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Category: Americas

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Human Right Committee Opens One Hundred and Forty-Third Session

    Source: United Nations – Geneva

    Committee Elects New Chairperson and Bureau, Five New Members Make Solemn Declaration

    The Human Right Committee this morning opened its one hundred and forty-third session, during which it will examine the reports of Albania, Burkina Faso, Haiti, Mongolia, Montenegro and Zimbabwe on their implementation of the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.  The Committee elected a new Chairperson and Bureau, and five new members made their solemn declaration. 

    In her opening remarks, Wan-Hea Lee, Chief of the Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Section, Human Rights Council and Treaty Mechanisms Division, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Representative of the Secretary-General, said despite the liquidity situation currently facing the United Nations, the first sessions of all the treaty bodies this year had or were going to take place, thereby allowing the important work undertaken by Committees, including this one, to proceed. 

    The Office of the High Commissioner and the United Nations had and would continue to do their utmost to ensure that the Committee’s work could proceed to the maximum extent possible.

    Ms. Lee said they were living in exceptional times, marked by profound global challenges that tested the resilience of the international legal order.  The international system was going through a tectonic shift, and the human rights edifice that had been built up so painstakingly over decades had never been under so much strain.  The United Nations system, including the Committee, bore a shared responsibility to safeguard and reinforce these hard-fought achievements. Now, more than ever, collective action was necessary to defend the universality of human rights, preserve the integrity of international law, and ensure that it remained a robust shield against further regression.

    In its current session, Ms. Lee said, the Human Rights Council would hold interactive dialogues with the Special Rapporteurs on freedom of religion or belief, on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, and on the situation of human rights defenders. Last Tuesday, the Council held its biannual high-level panel discussion on the question of the death penalty, which focused on the contribution of the judiciary towards the abolition of the death penalty.  As of today, 113 countries had abolished the death penalty completely, and the global South was now leading the abolition movement. 

    Next Wednesday morning, 5 March, the Council would hold a panel discussion on early warning and genocide prevention.  The Council encouraged States to intensify conflict risk analysis to assess the risks of the perpetration of genocide and to identify situations where preventive measures might be necessary.  Ms. Lee said the work of the Committee needed to be considered a vital component of such risk assessment.

    Last year was particularly challenging, Ms. Lee stated.  In addition to chronic resource constraints, the liquidity crisis continued to hamper the planning and implementation of the Committee’s work – a point that the Chairs communicated forcefully during their meetings with Member States and other interlocutors in New York.  The Office of the High Commissioner was doing its utmost to ensure that the treaty bodies could implement their mandates, including by highlighting the direct impact that resource limitations had on human rights protection on the ground.  Nevertheless, all indications pointed to a continuation of the difficult liquidity situation for the foreseeable future.

    Ms. Lee said the treaty body strengthening process remained active.  It reached a key moment with the adoption last December of the biennial resolution on the treaty body system by the General Assembly. The resolution invited the treaty bodies and the Office of the High Commissioner to continue to work on coordination and predictability in the reporting process with the aim of achieving a regularised schedule for reporting, and to increase efforts to further use digital technologies.  However, the biennial resolution did not endorse certain detailed proposals, such as the one for an eight-year predictable schedule of reviews.

    On Human Rights Day last year, Ms. Lee said, the Geneva Human Rights Platform organised an informal meeting of the Chairs and focal points on working methods, which explored the latest developments in the treaty body system and sought to improve the harmonisation of procedures.  The Chairs and focal points also had the opportunity to interact with the Coordination Committee of Special Procedures Mandate Holders, discussing independence and actual or potential conflict of interest of experts, and an “all mechanisms” approach to the many challenges the human rights mechanisms were facing.  The High Commissioner’s Office would continue to work alongside the Chairs and all treaty body experts to strengthen the system.

    Ms. Lee said that the Committee had a busy agenda ahead of it, including six States party reviews, the consideration and adoption of eight lists of issues and lists of issues prior to reporting, as well as several individual communications under the Optional Protocol.  It would also hold briefings with various stakeholders.  She closed by wishing the Committee a successful and productive session.

    During the meeting, Changrok Soh (Republic of Korea) was elected as Chair of the Committee, and Wafaa Ashraf Moharram Bassim (Egypt), Hernán Quezada Cabrera (Chile), and Hélène Tigroudja (France) were elected as Vice-Chairs.  The election of a Committee Rapporteur was deferred.  Committee members expressed their support for the newly elected Chair and Bureau members and to the outgoing members.

    Mr. Soh expressed thanks for the Committee’s support and commended the work of former Chair Tania María Abdo Rocholl (Paraguay).  He said human rights were at the heart of his work, and he took on his duties with a strong sense of dedication.  The evolving global landscape and increasing financial pressures on the treaty body system called for increased collaboration.  The treaty bodies needed to leverage new methodologies and technologies to address their challenges.  Mr. Soh said he would do his utmost to deliver on the Committee’s mandate. Through collaboration with various stakeholders, he would work to ensure that the Committee could uphold the civil and political rights of persons worldwide.

    Ms. Abdo Rocholl took the floor to congratulate Mr. Soh and all elected bureau measures, who she expected would take the Committee far in difficult times.  During her tenure, she said, the Committee had held 41 dialogues with States parties, issued 12 lists of issues and 19 lists of issues prior to reporting, analysed five reports on implementation of concluding observations, adopted 610 decisions on individual communications, and delivered three follow-up reports on communications.  It had also implemented changes to finalise lists of issues at an earlier stage and improve the communications review procedure, time management in State party reviews, and document production.  The Committee had worked in a collaborative, harmonious environment, which allowed for the improvement of its work.  Ms. Abdo Rocholl expressed thanks to all who supported her throughout her two-year tenure as Chair.

    The Committee then adopted its agenda and programme of work for the session.

    Laurence R. Helfer, Committee Expert and Chair of the Working Group on individual communications, presented the report on the Working Group’s activities for the one hundred and forty-third session.  He said the Working Group had a very busy session and had extremely rich and interesting discussions.  The cases examined were submitted between 2016 and 2023 and covered 13 States parties from different regions, as well as different themes ranging from arbitrary deprivation of the right to life to forced pregnancy and forced maternity, non-refoulement, voting rights, forced displacement of indigenous communities, arbitrary detention, right to freedom of religion and belief, and right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.  Regarding the 20 drafts examined and 44 communications covered, the Working Group submitted to the plenary for its consideration four inadmissibility proposals, one proposal of no violation; 36 proposals of violations; and two proposals with two options.  The report was adopted.

    New members elected to the Committee made their solemn declaration.  They are Carlos Ramón Fernández Liesa (Spain), Konstantin Korkelia (Georgia), Dalia Leinarte (Lithuania), Akmal Kholmatovich Saidov (Uzbekistan), and Ivan Šimonovic (Croatia).  Ms. Abdo Rocholl, Mr. Soh and Ms. Bassim, as well as Mahjoub El Haiba (Morocco) and Imeru Tamerat Yigezu (Ethiopia), were re-elected to the Committee.

    The Human Rights Committee’s one hundred and forty-third session is being held from 3 to 28 March 2025.  All the documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage.  Meeting summary releases can be found here.  The webcast of the Committee’s public meetings can be accessed via the UN Web TV webpage.

    The Committee will next meet in public at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, 4 March, to begin its consideration of the second periodic report of Montenegro (CCPR/C/MNE/2).

