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DOE Unveils Assessment of Cyber Asset Surface Management Tool runZero Through New Report
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DOE Unveils Assessment of Cyber Asset Surface Management Tool runZero Through New Report

The Department of Energy has released a report on the evaluation of a cybersecurity tool designed to counter cyberattacks against the energy sector.

DOE said Wednesday researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory assessed a cyber asset attack surface management tool, called runZero, as part of the Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator, or CECA, program’s second cohort and found that the technology could help scan and identify devices on industrial control systems — a.k.a. ICS — networks without hampering the performance of ICS assets.

The runZero tool is a configurable platform that uses active scanning and passive sampling to help organizations identify on-site devices, cloud-based resources and other information technology and operational technology assets on a network without disrupting system operations.

The technology seeks to help asset owners improve visibility into their network environments to better understand system risks.

“With evolving cybersecurity threats to U.S. energy systems, and with architectures changing as the grid modernizes, it is critical to drive adoption of innovative solutions,” said Dan LaGraffe, deputy director of the risk management tools and technologies division at DOE’s Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response.

“We’re optimistic that the testing and results from the CECA program will help advance tools, like runZero, that can help improve security and resilience across the sector,” added LaGraffe.

The CECA program is part of DOE’s strategy that seeks to ensure the security, resilience and reliability of the U.S. critical energy infrastructure. The program’s Cohort 2 intends to address visibility issues facing asset owners when it comes to various devices linked to an ICS network.

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NASA Funds 5 Research Projects Focused on Space Sustainability
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NASA Funds 5 Research Projects Focused on Space Sustainability

NASA’s Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy has selected five teams from various universities to receive space sustainability research funding with a combined value of $550,000.

Two of the teams will focus on lunar surface sustainability, including the protection of valuable locations and human heritage sites on the moon, while the rest will perform research to tackle the growing number of orbital debris and defunct human-made objects in space, NASA said Tuesday.

The research awards align with the agency’s Space Sustainability Strategy, which aims to ensure future generations can explore space in a safe, peaceful and responsible manner.

According to Ellen Gertsen, deputy associate administrator for the OTPS, the research projects will help NASA understand the economics, the policy considerations and the social elements of sustainability by generating new tools and evidence that enable better-informed decisions.

The selected proposals for lunar surface sustainability research are:

  • “A RAD Framework for the Moon: Applying Resist-Accept-Direct Decision-Making,” submitted by Caitlin Ahrens of the University of Maryland, College Park
  • “Synthesizing Frameworks of Sustainability for Futures on the Moon,” submitted by research scientist Afreen Siddiqi of Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The awardees for orbital debris and space sustainability research are:

  • “Integrated Economic-Debris Modeling of Active Debris Removal to Inform Space Sustainability and Policy,” submitted by researcher Mark Moretto of the University of Colorado, Boulder
  • “Avoiding the Kessler Syndrome Through Policy Intervention,” submitted by aeronautics and astronautics researcher Richard Linares of MIT
  • “Analysis of Cislunar Space Environment Scenarios, Enabling Deterrence and Incentive-Based Policy,” submitted by mechanical and aerospace engineering researcher Ryne Beeson of Princeton University
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Honeywell Receives Contract to Develop Prototype Counter-sUAS Capability for Air Force Global Strike Command
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Honeywell Receives Contract to Develop Prototype Counter-sUAS Capability for Air Force Global Strike Command

The Cyber Innovation Center has entered into a contract with Honeywell for the production of a minimum viable counter small unmanned aerial systems prototype that will work to protect the mobile assets of the Air Force Global Strike Command.

Strikewerx said Tuesday that Honeywell’s capability was selected out of the top 22 proposals under the Mobile C-sUAS Swarming Defeat Challenge.

Overseen by Strikewerx, the challenge saw a total of 60 submissions, which, over the course of 2023, were whittled down to the top 22. Capability showcases took place in December, resulting in the selection of the best idea to address the counter-drone requirement.

Commenting on the challenge, AFGSC Chief Scientist Donna Senft said, “The results of this project will positively impact U.S. integrated deterrence by strengthening safety, security, and effectiveness.”

For his part, CIC President Kevin Nolten said the challenge “uncovered a lot of great solutions, but the Honeywell proposal was the best integration of detection, cyber defeat, and kinetic defeat technology in a single package.”

