DSIAC collects and publishes articles related to our technical focus areas on the web to share with the DoD community.
Researchers at MIT have developed a plane capable of flying without any moving parts, reports MIT Technology Review . The feat was achieved using electroaerodynamic propulsion, which uses a pair of electrodes to push around ions and create ionic wind. The phenomenon has been known about since the 1960s (in fact, Apple even considered using
While the Navy may ultimately engineer a replacement for its 1980s era Trident II D5, the missile is being modernized with improved electronics, firing circuitry, and targeting technology to arm the emerging Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines. A new, life-extended variant of the weapon, called the Trident II D5LE, was first installed in 2017, arming the
What is the real need behind the U.S. Army”s proposed long-range cannon that can shoot out to 1,000 miles or more? It could be used to conduct a strategic or tactical strike in support of the other military services, or to take out targets before service members get to the battlespace, according to the top
At 2:49 a.m. EST on March 2, SpaceX launched Crew Dragon’s first demonstration mission from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This test flight without crew on board the spacecraft is intended to demonstrate SpaceX’s capabilities to safely and reliably fly astronauts to and from the International Space Station as
U.S. Air Force researchers are asking industry for new enabling technologies in fast attack planning on valuable and enemy moving targets that offer only a fleeting time window to carry out successful missions. Officials of the Air Force Research Laboratory”s Information Directorate in Rome, N.Y., issued a broad agency announcement (FA875019S7009) last week for the
Rolls-Royce is unveiling its manufacturing plans as it pursues the Air Force”s much anticipated B-52H re-engining program. The service is planning to embark on a major recapitalization effort that will outfit its aging fleet of B-52 Stratofortress heavy bombers with new engines that will keep them flying through the 2050s. Each bomber is currently equipped
ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. – U.S. Army researchers are surveying industry for radar technologies to protect armored combat vehicles from enemy weapons, as well as to detect and locate enemy fire. Officials of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC) at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., issued a request for information (W56KGU-19-X-0001) on Friday for
On Jan. 24, Gen. Maryanne Miller, head of Air Mobility Command, took the stage in Seattle and accepted the ceremonial keys to a new KC-46 airplane. She begrudgingly acknowledged to the assembled Boeing employees that she was really just the understudy. The scheduled headliner — Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson — had a hiccup in
The final comment in a June 2018 National Defense article, “Pentagon Set to Boost Spending on High-Tech Armaments,” was perhaps the most telling: “If anybody tells you that the future is nothing but lasers on the battlefield … they are not very well informed. There is a place for directed energy and there is a
A new kind of data-driven public/private partnership is emerging as the number of dockless vehicles in cities grows. Both government entities and “urban mobility solution providers” — think app-based rental scooters from Uber, Lime and Bird — stand to benefit by sharing information such as vehicle use, curb regulations and traffic statistics. Cities regulate curbs,
Multiple design deficiencies found during post-delivery testing of the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion will delay operational testing and entry to service with the Marine Corps until at least 2021, according to the U.S. Defense Department Director of Test and Evaluation’s annual report. A planned initial operational capability (IOC) declaration in December 2019 “will be delayed”
ABU DHABI–An industry team consisting of Lockheed Martin, Saab, and Diehl Defence, have unveiled a new air defense system, known as the Falcon at IDEX 2019 in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates. The three companies are aiming for the Falcon to replace the UAE’s aging Hawk air defense systems–and potentially those of other