     

    Produced by the United Nations Information Service in Geneva for use of the media; 
    not an official record. English and French versions of our releases are different as they are the product of two separate coverage teams that work independently.

     

    CCPR25.001E

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Premier’s statement on U.S. preliminary softwood lumber decision

    Premier David Eby has issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s announcement that it intends to more than double anti-dumping duties imposed on Canadian softwood lumber exporters:

    ”B.C.’s iconic forestry sector and the people whose livelihoods depend on it have faced immense challenges for years and, today, are facing a new, massive threat. We strongly denounce this latest announcement by the United States. B.C. has long maintained that any and all duties on softwood lumber are unjustified, and these anti-dumping duties are based on a biased calculation – one that has been criticized by many of the United States’ trading partners.

    “Today’s announcement comes amidst U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s threat to put a 25% tariff on all products exported from our country to the United States, compounding the challenges for this important industry in B.C. It also follows the U.S. President’s order this past weekend to initiate another, separate investigation of forest products, with the possibility of additional tariffs, quotas or other actions aimed at curbing imports of forest products to the U.S. These are unwarranted attacks, and not how allies treat each other. We are stronger when we work together. If the tariffs are imposed, we will stand with Team Canada to respond with strength.

    “The U.S. Department of Commerce’s announcement today will impact all Canadian companies selling lumber to the United States, when and if the decision is confirmed later this summer. American homes will be more expensive to build and hardworking people in our province will bear the brunt of these unwarranted duties. Both Canadians and Americans need an end to this trade dispute.

    “For workers who rely on the forestry industry to support their families, or British Columbians who are anxious about other tariffs the U.S. is threatening to impose, our commitment is to fight hard to defend your jobs and the services you rely on. And no matter what comes – we will never be the 51st state.”

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Astronauts to Answer Questions from Students in Ohio, Texas

    Source: NASA

    Students from Ohio and Texas will have the chance to hear NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station answer their prerecorded questions this week.
    At 12:55 p.m. EST, Wednesday, March 5, NASA astronauts Suni Williams, Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Don Pettit will respond to questions submitted by students from Puede Network, in partnership with The Achievery in Dallas.
    At 10:30 a.m., Thursday, March 6, a separate call with NASA astronauts Williams, Hague, and Wilmore, will answer questions posed by students at Saint Ambrose Catholic School in Brunswick, Ohio.
    Watch the 20-minute space-to-Earth calls on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content on various platforms, including social media.
    The Puede Network, a Dallas-based youth organization, is collaborating with the Achievery, an online platform for connecting students with digital learning opportunities. Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m. Tuesday, March 4 to Rodrigo Oshiro at: rodrigo@happytogether.studio or +54 9 113068 7121.
    Saint Ambrose Catholic School, part of Saint Ambrose Catholic Church, is a preschool through 8th grade school focused on science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. Media interested in covering the event must RVSP by 5 p.m., Wednesday, March 5 to Breanne Logue at: BLogue@StASchool.us or 330-460-7318.
    For more than 24 years, astronauts have continuously lived and worked aboard the space station, testing technologies, performing science, and developing skills needed to explore farther from Earth. Astronauts aboard the orbiting laboratory communicate with NASA’s Mission Control Center in Houston 24 hours a day through SCaN’s (Space Communications and Navigation) Near Space Network.
    Important research and technology investigations taking place aboard the space station benefit people on Earth and lays the groundwork for other agency missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring Artemis Generation explorers and ensuring the United States continues to lead in space exploration and discovery.
    See videos and lesson plans highlighting space station research at:
    https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation
    -end-
    Abbey DonaldsonHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1600abbey.a.donaldson@nasa.gov
    Sandra JonesJohnson Space Center, Houston281-483-5111sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Station Science Top News: Feb. 27, 2025

    Source: NASA

    Preventing biofilm formation in space

    Two anti-microbial coatings reduced formation of biofilms in microgravity and have potential for use in space. Controlling biofilms could help protect human health and prevent corrosion and degradation of equipment on future long-duration space missions.
    Biofilms, communities of microorganisms that attach to a surface, can damage mechanical systems and present a risk of disease transmission. Bacteria Resistant Polymers in Space examined how microgravity affects polymer materials designed to prevent or reduce biofilm formation. Better anti-fouling coatings also could reduce disease transmission on Earth.
    Evaluating organ changes in lunar gravity

    Researchers found different changes in gene expression and other responses to simulated lunar gravity levels in specific organs. This finding could help determine safe gravity thresholds and support development of ways to maintain skeletal and immune function on future space journeys.
    Spaceflight can affect skeletal and immune system function, but the molecular mechanisms of these changes are not clear. Mouse Epigenetics, a JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) investigation, studied gene expression changes in mice that spent a month in space and in the DNA of their offspring. Results could help determine spaceflight’s long-term effects on genetic activity, including changes within individual organs and those that can be inherited later.
    Performance report for cosmic ray observatory

    Researchers report on-orbit performance from the first 8 years of operation of the International Space Station’s cosmic ray observatory, CALET. The instrument has provided valuable data on cosmic ray, proton, and helium spectra; produced a gamma-ray sky map; observed gamma-ray bursts; and searched for gravitational wave counterparts and solar effects.
    The JAXA CALorimetric Electron Telescope or CALET helps address questions such as the origin and acceleration of cosmic rays and the existence of dark matter and nearby cosmic-ray sources. The instrument also could help characterize risks from the radiation environment that humans and electronics experience in space.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 110 Years Ago: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Founded 

    Source: NASA

    On March 3, 1915, the United States Congress created the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). Although the NACA’s founding took place just over 11 years after the Wright Brothers’ first powered flightfirst powered flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Congress took the action in response to America lagging behind other world powers’ advances in aviation and aeronautics. From its modest beginnings as an advisory committee, over the years, the NACA established research centers and test facilities that enabled groundbreaking advances in civilian and military aviation, as well as the fledgling discipline of spaceflight. With the creation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1958, the new agency incorporated the NACA’s facilities, its employees, and its annual budget. The NACA provided NASA with a strong foundation as it set out to explore space. 

    The Congressional action that created the NACA, implemented as a rider to the 1915 Naval Appropriations Bill, reads in part, “…It shall be the duty of the advisory committee for aeronautics to supervise and direct the scientific study of the problems of flight with a view to their practical solution. …”. In its initial years, the NACA fulfilled its intended role, coordinating activities already in place in the area of aeronautics research, reporting directly to the president. The committee, made up of 12 representatives from government agencies, academia, and the military, first met on April 23 in the Office of the Secretary of War in Washington, D.C. It established a nine-member executive committee to oversee day-to-day operations and spent the first few years establishing its headquarters in Washington.  

    Within a few years, the NACA’s role began to expand with the establishment of research facilities. The Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory, today NASA’s Langley Research Center, in Hampton, Virginia, opened on June 11, 1920. Over the next few decades, Langley served as a testing facility for new types of aircraft, using wind tunnels and other technological advances. The Ames Aeronautical Laboratory in Sunnyvale, California, today NASA’s Ames Research Center, opened in 1940 and the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory in Cleveland, today NASA’s Glenn Research Center, in 1941. The three labs achieved many breakthroughs in civilian and military aviation before, during, and after World War II. The Cleveland lab, renamed the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory in 1948, concentrated most of its efforts on advances in jet propulsion. 

