>>20536494

TYB

Reentry of International Space Station (ISS) batteries into Earth’s atmosphere

08/03/2024

The European Space Agency (ESA) Space Debris and Independent Safety Offices are closely monitoring the reentry of a pallet of used ISS batteries and calculating estimates for when and where the reentry will occur.

The batteries, nine in total, were released on 11 January 2021 and will undergo a natural reentry, which is now predicted for around 18:56 CET on 8 March +/- 0.4 days.

The total mass of the batteries is estimated at 2.6 metric tonnes, most of which may burn up during the reentry. While some parts may reach the ground, the casualty risk – the likelihood of a person being hit – is very low.

The reentry will occur between -51.6 degrees South and 51.6 degrees North. Large uncertainties, primarily driven by fluctuating levels of atmospheric drag, prevent more precise predictions at this time. The closer we get to the expected reentry window, the better the concerned region can be geographically constrained.

ESA is monitoring the object and, upon request, providing ESA Member States with the latest predictions for the time and location of the reentry, which they then combine with their own analyses.

A large space object reenters the atmosphere in a natural way approximately once per week, with the majority of the associated fragments burning up before reaching the ground. Most spacecraft, launch vehicles and operational hardware are designed to limit the risks associated with a reentry.

https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Space_Debris/Reentry_of_International_Space_Station_ISS_batteries_into_Earth_s_atmosphere

Mining Lithium in Argentina

January 14, 2024

Some of the largest known deposits of lithium—a soft silvery metal that powers batteries in cell phones, laptops, and electric vehicles—lie in one of the driest places on Earth. Much of the surveyed deposits of this metal are located in the arid salt flats of South America, where Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia meet.

The Altiplano-Puna Plateau is an elevated 500,000-square-kilometer area in the Central Andes, and the second highest plateau on Earth after the Tibetan Plateau. Several climatic and geologic factors converged in these dry plains to create large underground lithium deposits.

The Altiplano-Puna sits on one of Earth’s largest known reservoirs of active magma. Although the area receives very little precipitation (less than 30 centimeters [12 inches] a year), hydrothermal fluids associated with this volcanic activity naturally replenish underground aquifers. Over time, rocks containing trace quantities of lithium have weathered causing the metal to build up in the aquifers. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, about half of the world’s measured lithium resources are in these underground deposits in Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile, an area known as the “lithium triangle.”

The image above, acquired by the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8, shows lithium mines in northwestern Argentina’s Jujuy province, near the country’s border with Chile. The light blue evaporation ponds of the mines stand out. The mines are located just south of a large salt flat, known as the Salar de Olaroz.

To harvest the lithium, wells are tapped into the lithium-rich brine beneath the surface. They shunt the brine toward rectangular evaporation ponds lined with plastic. Once there, the briny mixture stays in the ponds for months at a time, where sunshine and wind separate out lithium, salt, and other substances through evaporation. This lithium-rich solution is then processed into lithium carbonate or lithium hydroxide.

Landsat images show the mine immediately adjacent to Salar de Olaroz has expanded several times since 2016, and it is now one of the largest lithium mines in Argentina. In 2018, evaporation ponds were developed for another mine 2 kilometers to the south. Global production of lithium has increased almost ten-fold over the last two decades, from approximately 15,000 metric tons in 2001 to 146,000 metric tons in 2022.

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/152528/mining-lithium-in-argentina

DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4

March 7, 2024

More than 4,000 service members and civilians from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Space Force, as well as members from United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, France and Japan, participated in Project Convergence Capstone Four at Camp Pendleton and Fort Irwin in February and March.

The Department of the Air Force's role in the Army-led experiment was to provide a multi-service synchronized air picture, enabling decision making up- and down- echelon and across the joint force with mission partners and allies.

“The Air Force is using several TOC-Ls, or Tactical Operations Center-Light, a mobile and tactical C2 battle management system, bringing hundreds of data feeds together to create an air picture,” said Brig. Gen. Luke Cropsey, Department of the Air Force Integrating Program Executive Officer for Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management. “This provides information across command-and-control nodes, ultimately allowing us to make decisions faster than the pacing challenge.”

