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DARPA Seeks Stable Quantum Sensors for Defense Platforms
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DARPA Seeks Stable Quantum Sensors for Defense Platforms

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is soliciting abstracts on developing quantum sensors resistant to environmental disturbances for their reliability outside a laboratory. The solicitation launches the Robust Quantum Sensors, or RoQS, program, which aims to grow stable quantum sensing technology for Department of Defense platforms, DARPA said Tuesday.

It added that RoQS will foster early partnerships between sensor developers and platform makers for a smooth and efficient transition of quantum technology from research to deployment in the defense sector. Through the speedy partnerships, technologies suited for real-world needs can be developed for a seamless integration into current systems to minimize time and resources for hardening and deploying quantum sensors, DARPA explained.

Resilient, Precise Sensors Sought

According to Jonathan Hoffman, program manager at DARPA’s Microsystems Technology Office, the fragility of quantum sensors is a major barrier to achieving their potential in gathering critical defense information.  

“With RoQS, we’re taking a bold step toward creating sensors that are not only extremely precise but also resilient in the face of real-world challenges,” the agency’s program executive noted.

The RoQS program is seeking new sensor design and architecture that do not rely on bulky shields or isolation methods. Instead, it is searching potential engineering sensor approaches suppressing environmental disruptions and using compact arrays differentiating noise from meaningful signals. The program is also looking for advanced atomic systems providing greater sensor stability in dynamic scenarios.

The deadline for submission of abstracts is on Feb. 20, while full proposals are due on March 31.

In another program, DARPA set a Proposers Day in September to share the vision and goals of its Quantum Benchmarking Initiative and explain the effort’s milestones and mechanics.

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Rodney Hood Named Acting Comptroller of the Currency at OCC
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Rodney Hood Named Acting Comptroller of the Currency at OCC

The Department of the Treasury has appointed Rodney Hood as acting comptroller of the currency and first deputy comptroller of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Hood, who assumes office immediately, replaces Michael Hsu, who served in the role since May 2021, OCC said Friday. The new appointee is responsible for managing the federal banking system and overseeing OCC operations.

Effective Regulatory Environment

In a statement, Hood vowed to work for an effective regulatory environment, adding he he is committed to establishing a framework that “fosters innovation, expands financial inclusion, and ensures that all Americans have fair access to the financial services they need to thrive.”

Commenting on the appointment, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent noted that Hood’s strong leadership and career experience “will strengthen the OCC’s efforts to ensure the safety and soundness of the banking system while also enhancing economic growth.”

Hood’s Career Highlights

Hood previously served under the first Trump administration as chairman of the National Credit Union Administration Board. While at the NCUA, Hood was a voting member of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, chairman of the NeighborWorks America Board and vice chairman of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council.

Before serving in the government, Hood worked in retail finance, commercial banking, affordable housing and community development. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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University of Florida Wins $49M USAF Contract for REEF Services
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University of Florida Wins $49M USAF Contract for REEF Services

The University of Florida has been awarded a $49 million contract by the U.S. Air Force to deliver services for its Research and Engineering Education Facility, or REEF.

Enhancing Education & Research Capability

The Department of Defense said Friday the indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract covers the academic core of a regional innovation, education and workforce development competency. In addition, the Gainesville, Florida university will provide open and applied research capability that supports Air Force Research Laboratory and Eglin Air Force Base missions. 

Under the sole source acquisition contract, UF will perform work at Shalimar, Florida. It is anticipated to be completed by Feb. 7, 2030. The contracting activity is the AFRL in Eglin AFB, which is located adjacent to the university. It will not allocate funds at the time of the award.

The University of Florida REEF, an extension of the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, was established in 1969 to foster and sustain partnerships with the private, academic and public sectors in Northwest Florida. It aims to drive the growth of the region’s innovation economy by offering courses and curricula in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, electrical and computer engineering and industrial systems engineering.

The REEF works with the Air Force on its research requirements while students gain experience working with UF and USAF researchers on a variety of complex subjects, particularly autonomy, data science and solid mechanics.

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Senators Seek to Enhance LEO Space Traffic Activities, Coordination
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Senators Seek to Enhance LEO Space Traffic Activities, Coordination

Senate members led by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, have introduced the Situational Awareness of Flying Elements in Orbit, or SAFE Orbit, Act, which would require the federal government to advance the country’s commercial space capabilities.

The legislation would direct the Department of Commerce’s Office of Space Commerce to collect and share unclassified data, analytics, information and services on space activities and space traffic coordination in low Earth orbit, Cornyn said in a Wednesday press release.

Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., and John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., are listed as co-authors of the SAFE Orbit Act.

Preventing Accidental Collisions in LEO

According to Cornyn, commercial space objects in LEO would lead to fresh scientific discoveries and technological innovation provided researchers can conduct space traffic coordination safely. “The SAFE Orbit Act would prevent dangerous and costly accidental collisions in low-Earth orbit and improve access to data collection and analysis to help propel the United States into the next phase of space exploration,” the lawmaker explained.

If enacted into law, the measure would authorize the OSC to conduct space situational awareness and space traffic coordination activities, which are critical to ensuring safe and sustainable access to LEO. Under the SAFE Orbit Act, OSC would also facilitate the adoption of industry data standards for stakeholders and work with U.S. and foreign government operators to promote participation in data-sharing on orbiting space assets.

The legislation was originally filed in January 2024, with similar bilateral support from Democratic and Republican senators.

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Russell Vought Confirmed as OMB Director
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Russell Vought Confirmed as OMB Director

The Senate on Thursday voted 53-47 to confirm Russell Vought as the director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Vought, who previously served as OMB director during the last six months of the first Trump administration, will oversee the implementation of the president’s policy, regulatory and management efforts across the executive branch.

He will also be responsible for procurement, IT, financial management and agency performance across the federal government.

Vought’s Career History

During President Trump’s first term, he served as OMB’s deputy director in 2018 and as acting director of the agency from 2019 to 2020.

Before serving in the Trump administration, Vought spent over two decades working with public policy and grassroots organizations in Washington, D.C., and served as vice president of Heritage Action for America for seven years.

He previously served as policy director for the House Republican Conference, executive director of the Republican Study Committee and as a legislative assistant for Sen. Phil Gramm.

The Wheaton College graduate holds a law degree from the George Washington University Law School.

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Army Begins Ammo Production Facility Construction
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Army Begins Ammo Production Facility Construction

The U.S. Army has started construction work on an ammunition manufacturing facility at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence, Missouri.

The military branch said Thursday the new facility will produce 6.8 mm rounds to support the Next Generation Squad Weapon Program and advance the service’s modernization priorities.

“It is not lost on me that victory on the battlefield begins in our production facilities,” said Maj. Gen. John Reim, the Army’s joint program executive officer for armaments and ammunition.

“Lake City has been central to our nation’s ammunition production since 1941, and this new facility builds on that proud and historic legacy,” added Reim.

Ammo Production Facility

The planned 450,000-square-foot facility will be equipped with testing laboratories, process quality controls, cartridge case and projectile manufacturing, maintenance operations and administrative areas, product packaging and other modern manufacturing systems that can produce all components of the 6.8 million ammunition.

About 50 local businesses will participate in the construction of the new facility, which will create jobs, drive economic growth and bolster the defense industrial base.

Olin Winchester will operate the facility, which is expected to produce 490 million projectiles, 385 million cases and 385 million load-assemble-pack operations annually for 6.8 mm rounds.

6.8 MM Family of Ammunition

This family of ammunition is designed to augment the performance of the XM7 Rifle and XM250 Automatic Rifle.

The 6.8 mm rounds could help warfighters maintain readiness and dominance on the battlefield by delivering enhanced lethality, increased range and improved accuracy when fired using Next Generation Squad Weapons systems.

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Senators Eye Expansion, Modernization of US Missile Defense Systems
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Senators Eye Expansion, Modernization of US Missile Defense Systems

Sens. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, have introduced the Increasing Response Options and Deterrence of Missile Engagements, or IRON DOME, Act to enhance U.S. missile defense capabilities.

The IRON DOME Act will work to modernize the country’s missile defense systems, ensuring that the homeland is prepared for a modern missile attack, Cramer said in a Thursday press release. “Now more than ever, we have to ensure the United States is properly equipped to address the pressing threats that are posed by our very capable adversaries,” he stressed.

Addressing Growing Threats From China and Russia

Sullivan added the legislation aims to build a missile defense system to protect the United States from the growing arsenals of China and Russia, such as new hypersonic and cruise missiles. He noted that the measure would invest billions to develop new capabilities, including space-based sensors and intercept technologies, to expand existing U.S. defense infrastructure.

Upgrading US Defense Infrastructure

The Senate bill would accelerate the modernization of the Perimeter Acquisition Radar Attack Characterization System, or PARCS, at North Dakota’s Cavalier Space Force Station. Designed to track earth-orbiting objects, the upgraded PARCS will improve space domain awareness capabilities and the detection of intercontinental and sea-launched missile threats.

