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Army Lab, Partners Develop Doppler LiDAR System for Airdrop Operations
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Army Lab, Partners Develop Doppler LiDAR System for Airdrop Operations


army stock photoThe U.S. Army Research Laboratory and its partners Beyond Photonics and Halo Photonics have built a Doppler light detection and ranging system to support the airdrop operations of Army Pathfinders.

ARL worked to develop the Man-Portable Doppler LiDAR system to retire the pilot balloon tracking mechanism as a response to a request for information from U.S. Army-Africa, the service branch said May 11.

The helium-filled balloon is tracked to measure wind profile and support battlefield airdrop operations while MPDL is a 45-pound system that works to operate on 24-volt batteries, the Army added.

“Pathfinders currently face challenges impacting operations and warfighter safety,” said Deryck James, ARL meteorological technician for the atmospheric sensing branch.

He added that LiDAR systems like MPDL work to facilitate environmental awareness and precision airdrops for Pathfinders.

MPDL is designed to aid Pathfinders as they work to infiltrate areas and set up parachute drop zones and helicopter landing zones for aerial missions, the Army added.

James and David Ligon from ARL’s atmospheric sensing branch trained members of the Georgia National Guard on the new Doppler LiDAR system.

Georgia National Guard soldiers will also be trained to use MPDL before the system is fielded during the Central Accord 2016 joint exercises in Gabon, Africa, the Army said.

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DOE to Fund 10 Solar Projects, 5 Military Bases to Join Training Program
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DOE to Fund 10 Solar Projects, 5 Military Bases to Join Training Program


Energy DepartmentThe Energy Department will add five military bases to join its solar jobs training program that works to help prepare transitioning service members find careers in the solar industry upon retirement from the military.

DOE said Tuesday the department will also award a total of $10 million to fund 10 new projects through its Solar Training and Education for Professionals program.

“Jobs in the dynamic solar energy sector have grown more than 20 percent per year for the past several years,” said Deputy Secretary Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall.

“At DOE, we are committed to training the solar workforce of the future through our partnership with the [Defense Department], the solar industry, and community colleges around the country.”

solarpowerEglin Air Force Base, Fort Bragg, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, Joint Base San Antonio and U.S. Marine Corps Base Hawaii will join the Solar Ready Vets program that has helped approximately 250 participants since its launch.

DOE said the DoD Skillbridge program supports the project that works to aid exiting military personnel in pursuing civilian job training, employment skills training, apprenticeships and internships for up to six months before the separation date.

The training efforts aim to build on the progress of the SunShot Initiative‘s Solar Instructor Training Network that has trained 1,100 solar instructors and provided 30,000 students with solar workforce training, the department said.

A list of the 10 new STEP-funded training programs that work to meet the President’s goal to train 75,000 solar workers by 2020 can be found on the department’s website.

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FAA, Partners Conduct UAS Detection Tests at JFK Airport
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FAA, Partners Conduct UAS Detection Tests at JFK Airport


AirportRunwayThe Federal Aviation Administration has collaborated with several other agencies and academic and commercial organizations to test an unmanned aircraft system detection technology at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.

FAA said Tuesday it aims to evaluate the effectiveness of an FBI-provided “rogue” UAS detector system in some of the busiest commercial airports in the U.S.

“We face many difficult challenges as we integrate rapidly evolving UAS technology into our complex and highly regulated airspace,” noted Marke Gibson, an FAA senior adviser on UAS integration.

“This effort at JFK reflects everyone’s commitment to safety,” Gibson added.

The departments of Homeland Security and Justice as well as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the Queens District Attorney’s Office supported the FAA tests.

FAA noted the Griffiss International Airport in Rome, New York, helped the agency plan the individual tests at JFK and provided a flight commander for the effort, which involved the use of five fixed-wing and rotary-wing drones.

The agency also partnered with CACI International to explore how a company-made technology can facilitate  identification and detection of drones flying near airports.

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Intl Space Station Deploys 2 NASA CubeSats for Swarm Comms Demonstration
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Intl Space Station Deploys 2 NASA CubeSats for Swarm Comms Demonstration


CubeSatThe International Space Station launched a pair of small NASA satellites Monday using a NanoRacks-built deployer system as part of an agency project that aims to demonstrate operation and networking of CubeSats in low-Earth orbit.

NASA said Wednesday each Node satellite employs the Android mobile operating system and is built with customized software and the Energetic Particle Integrating Space Environment Monitor technology designed to collect and transmit data.

Montana State University developed the Nodes’ EPISEM radiation sensors for the agency.

“The purpose of the Nodes demonstration is to test out the potential for using a network of small, low-cost satellites to perform complex science missions,” said Andrew Petro, program executive for NASA’s Small Spacecraft Technology Program.

“If we can demonstrate that any single satellite can ‘talk’ to the ground on behalf of a whole network of satellites, that’s a great tool for creating new, more affordable space mission concepts,” Petro added.

The Nodes were included in Orbital ATK‘s fourth cargo resupply mission to the space station in December.

The agency designed the satellites to autonomously identify which of them is best suited to manage the space data network and transmit data to the ground during the mission.

Ground controllers found both Nodes are in good condition and communicate when the satellites passed over a tracking station soon after they launched from the ISS, according to the agency.

NASA expects to start receiving scientific data from the CubeSats on Wednesday.

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GSA to Launch Online Tool for Federal Space Lease Offers in Philadelphia
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GSA to Launch Online Tool for Federal Space Lease Offers in Philadelphia


OfficeThe General Services Administration plans to unveil an online tool designed to help companies and building owners submit and update space lease offers to federal agencies in response to solicitation for proposals.