Project Convergence is a continuous experiment with many exercises and experiments taking place throughout the year. The capstone will aid in developing new strategies and skills to advance modernization, concepts and integrated technologies.

“We’ve seen several successful firsts, specifically with integrated fires and cruise missile defense, showcasing how we can use TOC-L today while also leveraging lessons learned and improving our C2 processes for decision advantage,” said Brig. Gen. Daniel Clayton, Advanced Battle Management System Cross-Functional Team director. “These experiments allow us to continue honing our programs, while also demonstrating how valuable being ‘integrated by design’ can be with the other services and mission partners. Integrating from the beginning is key to successful capability development and modernizing command and control now.”

The joint experiment allows for continuous learning to inform future readiness and modernization activities and helps inform reliable network systems, data-driven decisions and joint warfighting concepts.

The capstone was the largest two-phase experiment to date, with enduring objectives and learning demands evolving from the Project Convergence campaign of persistent experimentation. The experiment aids senior leaders with decision-making for designing and delivering a future force while also strengthening joint and multinational partnerships.

The first Project Convergence capstone events started in 2020, and the most recent capstone took place in November 2022. Each capstone event works on transforming how future warfighters will operate in fast-paced, high-tech, multi-domain environments.

https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3699914/daf-delivers-lethality-at-the-speed-of-data-during-project-convergence-capstone/

Partnered to win: VCJCS visits Space Systems Command

March 7, 2024

The commander of Space Systems Command U.S. Space Force Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant and his command-leadership team welcomed the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. Navy Adm. Christopher W. Grady for a senior leader tour of SSC headquarters on Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo, Calif., March 7, 2024.

This visit provided the chairman, SSC, and its commercial partners the opportunity to facilitate discussion on how the command’s mission areas support the joint force and enable the warfighter’s ability to combat threats in space.

SSC’s focus on driving a more resilient on-orbit posture is necessary to secure the Nation's interests in, from and to space.

https://www.ssc.spaceforce.mil/Newsroom/Article-Display/Article/3700418/partnered-to-win-vcjcs-visits-space-systems-command

>>20536799

AARO report: Most UAP sightings misidentification of ‘ordinary objects’

MAR 8, 2024 / 10:57 AM CST

A report by the Department of Defense office tasked with investigating Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena says it does not have empirical evidence that UFO sightings were not properly reported to Congress.

“Investigative efforts determined that most sightings were the result of misidentification of ordinary objects and phenomena,” the report released Friday said. “Although many UAP reports remain unsolved, AARO assesses that if additional, quality data were available, most of these cases also could be identified and resolved as ordinary objects or phenomena.”

NewsNation’s Ross Coulthart interviewed career intelligence official David Grusch last summer, during which he alleged the U.S. government has secretly been in possession of nonhuman spacecraft. Earlier this week, Coulthart said on “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” that the Pentagon and AARO hosted a briefing with media outlets, though NewsNation was not invited to attend.

To date, AARO has found no verifiable evidence for claims that the U.S. government and private companies have access to, or have been reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology, Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement.

Ryder said that the AARO reviewed all official U.S government investigatory efforts since 1945, researched classified and unclassified archives, conducted dozens of interviews, and partnered with Intelligence Community and Defense officials in its investigation.

“AARO has approached this project with the widest possible aperture, thoroughly investigating these assertions and claims without any particular pre-conceived conclusion or hypothesis,” Ryder said. “AARO is committed to reaching conclusions based on verifiable evidence. As AARO has said before, they will follow the evidence where it leads, wherever it leads.”

Still, the report acknowledged that many people “sincerely hold” beliefs about UFOs that are based on “their perception of past experiences, the experiences of others whom they trust, or media and online outlets they believe to be sources of credible and verifiable information.”

“The goal of this report is not to prove or disprove any particular belief set, but rather to use a rigorous analytic and scientific approach to investigate past USG-sponsored UAP investigation efforts and the claims made by interviewees that the USG and various contractors have recovered and are hiding off-world technology and biological material,” the report said.

Rep. Tim Burchett, R-TN., criticized the report’s findings on X.

“So the people doing the cover up of #ufo #uap say they find no cover up,” Burchett said. “Classic self-fulfilled prophesy.”

https://www.newsnationnow.com/space/ufo/uap-aaro-report-release/