    After World War II, the NACA began work on achieving supersonic flight. In 1946, the agency established the Muroc Flight Test Unit at the Air Force’s Muroc Field, later renamed Edwards Air Force Base, in California’s Mojave Desert. In a close collaboration, the NACA, the Air Force, and Bell Aircraft developed the X-1 airplane that first broke the sound barrier in 1947. Muroc Field underwent several name changes, first to the High-Speed Flight Station in 1949, then in 1976 to NASA’s Dryden, and in 2014 to Armstrong Flight Research Center. In 1945, the NACA established the Pilotless Aircraft Research Station on Wallops Island, Virginia, now NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, as a test site for rocketry research, under Langley’s direction. From the first launch in 1945 through 1958, the NACA launched nearly 400 different types of rockets from Wallops. 

    In the 1950s, the NACA began to study the feasibility of spaceflight, including sending humans into space. In 1952, NACA engineers developed the concept of a blunt body capsule as the most efficient way to return humans from space. The design concept found its way into the Mercury capsule and all future American spacecraft. Following the dawn of the space age in 1957, the NACA advocated that it take the lead in America’s spaceflight effort. The Congress passed, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed legislation to create a new civilian space agency, and on Oct. 1, 1958, NASA officially began operations. The new organization incorporated the NACA’s research laboratories and test facilities, its 8,000 employees, and its $100 million annual budget.  Many of NASA’s key early leaders and engineers began their careers in the NACA. The NACA’s last director, Hugh Dryden, served as NASA’s first deputy administrator. 
    For more information about the NACA and its transition to NASA, read former NASA Chief Historian Roger Launius’ book NASA to NASA to Now: The Frontiers of Air and Space in the American Century. Watch this video narrated by former NASA Chief Historian Bill Barry about the NACA. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Bottled Water Everywhere: Keeping it Safe

    Source: US Food and Drug Administration

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    Seems like almost everyone is carrying a bottle of water these days.
    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulates bottled water products, working to ensure that they’re safe to drink.
    The FDA protects consumers of bottled water through the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which makes manufacturers responsible for producing safe, wholesome, and truthfully labeled food products.
    There are regulations that focus specifically on bottled water, including:

    “standard of identity” regulations that define different types of bottled water
    “standard of quality” regulations that set maximum levels of contaminants—including chemical, physical, microbial, and radiological contaminants—allowed in bottled water
    “current good manufacturing practice” regulations that require bottled water to be safe and produced under sanitary conditions

    Types of Bottled Water
    The FDA describes bottled water as water that’s intended for human consumption and sealed in bottles or other containers with no added ingredients, except that it may contain safe and suitable antimicrobial agents. Fluoride may also be added within the limits set by the FDA.
    The agency classifies some bottled water by its origin. Here are four of those classifications:

    Artesian well water. This water is collected from a well that taps an aquifer—layers of porous rock, sand, and earth that contain water—which is under pressure from surrounding upper layers of rock or clay. When tapped, the pressure in the aquifer, commonly called artesian pressure, pushes the water above the level of the aquifer, sometimes to the surface. Other means may be used to help bring the water to the surface.
    Mineral water. This water comes from an underground source and contains at least 250 parts per million total dissolved solids. Minerals and trace elements must come from the source of the underground water. They cannot be added later.
    Spring water. Derived from an underground formation from which water flows naturally to the surface, this water must be collected only at the spring or through a borehole that taps the underground formation feeding the spring. If some external force is used to collect the water through a borehole, the water must have the same composition and quality as the water that naturally flows to the surface.
    Well water. This is water from a hole bored or drilled into the ground, which taps into an aquifer.

    Bottled water may be used as an ingredient in beverages, such as diluted juices or flavored bottled waters. However, beverages labeled as containing “sparkling water,” “seltzer water,” “soda water,” “tonic water,” or “club soda” aren’t included as bottled water under the FDA’s regulations. These beverages are instead considered to be soft drinks.
    It May Be Tap Water
    Some bottled water also comes from municipal sources—in other words, public drinking water or tap water. Municipal water is usually treated before it is bottled. Examples of water treatments include:

    Distillation. Water is turned into a vapor, leaving minerals behind. Vapors are then condensed into water again.
    Reverse osmosis. Water is forced through membranes to remove minerals.
    Absolute 1 micron filtration. Water flows through filters that remove particles larger than one micron—.00004 inches—in size. These particles include Cryptosporidium, a parasitic pathogen that can cause gastrointestinal illness.
    Ozonation. Bottlers of all types of waters typically use ozone gas, an antimicrobial agent, instead of chlorine to disinfect the water. Chlorine can add residual taste and odor to the water.

    Bottled water that has been treated by distillation, reverse osmosis, or another suitable process may meet standards that allow it to be labeled as “purified water.”
    Ensuring Quality and Safety
    Federal quality standards for bottled water were first adopted in 1973. They were based on U.S. Public Health Service standards for drinking water set in 1962.
    The 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act gave regulatory oversight of public drinking water to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The FDA subsequently took responsibility, under the FD&C Act, for ensuring that the quality standards for bottled water are compatible with EPA standards for public drinking water.
    Each time the EPA establishes a standard for a contaminant, the FDA either adopts it for bottled water or finds that the standard isn’t necessary for bottled water.
    In some cases, standards for bottled water and public drinking water differ. For example, because lead can leach from pipes as water travels from water utilities to home faucets, the EPA set its limit for lead in public drinking water at 15 parts per billion. For bottled water, for which lead pipes aren’t used, the lead limit is set at 5 ppb.
    For bottled water production, bottlers must follow the CGMP regulations specific to processing and bottling drinking water, put in place and enforced by the FDA. Water must be sampled, analyzed, and found to be safe and sanitary. These regulations also require proper plant and equipment design, bottling procedures, and record keeping.
    In addition, bottled water processors are generally required to register with the FDA as food facilities. Domestic and foreign facilities that are required to register as food facilities must comply with the requirements for risk-based preventive controls mandated by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act as well as the modernized CGMPs of this rule that cover all human food facilities, unless an exemption applies. Please see FDA’s Preventive Controls for Human Food webpage for additional details.
    Furthermore, the FDA oversees inspections of bottling plants. The agency inspects bottled water plants under its general food safety program and has states perform some plant inspections under contract. Some states also require bottled water firms to be licensed annually. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Don’t Wait to Apply for FEMA Assistance in North Carolina

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: Don’t Wait to Apply for FEMA Assistance in North Carolina

    Don’t Wait to Apply for FEMA Assistance in North Carolina

    HICKORY, N.C. – If you had uninsured losses from Tropical Storm Helene, don’t wait any longer to apply for financial help from FEMA. The deadline for applications is Saturday, March 8.FEMA may be able to help with temporary lodging, basic home repairs, personal property loss or other disaster-caused needs. Homeowners and renters in these counties can apply: Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Clay, Cleveland, Gaston, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Transylvania, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey; and members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.There are several ways to apply: Visit a Disaster Recovery Center, go online to DisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA App, or call 800-621-3362. If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other, give FEMA your number for that service. To find a Disaster Recovery Center, go online to fema.gov/drc or text DRC & your ZIP code to 43362.To view an accessible video on how to apply visit Three Ways to Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance – YouTube. 
    angela.ambroise
    Mon, 03/03/2025 – 18:36

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: 35 Years Ago: STS-36 Flies a Dedicated Department of Defense Mission

    Source: NASA

    On Feb. 28, 1990, space shuttle Atlantis took off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on STS-36, the sixth shuttle mission dedicated to the Department of Defense. As such, many of the details of the flight remain classified. The mission marked the 34th flight of the space shuttle, the sixth for Atlantis, and the fourth night launch of the program. The crew of Commander John Creighton, Pilot John Casper, Mission Specialists Mike Mullane, David Hilmers, and Pierre Thuot flew Atlantis to the highest inclination orbit of any human spaceflight to date. During the four-day mission, the astronauts deployed a classified satellite, ending with a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.  

