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NASA Image Shows Texas Reservoir Water Level After Record Low
Aug 23, 2024 at 11:44 AM EDT
A reservoir in Texas reached record-low levels this summer, with images from space capturing the staggering scale of its decline.
The Amistad reservoir, straddling the Texas-Mexico border on the Rio Grande, dropped to less than a quarter full in July this year, hitting a record low of 1,047.15 feet above sea level on July 17.
In images taken from the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8 and the OLI-2 on Landsat 9, NASA has revealed how the reservoir looked on August 5, 2016, compared to August 19, 2024—mere weeks after hitting the record-low—when water levels were at 1,048.64 feet. As of August 23, the reservoir is at 1,048.58 feet.
The previous record low was seen in August 2022, when the reservoir hit 1,052.48 feet. This year, the reservoir has been below 1,052 feet since February.
The Amistad was created with the construction of the Amistad Dam in 1969, and is a joint venture between the U.S. and Mexico to provide water and hydroelectric power to both countries.
Water levels in the Amistad, as well as the Falcon Reservoir—also on the Rio Grande between Texas and Mexico—have been dropping significantly in recent decades.
The reservoir was consistently low between 1992 and 2002, hitting historic lows in 2013, 2022, and now again in 2021.
The primary cause of declining water levels at the Amistad Reservoir has been prolonged periods of drought in the region.
Much of the Rio Grande Basin and Western Texas was under "severe," "extreme" and even "exceptional drought throughout this summer, with heat waves bringing temperatures as high as 112 degrees to Del Rio on August 21, 2024.
This drought has had the region in its grips for several years now, leading to water levels declining with every passing year.
As of August 20, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows that the Amistad is under "severe" drought, and has been since March, entering into "extreme" drought briefly during June.
Resultant reduced rainfall and limited inflows from the Rio Grande and its tributaries have significantly lowered the reservoir's capacity, and rising water consumption for agricultural irrigation and urban needs in both the United States and Mexico has further strained the reservoir's scant supplies.
According to a recent report by the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), which oversees the collaboration between Mexico and the U.S. at the Amistad, the reservoir saw 33 percent less water entering it between 2011 and 2020 compared to between 1981 and 1990.
"Experts estimate that a large part of this loss in flow we're seeing can be attributed to higher temperatures in the region, a result of human-caused climate change.
This was not the case with previous comparable droughts (like in the 1950s), which were primarily caused by lack of precipitation.
With climate change, temperatures are likely to continue to increase, exacerbating the risks for such prolonged droughts," Antonia Hadjimichael, an assistant professor in geosciences at Penn State University, previously told Newsweek.
https://www.newsweek.com/amistad-reservoir-texas-record-low-nasa-satellite-image-1943547
https://thequantuminsider.com/2024/08/24/chinese-researchers-perform-space-to-ground-communications-with-lightweight-quantum-satellite/
Chinese Researchers Perform Space-to-Ground Communications With Lightweight Quantum Satellite
August 24, 2024
A team of Chinese researchers report that the successfully developed and demonstrated a compact quantum microsatellite that can performing space-to-ground quantum key distribution (QKD) using lightweight, portable ground stations, according to a study published on the preprint server ArXiv.
The microsatellite, weighing in at just slightly over 20 kilograms, represents a major cut in size and weight compared to previous quantum satellites, enabling more flexible and rapid deployment.
The team reports the system achieved real-time secure communication, sharing up to 0.59 million bits of secure keys in a single satellite pass, marking a major step toward a global quantum network.
While challenges lie ahead, this achievement could be a step toward realizing a global quantum network, a technology that could offer secure communications and other advanced computing applications.
The portable nature of the network would also offer several critical national security and defense advantages.
Microsatellite Innovation
The research team, which included members from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and Quantum CTek Co., designed the quantum microsatellite with a payload weighing about 23 kilograms — that’s approximately 50 pounds, or about the weight of a large bag of dog food.
This is a substantial reduction compared to the previously developed Micius satellite, with a payload that weighed more than ten times more — around 250 kilograms.
The microsatellite, dubbed Jinan-1, was launched into a 500-kilometer Sun-synchronous orbit in July 2022, according to the paper, and has since demonstrated its ability to securely share quantum keys between space and ground stations.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method that leverages quantum mechanical principles to securely share encryption keys between two parties.
Unlike traditional encryption methods, which rely on complex mathematical algorithms, QKD ensures that any attempt to intercept the key would be immediately detectable.
This makes QKD an attractive option for securing sensitive communications against potential cyber threats
In addition to the satellite, the research team developed portable ground stations, each weighing approximately 100 kilograms.
This represents a significant reduction from traditional optical ground stations, which can weigh upwards of 13,000 kilograms.
The portability of these ground stations opens the possibility of deploying them in diverse and challenging environments, from urban areas to remote mountainous regions.
In terms of military applications, a 100 kilograms is about the same weight of full combat gear of a soldier, opening up possibilities for use by militaries that are constantly moving through rugged terrains.
The ground stations are equipped with telescopes and specialized detectors that can receive quantum signals from the satellite.
The researchers designed these stations to be easily assembled and rapidly deployed, requiring only three to five hours for full setup.
