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NASA’s PACE Satellite Lifts Off to Study Ocean Health, Microscopic Particles in Atmosphere
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NASA’s PACE Satellite Lifts Off to Study Ocean Health, Microscopic Particles in Atmosphere

NASA’s PACE satellite designed to study air quality, ocean health and the effects of climate change on the ocean and atmosphere launched Thursday aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from a launch complex at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

PACE — which stands for Plankton, Aerosol, Climate, ocean Ecosystem satellite — will study microscopic particles in the atmosphere and microscopic life in water using a hyperspectral ocean color instrument and two polarimeter instruments: Spectro-polarimeter for Planetary Exploration and Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter #2, the space agency said Thursday.

“Observations and scientific research from PACE will profoundly advance our knowledge of the ocean’s role in the climate cycle,” said Karen St. Germain, director of Earth Science Division within the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

“As an open-source science mission with early adopters ready to use its research and data, PACE will accelerate our understanding of the Earth system and help NASA deliver actionable science, data, and practical applications to help our coastal communities and industries address rapidly evolving challenges,” added St. Germain.

NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland oversees the PACE satellite mission and is responsible for developing and testing the spacecraft and the ocean color instrument.

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Elizabeth Kelly Appointed Director of NIST US AI Safety Institute
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Elizabeth Kelly Appointed Director of NIST US AI Safety Institute

Elizabeth Kelly, special assistant to the president for economic policy at the White House National Economic Council, has been appointed director of the U.S. AI Safety Institute — dubbed AISI — at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Kelly will provide executive oversight of the new institute and coordinate with other artificial intelligence policy and technical initiatives across the federal government to promote the development and responsible use of trustworthy AI systems, the Department of Commerce said Wednesday.

“She brings an understanding of the real-world implications of AI—how the use of this powerful technology affects people and business,” said Arati Prabhakar, director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy and former director of NIST.

Elham Tabassi, chief AI adviser at NIST, will serve as chief technology officer at AISI and will oversee AI model research and development to identify and mitigate AI safety risks.

“Together, they will provide the direction and expertise we need to mitigate the risks that come with the development of this generation-defining technology, so that we can harness its potential,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

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CBO Expects Budget Deficit to Take Up 5.6% of GDP in FY2024
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CBO Expects Budget Deficit to Take Up 5.6% of GDP in FY2024

The federal government is expected to generate $4.9 trillion in revenue in fiscal year 2024 but incur $6.5 trillion in outlays in the same time period, resulting in a projected budget deficit of $1.6 trillion, according to a recent report by the Congressional Budget Office.

The CBO says in “The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2024 to 2034,” the deficit in FY2024, which is seen to account for 5.6 percent of U.S. gross domestic product, will grow to $1.8 trillion in FY2025, or 6.1 percent of GDP.

The growth in deficit is seen as a result of outlay increases outpacing revenue increases. In FY2025, revenues are expected to stay the same at about $4.9 trillion while outlays are expected to rise to about $6.7 trillion.

The CBO attributes the projected outlay growth to rising social security and Medicare spending and rising net interest stemming from higher interest rates and mounting debt. As of FY2023, debt held by the public accounted for 97 percent of GDP. That figure is expected to hit 99 percent in FY2024 and 101.7 percent in FY2025.

The CBO regularly releases an outlook to report budget and economy projections up to 10 years out predicated on tax and spending laws remaining unchanged. This latest report was issued Wednesday.

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CISA-led Joint Cybersecurity Advisory Warns Against Critical Infrastructure Attacks Backed by China; Jen Easterly Quoted
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CISA-led Joint Cybersecurity Advisory Warns Against Critical Infrastructure Attacks Backed by China; Jen Easterly Quoted

A cyberthreat group called Volt Typhoon is being sponsored by the Chinese government to disrupt critical infrastructure sectors such as communications, utilities, energy and transportation in the continental and non-continental U.S., according to a new cybersecurity advisory.

The warning was issued Wednesday by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in partnership with NSA, FBI and similar departments from the governments of the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

Volt Typhoon exploits “living off the land” techniques by hacking and conducting reconnaissance on legitimate and native tools and processes of critical infrastructure entities. They design their malicious tactics, techniques, and procedures to blend into the organization’s environment, compromising their systems.