    In February 1989, NASA assigned astronauts Creighton, Casper, Mullane, Hilmers, and Thuot to the STS-36 mission. The mission marked the second spaceflight for Creighton, selected as an astronaut in 1978. He previously served as the pilot on STS-51G. Mullane, also from the class of 1978, previously flew on STS-41D and STS-27, while Hilmers, from the class of 1980, previously flew on STS-51J and STS-26. For Casper and Thuot, selected as astronauts in the classes of 1984 and 1985, respectively, STS-36 marked their first trip into space.  

    Atlantis returned from its previous flight, STS-34, in October 1989. The orbiter spent a then-record 75 days in the processing facility and assembly building, rolling out to Launch Pad 39A on Jan. 25, 1990. The astronauts arrived on Feb. 18 for the planned launch four days later. First Creighton, then Casper and Hilmers, came down with colds, delaying the launch to Feb. 25. Weather and hardware problems pushed the launch back to Feb. 28, giving the astronauts time to return to Houston for some simulator training. On launch day, winds and rain delayed the liftoff for more than two hours before launch controllers gave Atlantis the go to launch. 

    With mere seconds remaining in the launch window, Atlantis lifted off at 2:50 a.m. EST Feb. 28, to begin the STS-36 mission. Atlantis flew an unusual dog leg maneuver during ascent to achieve the mission’s 62-degree inclination. Once Atlantis reached orbit, the classified nature prevented any more detailed public coverage of the mission. The astronauts likely deployed the classified satellite on the mission’s second day. During the remainder of their mission, the astronauts conducted several experiments and photographed preselected areas and targets of opportunity on planet Earth. Their high-inclination orbit enabled them to photograph areas not usually seen by shuttle crews. 

    To maintain the mission’s confidentiality, NASA could reveal the touchdown time only 24 hours prior to the event. On March 4, Creighton and Casper brought Atlantis to a smooth landing at Edwards Air Force Base after 72 orbits of the Earth and a flight of four days, 10 hours, and 18 minutes. About an hour after touchdown, the astronaut crew exited Atlantis for the ride to crew quarters and the flight back to Houston. Later in the day, ground crews prepared Atlantis for the ferry ride back to Kennedy. Atlantis left Edwards on March 10 and three days later arrived at Kennedy, where workers began to prepare it for its next flight, STS-38 in November 1990. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Going With the Flow: Visualizing Ocean Currents with ECCO

    Source: NASA

    Historically, the ocean has been difficult to model. Scientists struggled in years past to simulate ocean currents or accurately predict fluctuations in temperature, salinity, and other properties. As a result, models of ocean dynamics rapidly diverged from reality, which meant they could only provide useful information for brief periods.
    In 1999, a project called Estimating the Circulation and Climate of the Ocean (ECCO) changed all that. By applying the laws of physics to data from multiple satellites and thousands of floating sensors, NASA scientists and their collaborators built ECCO to be a realistic, detailed, and continuous ocean model that spans decades. ECCO enabled thousands of scientific discoveries, and was featured during the announcement of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2021.
    NASA ECCO is a powerful integrator of decades of ocean data, narrating the story of Earth’s changing ocean as it drives our weather, and sustains marine life.
    The ECCO project includes hundreds of millions of real-world measurements of temperature, salinity, sea ice concentration, pressure, water height, and flow in the world’s oceans. Researchers rely on the model output to study ocean dynamics and to keep tabs on conditions that are crucial for ecosystems and weather patterns. The modeling effort is supported by NASA’s Earth science programs and by the international ECCO consortium, which includes researchers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California and eight research institutions and universities.
    The project provides models that are the best possible reconstruction of the past 30 years of the global ocean. It allows us to understand the ocean’s physical processes at scales that are not normally observable.

    Large-scale wind patterns around the globe drag ocean surface waters with them, creating complex currents, including some that flow toward the western sides of the ocean basins. The currents hug the eastern coasts of continents as they head north or south from the equator: These are the western boundary currents. The three most prominent are the Gulf Stream, Agulhas, and Kuroshio. NASA Goddard’s Scientific Visualization Studio.

    Seafarers have known about the Gulf Stream — the Atlantic Ocean’s western boundary current — for more than 500 years. By the volume of water it moves, the Gulf Stream is the largest of the western boundary currents, transporting more water than all the planet’s rivers combined.
    In 1785, Benjamin Franklin added it to maritime charts showing the current flowing up from the Gulf, along the eastern U.S. coast, and out across the North Atlantic. Franklin noted that riding the current could improve a ship’s travel time from the Americas to Europe, while avoiding the current could shorten travel times when sailing back.

    Franklin’s charts showed a smooth Gulf Stream rather than the twisted, swirling path revealed in ECCO data. And Franklin couldn’t have imagined the opposing flow of water below the Gulf Stream. The countercurrent runs at depths of about 2,000 feet (600 meters) in a cold river of water that is roughly the opposite of the warm Gulf Stream at the surface. The submarine countercurrent is clearly visible when the upper layers in the ECCO model are peeled away in visualizations.
    The Gulf Stream is a part of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), which moderates climate worldwide by transporting warm surface waters north and cool underwater currents south. The Gulf Stream, in particular, stabilizes temperatures of the southeastern United States, keeping the region warmer in winter and cooler in summer than it would be without the current. After the Gulf Stream crosses the Atlantic, it tempers the climates of England and the European coast as well.

    The Agulhas Current flows south along the western side of the Indian Ocean. When it reaches the southern tip of Africa, it sheds swirling vortices of water called Agulhas Rings. Sometimes persisting for years, the rings glide across the Atlantic toward South America, transporting small fish, larvae, and other microorganisms from the Indian Ocean. 
    Researchers using the ECCO model can study Agulhas Current flow as it sends warm, salty water from the tropics in the Indian Ocean toward the tip of South Africa. The model helps tease out the complicated dynamics that create the Agulhas rings and large loop of current called a supergyre that surrounds the Antarctic. The Southern Hemisphere supergyre links the southern portions of other, smaller current loops (gyres) that circulate in the southern Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans. Together with gyres in the northern Atlantic and Pacific, the southern gyres and Southern Hemisphere supergyre influence climate while transporting carbon around the globe. 

    In addition to affecting global weather patterns and temperatures, western boundary currents can drive vertical flows in the oceans known as upwellings. The flows bring nutrients up from the depths to the surface, where they act as fertilizer for phytoplankton, algae, and aquatic plants.
    The Kuroshio Current that runs on the west side of the Pacific Ocean and along the east side of Japan has recently been associated with upwellings that enrich coastal fishing waters. The specific mechanisms that cause the vertical flows are not entirely clear. Ocean scientists are now turning to ECCO to tease out the connection between nutrient transport and currents like the Kuroshio that might be revealed in studies of the water temperature, density, pressure, and other factors included in the ECCO model.