NSF Investing $67M to Establish Center to Mitigate Foreign Threats to US Research
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NSF Investing $67M to Establish Center to Mitigate Foreign Threats to US Research

The National Science Foundation is investing a total of $67 million over five years to establish the Safeguarding the Entire Community of the U.S. Research Ecosystem, or SECURE, Center, which will work as an information clearinghouse to enable the identification and mitigation of foreign threats to the U.S. research enterprise.

Of the total investment, $50 million will go to University of Washington, which will lead the SECURE Center, and $17 million to Texas A&M University, one of nine other institutions of higher education that will support the effort, the NSF said Wednesday.

The SECURE Center will serve as a hub to five regional centers: SECURE Northeast, which will be managed by Northeastern University; SECURE Southeast, which will be managed by Emory University; SECURE Midwest, to be managed by the University of Missouri; SECURE Southwest, to be managed by The University of Texas at San Antonio and Texas A&M University; and SECURE West, to be managed by University of Washington.

Meanwhile, Mississippi State University, the University of Michigan and Stanford University’s Hoover Institution will provide expertise in several subjects, including sensitive research, threat types and geopolitical analysis.

For its part, Texas A&M University, in addition to co-managing SECURE Southwest, will lead SECURE Analytics, which will work to provide the SECURE Center and the research community at large with analytics services. SECURE Analytics will be supported by the Hoover Institution.

Also participating in the effort is the College of Charleston, which will ensure the inclusion of emerging research and minority-serving institutions.

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Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Reed Nominated to Lead Transportation Command
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Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Reed Nominated to Lead Transportation Command

U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Randall Reed was nominated by the president to serve as commander of Transportation Command, according to Lloyd Austin, secretary of the Department of Defense and a previous Wash100 winner.

Reed, currently deputy commander of Air Mobility Command, is also up for appointment to the grade of general.

As the no. 2 for AMC, Reed helps lead the air component of TRANSCOM, which has approximately 107,000 active-duty, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and civilian airmen, and a fleet of almost 1,100 aircraft operating globally to project, maneuver and sustain the Joint Force, allies and partners.

Reed served as commander of the Third Air Force at Ramstein Air Base in Germany before assuming his current assignment.

If confirmed, the Air Force lieutenant general will replace Gen. Jacqueline Van Ovost, the first woman appointed to run TRANSCOM and the 14th commander overall.

Van Ovost was nominated for the post in March 2021 and received a Senate confirmation through a voice vote in October of the same year.

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CGI Federal Lands Spot on EPA Tech Services BPA
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CGI Federal Lands Spot on EPA Tech Services BPA

The Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Research and Development, or ORD, has enlisted CGI Federal to continue performing digital transformation services with a ceiling of $100 million in contract value.

Under the Scientific Modeling, Application, Visualization, Computational Science, Software and Statistical Support, or SMAVCS4, blanket purchase agreement, CGI will continue to execute the modernization initiatives for the EPA, including assistance with financial management programs, the Fairfax, Virginia-based company announced on Thursday.

Jay Hadley, CGI senior vice president, said, “CGI brings a deep understanding of ORD’s mission, leveraging our decades-long history of continuous innovation in service to EPA’s technology and modernization initiatives, which aim to deliver meaningful outcomes to EPA and its program researchers.”

The BPA will see CGI maintaining its role providing functional support for the EPA’s financial and asset management requirements. The company will also aid EPA mission operations by overseeing data collection, sharing and publication.

Mike Kearns, CGI’s vice president of consulting services, said partnering with ORD will help the EPA better understand the technological environment needed to make more informed regulatory decisions.

“It is important, now more than ever, to have an accurate understanding of environmental health. CGI’s experience supporting EPA’s technology priorities enables us to partner with ORD to align its technology future within their ecosystem. We look forward to continuously evolving the applications and data products that underpin ORD’s work,” Kearns stated.

Three other awardees have been selected to conduct duties under the SMAVCS4 BPA.

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Navy Uses MSTIC OTA to Award $122M Agreement for Propulsion Load System Development Work
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Navy Uses MSTIC OTA to Award $122M Agreement for Propulsion Load System Development Work

The U.S. Navy has awarded a potential $122 million agreement to conduct research, design, build and integrate propulsion load systems into the FFG 62 Land Based Engineering Site and DDG(X) Land Based Test Site.

The service branch said Wednesday the Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division, or NSWCPD, awarded the agreement under the Maritime Sustainment Technology and Innovation Consortium — or MSTIC — other transaction authority.

