Space Station News

Ammonia is one of several renewable fuels seen as an option to help the maritime industry decarbonize.One of the companies working to unlock the fuel’s potential is Brooklyn, N.Y. based Amogy, developer of an onboard system that feeds liquid ammonia through a cracking process to create hydrogen on demand for power generation via fuel cell—without carbon emissions.Having already demonstrated its technology on an aerial drone, tractor and semi-truck, Amogy is currently working to…

Saab and GMV are collaborating in ASGARD, an EU-funded project that aims to improve maritime security when using GNSS and OSNMA. The project addresses the growing threat of GNSS spoofing and other cyberattacks on navigation systems used in the maritime industry.The ASGARD project, run by Saab and GMV, is an ambitious European Union (EU) initiative that aims to develop advanced technologies to improve Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Open Service Navigation Message Authentication (OSNMA) security in maritime environments.

Life-saving water supplies from a New Zealand navy ship were distributed across Tonga's main island on Friday, as other countries battled the logistics of delivering aid to one of the world's remotest communities.Six days after the South Pacific archipelago was devastated by a volcanic eruption and tsunami that deposited a blanket of ash and polluted its water sources, the HMNZS Aotearoa docked in the capital, Nuku’alofa.The ship carried 250,000 liters of water and desalination equipment able to produce 70,000 litres more per day, New Zealand's High Commission said."Trucks ...

“All the business of war, and indeed all the business of life, is to endeavour to find out what you don’t know by what you do”Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of WellingtonIt is hard to get past headlines painting the portrait of a world besieged physically and economically by a medical crisis on a global scale and a nation that has turned the national spotlight onto the fundamentals of its constitutional democracy, including the persistence of racism, the right to protest and the character of local and national security forces in the United States.

China successfully launched a rocket from a ship at sea for the first time on Wednesday, state media reported, the latest step forward in its ambitious space programme.The Long March 11 rocket blasted off from a platform on a large semi-submersible barge in the Yellow Sea just after midday (0400 GMT), state media said.The small rocket, designed to be deployed quickly and from mobile launch sites such as a ship, carried seven satellites, including one that measures sea-surface winds to forecast typhoons.The rocket also carried two communications satellites belonging to China 125…

The world's largest privately held cruise company MSC Cruises has today announced a new partnership with renowned German chef Harald Wohlfahrt.Voted one of the Top 10 Chefs in the World, and the only German chef to hold a three Michelin Star rating for 25 years in a row, Chef Wohlfahrt represents the best of Germany’s cuisine and embodies MSC Cruises’ commitment to offering new and exciting food options for its guests. Gianni Onorato, MSC Cruises Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The world-class expertise of Chef Wohlfahrt brings an exciting new chapter to our onboard dining experience. Working with partners who embody excellence and innovation…

Brian Salerno was sworn in as the Director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) on August 26, 2013. He is responsible for promoting safety, protecting the environment and conserving resources through the vigorous regulatory oversight and enforcement of offshore operations on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. Prior to his appointment as Bureau Director, Salerno served as the U.S. Coast Guard’s Deputy Commandant for Operations where he was responsible for establishing and providing operational strategy…

1861 - During the Civil War, the frigate, USS St. Lawrence, spots a schooner flying English colors and gave chase. Some four hours later, as she is overhauling the schooner, the fleeing vessel runs up the Confederate flag and fires three shots. Firing with her forecastle battery, St. Lawrence hits the vessel twice, once in her bow. Survivors from the sunken vessel reveal it had been the Confederate privateer, Petrel. 1926 - USS S-1 surfaces and launches a Cox-Klemin (XS 2) seaplane flown by Lt. D.C. Allen.

More than 500 people attended SUNY Maritime College’s annual Admiral’s Scholarship Dinner to honor Tom Higgins, chief administrative officer of First Data, and astronaut Capt. Scott Kelly. “Both of these men have achieved extraordinary heights,” said Rear Adm. Michael Alfultis, college president. Higgins, a member of the college’s class of 1980, was the event’s honoree. He leads First Data’s version of homeland security operations, including cyber security, physical security, business resiliency and crisis management. He spent more than 20 years working for the federal government. A Navy veteran, throughout his career Higgins has been an active advocate for veterans support and employment programs.

The research vessel Neil Armstrong arrived to its home port at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) dock for the first time Wednesday, escorted by the WHOI coastal research vessel R/V Tioga, two Coast Guard vessels and fireboats from neighboring towns. “What a wonderful day for Woods Hole, for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, for Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the entire ocean science community,” enthused WHOI President and Director Mark Abbott. “We’re very proud to have been selected by the Office of Naval Research to operate the Neil Armstrong. Six years ago, the U.S.

Crew members of Great Britain wave goodbye after setting off for Race 9 at the Clipper 2015-16 Round the World Yacht Race in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Today,  March 20, 2016. Clipper Round the World Yacht Race - Renowned by many as one of the toughest features of the circumnavigation, the fleet departs Qingdao for The Seattle Pacific Challenge from China to Seattle, USA, on Sunday. The mighty Pacific Ocean is the world’s largest and at times, the closest humans to the teams will be those on the International Space Station some 300 miles above them. The 2016 edition of Asia’s most exciting race marks another chapter as the number of international entries continues to rise and swells the entries to 34.