    When viewed through the lens of ECCO’s temperature data, western boundary currents carry warm water away from the tropics and toward the poles. In the case of the Gulf Stream, as the current moves to far northern latitudes, some of the saltwater freezes into salt-free sea ice. The saltier water left behind sinks and then flows south all the way toward the Antarctic before rising and warming in other ocean basins. 

    Currents also move nutrients and salt throughout Earth’s ocean basins. Swirling vortexes of the Agulhas rings stand out in ECCO temperature and salinity maps as they move warm, salty water from the Indian Ocean into the Atlantic.

    ECCO offers researchers a way to run virtual experiments that would be impractical or too costly to perform in real oceans. Some of the most important applications of the ECCO model are in ocean ecology, biology, and chemistry. Because the model shows where the water comes from and where it goes, researchers can see how currents transport heat, minerals, nutrients, and organisms around the planet. 
    In prior decades, for example, ocean scientists relied on extensive temperature and salinity measurements by floating sensors to deduce that the Gulf Stream is primarily made of water flowing past the Gulf rather than through it. The studies were time-consuming and expensive. With the ECCO model, data visualizers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, virtually replicated the research in a simulation that was far quicker and cheaper.

    The example illustrated here relies on ECCO to track the flow of water by virtually filling the Gulf with 115,000 particles and letting them move for a year in the model. The demonstration showed that less than 1% of the particles escape the Gulf to join the Gulf Stream. 
    Running such particle-tracking experiments within the ocean circulation models helps scientists understand how and where environmental contaminants, such as oil spills, can spread.

    Today, researchers turn to ECCO for a broad array of studies. They can choose ECCO modeling products that focus on one feature – such as global flows or the biology and chemistry of the ocean – or they can narrow the view to the poles or specific ocean regions. Every year, more than a hundred scientific papers include data and analyses from the ECCO model that delve into our oceans’ properties and dynamics. 

    [embedded content]
    Credits: Kathleen Gaeta Greer/ NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio 

    Composed by James Riordon / NASA’s Earth Science News Team
    Information in this piece came from the resources below and interviews with the following sources: Nadya Vinogradova Shiffer, Dimitris Menemenlis, Ian Fenty, and Atousa Saberi.  

    Liao, F., Liang, X., Li, Y., & Spall, M. (2022). Hidden upwelling systems associated with major western boundary currents. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 127(3), e2021JC017649.
    Richardson, P. L. (1980). The Benjamin Franklin and Timothy Folger charts of the Gulf Stream. In Oceanography: The Past: Proceedings of the Third International Congress on the History of Oceanography, held September 22–26, 1980 at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA on the occasion of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the founding of the Institution (pp. 703-717). New York, NY: Springer New York.
    Biastoch, A., Rühs, S., Ivanciu, I., Schwarzkopf, F. U., Veitch, J., Reason, C., … & Soltau, F. (2024). The Agulhas Current System as an Important Driver for Oceanic and Terrestrial Climate. In Sustainability of Southern African Ecosystems under Global Change: Science for Management and Policy Interventions (pp. 191-220). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
    Lee-Sánchez, E., Camacho-Ibar, V. F., Velásquez-Aristizábal, J. A., Valencia-Gasti, J. A., & Samperio-Ramos, G. (2022). Impacts of mesoscale eddies on the nitrate distribution in the deep-water region of the Gulf of Mexico. Journal of Marine Systems, 229, 103721.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Names Norman Knight as Acting Deputy Director of Johnson Space Center

    Source: NASA

    NASA has selected Norman Knight as acting deputy director of Johnson Space Center. Knight currently serves as Director of Johnson’s Flight Operations Directorate (FOD), responsible for astronaut training and for overall planning, directing, managing, and implementing overall mission operations for NASA human spaceflight programs. This also includes management for all Johnson aircraft operations and aircrew training. Knight will serve in this dual deputy director and FOD director role for the near term.
    “It is an honor to accept my new role as acting deputy director for Johnson,” Knight said. “Human spaceflight is key to our agency’s mission and our Johnson team is unified in that goal. The successes we see every day are the evidence of that. It never ceases to amaze me what our team is capable of.”
    Knight began his career at the Johnson Space Center as a Space Shuttle mechanical systems flight controller, working 40 missions in this capacity. He progressed through management roles with increasing responsibility, and in 2000, he was selected as a flight director and worked in that capacity for numerous International Space Station expeditions and Space Shuttle missions. In 2009, he became the deputy chief of the Flight Director Office and participated in a NASA fellowship at Harvard Business School in general management. In 2012, Knight was selected as the chief of the Flight Director Office and then in 2018 as deputy director of the Flight Operations Directorate after serving a temporary assignment as the assistant administrator, Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. In 2021, Knight was selected as the director of FOD.
    “Norm has an accomplished career within the agency,” said Steven Koerner, Johnson acting director. “His leadership, expertise, and dedication to the mission will undoubtably drive our continued success.”
    Throughout his career, Knight has been recognized for outstanding technical achievements and leadership, receiving a Spaceflight Awareness Honoree award for STS-82. He also received several center and agency awards, including two Exceptional Achievement medals, multiple Johnson and agency group achievement awards, two Superior Accomplishment awards, an Outstanding Leadership medal, the Johnson Director’s Commendation award, and the Distinguished Service medal.
    Knight earned a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in 1990.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA’s Webb Exposes Complex Atmosphere of Starless Super-Jupiter

    Source: NASA

    An international team of researchers has discovered that previously observed variations in brightness of a free-floating planetary-mass object known as SIMP 0136 must be the result of a complex combination of atmospheric factors, and cannot be explained by clouds alone.
    Using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to monitor a broad spectrum of infrared light emitted over two full rotation periods by SIMP 0136, the team was able to detect variations in cloud layers, temperature, and carbon chemistry that were previously hidden from view.
    The results provide crucial insight into the three-dimensional complexity of gas giant atmospheres within and beyond our solar system. Detailed characterization of objects like these is essential preparation for direct imaging of exoplanets, planets outside our solar system, with NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which is scheduled to begin operations in 2027.

    SIMP 0136 is a rapidly rotating, free-floating object roughly 13 times the mass of Jupiter, located in the Milky Way just 20 light-years from Earth. Although it is not classified as a gas giant exoplanet — it doesn’t orbit a star and may instead be a brown dwarf — SIMP 0136 is an ideal target for exo-meteorology: It is the brightest object of its kind in the northern sky. Because it is isolated, it can be observed with no fear of light contamination or variability caused by a host star. And its short rotation period of just 2.4 hours makes it possible to survey very efficiently.
    Prior to the Webb observations, SIMP 0136 had been studied extensively using ground-based observatories and NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes.
    “We already knew that it varies in brightness, and we were confident that there are patchy cloud layers that rotate in and out of view and evolve over time,” explained Allison McCarthy, doctoral student at Boston University and lead author on a study published today in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. “We also thought there could be temperature variations, chemical reactions, and possibly some effects of auroral activity affecting the brightness, but we weren’t sure.”
    To figure it out, the team needed Webb’s ability to measure very precise changes in brightness over a broad range of wavelengths.

