SPACE IMAGING of Denver announced the first major photogrammetric software companies that will incorporate into their software suites the ability to orthorectify - correct for terrain distortions - IKONOS satellite imagery. Users of ERDAS IMAGINE OrthoBASE, Z/I Imaging's ImageStation OrthoPro or PCI Geomatics' Geomatica OrthoEngine will soon be able to orthorectify IKONOS satelite imagery using Space Imaging's newest product, Geo Ortho Kit. Geo Ortho Kit consists of a high-resolution Geo image derived from the IKONOS satellite and an Image Geometry Model digital file.
U.S. defense spending, now about 3 percent of the nation's gross domestic product, should eventually go up by one-sixth, to 3.5 percent of GDP, to reduce the risk of war, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said July 11. Wolfowitz testified before the House Budget Committee that the U.S. has historically spent an average of about 8 percent of GDP on defense, partly because it hasn't spent enough in peacetime to prepare for and prevent war.
Lockheed Martin Missiles&Fire Control of Orlando, Fla., has delivered the first six Airborne Laser missile defense system infrared sensors to the Boeing Co., Boeing announced July 11.
U.S. Air Force Gen. Ralph Eberhart, commander in chief of U.S. Space Command, said July 11 that he expects the Bush Administration's defense budgets in fiscal 2003 and beyond will provide significant increases for national security space programs.
Raytheon Corp. is spending $6 million of its own money on plans to downsize and modernize the current Patriot missile system hardware to keep it effective through 2028. Among other improvements, these plans would result in the "Patriot Light," a system with downsized command and control equipment, both at the battalion and the fire unit.
ORBITAL SCIENCES CORP. of Dulles, Va., announced that the Southeastern Michigan Snow and Ice Management program has selected its satellite-based ORBTRAC-100 system to track and manage some of its fleet of road maintenance vehicles. The ORBTRAC-100 system, designed and developed by Orbital's Transportation Management Systems Division, of Columbia, Md., will use Global Positioning System satellite technology to track the location and status of road maintenance vehicles, dispatching snowplows to the most critical areas in need during major storms.
NASA and the Department of Transportation are testing a new in-flight tracking system intended to keep up with aircraft flying over the Gulf of Mexico. The Advanced Air Transportation Technologies (AATT) project is being tested offshore from Intracoastal City, La. NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., and the DOT's Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Cambridge, Mass., are evaluating the operational benefits of the system for fleet management in the Gulf.
NASA's Genesis mission, slated to launch July 30, will bring back a sample of the solar wind - tiny particles that could answer big questions about how the solar system evolved. The particles "will be the best and most complete picture" that scientists will have of the original solar nebula, from which the sun, Earth and other planets formed, Meenakshi Wadhwa, a cosmochemist from Chicago's Field Museum, said at a July 11 press conference to discuss the mission.
A Boeing Commercial executive said July 10 that the company's new Sonic Cruiser will have fuel efficiency similar to current long-range jets and will offer several other environmentally friendly advantages. John Roundhill, VP-marketing for new airplane programs, told the Royal Aeronautical Society in London that the airplane's fuel use "will be similar to the newest, similarly sized airplanes being delivered today," Aerospace Daily affiliate Aviation Daily reported.
The U.S. defense budget now before Congress would make only modest overall increases in modernization funding for the Air Force, but they could lead to new life for the B-1B Lancer bomber fleet even as its size is cut, service leaders have told a House panel.
Administration officials testifying before the House Committee on International Relations July 11 urged representatives to pass the Senate's version of the Export Administration Act before Congress adjourns for its August recess. The existing Export Administration Act, which regulates what technologies may be exported and to which countries, was first enacted by Congress in 1979. Congress has passed several temporary extensions of the law since then, and the current extension is set to expire Aug. 20.
The Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) hopes to go two for four when it conducts the latest test of its Midcourse Defense Segment (MDS) missile defense system July 14, which it said will be the most challenging one yet. The $100 million test includes the planned intercept of a modified Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile, to be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California sometime between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. eastern daylight time. It will carry a mock warhead and a single decoy.