“The program kicks off a multi-year effort at NSWCPD that will usher in the most technically capable and highly complex propulsion load systems with NSWCPD and our MSTIC team,” said Brandon Weiss, DDG 51 and future LBES branch head.

“The load machine concept applies torque and speed in the ahead and astern direction on a propulsion shaftline to mimic hydrodynamic loads on a shaft during propulsion testing. This novel approach is the only way to provide full-scale test capability for new ship class test site validation,” Weiss added.

According to Weiss, the use of the MSTIC model has helped determine gaps in technical specifications and leverage technologies across programs to develop a turnkey platform in a space-constrained environment.

The assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition approved the agreement, which has been the largest transaction awarded under the MSTIC OTA to date.

Alicia McPeters, NSWCPD technical liaison oversight branch agreements officer and branch head, led the project within the division’s contracts department.

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Harry Wingo Named Deputy National Cyber Director
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Harry Wingo Named Deputy National Cyber Director

The White House Office of the National Cyber Director has appointed Harry Wingo, a more than two-decade government and corporate leader, as deputy national cyber director.

ONCD announced Wingo’s appointment in a LinkedIn post published Wednesday.

Wingo “is an accomplished leader with a unique set of expertise and experiences in the public and private sectors,” National Cyber Director Harry Coker said in a statement.

“His lifetime of leadership will greatly contribute to our team’s mission to advance our Nation’s security, economic prosperity, and technological innovation through cybersecurity policy leadership,” Coker added.

Wingo, a Yale Law School graduate, currently serves as a faculty member at National Defense University’s College of Information and Cyberspace, according to his LinkedIn profile.

The former U.S. Navy SEAL officer held the roles of president and CEO of the D.C. Chamber of Commerce, as well as senior policy counsel at Google.

He also served as special counsel to the general counsel of the Federal Communications Commission and as an associate at law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.

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NASA Releases Inaugural Civil Space Shortfall Ranking Document
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NASA Releases Inaugural Civil Space Shortfall Ranking Document

NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate has released a document detailing the first integrated ranking of civil space challenges, or shortfalls.

The agency said Tuesday the directorate will use the 2024 Civil Space Shortfall Ranking document to help guide its space technology development efforts and investments.

The 2024 results were based on 1,231 responses of stakeholders from NASA centers and mission directorates, government agencies, industry organizations and academia who were asked to rate the importance of 187 shortfalls or tech areas across 20 capability categories.

The top three shortfalls on the integrated list are the need to survive and operate through the lunar light, high-power energy generation on lunar and Mars surfaces and high-performance onboard computing to support complex operations.

Such shortfalls belong to thermal management systems, power and avionics capability categories.

“Identifying consensus among challenges across the aerospace industry will help us find solutions, together,” said NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free. “This is the groundwork for strengthening the nation’s technological capabilities to pave the way for new discoveries, economic opportunities, and scientific breakthroughs that benefit humanity.”

The document also identified highly rated capability areas, including autonomous systems and robotics, advanced habitation systems, communications and navigation and nuclear propulsion.

“The inputs received are already igniting meaningful conversations to help us and our stakeholders make smarter decisions. We will refine the process and results annually to ensure we maintain a useful approach and tool that fosters resilience in our space technology endeavors,” said Michelle Munk, acting chief architect at NASA’s STMD.

Department of the Treasury Issues Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States Report for 2023
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Department of the Treasury Issues Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States Report for 2023

The Department of the Treasury has released to Congress the report of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States for 2023, which details the committee’s activities and evaluated transactions for that calendar year.

The report’s highlights include sustained CFIUS caseloads despite lower global merger and acquisition activity in 2023, a higher clearance percentage of distinct transactions that did not require mitigation measures and fewer withdrawn and refiled transactions, the Treasury Department said Tuesday.

The report also notes the committee’s having assessed or imposed four civil monetary penalties for violations of material provisions of mitigation agreements.

Commenting on the committee’s activity in 2023, Assistant Secretary for Investment Security Paul Rosen said, “2023 was a busy year for CFIUS in reviewing transactions for national security risk, monitoring compliance with mitigation agreements, expanding the reach of its jurisdiction, and enforcing against violations of CFIUS legal authorities.”

“Last year CFIUS sharpened its review and enforcement toolkit while doubling down on efficiency and due diligence in reviewing and investigating covered transactions,” Rosen added.

The submission of the CFIUS report to Congress is mandated by Section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950, as amended.

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