    Using NIRSpec (Near-Infrared Spectrograph), Webb captured thousands of individual 0.6- to 5.3-micron spectra — one every 1.8 seconds over more than three hours as the object completed one full rotation. This was immediately followed by an observation with MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), which collected hundreds of spectroscopic measurements of 5- to 14-micron light — one every 19.2 seconds, over another rotation.
    The result was hundreds of detailed light curves, each showing the change in brightness of a very precise wavelength (color) as different sides of the object rotated into view.
    “To see the full spectrum of this object change over the course of minutes was incredible,” said principal investigator Johanna Vos, from Trinity College Dublin. “Until now, we only had a little slice of the near-infrared spectrum from Hubble, and a few brightness measurements from Spitzer.”
    The team noticed almost immediately that there were several distinct light-curve shapes. At any given time, some wavelengths were growing brighter, while others were becoming dimmer or not changing much at all. A number of different factors must be affecting the brightness variations.
    “Imagine watching Earth from far away. If you were to look at each color separately, you would see different patterns that tell you something about its surface and atmosphere, even if you couldn’t make out the individual features,” explained co-author Philip Muirhead, also from Boston University. “Blue would increase as oceans rotate into view. Changes in brown and green would tell you something about soil and vegetation.”

    To figure out what could be causing the variability on SIMP 0136, the team used atmospheric models to show where in the atmosphere each wavelength of light was originating.
    “Different wavelengths provide information about different depths in the atmosphere,” explained McCarthy. “We started to realize that the wavelengths that had the most similar light-curve shapes also probed the same depths, which reinforced this idea that they must be caused by the same mechanism.”
    One group of wavelengths, for example, originates deep in the atmosphere where there could be patchy clouds made of iron particles. A second group comes from higher clouds thought to be made of tiny grains of silicate minerals. The variations in both of these light curves are related to patchiness of the cloud layers.
    A third group of wavelengths originates at very high altitude, far above the clouds, and seems to track temperature. Bright “hot spots” could be related to auroras that were previously detected at radio wavelengths, or to upwelling of hot gas from deeper in the atmosphere.
    Some of the light curves cannot be explained by either clouds or temperature, but instead show variations related to atmospheric carbon chemistry. There could be pockets of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide rotating in and out of view, or chemical reactions causing the atmosphere to change over time.
    “We haven’t really figured out the chemistry part of the puzzle yet,” said Vos. “But these results are really exciting because they are showing us that the abundances of molecules like methane and carbon dioxide could change from place to place and over time. If we are looking at an exoplanet and can get only one measurement, we need to consider that it might not be representative of the entire planet.”
    This research was conducted as part of Webb’s General Observer Program 3548.
    The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
    Downloads
    Right click any image to save it or open a larger version in a new tab/window via the browser’s popup menu.
    View/Download all image products at all resolutions for this article from the Space Telescope Science Institute.
    View/Download the research results from The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

    Laura Betz – laura.e.betz@nasa.govNASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
    Margaret W. Carruthers – mcarruthers@stsci.eduSpace Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.
    Hannah Braun – hbraun@stsci.eduSpace Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.

    More Webb News
    More Webb Images
    Webb Science Themes
    Webb Mission Page
    Learn more about brown dwarf discoveries
    Article: Spectroscopy 101

    What is the Webb Telescope?
    SpacePlace for Kids
    En Español
    Ciencia de la NASA
    NASA en español 
    Space Place para niños

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FEMA to Host Housing Resource Fair Mar. 8 in Coffee County

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency

    Headline: FEMA to Host Housing Resource Fair Mar. 8 in Coffee County

    FEMA to Host Housing Resource Fair Mar. 8 in Coffee County

    FEMA is hosting a Housing Resource Fair from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, Mar. 8, in Coffee County at the following location:The Atrium114 North Peterson Ave Douglas, GA 31533                                                                                            The Housing Resource Fair will bring together federal, state and local agencies in one place to offer services and resources to families recovering from Hurricane Helene.  The goal of this collaborative effort is to help connect eligible disaster survivors with affordable housing along with valuable information and resources on their road to recovery.Survivors will meet with local housing organizations, property owners and landlords, as well as gain information on the HEARTS Georgia Sheltering Program, and U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) loans.The Housing Resource Fair is an opportunity for survivors to: Explore affordable housing options and rental assistance programs. Meet with representatives from local housing organizations, landlords and property managers. Gain access to resources for displaced individuals and families. Learn about community partners that will provide educational funding resources to attendees. For FEMA Federal Coordinating Officer Kevin Wallace, the Housing Resource Fair will give survivors that needed one-on-one experience: “We want survivors to know we are here for them and want to see the best outcome, which is moving into safe, sanitary and functioning housing,” he said. “We will walk them through their options to ensure they are aware of the resources that are available to fit their need.”Anyone who was affected by Tropical Storm Debby or Hurricane Helene, whether they have applied for FEMA assistance or not, is welcome to attend.
    jakia.randolph
    Mon, 03/03/2025 – 13:17

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: NASA Marks 110 Years Since Founding of Predecessor Organization

    Source: NASA

    To celebrate the 110th anniversary of the organization that ultimately became NASA, the agency released a new collection of videos to highlight the history of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and the ways it transformed flight over four decades.

    [embedded content]
    A new video collection highlights the history and significance of NASA’s predecessor organization.

    Not long after the beginning of World War I, the United States Congress, concerned that America was lagging behind other countries, created a new committee to advance the nation’s flight technology development. On March 3, 1915, the NACA was founded “to supervise and direct the scientific study of the problems of flight, with a view to their practical solution.”
    While the NACA began as a committee of only 12 leaders representing government, military, and industry, it rapidly expanded through World War II to develop America’s flight capabilities for defense and commercial uses. The organization became home to some of the nation’s best and brightest aeronautical engineers and world-class facilities, transforming into NASA at the dawn of the Space Age in 1958.
    The new video collection highlights some of NACA’s striking historic photography and celebrates this pioneering organization with a brief history of its formation, expansion, and groundbreaking aeronautics research at four centers across the United States — the current homes of NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton Virginia, Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.

    Related Links

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: FEMA Mitigation Experts Offer Rebuilding Advice in Manatee and Sarasota Counties

    Source: US Federal Emergency Management Agency 2

    FEMA Mitigation Experts Offer Rebuilding Advice in Manatee and Sarasota Counties

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla.– As Floridians rebuild, survivors of Hurricanes Milton, Helene and Debby can get free advice on how to rebuild stronger and safer against storms. FEMA mitigation specialists will be available to answer questions and offer free home improvement tips and proven methods to prevent and lessen damage from future disasters.This information is geared for do-it-yourself work and general contractors.FEMA specialists will be available from March 3 through March 15 from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday – Friday and on Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. ET, at the following locations:Manatee County: Home Depot, 5820 E. State Road 64, Bradenton, FL 34208Sarasota County: Home Depot, 4111 Cattleman Road, Sarasota, FL 34233 Mitigation is an effort to reduce the loss of life and property damage by lessening the impact of a disaster through   construction and remodeling best practices.An insurance specialist will be present to answer National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) questions. Disaster Survivor Assistance teams will be on hand to provide updates on FEMA applications and answer questions.Stay in Touch with FEMAIt is important to let FEMA know about any changes to your contact information. You may update contact information or check on the status of your application by:Visiting DisasterAssistance.govCalling FEMA directly at 800-621-3362Using the FEMA appFor the latest information about Hurricane Milton recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4834. For Hurricane Helene recovery information, visit fema.gov/disaster/4828. For Hurricane Debby, visit fema.gov/disaster/4806. Follow FEMA on X at x.com/femaregion4or on Facebook at facebook.com/fema.
    sixto.valentin…
    Mon, 03/03/2025 – 12:45

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Honduran National Sentenced to Ten Months in Prison for Illegal Reentry of Removed Alien

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Luis Daniel Mejia-Gomez, age 41, of Honduras, was sentenced on February 27, 2025, to 10 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion for illegal reentry into the United States by a previously-removed alien.

