, local and state governments, universities and other stakeholders as well as offer advice to the National Science and Technology Council.

PCAST will get financial, technical and administrative support from the Department of Energy.

FedScoop reported that Kelvin Droegemier, director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy will lead PCAST.

OSTP named the council’s first seven members:

  • A.N. Sreeram, vice president and chief technology officer, Dow Chemical
  • Catherine Bessant, chief technology officer, Bank of America
  • Dario Gil, director of research, IBM Research
  • H. Fisk, chairman and CEO, S.C. Johnson & Son
  • K. Birgitta Whaley, director of Quantum Information and Computation Center, University of California-Berkley
  • Shane Wall, CTO and global head of HP Labs, HP Inc.
  • Sharon Hrynkow, senior vice president for medical affairs, Cyclo Therapeutics

Margie Graves: OMB, Other Agencies Eye Occupational Series for Data Scientists
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Margie Graves: OMB, Other Agencies Eye Occupational Series for Data Scientists


Margie Graves
Margie Graves

Margie Graves, federal deputy chief information officer, said the Office of Management and Budget is working with other federal agencies to find ways on how to recruit and employ more data scientists by establishing an occupational series for the profession, FedScoop reported Tuesday.

She said Tuesday at an ACT-IAC conference in Philadelphia that OMB is teaming up with the Office of Personnel Management, Department of Commerce and 14 other federal agencies “to define what a good data scientist looks like, how do we partner with universities to create the kind of programs that create the pipeline that brings data scientists into the federal government and, most importantly, how do we upskill and reskill current population.”

Graves also cited the importance of data literacy within every level of the federal government’s executive chain.

OPM issued a memo in July allowing federal agencies to add data scientist job titles to a number of positions in support of the President’s Management Agenda.

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USDA Aiming to Reorganize Security Operations Center
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USDA Aiming to Reorganize Security Operations Center


Jeff Brody

The Department of Agriculture has begun transitioning personnel under eight mission areas to a new Kansas City facility to support the consolidation of its security operations center, Fedscoop reported Monday.

Venice Goodwine, chief information security officer of USDA, said at an ACT-IAC event that the consolidated operations center will streamline efforts to address vulnerabilities across the department’s systems.

“I want to change the mindset that whenever my mission areas decide they need a new toy or capability, they need to ask me and it’s defensible,” she said. “Part of that is: Do I have the workforce to support what you’re trying to bring into the organization?”

Goodwine plans to implement National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education standards for identifying SOC functions and positions. Currently, the SOC has 42 personnel and a career path spanning 52 NICE roles.

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DoD OIG Audit Confirms Department’s Implementation of 3D Printing Tech
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DoD OIG Audit Confirms Department’s Implementation of 3D Printing Tech


Jeff Brody

The Department of Defense’s inspector general office found in an audit that DoD has implemented policy on additive manufacturing across the Defense Logistics Agency and the four service branches.

At least 81 military facilities have used AM or 3D printing to manufacture a variety of tools to address the absence of phased out parts, reduce maintenance hours and improve existing system components, DoD Office of the Inspector General said Monday.

The office conducted the audit to determine DoD’s level of using AM, covering sustainment efforts, coordination and overall implementation.

The audit also discovered that DoD may standardize AM data, implement a method for sharing this data, boost AM awareness across military leadership and identify resource requirements to further achieve goals. DoD OIG recommends the department to develop and implement policy that addresses these findings.

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USAF Selects DISA-Made System to Consolidate, Manage Maintenance Information
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USAF Selects DISA-Made System to Consolidate, Manage Maintenance Information


USAF Selects DISA-Made System to Consolidate, Manage Maintenance Information
Paul Crumbliss

The U.S. Air Force is working to remove redundant information technology systems and consolidate maintenance data into a single platform. The Core Automated Maintenance System for Mobility will be USAF’s new maintenance information system and will replace three separate platforms, the Defense Information Systems Agency said Monday.

