Navy Ditching Steam Pipes For More Preferable Methods

The steam pipes that provided hot water to Naval Station Rota are becoming a thing of the past, just like the technology that made them necessary in the first place.  Removing the piping will make the base energy efficient, environmentally friendly and reduce risk throughout the community.

Video provided by DMA Navy YouTube channel

Navy’s Close In Weapons System

HEADPHONE WARNING!

MK 15 Phalanx CIWS provides ships of the U.S. Navy with an inner layer point defense capability against Anti Ship Missiles (ASM), aircraft, and littoral warfare threats that have penetrated other fleet defenses. Phalanx automatically detects, evaluates, tracks, engages, and performs kill assessment against ASM and high speed aircraft threats.

The current Phalanx variant (Block 1B) adds the ability to counter asymmetric warfare threats through the addition of an integrated, stabilized, Electro Optic sensor. These improvements give Phalanx the added ability to counter small high speed surface craft, aircraft, helicopters, and Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). Phalanx is the only deployed close-in weapon system capable of autonomously performing its own search, detect, evaluation, track, engage and kill assessment functions.

Phalanx also can be integrated into existing ship combat control systems to provide additional sensor and fire-control support to other installed ship weapon systems.

Ultrafast Pulsed Lasers

A Navy ship at sea is surrounded by water, with nothing but its carrier group in site, and searches the skies for activity overhead.

Isolated radars on each ship in the group scan independently of each other with limited effectiveness. But consider if all of the ships’ radars could be coherently linked to function as one.

Such a capability would improve the range and resolution of each radar system, making it possible to identify and characterize objects further away and with greater fidelity.

Conventional X-ray machines provide images of bones and organs that help doctors make crucial decisions regarding patient care. They cannot, however, resolve structures at the cellular level.

Imagine having access to a table-top x-ray imager that could not only image a single cell, but also the nucleus, ribosomes and other components that make it up; and not only as a flat image, but in 3-D. Such information would be invaluable for testing responses to candidate drugs and discovering new treatments.

These two very different applications are not science fiction and could be enabled by the same basic technology: ultrafast, pulsed lasers operating at optical wavelengths.

These kinds of pulsed lasers are known as frequency combs because they are composed of thousands of individual laser lines, equally separated in frequency like the teeth of a comb. DARPA seeks to control the entire electromagnetic spectrum by using frequency combs to generate and engineer waves in the optical domain and then down or up-convert those waveforms to the desired wavelength.

Such technology has many potential applications relevant to the Department of Defense (DoD), such as low phase noise microwave oscillators for secure communications, explosive and chemical agent detection, and the production of attosecond (10-18s) pulses for imaging the motion of electrons in complex materials.

Many of the techniques that underlie these applications have been demonstrated, but are currently unsuitable for practical use because they are restricted to a laboratory setting. DARPA’s Program in Ultrafast Laser Science and Engineering (PULSE) aims to enable synchronization, metrology and communications applications for DoD by advancing compact, high power and environmentally insensitive frequency comb technology, as well as the science underlying these applications.

Achieving these goals will require input from researchers across a broad spectrum of disciplines. Potential proposers are encouraged to review and respond to the PULSE Broad Agency Announcement (BAA).

“PULSE is a basic research program initially focused on component technology. Our primary concern isn’t demonstrating a specific application, rather making these tools a reality at a practical scale by overcoming current obstacles like size and thermal management,” said Jamil Abo-Shaeer, DARPA program manager for PULSE. “The range of potential applications is enormous. Literally any technology that uses electromagnetic radiation could be impacted.”

Low phase noise microwave oscillators represent one potential application of the high frequency stability provided by optical frequency combs. Under PULSE, DARPA will pursue enabling technologies to reduce comb size. One possible approach involves recently demonstrated, chip-based optical frequency combs that were generated from micron-scale optical resonators.

However, while such combs potentially offer a vast reduction in form-factor compared with conventional technology, they have yet to demonstrate the stability and bandwidth required for low phase noise microwave oscillator production.

At the other end of the spectrum, PULSE will explore how to capitalize on the high intensity obtainable from pulsed lasers for applications like x-ray imaging. PULSE aims to enhance the capabilities of tabletop, high-peak power, pulsed-laser driven x-ray generation techniques; these sources should produce high flux, coherent x-rays with wavelengths in the water-window (2.3 to 4.4 nm) for biological imaging applications.  At present, these types of x-rays can only be generated by a few building-sized machines, thus limiting the range of applications.

Proposers are sought for the development of ultrafast laser science applications, including microwave generation, optical time-transfer, laser-driven secondary radiation generation and attosecond science.

As a fundamental research program, PULSE welcomes proposals from U.S. and international researchers and is expected to span over a five year time-scale. For detailed information, please review the BAA.  Proposal abstracts are due by 4:00 PM ET, September 6, 2012. Full proposals are due by 4:00 PM ET, November 6, 2012.

Information for this story provided by DARPA

FAMILY STATEMENT REGARDING THE DEATH OF NEIL ARMSTRONG

Bob Jacobs/David Weaver

Headquarters, Washington

202-358-1600

bob.jacobs@nasa.gov/david.s.weaver@nasa.gov

WASHINGTON -- The following is a statement from the Armstrong family regarding the death of former test pilot and NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong. He was 82.

“We are heartbroken to share the news that Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures.

Neil was our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend.