    According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Mejia-Gomez had previously been removed from the United States in 2001, 2007, and 2020. His removal in 2020 followed his conviction and sentence for illegal reentry. Mejia-Gomez was encountered in the United States after being convicted of driving under the influence in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.

    Mejia-Gomez will be removed from the United States following service of his sentence.

    The case was investigated by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Scalera prosecuted the case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Honduran National Sentenced for Illegal Reentry of Previously Removed Alien

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    HARRISBURG – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Josue Ramon Ayala-Najarro, citizen of Honduras, age 31, was sentenced on February 28, 2025, to four months and nineteen days in prison by United States District Court Judge Julia K. Munley for illegal reentry into the United States by a previously deported alien.

    According to Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Ayala-Najarro was encountered in the United States after being arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia in Adams County, Pennsylvania, on March 1, 2024. Ayala-Najarro had previously been removed from the United States in 2012.

    The case was investigated by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Scalera prosecuted the case.

    # # #

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Thales to equip U.S. Air Force F16 with Helmet Mounted Display

    Source: Thales Group

    Headline: Thales to equip U.S. Air Force F16 with Helmet Mounted Display

    • Thales subsidiary, Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI), has been awarded a contract for Scorpion Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) retrofit kits to support U.S. Air Force (USAF) F-16 HMD modernization. ​ ​
    • The Scorpion HMD kits provide a modern digital platform allowing for enhanced pilot situational awareness with full color symbology and a single display for both day and night operations. The Scorpion HMD kits will replace the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) and allow the USAF a common Scorpion HMD solution across Air Force, Air National Guard and USAF Reserve F-16s.
    • Thales Visionix, a division of Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI), a world leader in the development and integration of advanced optics, motion tracking and symbology for fixed and rotary wing HMDs, will manage the contract.

    Thales subsidiary, Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI), has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force for Scorpion Helmet Mounted Display (HMD) retrofit kits to enhance U.S. Air Force (USAF) F-16 pilot visualization and situational awareness. The award supports modernization of HMDs for active duty F-16 block 40 and 50 aircraft by Thales Visionix, a division of Thales Defense & Security, Inc. (TDSI).

    This contact, issued by the USAF utilizing the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA), is the first of several anticipated delivery orders to modernize the USAF fleet of F-16s with more interoperable technology. The contract arrangement also allows a procurement option for any F-16 NATO partner to modernize with Scorpion kit capability. Initial kits are anticipated to be delivered to the USAF in early ​ 2025.

    The Scorpion HMD kits will replace the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) and allow the USAF a standardized Scorpion HMD solution across Air Force, Air National Guard and USAF Reserve F-16s. Scorpion provides a modern digital platform allowing for enhanced pilot situational awareness with full color symbology and a single display for both day and night operations. Tracking accuracy is also markedly improved, as Scorpion is baselined with Visionix’s precision HObIT (Hybrid Optically based Inertial Tracker) tracker. The HObIT system provides precise tracking through a fusion of inertial-optical technology.

    “Modernization efforts around helmet-mounted displays for aircraft are essential to pilots, as they provide critical real-time information directly in their line of sight, enhancing situational awareness, decision-making, and operational efficiency, while reducing the need to divert attention from the aircraft’s instruments and environment,” said Jim Geraghty, Vice President of Visionix, Thales. “Already supporting F-16 Air National Guard pilots with superior awareness and tracking capability, Scorpion kits will now enhance holistic USAF air dominance.”

    About Thales

    Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies specialized in three business domains: Defence & Security, Aerospace, and Cyber & Digital.

    It develops products and solutions that help make the world safer, greener and more inclusive.

    The Group invests close to €4 billion a year in Research & Development, particularly in key innovation areas such as AI, cybersecurity, quantum technologies, cloud technologies and 6G.

    Thales has close to 81,000 employees in 68 countries. In 2023, the Group generated sales of €18.4 billion.

    About Thales in the USA

    In the United States, Thales has conducted significant research and development, manufacturing, and service capabilities for more than 130 years.

    Today, Thales has 37 locations around the U.S., employing nearly 5,000 people. Working closely with U.S. customers and local partners, Thales is able to meet the most complex requirements for every operating environment.

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Company acquitted in workplace fatality

    Source: Government of Canada regional news (2)

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Commissioner Hester Peirce Announces Crypto Task Force Staff

    Source: Securities and Exchange Commission

    The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the members of the Crypto Task Force staff, which is advising the Commission on matters related to crypto.

    The task force is composed of staff from the Acting Chairman’s office and other divisions and offices across the Commission.

    SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce said, “The Crypto Task Force exhibits deep expertise and an enthusiastic commitment to identifying—with the help of other talented staff across the Commission and interested members of the public—workable solutions to difficult crypto regulatory problems.”

    • Richard Gabbert, Chief of Staff
    • Michael Selig, Chief Counsel
    • Taylor Asher, Chief Policy Advisor
    • Sumeera Younis, Chief of Operations
    • Landon Zinda, Senior Advisor
    • Donald Battle, Senior Advisor
    • Bernard Nolan, Senior Advisor
    • Laura Powell, Senior Advisor
    • Veronica Reynolds, Senior Advisor
    • Christopher Rice, Senior Advisor
    • Mark Sater, Senior Advisor
    • Andrew Schoeffler, Senior Advisor
    • Frank Sensenbrenner, Senior Advisor
    • Robert Teply, Senior Advisor

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: SCHUMER WILL BRING FIRED WESTERN NY VETERAN & BUFFALO VA WORKER AS HIS PERSONAL GUEST TO PRESIDENT TRUMP’S JOINT ADDRESS TO CONGRESS THIS WEEK