GSA said Tuesday it will launch the Automated Advanced Acquisition Program at an Industry Day in Philadelphia on May 23.

AAAP is an acquisition platform that government agencies use to lease space in metropolitan areas across the U.S.

Agencies rank offers to lease office space through AAAP based on base rent, interest on tenant updates, operating costs and construction markups and issue awards based on technical requirements, space’s square footage and length of lease period.

GSA said it will also hold Industry Days in other parts of Pennsylvania as well as in Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina and West Virginia.

Senate OKs $1B in Emergency Funds to Support Efforts Against Zika Virus
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Senate OKs $1B in Emergency Funds to Support Efforts Against Zika Virus


senateThe Senate voted 68-29 Tuesday to pass a bipartisan bill that would authorize $1.1 billion in emergency funds to support efforts that seek to prevent the spread of Zika virus, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

David M. Herszenhorn writes the proposed legislation’s allocation is less than the $1.9 billion in funds that the Obama administration requested to fight the mosquito-borne virus.

The National Institutes of Health would receive $200 million in funds under the Senate bill that would finance efforts to fight Zika virus through Sept. 30, 2017, according to the newspaper.

NY Times added that the House also proposed a bill that would require the current administration to move $622 million in funds from other federal health initiatives to help combat the virus.

Jennifer Haberkorn also reported for Politico that the House measure introduced by House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers (R-Kentucky) would authorize funds through the end of September 2016.

The White House told Politico that President Barack Obama is likely to veto the House bill, which is expected to be voted upon later this week.

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Senate Unanimously Approves Eric Fanning as Army Secretary
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Senate Unanimously Approves Eric Fanning as Army Secretary


Eric-Fanning
Eric Fanning

The Senate confirmed Eric Fanning as secretary of the U.S. Army through a unanimous voice vote Tuesday, Reuters reported Tuesday.

Patricia Zengerle writes Fanning, a former undersecretary of the Air Force and chief of staff to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, received Senate confirmation to take the Army’s no.1 civilian post eight months after President Barack Obama nominated him for the role.

The Senate Armed Services Committee cleared Fanning’s nomination in March, Defense News reported Tuesday.

Aaron Mehta and Joe Gould write Fanning took the role as acting undersecretary of the Army in June 2015 to succeed John McHugh, who retired in November 2015.

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Reports: White House Opposes House Committee’s Contingency Funding Strategy for Defense
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Reports: White House Opposes House Committee’s Contingency Funding Strategy for Defense


ArmyChopperThe White House has threatened to veto the House Armed Services Committee’s fiscal 2017 defense policy bill for using overseas contingency operations fund to supplement the Defense Department‘s base budget, The Hill newspaper reported Monday.

Kristina Wong writes an HASC-approved 2017 National Defense Authorization Act seeks to use approximately $18 billion from the OCO account to finance the department’s efforts to retain military personnel and procure additional military vehicles.

“By gambling with warfighting funds, the bill risks the safety of our men and women fighting to keep America safe, undercuts stable planning and efficient use of taxpayer dollars, dispirits troops and their families, baffles our allies and emboldens our enemies,” the White House said in a statement of administration policy.

The Obama administration also opposes provisions in the committee’s NDAA that would keep a U.S. detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and cut funding for equipment and training support for Iraqi and Syrian warfighters, Reuters’ Patricia Zangerle reported.

The report said House GOP leadership expects the bill to go to a floor vote by Wednesday.

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DoD, NASA, GSA Issue Final Rule on Federal Contractor Data System Protection
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DoD, NASA, GSA Issue Final Rule on Federal Contractor Data System Protection


acquisition policyThe Defense Department, NASA and the General Services Administration have released a final rule that lists 15 security control measures that seek to protect contractors’ data systems as part of amendments to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, the National Law Review reported Monday.

Alexander W. Major writes the rule covers systems that store and process “federal contract information” and applies to the acquisition of all commercial items except for commercial-off-the-shelf products.

According to a document posted Monday in the Federal Register, the regulation will take effect June 15.

Security requirements include the need for contractors to limit data system access to authorized users, verify links to external information platforms, track visitor activity as well as identify, report and rectify information system errors in a “timely manner,” Major reports.

The final rule also calls for contractors to conduct periodic screening of information systems, update protection mechanisms for malicious codes and adopt subnetworks for system components that are publicly accessible.

The regulation contains a flow-down cause that applies to all subcontract levels, according to the report.

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Robert Cardillo: NGA Forms New Strategy to Accelerate Interoperability in GEOINT Enterprise System
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Robert Cardillo: NGA Forms New Strategy to Accelerate Interoperability in GEOINT Enterprise System


Robert Cardillo
Robert Cardillo

National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Director Robert Cardillo has unveiled a new strategy for the NGA to accelerate development of an integrated enterprise system for the agency’s GEOINT data contributors and customers globally.

The National System for Geospatial Intelligence Strategy 2016 recommends several professionalization, interoperability and unity of effort initiatives, NGA said Monday.

“As a community, we will rethink how we inspire our workforce, define problems, invest resources, execute the mission and satisfy the evolving needs of our customers at a holistic, enterprise level,” noted  Cardillo.

The NSG framework calls for the agency to establish a certification program for its GEOINT professionals and adopt analytic modeling tools that can facilitate discovery of new objects, relationships or behaviors.

NGA also seeks to disseminate geospatial data to authorized users with an open multi-domain architecture as well as to exploit new sources of information through partnerships with industry.

The agency will work with the National Geospatial Intelligence Committee to execute the strategy and evaluate the agency’s progress in addressing GEOINT Enterprise priorities.

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