Ball Aerospace Satellite Surveys Close-Range Asteroids For NASA

A Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.-built spacecraft is being employed by NASA in order to locate potentially hazardous asteroids near the Earth.

Ball announced Thursday that in using the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, NASA has found there to be nearly 4,700 of the asteroids, the closest of which comes within five million miles…

Oceus Forms Team To Develop Navy 4G Ship Network; Cal Shintani Comments

Oceus Networks has added two companies to its contract team for creating a mobile communications network on Navy ships, Oceus announced Thursday.

Cambrium Networks and Broadband Antenna Tracking Systems will provide wireless point-to-point radios and antenna tracking for the networking project.

Cal Shintani, chief growth officer for Oceus, said the goal of…

AF Tests Laser Munitions On Boeing B-1 For 1st Time; Stuart Newberry Comments

The U.S. Air Force tested laser joint direct attack munitions on the Boeing-built B-1 Lancer jet this week, the force announced Thursday.

During the tests from Monday to Wednesday B-1 aircrews used the munitions against moving targets.

Aircrews from the 34th and 37th Bomb Squadrons used the GBU-54 laser JDAMs against targets on a testing…

FBI: Reported Cyber Crimes Cost $485M In 2011

Crimes reported to the FBI’s Internet crime center in 2011 cost $485.3 million total, Molly Walker writes on FierceGovernment IT.

In 2011, the FBI received 314,246 complaints of Internet-related crime activity, up 3.4 percent from 2010.

The agency indicates this is the third year in a row it has received more than 300,000 reported issues, Walker…

Northrop Tests Anti-Ship Laser Weapon System; Steve Hixson Comments

Northrop Grumman Corp. recently tested its newest version of solid-state lasers, which Gizmag’s David Szondy writes marks progress toward practical application of laser weapon systems.

The defense contracting firm tested its Gamma FireStrike laser system May 1 at its Redondo Beach facility.

During the test, the laser burned through and parts of a target drone that was…

Raytheon BBN Helping DARPA With Language Translation Tech

Raytheon‘s BBN Technologies subsidiary is developing two-way technologies for translating languages such as Arabic into English in real-time, Fox News reports. 

The subsidiary is develping program for Android devices that military officers would use for communication, intelligence gathering and training, according to writer Allison Barrie. 

Soldiers could also use TransTalk patrols and search missions, understanding information over loudspeakers and for…

NTIA Officials Highlight Industry Role In First Responder Net, Spectrum

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is working to help create a national communications network for first responders, Mark Rockwell writes on GSN magazine.

Larry Strickling, NTIA’s assistant secretary for communications and information, spoke at the APCO Public Safety Broadband Summit in Washington on Tuesday.

He indicated it will cost beyond the existing $7 billion and…

Marines Considering Small UAS That Explodes On Impact

The Marine Corps is testing a drone that could identify a potential target, track it and explode on impact, James Sanborn writes for the Military Times. 

Switchblade drones weigh 5.5 pounds each and could be carried in a Marine pack.

A soldier could set up a small tube and launch the aircraft with a remote controller, Sanborn explains. 

Once launched, the…

NIST Combines IT Supply Chain Safety Ideas In Draft Report

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has issued the second draft of its federal information technology supply chain risk management report, GCN reports.

NIST outlined 10 practices agencies should exercise in order to minimize risks in IT supply chain systems, GCN’s William Jackson writes.

The list consolidates 21 practices included in the original…

Microsoft To Provide Cloud Tools For LA Community Colleges

The Los Angeles Community College District has chosen Microsoft to provide cloud-based online communication and collaboration services to the district, Information Week reports.

Microsoft will deploy its Live@edu online suite to more than 250,000 faculty and student members in that district, Paul McDougall writes. 

The agreement is the result of a three-year evaluation process…