Next-generation SM-3 missile interceptor takes first flight - IHS Jane's 360: The United States and Japan conducted the first flight test of a next-generation Standard Missile-3 (SM-3), a larger and more capable version of the currently deployed interceptor missile.
During the event an SM-3 Block IIA Cooperative Development Controlled Test Vehicle-1 (CTV-1) "demonstrated flyout through nosecone deployment and third stage flight", according to a 6 June statement from the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA). It was launched from a Mk 41 launcher, prime-contractor Raytheon said in a statement the following day.
The missile launched from the Point Mugu Sea Range off of California with participation from the Japanese Ministry of Defence's Technical Research and Development Institute, the MDA, and the US Navy.
US and Japanese officials are jointly developing a 21-inch diameter variant of the SM-3 with larger rocket motors and a more capable kill vehicle, meant to provide faster speeds, greater range, a more sensitive seeker, and improved divert capability in the kinetic warhead.
The test was not meant to include an intercept and rather "evaluated the SM-3 Block IIA's nosecone performance, steering control section function, booster separation, and second and third stage rocket motor separation", Raytheon said.
The SM-3 Cooperative Development project began in 2006, with the United States' Raytheon contracted for hardware and system development and all-up-round integration, and Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries working on second and third stage rocket motors, steering control, and the missile nosecone.
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Army Aims for Bradley Replacement or Upgrade
Army Aims for Bradley Replacement or Upgrade: The two design contracts awarded by the US Army for the Future Fighting Vehicle (FFV) could yield a Bradley replacement or technology spinouts to upgrade the Bradley.
BAE Systems Land and Armaments and General Dynamics Land Systems won the contracts, of more than $28 million each. The work is due Nov. 28, 2016.
Following the last decade's failed 70-ton Ground Combat Vehicle and sprawling Future Combat Systems, deemed unaffordable or having requirements that are infeasible, analysts said the Army is taking a more pragmatic approach, exploring what is technically possible and financially affordable.
The decision to build a new vehicle will likely hinge on whether the technologies and systems proposed offer game-changing improvements, or whether incrementally improved legacy vehicles can provide significant performance gains at lower costs, said James Tinsley, managing director at the consulting firm Avascent. For industry, the stakes are high.
BAE Systems Land and Armaments and General Dynamics Land Systems won the contracts, of more than $28 million each. The work is due Nov. 28, 2016.
Following the last decade's failed 70-ton Ground Combat Vehicle and sprawling Future Combat Systems, deemed unaffordable or having requirements that are infeasible, analysts said the Army is taking a more pragmatic approach, exploring what is technically possible and financially affordable.
The decision to build a new vehicle will likely hinge on whether the technologies and systems proposed offer game-changing improvements, or whether incrementally improved legacy vehicles can provide significant performance gains at lower costs, said James Tinsley, managing director at the consulting firm Avascent. For industry, the stakes are high.
Robots can recover from damage in minutes
Robots can recover from damage in minutes: Robots will one day provide tremendous benefits to society, such as in search and rescue missions and putting out forest fires - but not until they can learn to keep working if they become damaged. A new paper in the journal Nature, called "Robots That Can Adapt Like Animals," shows how to make robots automatically recover from injury in less than two minutes.
A video of the work shows a six-legged robot that adapts to keep walking even if two of its legs are broken. It also shows a robotic arm that learned how to correctly place an object even with several broken motors.
Antoine Cully and Jean-Baptiste Mouret, from the Pierre and Marie Curie University in France, led the work in collaboration with Jeff Clune (University of Wyoming) and Danesh Tarapore (Pierre and Marie Curie University).
In contrast to today's robots, animals exhibit an amazing ability to adapt to injury. There are many three-legged dogs that can catch Frisbees, for example, and if your ankle is sprained, you quickly figure out a way to walk despite the injury. The scientists took inspiration from these biological strategies.