The U.S. and allied agencies accompanied the joint advisory with guidance to detect Volt Typhoon’s activities, including deploying patches for internet-facing software and appliances easily exploited by the cyber actor.

“The PRC cyber threat is not theoretical: leveraging information from our government and industry partners, CISA teams have found and eradicated Volt Typhoon intrusions into critical infrastructure across multiple sectors. And what we’ve found to date is likely the tip of the iceberg,” CISA Director Jen Easterly commented. “We strongly encourage all critical infrastructure organizations to review and implement the actions in these advisories and report any suspected Volt Typhoon or living off the land activity to CISA or FBI,” the Wash100 winner added.

Senators Urge Biden Not to Vacate Communication Spectrum for Military Missions
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Senators Urge Biden Not to Vacate Communication Spectrum for Military Missions

Three members of the Senate Armed Services Committee have urged President Biden not to force the Department of Defense to vacate the communication spectrum used for military operations.

Sens. Deb Fischer, R-Neb.; Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii; and Angus King, I-Maine, raised concern that requiring the Pentagon to surrender its spectrum in favor of commercial wireless use would significantly harm military missions and adversely affect U.S. national security.

The lawmakers are concerned that the Biden administration is moving forward with the National Spectrum Strategy without fully considering the recommendations of DOD’s Emerging Mid-Band Radar Spectrum Sharing report and the findings of the lower 3 GHz Band study.

“Proceeding without appropriate input in advance of the National Spectrum Strategy’s implementation could lead to an approach that overrides congressional intent and is at odds with the practical realities and technical assessments the final report provides,” the senators wrote in a letter to Biden.

In November, the Biden administration unveiled the National Spectrum Strategy to facilitate private-public collaboration over spectrum access, management and research and development to maintain U.S. leadership in global wireless technology.

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Harry Coker on ONCD’s Efforts to Implement National Cybersecurity Strategy
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Harry Coker on ONCD’s Efforts to Implement National Cybersecurity Strategy

National Cyber Director Harry Coker recently talked about the efforts of his office to implement the National Cybersecurity Strategy, including its call for private sector and government coders to ensure that secure-by-design initiatives integrate memory-safe programming languages.

At a summit held Wednesday in Washington, D.C., he said that the White House Office of the National Cyber Director will release a paper in the coming weeks that addresses software measureability and memory safety.

“Some of the most dangerous vulnerabilities that criminals look to exploit are memory safety bugs, and memory-safe coding languages prevent these errors from ever making it into production. And yet – developers have been slow to adopt them, even though many have existed for years,” Coker said.

He noted that ONCD is developing guidance aimed at helping agencies “eliminate unnecessary degree requirements for contracted cybersecurity positions.”

Other ONCD initiatives Coker discussed at the event are implementing improvements to the Border Gateway Protocol, building a diverse national cyber workforce and working with legal and academic experts to look at liability regimes as part of efforts to hold software developers accountable for bringing to market insecure code.

POC - 2024 Cyber Summit

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Cyber Summit on June 6 and hear cyber experts, government and industry leaders discuss the latest trends and the dynamic role of cyber in the public sector. Register here.

DIU Publishes New Sweeping Strategy to Keep Up With Military Tech Competition From Adversaries
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DIU Publishes New Sweeping Strategy to Keep Up With Military Tech Competition From Adversaries

The Defense Innovation Unit unveiled a new strategy with eight lines of effort to accelerate the development of military technologies and take advantage of partnerships with the private sector.

DIU 3.0 is meant to harness commercial capabilities and maximize the potential of collaborations with allies and partners to keep up with the tech competition with rivals such as China and Russia, the agency said Wednesday.

Part of its strategy involves teaming up with the Department of Defense’s “engines of scale” and prioritize the most critical gaps in warfighter capabilities. The lines of effort also entail retooling the entire unit to achieve strategic impact, as well as consistently giving the defense secretary and deputy secretary “dual fluency” advice.

Eight years ago, DIU was created to bridge communication between DOD and the tech sector. When DIU became a direct division of DOD in April, the unit shifted its strategy to speed up prototyping of technologies based on commercial innovations.

DIU 3.0 builds on these previous strategies and is a result of consultations with government agencies, private subject matter experts, international partners and non-governmental organizations.