The Senate July 10 voted to temporarily block the U.S. Air Force from using fiscal 2001 funds to cut the B-1B bomber fleet. The measure, approved as an amendment to the FY '01 supplemental spending bill, was sponsored by Sen. Max Cleland (D-Ga.) and other senators whose states stand to lose B-1Bs if the Air Force proceeds with its plan to shrink the fleet from 93 to 60 and reduce the number of B-1B installations from five to two. The supplemental still has to be resolved with the House-passed version, which does not contain the B-1B provision.
NASA's unmanned, solar-powered Helios aircraft, originally scheduled to attempt a flight to 100,000 feet in May, is now tentatively slated to make the flight next month, a NASA spokesman said July 10. The aircraft, with a wingspan of 247 feet, has encountered a series of minor problems at the Barking Sands Airfield on Kaui in Hawaii that have delayed the functional check flight (FCF) that is required before the attempt at 100,000 feet can be made.
APA AERO PROPULSION ALLIANCE GMBH has been established as a new joint venture to manage the design, development, certification, manufacture, marketing and support of the TP400 turboprop engine selected by Airbus Military to power the A400M military transport aircraft. FiatAvio of Italy, ITP of Spain, MTU Aero Engines of Germany, Rolls-Royce of the United Kingdom, Snecma Moteurs of France and Techspace-Aero of Belgium formed the alliance, which is headquartered in Munich, Germany.
PEREGRINE SEMICONDUCTOR of San Diego has introduced new PE9302 and PE9303 radiation-hardened 3.5 GHz prescalers for space and defense applications, the company announced. Mass production of the prescalers is slated for September. The PE9302 and PE9393 are CMOS prescalers designed for low-power operation. "Peregrine's new monolithic CMOS prescalers are innovative products that offer superior integrated functionality to the RF components of advanced satellite and military systems," said Stav Prodromou, Peregrine's president and CEO.
The European Commission announced July 9 it has formed an advisory group to represent the interests of European satellite communications operators. The group, called the European Satellite Operators Association, was formed during a Satellite Action Plan conference in Brussels, where representatives of Europe's biggest satellite companies are discussing industry trends with EC officials. The focus of this year's conference is assessing the space-based contribution to radio communications services.
The Royal Aeronautical Society named Rolls-Royce's John Marshall, project leader for Trent 500 engine aerodynamics, as the winner of the Sir Roy Fedden Award on July 10. The award is presented for outstanding aerospace propulsion research. Marshall was honored for his work in measuring the behavior of fan blades under extreme conditions.
Raytheon Co. executives expressed confidence July 10 that the most serious problems encountered in the Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS) are behind them, and FAA Administrator Jane Garvey introduced the system to the public via a new $500,000 mobile unit that will tour national terminal radar approach control (TRACON) facilities for the next year.
Despite efforts by the U.S. Defense Department and Air Force to speed testing and reduce costs, the F-22 Raptor air dominance fighter program remains as much as two years behind schedule in some areas and cost are still rising, Pentagon officials have told a Senate panel. "We are behind in testing right now, but we are not going to rush testing," Darleen Druyun, the acting Air Force acquisition chief, testified July 10 before the Senate Armed Services Committee's airland forces subcommittee.
The Navy continues to need roughly $10 billion more a year to meet its requirements for procuring aircraft, ships and other weapons, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Vernon Clark said July 10.
A House Appropriations subcommittee July 10 approved a fiscal 2002 spending bill that adds $275 million to the Bush Administration's NASA budget request to revive plans for a crew return vehicle (CRV) on the International Space Station.
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor is monitoring the largest dust storm to be seen on Mars since the spacecraft arrived there in 1997, the space agency announced July 9. The dust storm is currently raging across half the planet, according to NASA, which will keep a close eye on the storm to make sure it doesn't affect the approaching 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft.
Alliant Techsystems (ATK) has extended two Titan IV B production and launch operations contracts with Lockheed Martin, the Minneapolis-based company announced July 10. The first extension, valued at $1.2 million, will continue ATK launch support activities at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., from March 2002 to September 2002.
Alenia Aerospazio and Aeronavali of Italy, both Finmeccanica companies, have signed a memorandum of agreement with the Boeing Co. to become partners in the development, production and support of a tanker/transport version of the Boeing 767 commercial aircraft. The memorandum of agreement with Boeing follows a request for proposals from the Italian defense ministry for a new tanker transport aircraft. Boeing's 767 aircraft was chosen by the Italians last week as the tanker system to meet its requirements.
