Algorithmic warfare: new navy task force focused on AI, robotics. (National Defense Magazine) ” The standing up of Task Force 59 will allow officials to evaluate systems for real-world applications and to help accelerate technology development and integration across the fleet. Over the next several months, the task force intends to make headway, including increased integration between unmanned aerial, surface and undersea vehicles, Cooper said. “We will move from a largely aerial unmanned focused [strategy] to a multi-domain focus,” he said.”
Schrondinger’s military? Challenges for China’s military modernization ambitions. (War on the Rocks) “Specifically, the PLA’s ongoing struggles to embrace jointness among the service branches, as well as the challenge of updating doctrine to reflect the implications of their belief in a military revolution through artificial intelligence, reveal nuances that are crucial for a broader understanding of the Chinese military. Despite its continued growth, the extent to which the PLA can handle the less tangible side of military modernization will be vital for the Chinese military’s future warfighting capabilities.”
AOC & Kessel Run reach historic agreement. (Kessel Run) “This is the first user agreement signed between a Major Air Force Command and a software factory under DoDI 5000.87 Operation Of The Software Acquisition Pathway. Its signing showcases the advances that have been made by Kessel Run toward modernizing the Air Operation Center (AOC) Weapon System. The User Agreement formalizes the existing relationship between ACC and Kessel Run.”
Kessel Run signs fight agreement implementing new software acquisition policies. (Fed Scoop) “The policy, officially titled “DOD Instruction 5000.87 Operation of the Software Acquisition Pathway,” allows organization like Kessel Run to write short “capability needs” statements and to start working on designs. Previously, the Department of Defense (DOD) had to follow the same process it uses to buy tanks as it does for code, a system that takes years and often results in spending money on tech that is out of date by the time it is cleared for use.”
Army CIO’s top priority is budgeting for new digital transformation strategy. (C4ISRNET) “Given how lengthy or budget cycles are, right now we’re in … the beginning of our planning and programming for [Program Objective Memorandum] POM 24, which is our funding, our budgeting year that starts 2024,” Army CIO Raj Iyer said… “If we don’t get our priorities in there and the right programs and initiatives, then it’s very hard for us to make changes, given how inflexible the process is later in the out years,” he said.”
China hypersonic vehicle test a ‘significant demonstration’ of space technology. (Space News) “The X-37 is not a highly maneuverable space vehicle, Bakos noted. NASA’s Space Shuttle glided back from space “almost like a rock basically gliding down very steeply and plopping on the runway.” According to media reports on China’s tests, the vehicle was able to maneuver when it returned from space into the atmosphere “and be more aggressive in terms of its cross range,” he said. “That would be new in terms of technology.””
US holds three tests to advance hypersonic weapon programs, Pentagon says. (Reuters) “Sandia National Laboratories ran the tests from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia which will help “inform the development of the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) and the Army’s Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) offensive hypersonic strike,” a statement said.” One experimental hypersonic booster failed in Alaska.
New shakeup coming to Space Force acquisition. (Breaking Defense) “Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall in August revealed his plan to merge the Space Acquisition and Integration office, formerly known as SAF/SP, with the Air Force Acquisition, Technology and Logistics office, SAF/AQ, into a new organization still named Space Acquisition and Integration, but now designated SAF/SQ. At the same time, he announced that Whitney was replacing Shawn Barnes, who served as SAF/SP deputy but had de facto been the senior civilian in charge of the office.”
Army’s $22 billion ‘mixed reality’ goggles get a DoD IG audit. (Army Times) “Those caused a “screen door effect,” in some of the headsets, meaning the image resolution had a gridded view. The problem was attributed to moisture getting into sensitive areas of the device, Potts said. The other issue was one regarding field-of-view. A 40-degree field-of-view has been the standard for most currently fielded mixed reality night vision devices, according to Potts. But the IVAS program sought to double that to an 80-degree field-of-view.”
Army envisions global 3D terrain map as future PNT aid for operations. (Breaking Defense) ” The Army’s ambitious One World Terrain (OWT) high-fidelity 3D map of the globe for training is increasingly being eyed by operators as a future tool for positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) in GPS-denied environments, according to senior Army officials. The idea would be for Army vehicles to be uploaded with theater-relevant 3D maps generated by OWT prior to deployment”
Northrop Grumman has developed a next-generation signals intelligence. (Defense News) “They developed a new architecture the company calls SAGE, which is comprised of transceivers and microservices that make up a holistic sensor. SAGE is a cloud-native, platform-agnostic open architecture.”
China announces successful test of world’s most powerful rocket engine. (Newsweek) “The monolithic solid rocket motor, developed by a branch of the Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC)—a state-owned contractor of the Chinese space program—is 3.5 meters (11.5 feet) in diameter and has a thrust of 500 tons, according to China’s state broadcaster CCTV… The broadcaster noted that the latest test marks the completion of a three-step process—beginning in 2009—which saw Chinese rocket engines develop from 120 tons to 200 tons and finally 500 tons in thrust.”
Senate directs NASA to choose another company to build a lunar lander: report. (Space.com) “The appropriators, in the report, state that NASA’s HLS program is not underfunded, despite the agency’s previous claims to the contrary. As shown in the report, the bill includes $24.83 billion for NASA, which is just slightly more than the $24.8 billion that NASA requested, and a $100 million increase in funding for HLS…. “using this funding, NASA is expected to ensure redundancy and competition, including robust support for research, development, testing, and evaluation for no fewer than two HLS teams.”
‘Enemy’ unmanned ground vehicles are now facing off against army soldiers in training. (The Drive) “The OPFOR used them to help deny access to possible helicopter landing zones and set up blocking positions along roads, among other tasks… Despite its name, the Army’s 101st Airborne Division is focused on air assault operations using helicopters, so using UGVs to help make it hard for those aircraft to find safe places to land would’ve been extremely valuable for Geronimo’s troops. The Javelins on the MUTTs would have presented a particularly significant threat in this regard, and one that could be employed while keeping the vehicles concealed and protected behind cover.”
Rapid pulse laser weapons could be the Pentagon’s future edge. (Breaking Defense) “… defense leaders are increasingly interested in ultrashort pulse lasers (USPLs), unimaginably high-powered beams fired for a tiny fraction of a second to vaporize a small portion of a target’s surface or disrupt its electronics…. While national funding for USPLs has been steadily increasing in Europe and Asia, budgets have been flat or declining in the United States. The Pentagon’s 2022 budget request would decrease funding for directed-energy research from roughly $1.2 billion this year to $915 million in the next.
Leave a Reply