GMV invests in PLD Space

GMV invests in PLD Space Madrid, Spain (SPX) Jan 10, 2017 - The International Tech Company GMV, with an important presence in the global space sector, has decided to trust in the PLD Space project and will take part in the ownership of the young space company as shareholder. GMV will also develop key technology and will work together with PLD Space in the development of the ARION 1 and ARION 2 launchers, an activity that will enable both companies to gro ... more

Cities vie to hop on super-speedy hyperloop rail Las Vegas (AFP) Jan 7, 2017 - US startup Hyperloop One on Friday disclosed a list of locations around the world vying to put near-supersonic rail transit system to the test. The startup company keen to revolutionize the way people and cargo travel said that 35 contenders remained from a field of 2,600 teams in a Hyperloop One Grand Challenge launched in May 2015. Viable submissions had to be condoned by government ag ... more

U.K. Defense Ministry finalizes laser weapon system contract London (UPI) Jan 6, 2017 - Britain's Ministry of Defense has awarded MBDA and other industry partners a $36 million contract to produce a Laser Directed Energy Weapon demonstrator. The contract, which aims to allow Britain's first laser weapon to enter service by the mid-2020s, will task contractors to assess the technology's capabilities. Project leaders hope to demonstrate the system in 2019. "The U.K. h ... more

U.S. Air Force issues RFP for aircraft laser weapons Washington (UPI) Jan 6, 2017 - The U.S. Air Force has issued a request for proposal to develop laser protection systems for its fleet of tactical fighter aircraft. The competitive request aims to solicit research for the Air Force Research Laboratory's Laser Advancements for Next-generation Compact Environments project, or LANCE. Under the program, researchers will investigate laser-based solutions for defending pilo ... more

SecAF highlights progress at AFA breakfast Washington DC (AFNS) Jan 09, 2017 - Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James addressed the Air Force Association's Air Force Breakfast Series Jan. 6, at the Key Bridge Marriot in Arlington, Virginia. James began her presentation by reflecting on her appointment as the 23rd Secretary of the Air Force. "It was the honor of my professional life time - hands down - and I want to reiterate that," she said. "These past three ye ... more

DARPA's networks of the sea enter next stage Washington DC (SPX) Jan 09, 2017 - DARPA's Tactical Undersea Network Architecture (TUNA) program recently completed its initial phase, successfully developing concepts and technologies aimed at restoring connectivity for U.S. forces when traditional tactical networks are knocked offline or otherwise unavailable. The program now enters the next phase, which calls for the demonstration of a prototype of the system at sea. TUN ... more

Weather delays resumption of SpaceX's rocket launches Washington (AFP) Jan 9, 2017 - Bad weather has postponed SpaceX's plan to resume flights of its Falcon 9 rocket until at least January 14, the California-based private space firm said Sunday. SpaceX had planned a launch on Monday of 10 Iridium NEXT communications satellites from the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. "Launch moving due to high winds and rains at Vandenberg. Other range conflicts this week result ... more

AF looks to ensure cyber resiliency in weapons systems through new office Hanscom AFB MA (AFNS) Jan 09, 2017 - The Air Force, through its Life Cycle Management Center, has stood up the Cyber Resiliency Office for Weapons Systems (CROWS). Although the office's primary operating location and senior leadership will be at Hanscom Air Force Base, contributing staff will come from various Air Force organizations and geographic locations. It will focus on integrating activities across the Air Force to ens ... more

Astronomer predicts red nova explosion to light up the sky in 2022 Grand Rapids, Mich. (UPI) Jan 9, 2017 - Lawrence Molnar, a professor of astronomy and physics at Calvin College, has crunched the numbers on KIC 9832227, a contact binary star system. According to his math, the two stars will collide and explode in 2022, generating a red nova. The light generated by the explosion will register at a magnitude 2 - as bright as Polaris, the North Star. "It's a one-in-a-million chance tha ... more

ELFI: Engine for Likelihood-Free Inference facilitates more effective simulation Espoo, Finland (SPX) Jan 06, 2017 - The Engine for Likelihood-Free Inference is open to everyone, and it can help significantly reduce the number of simulator runs. Researchers have succeeded in building an engine for likelihood-free inference, which can be used to model reality as accurately as possible in a simulator. The engine may revolutionise the many fields in which computational simulation is utilised. This dev ... more