Neil Armstrong was also a reluctant American hero who always believed he was just doing his job. He served his Nation proudly, as a navy fighter pilot, test pilot, and astronaut. He also found success back home in his native Ohio in business and academia, and became a community leader in Cincinnati. 

He remained an advocate of aviation and exploration throughout his life and never lost his boyhood wonder of these pursuits. 

As much as Neil cherished his privacy, he always appreciated the expressions of good will from people around the world and from all walks of life. 

While we mourn the loss of a very good man, we also celebrate his remarkable life and hope that it serves as an example to young people around the world to work hard to make their dreams come true, to be willing to explore and push the limits, and to selflessly serve a cause greater than themselves. 

For those who may ask what they can do to honor Neil, we have a simple request. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink.”

Additional information about Armstrong is available on the Web at http://www.nasa.gov.

- end -

DOD To Track Human Subjects Studies

A Web-based application developed by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) will form the basis of the nation’s first Defense Department-wide system to track and manage human subject studies funded by the federal government.

The Protections in Research, Oversight Management Information System (PROMIS) is a tool that allows command research protections staff members to submit human research protocols – plans that detail studies involving humans – as well as other documentation for review by Navy and Marine Corps research compliance specialists.

Subsequently, users can track and manage their studies using the Microsoft SharePoint-based system.

“The nation expects more accountability for research involving human subjects,” said Dr. Timothy Singer, director of the research protections division in ONR’s Warfighter Performance Department. “PROMIS offers a way for the entire Department of Defense [DoD] to gain greater insight into protocol submissions and offer better tools with which to manage active projects and the reporting of current and historical research.”

The Department of the Navy (DoN) conducts studies with human subjects to support warfighter training and operational capability as well as the naval medical department’s competency.

The Research Protections division, a component of the Navy’s Office of Research Protections, is responsible for overseeing investigations involving human subjects conducted by Navy and Marine Corps operational forces and non-operational commands.

It also monitors Navy-sponsored experiments by non-governmental institutions, such as universities and contractors.

DoD employs a number of database tools to track its research programs, such as the electronic Institutional Review Board (eIRB) management system, which has been a preferred application within the military health system to document protocols.

However, a December 2011 report by the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues found the government lacked a centralized database to track experiments.

In early July, Navy Deputy Surgeon General Rear Adm. Michael Mittelman and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Force Health Protection and Readiness Dr. George Peach Taylor Jr. signed a Memorandum of Record designating PROMIS as the baseline for the future DoD system.

As plans are laid out to migrate selected eIRB functions into one consolidated system, ONR is developing enhancements to PROMIS so it can function as a unified platform to serve needs across the DoD’s user community.

“PROMIS gives a near real-time, in-depth view of protocols,” said Dr. Andy Jones, deputy director of the Research Protections division. “As the basis of the DoD-wide system, PROMIS will enable a wide cross-section of users, from principal investigators to departmental leaders, to monitor and manage projects and ensure that research is in compliance with regulations.”

The system is currently employed by 16 DoD commands—15 Navy and 1 Army—that oversee or conduct research with human subjects. The Research Protections division is training personnel in its use at additional commands.

From the Office of Naval Research

ONR Solicits Bids for Solid-State Laser Weapons for Ships

By Grace Jean, Office of Naval Research Public Affairs

ARLINGTON, Va. (NNS) -- The Office of Naval Research (ONR) continues to seek industry proposals to develop an affordable solid-state laser weapon prototype for Navy ships, part of a broad agency announcement published Aug. 14.

"We are in the process of developing a laser weapon prototype for the naval surface fleet to counter small unmanned aerial vehicles and small boat threats," said Chief of Naval Research Rear Adm. Matthew Klunder.

ONR hosted an industry day in May to provide the research and development community with information about its Solid-State Laser Technology Maturation (SSL-TM) program. Managers incorporated feedback into the announcement, which solicits industry's investment in the program on a number of levels, from subcomponents to systems design.

"We're looking for an open systems solution to this warfighting capability because we believe it's cost effective and can provide the best value to the government," said Peter Morrison, ONR program officer.

The SSL-TM program builds upon ONR's directed-energy developments in kilowatt-scale lasers. Among the programs, the Maritime Laser Demonstration developed a proof-of-concept technology that was tested at sea in 2011 aboard a decommissioned Navy ship. The demonstrator was able to disable a small boat target.

During the first week of August off the California coast the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), ONR and Navy Air and Missile Defense Command (NAMDC) sponsored a series of successful laser weapon concept development tests aboard a U.S. Navy destroyer. The Navy intends to use the technical data collected from this test to inform potential development of a Navy laser weapon system.

All of these efforts could help the Department of the Navy become the first of the armed forces to deploy cost-effective, high-energy laser weapons.

For more information:

 Watch the Maritime Laser Demonstration video on YouTube at:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awsQs4ct0c4&feature=plcp

Read broad agency announcement 12-019 at:

 http://www.onr.navy.mil/Contracts-Grants/Funding-Opportunities/Broad-Agency-Announcements.aspx

The Department of the Navy's Office of Naval Research (ONR) provides the science and technology necessary to maintain the Navy and Marine Corps' technological advantage. Through its affiliates, ONR is a leader in science and technology with engagement in 50 states, 70 countries, 1,035 institutions of higher learning and 914 industry partners. ONR employs approximately 1,400 people, comprising of uniformed, civilian and contract personnel, with additional employees at the Naval Research Lab in Washington, D.C.