A video of the work shows a six-legged robot that adapts to keep walking even if two of its legs are broken. It also shows a robotic arm that learned how to correctly place an object even with several broken motors.
Antoine Cully and Jean-Baptiste Mouret, from the Pierre and Marie Curie University in France, led the work in collaboration with Jeff Clune (University of Wyoming) and Danesh Tarapore (Pierre and Marie Curie University).
In contrast to today's robots, animals exhibit an amazing ability to adapt to injury. There are many three-legged dogs that can catch Frisbees, for example, and if your ankle is sprained, you quickly figure out a way to walk despite the injury. The scientists took inspiration from these biological strategies.
Monday, June 8, 2015
Carter Wants More European Defense Spending
Carter Wants More European Defense Spending: US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter remains concerned about declining defense budgets in Europe, at a time he says NATO is facing new challenges .
"In general, our view is they're not investing enough," Carter said of US allies in Europe. "We'd like to see more. We understand the economic circumstances in general, but still in all, security is a very important thing to be investing in.
"I certainly will be continuing to argue that the Europeans should be making bigger investments."
That call is likely to be repeated over the next month when a trio of major European meetings – the annual G7 gathering, the NATO ministerial and the Council of Europe – gather key European allies together, a defense official said on background.
Carter made his comments June 5 to a group of reporters, just hours after the conclusion of a major review of US strategy as it relates to Russia.
The secretary pointed out that a few years ago, the discussion revolved around NATO's lack of a mission in a post-Cold War era. Now, he said, the alliance is faced with two distinct, but serious threats, in the form of Russian aggression and the Islamic State, commonly known as ISIS.
It's something he equated to chewing gum and walking at the same time, warning that it requires new commitments from the partners not just in dollars spent, but how they are investing them.
In particular, Carter called out the need to improve the information and intelligence sharing capabilities between partner nations.
"In general, our view is they're not investing enough," Carter said of US allies in Europe. "We'd like to see more. We understand the economic circumstances in general, but still in all, security is a very important thing to be investing in.
"I certainly will be continuing to argue that the Europeans should be making bigger investments."
That call is likely to be repeated over the next month when a trio of major European meetings – the annual G7 gathering, the NATO ministerial and the Council of Europe – gather key European allies together, a defense official said on background.
Carter made his comments June 5 to a group of reporters, just hours after the conclusion of a major review of US strategy as it relates to Russia.
The secretary pointed out that a few years ago, the discussion revolved around NATO's lack of a mission in a post-Cold War era. Now, he said, the alliance is faced with two distinct, but serious threats, in the form of Russian aggression and the Islamic State, commonly known as ISIS.
It's something he equated to chewing gum and walking at the same time, warning that it requires new commitments from the partners not just in dollars spent, but how they are investing them.
In particular, Carter called out the need to improve the information and intelligence sharing capabilities between partner nations.
Merkel, Obama: Russia sanctions to stay until Ukraine truce implemented
Merkel, Obama: Russia sanctions to stay until Ukraine truce implemented: US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday that Western sanctions must remain in place against Russia until it complies with a ceasefire deal with Ukraine.
"The two leaders discussed the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and agreed that the duration of sanctions should be clearly linked to Russia's full implementation of the Minsk agreements and respect for Ukraine's sovereignty," the White House said in a statement released on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Germany.
Obama and Merkel held private talks ahead of the summit and the US president earlier urged his fellow G7 leaders to stand up together against "Russian aggression in Ukraine".
Peace talks on Ukraine resumed in Minsk on May 6 as clashes have intensified on the ground in a conflict that has killed more than 6,400 people since April 2014.
The negotiations are aimed at enforcing the implementation of a peace deal reached in Minsk in February, leading to an extremely fragile ceasefire that is regularly breached across the eastern conflict zone.