The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have announced a five-year agreement allowing BSEE to capitalize on the best risk management approaches from the aeronautics industry to inform stakeholders and further strengthen worker and environmental safety protections on the Outer Continental Shelf. “Both BSEE and NASA work in harsh and uncompromising environments, relying on cutting edge technology to go deeper and further than previously thought possible,” said BSEE Director Brian Salerno. •    assess failures and near miss occurrences using the resources and expertise of NASA's accredited failure analysis laboratory at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Late last night, SUNY Maritime College alumnus Scott Kelly, ’87, felt Earth’s gravity for the first time in nearly a year. The astronaut safely landed in Kazakhstan after plummeting hundreds of miles to Earth from the International Space Station with Russian astronaut Mikhail Kornienko. The two have spent more than 11 months on the International Space Station to determine the effect of extended amounts of time in space on the human body. “All of us at SUNY Maritime are thrilled to have Scott back on Earth…

Shipbuilders at Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding division have installed more than 14 million feet of electrical and fiber optic cable on the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)—enough to reach from Earth to the International Space Station more than 10 times, the shipbuilder said. Gerald R. Ford’s design makes a significant leap to electrical power, according to its builders. With more than 10 million feet of electrical cable and 4 million of fiber optic cable…

There is a global boom in the development of unmanned systems, from below the ocean’s surface to high in the sky to the world’s roads. Add to this list the maritime industry, on both military and civilian vessels. Maritime Reporter & Engineering News examines in depth recent developments taking place in Europe to discover general thoughts and technical trends driving the future of unmanned shipping. The joint European Research Project MUNIN was finalized in August 2015, a project…

The U.S. Coast Guard informs it is working with SpaceX and partner agencies to monitor the debris field of the exploded Falcon 9 rocket in the Atlantic Ocean more than 150 miles off the Florida-Georgia coast. The unmanned SpaceX CRS-7 rocket was meant to deliver supplies, hardware and other cargo to the International Space Station, but a launch failure caused it to explode just after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on June 28. The Coast Guard has issued caution to vessels transiting the area and is asking the public to report any sightings of debris that may wash ashore.

Today in U.S. 1916 - Navy establishes a Code and Signal Section which initially worked against German ciphers and tested the security of communications during U.S. naval training maneuvers. 1945 - USS Callaghan (DD-792) is last ship sunk by a Japanese kamikaze attack, off Okinawa. 1973 - Launch of Skylab 3, the second manned mission to the first U.S. manned space station, was piloted by Major Jack R. Lousma, USMC with Capt. Alan L. Bean, USN as the Commander of the mission and former Navy electronics officer, Owen K. Garriott as Science Pilot.

Kongsberg Seatex announced the launch of a new generation of Blue Force (BF) Automatic Identification Systems (AIS), the AIS 300BF. The unit, which supersedes the current AIS 200BF, offers outstanding secure mode abilities alongside unique AIS receiver sensitivity and robustness – refinements made possible by Kongsberg Seatex’s involvement in a number of pioneering AIS space projects. The AIS 300BF is tailor-made for vessels undertaking demanding coast guard, antipiracy, navy and boarder police operations.

Midé Technology Corp., founded in 1989 by MIT PhD. Marthinus van Schoor, is a company created around the design and engineering of smart material based systems and solutions. Historically, the company has not served any specific industry, in fact, it has served many of them, including: work on the international space station; energy harvesting systems on trains; underwater thermally controlled buoyancy systems; and, most recently, work with the U.S. Navy and the commercial marine industry. In 2004, Midé won a contract from the U.S. Navy to develop a novel bulkhead shaft seal using one of its smart materials, hydrogel embedded foam, a need born out of a situation where a worn out bulkhead seals nearly led to catastrophe.

With the ocean moving more than 90% of world commerce, keeping it secure is of vital importance – yet our ability to monitor activity at sea is somewhat more challenging than on land given the vastness of the oceans. Also many maritime monitoring systems rely on ships to ‘opt-in’, that can leave potentially risky blind spots in our picture of maritime traffic. This article, derived from a presentation that David Beard of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory gave at the recent DMC and NovaSAR International Conference…

SeaOrbiter, the first space station of the sea, is launching a crowd funding campaign on KissKissBankBank to finance the construction of the “Eye” of the vessel, to start in spring 2014. The Eye of the SeaOrbiter will be 18 meters (59 ft) high above the surface of the sea, with the overall vessel measuring 58 meters (190 ft). It will support the crow’s nest and the suite of communications systems that will allow the team to broadcast their adventures live. Life aboard, explorations, discoveries, and great scientific advancements will all be documented through the Eye’s technological prowess.

From Navy News Service:   1952 - USS Iowa (BB 61) bombards Chongjin, Korea. 1973 - Launch of Skylab 2 mission, which was first U.S. manned orbiting space station. It had an all Navy crew of Capt. Charles Conrad Jr. (commanding), Cmdr. Joseph P. Kerwin, and Cmdr. Paul J. Weitz.       For more information about naval history, visit the Naval Historical Center Web site at http://www.history.navy.mil.

Today in U.S. 1865 - In largest amphibious operation of war, Union forces capture Ft. Fisher, Wilmington, N.C., by joint amphibious force. 1997 - Navy physician Capt. Jerry Lineger joined the crew of the MIR space station after being launched on Atlantis during space Shuttle Mission STS-81. Prior to the mission, he was trained at the Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia for over a year. For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.