NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has uncovered "ghostly" relics of an ancient eruption that tore through a cluster of galaxies millions of years ago, the aerospace agency announced Jan. 8. Chandra's images have revealed vast regions in the cluster Abell 2597 that contain virtually no X-ray or radio emission. Such areas, called "ghost cavities," appear to be the remnants of ancient explosions caused by material falling toward a black hole millions of times more massive than the Sun.
Aerospace and defense analysts with Fitch Inc., the international ratings company, raised the senior secured credit rating of United Defense Industries Inc. in a report released Jan. 7. Analysts raised the company's senior unsecured rating from "BB-" to "BB" following UDI's repayment of nearly $163 million of senior unsecured debt. The company repaid the debt after raising more than $400 million through its initial public offering in December. The ratings outlook is positive, according to Fitch.
Aerospace and defense analysts with Fitch Inc., the international ratings company, raised the senior secured credit rating of United Defense Industries Inc. in a report released Jan. 7. Analysts raised the company's senior unsecured rating from "BB-" to "BB" following UDI's repayment of nearly $163 million of senior unsecured debt. The company repaid the debt after raising more than $400 million through its initial public offering in December. The ratings outlook is positive, according to Fitch.
The Boeing Co. and Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) have joined forces in the competition for the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program, a linkage of platforms and weapons that will be fielded as part of the service's Objective Force beginning in 2010. The two companies led separate teams that were competing with teams of Lockheed Martin-TRW and General Dynamics-Raytheon in Phase One of the FCS effort. The decision to merge the Boeing and SAIC teams was made last month, a Boeing spokeswoman said Jan. 8.
The Boeing Co. and Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) have joined forces in the competition for the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program, a linkage of platforms and weapons that will be fielded as part of the service's Objective Force beginning in 2010. The two companies led separate teams that were competing with teams of Lockheed Martin-TRW and General Dynamics-Raytheon in Phase One of the FCS effort. The decision to merge the Boeing and SAIC teams was made last month, a Boeing spokeswoman said Jan. 8.
Deep views of the cosmos provided by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope may indicate that many stars in the universe formed just a few hundred million years after the big bang, much sooner than some previous theories speculated. Kenneth M. Lanzetta, associate professor of physics and astronomy at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, studied deep views of the universe from the Hubble and concluded the stars were born in a "torrential firestorm," according to NASA.
The Defense Department's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is awaiting several important events and decisions in the coming weeks on international participation in the System Design and Development (SDD) phase. So far, the United Kingdom is the only country that has signed an agreement to participate. As a Level 1 partner, it will contribute about 8 percent, or $2 billion, of SDD costs and can place up to 10 people in the JSF program office.
A joint venture between ATK Thiokol Propulsion Co. and Pratt & Whitney Space and Missile Propulsion will refurbish and remanufacture solid propulsion stages for the Minuteman ICBM system under a $191 million contract from TRW Inc. The work is for the U.S. Air Force Minuteman ICBM System Propulsion Replacement Program, according to ATK. ATK will get about 60 percent of the total contract value for its role as the joint venture lead contractor, the company announced Jan. 8.
Presi-dent Bush signed the recess appointment of John Magaw to be undersecretary of transportation for security. Magaw is the former director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Secret Service.
A test explosion of the Defense Department's thermobaric weapon demonstrated that the deep-penetrating fuel air explosive was "extremely successful," according to the Air Force. Undersecretary of Defense E.C. "Pete" Aldridge announced Dec. 22 that the thermobaric weapon, which had been accelerated following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in Washington and New York, was being sent to the theater of operations for possible use against targets in Afghanistan (DAILY, Jan. 2).
A slight boost in funding appears likely for the Defense Department's Joint Robotics Pro-gram, according to report a released Jan. 7 by the research and consulting firm Forecast International Inc. The program, which is currently funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), was created in 1990 to oversee the military's development of robotic surveillance equipment for use in hazardous environments.
To bolster national security, President Bush should declare the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite network a critical national asset worthy of protection by the U.S. military, a conservative think tank report recommended Jan. 8. "GPS is one of the most vital information devices in the history of the country. It is vital to maintaining the protection of the country and should be protected itself," said former Attorney General Edwin Meese, who co-chaired a Heritage Foundation report on homeland security.
Although unmanned aerial vehicles have demonstrated significant advances during the U.S. war on terrorism, they still have difficulty communicating with each other, which is why Congress has approved the creation of a joint UAV test bed aimed at improving interoperability, according to a congressional source.
The Department of Defense has created a new office to guide DOD's frequency spectrum policy, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld announced recently. The new office will be at the deputy assistant secretary level, reporting to John Stenbit, the assistant secretary of defense for command, control and communications. This is the first time spectrum issues have been raised to the deputy assistant secretary level, according to the Pentagon.
MAGAW APPOINTED: Presi-dent Bush signed the recess appointment of John Magaw to be undersecretary of transportation for security. Magaw is the former director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Secret Service.
Congress cut the budget for the Army's Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (TUAV) program by $27 million, according to the fiscal 2002 defense appropriations bill, which Congress approved last month. Built by AAI Corp., the Shadow 200 TUAV is aimed at enabling Army tactical commanders to conduct reconnaissance, surveillance, target acquisition, and battle damage assessment to an objective range of 200 kilometers.
A slight boost in funding appears likely for the Defense Department's Joint Robotics Pro-gram, according to report a released Jan. 7 by the research and consulting firm Forecast International Inc. The program, which is currently funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), was created in 1990 to oversee the military's development of robotic surveillance equipment for use in hazardous environments.
The recent decision by Lockheed Martin Corp. and TRW Inc. to stop funding the satellite service joint venture Astrolink International shows that big aerospace companies are rethinking their strategy of becoming satellite service providers, according to industry analysts.
The Dec. 30 crash of an Air Force Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during routine operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom shouldn't have any adverse effect on the program, according to some military analysts. John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, said he believes the crash, while embarrassing, will "probably not" result in any programmatic changes. "I think that Global Hawk is basically early enough in the program that you would expect the problems that they have been having," Pike told The DAILY.
The Dec. 30 crash of an Air Force Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during routine operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom shouldn't have any adverse effect on the program, according to some military analysts. John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, said he believes the crash, while embarrassing, will "probably not" result in any programmatic changes. "I think that Global Hawk is basically early enough in the program that you would expect the problems that they have been having," Pike told The DAILY.
The Philippine military, which was promised substantial U.S. military support in November, has expressed interest in acquiring unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as part of American foreign military assistance, according to Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.).
Following congressional cancellation of the Defense Department's joint signals intelligence (SIGINT) program, the Pentagon is set to decide on a way ahead for airborne SIGINT payloads on a number of critical reconnaissance assets.
The Air Force has declared initial operational capability for an element of the projected Space Based Infrared System (SBIRS) called the Mission Control Station (MCS), Lockheed Martin announced Jan. 7. The MCS, according to the company, is the first major phase to be fielded of the three increments of SBIRS, the network of missile-detecting satellites that is planned to succeed the current Defense Support Program (DSP).