The Minsk deal, agreed under pressure from the leaders of Germany and France, states that all conditions -- including a complete ceasefire, the pullback of all heavy weapons and the restoration of Ukraine's border with Russia to Ukrainian control -- should be fulfilled by the end of 2015.
"The two leaders discussed the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and agreed that the duration of sanctions should be clearly linked to Russia's full implementation of the Minsk agreements and respect for Ukraine's sovereignty," the White House said in a statement released on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Germany.
Obama and Merkel held private talks ahead of the summit and the US president earlier urged his fellow G7 leaders to stand up together against "Russian aggression in Ukraine".
Peace talks on Ukraine resumed in Minsk on May 6 as clashes have intensified on the ground in a conflict that has killed more than 6,400 people since April 2014.
The negotiations are aimed at enforcing the implementation of a peace deal reached in Minsk in February, leading to an extremely fragile ceasefire that is regularly breached across the eastern conflict zone.
The Minsk deal, agreed under pressure from the leaders of Germany and France, states that all conditions -- including a complete ceasefire, the pullback of all heavy weapons and the restoration of Ukraine's border with Russia to Ukrainian control -- should be fulfilled by the end of 2015.
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Air Force a step closer to swarming enemy with low-cost drones - Dayton Business Journal
Air Force a step closer to swarming enemy with low-cost drones - Dayton Business Journal: The U.S. Air Force is moving ahead with a program to develop a lower cost, more disposable unmanned aircraft.
Air Force Research Laboratory this week announced it would soon be taking proposals for a Low Cost Attritable Strike UAS Demonstration program. The work is expected to come with a $7.4 million contract.
The idea here is unmanned aircraft are currently too expensive to send on high-risk missions, such as in swarms to overwhelm enemy air defenses. Developing a lower-cost UAS that could be lost in large numbers would give the Air Force a completely new tactic — and big advantage — in the field.
Last fall, AFRL began asking for information on the topic of developing an inexpensive, configurable and producible on-demand air vehicle.
Air Force Research Laboratory this week announced it would soon be taking proposals for a Low Cost Attritable Strike UAS Demonstration program. The work is expected to come with a $7.4 million contract.
The idea here is unmanned aircraft are currently too expensive to send on high-risk missions, such as in swarms to overwhelm enemy air defenses. Developing a lower-cost UAS that could be lost in large numbers would give the Air Force a completely new tactic — and big advantage — in the field.
Last fall, AFRL began asking for information on the topic of developing an inexpensive, configurable and producible on-demand air vehicle.
US Lawmakers Pass Bill for Space Mining in the Future
US Lawmakers Pass Bill for Space Mining in the Future: Under the Spurring Private Aerospace Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship (SPACE) Act, which the US House of Representatives passed Thursday, firms involved in asteroid mining will be able to keep whatever they dig up.
"Any asteroid resources obtained in outer space are the property of the entity that obtained such resources, which shall be entitled to all property rights thereto, consistent with applicable provisions of Federal law," the SPACE Act reads, in part.
The bill, sponsored by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a republican from California, passed with broad bipartisan support, 284-133.
"This bill will encourage the private sector to launch rockets, take risks, and shoot for the heavens," said Lamar Smith, a Texas Republican who chairs the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
And while the section of the bill declaring "finders keepers" for asteroid miners may seem ridiculous or unnecessary, it addresses a dilemma that one day could arise as the commercial space industry gains momentum.
"Any asteroid resources obtained in outer space are the property of the entity that obtained such resources, which shall be entitled to all property rights thereto, consistent with applicable provisions of Federal law," the SPACE Act reads, in part.
The bill, sponsored by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a republican from California, passed with broad bipartisan support, 284-133.
"This bill will encourage the private sector to launch rockets, take risks, and shoot for the heavens," said Lamar Smith, a Texas Republican who chairs the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
And while the section of the bill declaring "finders keepers" for asteroid miners may seem ridiculous or unnecessary, it addresses a dilemma that one day could arise as the commercial space industry gains momentum.
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