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Babel Street Adds Former CIA Leader Barbara Stevens to Board of Advisors
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Babel Street Adds Former CIA Leader Barbara Stevens to Board of Advisors

Former Central Intelligence Agency executive Barbara Stevens has been selected to join Babel Street’s Board of Advisors.

Stevens brings decades of experience in government, industry and academic roles to the data analytics-focused company, Babel Street announced from Washington, D.C. on Thursday.

Michael Southworth, CEO of Babel Street, emphasized the “incredibly impressive depth” of career history and knowledge that Stevens will offer to the board.

“Her particular expertise in big data analytics and the important role it plays across the U.S. Intelligence community will help us continue to stay on the cutting edge in support of both our public and private sector customers,” he said.

Throughout her 35 years with the CIA, Stevens held multiple leadership positions in the Directorate of Analysis and served as chief of data science for the Directorate of Digital Innovation. She is currently a strategic advisor for the agency’s Office of Artificial Intelligence.

Following her departure from the public sector, Stevens served as CEO of a technology startup focused on media monitoring for intelligence and law enforcement organizations.

Today, Stevens is a NACD-certified independent director for Draper Laboratory and Moneycorp US and a member of Hexagon US Federal’s Proxy Board.

“Her distinguished career and profound expertise in strategic intelligence operations make her guidance invaluable to our team,” said Babel Street Chief Strategy Officer John Weaver.

Babel Street’s offerings use artificial intelligence and machine learning to integrate identity, threat and enterprise intelligence to improve security and provide actionable insights into enterprise data.

Stevens said she is “thrilled to join the Babel Street team during this exciting period of high growth for the business.”

“The mission and vision of the company align with my values and is a natural continuation of the work I’ve prioritized throughout my professional journey. AI-powered technology will continue to play an important role in everything from national security interests to insider threat detection, and Babel Street’s solutions stand on the cutting edge in addressing these crucial issues,” she said.

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Juliane Gallina Appointed CIA Deputy Director for Digital Innovation
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Juliane Gallina Appointed CIA Deputy Director for Digital Innovation

Juliane Gallina, a more than 30-year technology and intelligence community leader and a two-time Wash100 Award recipient, has been named deputy director for digital innovation at the Central Intelligence Agency.

In this capacity, she will oversee partnerships and initiatives to improve CIA’s ability to use digital technology in support of its missions, the agency said Wednesday.

“Juliane brings a wealth of experience from holding multiple leadership positions at the Agency, in the Intelligence Community, and the private sector,” said William Burns, director of CIA and a two-time Wash100 awardee. ”Her exceptional breadth of experience, as well as her passion for technology and the Agency workforce make her a natural selection to lead the Directorate of Digital Innovation at this critical time.”

Gallina most recently served as the CIA’s associate deputy director for digital innovation. Prior to that, she held the roles of chief information officer and director of the information technology enterprise at the agency.

Her industry career included time serving as vice president of U.S. federal key accounts at IBM.

Gallina, a U.S. Navy veteran, served as a CIA Directorate of Science and Technology officer at the National Reconnaissance Office.

DOE Requests Proposals for $1.2B 2nd Round of Electric Transmission Facilitation Program; Jennifer Granholm Quoted
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DOE Requests Proposals for $1.2B 2nd Round of Electric Transmission Facilitation Program; Jennifer Granholm Quoted

The Department of Energy is inviting proposals for a $1.2 billion funding opportunity for companies willing to build and modernize large-scale renewable energy transmission projects.

The request for proposals marks the second iteration of the Transmission Facilitation Program, which issued its first solicitation in 2022, DOE said Tuesday.

Part of the program’s strategy is to tap late-stage and “shovel ready” projects to increase the likelihood of completing high-capacity transmission lines and reassure investors and future customers. DOE will match the contractors by purchasing up to 50 percent of a line’s maximum capacity.

The RFP is divided into two parts for administrative purposes. The first part of the application process will close on March 11.

“There’s no way around it: to realize the full benefit of the nation’s goal of 100% clean electricity by 2035, we need to more than double our grid capacity,” DOE Secretary Jennifer Granholm commented. “President Biden’s historic clean energy legislation is helping modernize the nation’s transmission to deliver reliable, more affordable energy to every American community in turn driving down costs for American families and generating good paying jobs for American workers.”

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