The DISA Computing Ecosystem supports the design, development, testing and implementation activities necessary for CAMS-FM’s maintenance. The ecosystem uses Scrum, an agile project management framework, to maintain and develop CAMS-FM.

“This framework has been used to develop capabilities that are key to Air Force and U.S. Transportation Command functions worldwide,” said Paul Crumbliss, deputy chief for DISA’s Computing Ecosystem.

USAF is now using CAMS-FM to manage about 1,200 cargo and tanker aircraft. The new maintenance system will replace and unify the functions of USAF’s Integrated Maintenance Data System; Reliability, Availability, Maintainability for Pods; and Enhanced Maintenance Operations Center. This unification will place the control of fighters, bombers, nuclear missiles and mounted tracking systems under CAMS-FM.

Crumbliss said the service branch intends to put 5,000 more fighters and bombers under CAMS-FM in five years. USAF expects to save $140 million in 17 years as CAMS-FM reduces program management work required for the three older systems.

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Naval Research Lab Working on Efforts to Improve AI Training
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Naval Research Lab Working on Efforts to Improve AI Training


Jeff Brody

Ranjeev Mittu, head of the Naval Research Laboratory’s information management and decision architectures division, has said that more research needs to be done on using data for artificial intelligence efforts, Federal News Network reported Monday.

He told the publication in an interview that NRL aims to discover ways of training algorithms in cases where access to reliable data isn’t guaranteed.

“It’s not really clear how much data is needed under what scenarios, for what kinds of problems yet, and I think it’s kind of emerging,” Mittu said. “There’s a lot of research going on, but I think fundamentally there’s still a lot more research that needs to be done in the relationship between data and training, and what the right tradeoffs are for the different kinds of problems.”

According to Mittu, the Department of Defense should work on its collaborations with different organizations in addition to acquisition and fielding.

“I think we should be looking at that and looking at what’s successful — what’s working in industry and what isn’t, and figuring out how we can use those techniques for the DoD,” Mittu said.

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Rep. Ro Khanna Presents Bill to Require Federal Employee Cybersecurity Training
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Rep. Ro Khanna Presents Bill to Require Federal Employee Cybersecurity Training


Rep. Ro Khanna Presents Bill to Require Federal Employee Cybersecurity Training
Rep. Ro Khanna

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., has introduced a bill that aims to codify cybersecurity training as a requirement for federal employees.

The Internet of Things Cybersecurity Training for Federal Employees Act would have the Office of Management and Budget mandate federal personnel to understand cybersecurity and IoT device risks, Khanna’s office said Monday.

IoT devices refer to any physical technology that people use as mediums for internet connectivity. Examples of IoT devices include mobile phones, laptops and smart watches. These devices hold vulnerabilities that make them potential targets of cyber attacks, according to a statement by the Congressional Research Service.

“The IoT Cybersecurity Training for Federal Employees Act will ensure that our federal workforce is aware of these vulnerabilities when using IoT devices at work and at home,” Khanna said.

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Mike Pence: US Open to Collaborating With ‘Like-Minded’ Nations on Space Exploration
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Mike Pence: US Open to Collaborating With ‘Like-Minded’ Nations on Space Exploration


Mike Pence: US Open to Collaborating With 'Like-Minded' Nations on Space Exploration
Vice President Mike Pence

Vice President Mike Pence has said that the U.S. is willing to cooperate with “like-minded freedom-loving nations” in space exploration efforts, Space News reported Monday.

Pence told attendees at the opening of the 70th International Astronautical Congress in Washington, D.C., that President Trump’s leadership has enabled the country to be at the forefront of space programs like NASA’s Artemis mission to the moon.

He added that the U.S. and its allies must work to ensure a regulatory environment in space spanning matters like freedom, private property and rule of law.

“We will use all legal and diplomatic means to create a stable and orderly space environment that drives opportunity, creates prosperity and ensures our security on Earth,” he said.

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