According to Sullivan, the IRON DOME Act will reinforce an executive order issued by President Donald Trump in January directing the Department of Defense to deploy and maintain a next-generation missile defense system to protect the country and its critical infrastructure from foreign aerial attacks.

GAO Releases Report on NNSA Agency Reform Efforts
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GAO Releases Report on NNSA Agency Reform Efforts

The Government Accountability Office has released a report regarding an audit it conducted on an effort by the National Nuclear Security Administration to undergo agency reform so as to better meet the demands of a $200 billion nuclear modernization program.

Table of Contents

NNSA Reforms

The reform involves 15 recommendations — proposed by NNSA itself in a 2022 document titled “Evolving the Nuclear Security Enterprise: A Report of the Enhanced Mission Delivery Initiative” — to improve various aspects of the agency and its contractor operating environment, including contracting, employee recruitment and retention, and program and project management, GAO said Thursday.

Audit Findings

Of the 15 recommendations, the government watchdog identified six as being at high risk for fraud, waste, abuse or mismanagement. The plans for these six were deemed to be largely aligned with leading practices in the areas of leadership focus and attention. Most, however, were found to not be in full alignment with leading practices in the areas of setting goals, using data and evidence, monitoring, addressing management challenges and engaging key stakeholders.

According to GAO, weaknesses in these areas undermine NNSA’s ability to monitor the effectiveness of the reforms and, ultimately, whether challenges or risks of fraud, waste and abuse have been addressed or overcome.

Eight recommendations were put forward by GAO to mitigate these issues. NNSA concurred with all of them.

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DARPA to Validate Microsoft, PsiQuantum Supercomputing Concepts
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DARPA to Validate Microsoft, PsiQuantum Supercomputing Concepts

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has announced it will work with Microsoft and PsiQuantum in the validation and co-design stage of the companies’ concepts on a utility-scale quantum supercomputer. 

According to Joe Altepeter, DARPA’s quantum benchmarking program manager, the agency’s evaluation team has been scrutinizing the companies’ approaches since 2023 when they were selected to develop prototypes for the DARPA program Underexplored Systems for Utility-Scale Quantum Computing, or US2QC, program. 

“Now, we’re ready to evaluate their final utility-scale system designs, conduct government testing of components and hardware, and assess system-level performance capabilities of major prototypes,” Altepeter said.

Different Qubits Approaches

Both designed as error-corrected, the Microsoft and PsiQuantum utility-scale quantum computer prototypes differ in their approaches. Microsoft’s concept is based on topological qubits, while PsiQuantum’s proposal anchors on photonic qubits.

The two prototypes advanced to the validation and co-design stage after more than 50 professionals in DARPA’s test and evaluation team checked the companies’ technical approaches on fault-tolerant computing and long-term plans on R&D, architectures, systems development components and application utility.

US2QC is part of DARPA’s larger Quantum Benchmarking Initiative, both with the final goal of validating and co-designing an industrially useful quantum computer. As part of the initiative, DARPA researchers released in June pre-prints of the initial results of their effort to develop scientifically rigorous metrics that can be used to measure the impact of quantum computers on key computational challenges.

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NASA Safety Panel Report Urges Concrete ISS Transition Plan
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NASA Safety Panel Report Urges Concrete ISS Transition Plan

NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, or ASAP, recommended in its 2024 Annual Report released Thursday that the agency develop comprehensive timelines and understanding of resources for the planned transition of the International Space Station to a commercial low Earth Orbit destination. The ISS transition plan should establish quantifiable metrics and set progress deadlines to check the viability of the commercial LEO market, ASAP said in its report.

The report also suggested that NASA immediately adapt next-generation extravehicular mobility units, or EVUs, as current space suits astronauts use for operations outside the ISS are now beyond their design life. 

Table of Contents

ISS Stakeholders

Axiom Space and Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, are two companies with EVU stakes. Both vendors secured NASA task orders in July 2023 to develop spacewalking and moonwalking suits for the agency’s space and lunar exploration missions.

On the ISS transition plan, Vast Space unveiled in October Haven-2 that the California-based company envisions as an ISS replacement, with its first module projected to be operational by 2028.

Besides U.S. presence in LEO through the ISS and human risks in space exploration, the 55-page ASAP report also presented the panel’s observations on NASA’s strategic vision and governance.

Positive Panel Rating

The panel’s chair, Susan Helms, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant general and former Joint Forces Command commander for space at U.S. Strategic Command, said NASA made “meaningful progress” overall in 2024 to implement ASAP’s recommendations during the past several years.

“We believe that the agency’s careful attention to vision, strategy, governance and program management is vital to the safe execution of NASA’s complex and critical national mission,” she added.

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