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for New York Charles E Schumer
    DOGE & New Admin Have Fired Thousands Of Federal Workers In Past Month, Disproportionally Impacting Vets, Who Make Up 30% Fed Workforce, Uprooting Lives And Directly Impacting Care For Veterans Across Upstate NY
    Alissa Ellman, An Army Veteran Who Is Disabled From Burn Pit Exposure In Afghanistan, Dedicated Her Life To Service And Worked For The Buffalo VA To Help Her Fellow Veterans, But Like Thousands Of Others Found Out She Was Callously Fired Without Warning This Past Week – Now She Is Joining Schumer In Calling For Better Treatment For Our Vets
    Schumer: We Need To Be Increasing Care For Our Veterans In Western NY, Not Firing Them
    U.S. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer today announced he will bring Western NY’s Alissa Ellman, a disabled Army veteran who served in Afghanistan who was suddenly fired this past week from her job working for the Buffalo VA, as his personal guest to attend President Trump’s Joint Session of Congress. Under new DOGE directive and President Trump, hundreds of thousands of federal workers, of which 30% are veterans, have been fired in the past month, including 2,400 VA employees, like Alissa.
    “Alissa Ellman dedicated her life to service for our country, both in the Army, where she suffered injuries, and here in Western NY helping her fellow veterans while working at the Buffalo VA. Firing her, firing veterans and slashing thousands from the VA workforce is outrageous and should be reversed. This is not how you treat our veterans – it’s not just unacceptable, it’s un-American,” said Senator Schumer. “DOGE cuts and Trump’s funding freeze have created chaos in Western NY and kneecapped far too many vets. I am all for cutting out inefficiency, but you use a scalpel, not a chainsaw. Jobs and care for our veterans in Upstate NY is not government waste. Even funding to help vets suffering from toxic burn pit exposure, like Alissa, was put on the chopping block. Our nation told our veterans that if they put their lives and health on the line to protect our freedoms, we would take care of them, and now we need the Trump administration to uphold that promise. I look forward to welcoming Alissa Ellman as my personal guest to President Trump’s address to a Joint Session of Congress as we fight for better treatment of our veterans here in Western NY and across the country.”
    Alissa Ellman said, “I am speaking out because I cannot see how employing veterans in the federal government is fraud, waste, or abuse. Veterans are some of the best people I know. Veterans have sacrificed for this country; they are the ones who have been defrauded – their talents wasted and service abused. For many of us these jobs are more than a job, they are how we continue our service, continue our devotion to make America a better place. I’m not telling you my story for pity; my life will be fine. But we need to be making more thoughtful cuts to the federal workforce, not our vets.”
    Schumer said this fire first, ask questions later approach towards cutting jobs and funding is unacceptable, especially when caring for our veterans. Federal jobs give preference to veterans, allowing them to continue serving our country in what was previously a stable government career, which is why approximately 30 percent of the federal workforce are veterans.
    Schumer in 2022 led the PACT Act to passage in the Senate. The PACT Act extends health coverage for veterans like Alissa who were exposed to burn pit smoke and other environmental hazards that caused cancers and other illnesses during their service. However, in the past month President Trump’s funding & hiring freeze has also led to hundreds of cuts for VA health research, including projects to study burn pit exposure and most recently contracts with VA to help vets with toxic exposure were temporarily suspended. Schumer said this horrific pattern of cuts and firings that is directly impacting our veterans cannot continue, and he is looking forward to welcoming Alissa to demand better treatment for veterans across America.
    These funding cuts have also directly hit care for veterans in Upstate NY, with VA workers being laid off in Rochester, Canandaigua, Buffalo, and just last week in Steuben County at the Bath VA facility impacting treatment for veterans suffering from addiction and substance use disorder. Schumer said now more than ever veterans are concerned about their benefits, and VA staffers are concerned about their jobs especially with the Trump administration saying more mass firings are coming soon. Schumer has been leading the charge to stop this in the Senate, most recently demanding VA Secretary Collins demanding they reverse the mass terminations of VA employees and reinstate the workers ensuring our nation’s veterans receive quality healthcare.
    Biography for Alissa Ellman:
    Alissa Ellman joined the Army National Guard at the age of 17, and she returned from basic training to high school ten days before the September 11th attack which further spurred her desire to serve her country. She deployed to Afghanistan voluntarily from January 2003 to June 2004 as a flight operation specialist. She returned to the Afghanistan with Halliburton from 2005-2008 managing flight line operations in Kandahar. In 2008, Alissa returned to Western New York, started a family and later graduate Magnum Cum Laude from Niagara University with a degree in Special Education.
    In 2018, Alissa was diagnosed with a rare adrenal cancer, pheochromocytoma, associated with toxic burn pit exposure during her service in Afghanistan. After 5 years of treatment at the VA, she was deemed 100% disabled, a diagnosis she never envisioned, but knew that she continued to want to serve her community.
    In December 2023, she began to apply to work at the Buffalo VA working for the education department to help fellow veterans as that means to give back. Not taking the job for the money, receiving only a few dollars more per month on top of her VA disability payments, but to continue to help the community she cared so deeply about, eventually being hired in April 2024.
    She met all the training and meeting production numbers, and in January had a 200% daily production average. When the VA began announcing the cuts under the new administration, she told her friends she was safe because she always exceeded work goals, but she was wrong.
    Last week, Alissa found herself locked out of her computer, with both her and her boss thinking at first it was an error, only to later find out she had been fired. Alissa said she never felt so disrespected after giving so much.
    She will attend President Trump’s Joint Address to Congress Tuesday evening, March 4th as Senator Schumer’s honored guest.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Video: Meeting with Tribal Advisory Committee

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Secretary Kennedy met with tribal leaders and elders from his advisory committee to hear from delegates and affirm his commitment to supporting the health and well-being of Indian Country, a top priority for his administration.
    —

    U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) | http://www.hhs.gov

    http://www.Twitter.com/HHSGov | http://www.Facebook.com/HHS http://www.Instagram.com/HHSGov
    http://www.LinkedIn.com/company/us-department-of-health-and-human-services

    HHS Privacy Policy: http://www.hhs.gov/Privacy.html

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYNtfqg-E7E

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: Alerting on Behalf

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Wade Witmer presents an overview of what alert-on-behalf (AOB) provides, including its purpose, background, and process. Wade also highlights the resources that IPAWS and the Technical Support Services Facility (TSSF) offer to implement AOB.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZqjE6vmmhY

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: IPAWS User Portal

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Kevin Williams presents updates made to the IPAWS User Portal by providing an overview of the refresh and showing new features. This includes visual aids and detailed explanations behind the purpose and expected impact of the refresh.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBgPzcZ7urE

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: Emergency Alert System and National Public Warning System

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Director Centeno discusses the importance of Emergency Alert System (EAS) alerts in creating a robust alert and warning ecosystem. He also provides an overview of the National Public Warning System (NPWS) and its benefits before, during, and after disaster.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBbKsQIdaQU

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: IPAWS Message Design Dashboard

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Chayne Sparagowski presents an overview of what the Message Design Dashboard (MDD) offers Alerting Authorities and how it has positively affected Alert Originators’ knowledge and operations. Chayne shares personal stories of how he received the MDD training and how he has seen it be implemented within his jurisdictions.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrL4hmb2ke4

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: IPAWS Software Certification Program

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Ward Hagood discusses the purpose and goals behind the Software Certification Program including the approach to determining certification requirements and the testing to ensure compliance with security, reliability, and performance standards. Ward touches upon the IPAWS working group and how their feedback has led to program improvement as well.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqWDEM15xZc

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: Missing and Endangered Persons Event Code

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Jian Mei Wu and Eddie Bertola present an overview of the new Missing and Endangered Persons (MEP) event code. They explain the impact that the code will have on IPAWS, Alerting Authorities, Alert Originators, and missing and endangered persons. They also touch upon how the code will aid in safe search and recovery of Indigenous people.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trX4Kms7aUE

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: Introduction and Fireside Chat

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Director Manny Centeno and Deputy Director Wade Witmer informally address IPAWS questions covering the program’s past, present, and future. They discuss the important challenges, strategic initiatives, and desired end goals for IPAWS over the years and moving forward

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suKKeEOT3SA

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: IPAWS Training Series

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Director Manny Centeno and Elton Ushio present and discuss an overview of what the IPAWS Training Series entails and how the increased engagement has had a positive impact on Hawai’i. This includes detailed information about the training’s content, targeted audience, and positive results and after-actions.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjX_fckVmik

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI Video: 2024 Users Conference: Technical Support Services Facility Trainings and Demos

    Source: United States of America – Federal Government Departments (video statements)

    Hector Huyke-Villeneuve highlights the capabilities and resources that the TSSF provides attendees, including training opportunities, live demonstrations, tests, and other useful tools. The TSSF is a 24/7 technical support center for Alerting Authorities to contact for questions, assistance, or bolstering its capabilities.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K-EOMrdEcQ

    MIL OSI Video –