US Hearing to Review Arctic Policy
The Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, chaired by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), will hold a hearing next week to review U.S. policy in the Arctic and how the agencies with the largest presence in the Arctic intend to implement such policy. It is declared U.S. policy, relative to the Arctic region, to meet national security and homeland security needs, protect the environment, ensure sustainable natural resource management and development, strengthen institutions for cooperation among Arctic nations…
U.S. Navy's AGOR 27: R/V Neil Armstrong
On March 29, the Ocean Class Auxiliary General Oceanographic Research (AGOR) vessel hull number 27 started its official life as the R/V Neil Armstrong, the first research vessel named after a space explorer. Carol Armstrong, the widow of the famed astronaut, performed the christening duties during a brief sunbreak on a windy and rainy Pacific Northwest afternoon. The number of illustrious speakers highlighted the rich diversity of agencies involved in the design, construction and operation of the vessel.
U.S. Navy eyes greater presence in Arctic from 2025
The U.S. Navy is mapping out how to expand its presence in the Arctic beginning around 2020, given signs that the region's once permanent ice cover is melting faster than expected, which is likely to trigger more traffic, fishing and resource mining. "The Arctic is all about operating forward and being ready. We don't think we're going to have to do war-fighting up there, but we have to be ready," said Rear Admiral Jonathan White, the Navy's top oceanographer and navigator, and director of the Navy's climate change task force. "We don't want to have a demand for the Navy to operate up there, and have to say, 'Sorry, we can't go,'" he said.