This flexibility could make the technology accessible to a wide range of users, including governments, businesses, armed forces and scientific institutions.
Perhaps the most significant achievements reported in the study is the ability to perform real-time secure communication.
According to the paper, the research team implemented a system of multiplexed bidirectional — sending and receiving — satellite-ground optical communication, which allowed for the simultaneous transmission of quantum keys and classical data.
The setup enabled the researchers to achieve key distillation — an essential process for generating secure encryption keys — during a single satellite pass, with the sharing of up to 0.59 million bits of secure keys in one instance.
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The satellite-ground communication was made possible by using a high-precision tracking system, which kept the satellite and ground stations perfectly aligned during key transmission.
This system uses a combination of satellite attitude control and advanced optics to maintain a precise link between the satellite’s payload and the ground station’s telescope.
While the development of the quantum microsatellite and portable ground stations is a significant technological achievement, several challenges remain before a global quantum network can be fully realized.
One of the main hurdles is scaling the technology to create a constellation of quantum satellites capable of providing continuous global coverage.
The study’s authors suggest that future efforts could focus on integrating quantum key distribution systems into photonics chips, further miniaturizing the payloads and making them even more accessible.
Additionally, they propose exploring the feasibility of daytime satellite-to-ground QKD, which would enable round-the-clock secure communication services.
The combination of satellites at different altitudes and orbit types could also enhance the performance and reliability of the quantum network.
The successful demonstration of satellite-based QKD with a lightweight, portable system has broad implications for the future of secure communications, the researchers write.
As cyber threats continue to evolve, the ability to securely transmit information across long distances without the risk of interception could become increasingly valuable.
Governments, military organizations, financial institutions and healthcare providers are just a few of the sectors that would likely line up to take advantage of quantum communication technologies.
Going a step in the scientific direction, the development of a quantum satellite constellation could be important for the broader field of quantum information science.
By establishing a global quantum network, researchers could explore new possibilities in quantum computing and quantum sensing, potentially leading to advances that are currently unimaginable.
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SpaceX's private Polaris Dawn mission will set altitude record for female astronauts
August 24, 2024
Two women astronauts will set a spaceflight record next week, if all goes according to plan.
The Polaris Dawn mission is scheduled to launch atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than Aug. 27.
It aims to perform the first-ever private spacewalk and to fly at a higher altitude above Earth than any crewed spacecraft since the Apollo era, at about 870 miles (1,400 kilometers).
The mission is funded and commanded by billionaire Jared Isaacman, who also funded and commanded the private Inspiration4 orbital mission in 2021.
Polaris Dawn's four-person crew includes female mission specialists Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon, both of whom are SpaceX engineers, as well as male pilot Scott "Kidd" Poteet.
The highest-flying woman before Gillis and Menon was NASA astronaut Kathryn Sullivan, who reached 386 miles (621 km) on the STS-31 mission during the space shuttle program, according to NASA and space statistics tracker Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Institute of Astrophysics.
STS-31's extreme altitude was a result of its main goal: deploying the Hubble Space Telescope, a top-tier space observatory still active today thanks to the efforts of spacewalking astronauts on five different servicing missions.
On board STS-31 were five astronauts, including Sullivan, who reached space just seven years after NASA flew its first woman astronaut (Sally Ride, in June 1983).
The five Hubble servicing missions, which flew between 1993 and 2009, reached lower altitudes than STS-31.
While a few crewed missions ranged farther into space than Hubble's height, all of those were performed by male-only crews.
The highest mission in Earth orbit featured NASA astronauts Dick Gordon and Pete Conrad, aboard Gemini 11 in September 1966.
They reached a pre-Apollo altitude record of 850 miles (1,368 km), which Polaris Dawn aims to beat.
The historic Apollo program missions carried only male astronauts. Apollo 8, which launched in December 1968, was the first of these flights to reach the moon.
It was followed by Apollos 10 through 17, which flew from 1969 to 1972.
The farthest-ranging of the group was Apollo 13, which reached a distance of 248,655 miles (400,171 km) from our planet in April 1970. Its orbit was slightly different than the others; its planned lunar landing was foiled by an explosion in the mission's service module two days into the flight.
NASA and the Apollo 13 astronauts troubleshot the potentially catastrophic issue, slingshotting the spacecraft around the moon and returning to Earth safe and sound on April 17, 1970.
https://www.space.com/polaris-dawn-female-astronaut-altitude-record
Space Force awards $200 million contract to Northrop Grumman for UK radar site
August 23, 2024
The U.S. Space Force awarded a $200 million contract to Northrop Grumman to construct a radar site in the United Kingdom to monitor objects in outer space.
This initiative is part of the AUKUS security alliance involving Australia, the U.K. and the United States.
The contract, announced Aug. 23, is for the second site of the Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability (DARC) program, which aims to create a global network of three advanced radar systems — one in each of the AUKUS partner nations.
The first DARC site is currently under development in Western Australia, expected to be operational by 2026, while a third site is being planned in the United States.
The DARC system is designed to provide continuous, all-weather coverage to detect, track, identify, and characterize objects in geosynchronous orbit, approximately 22,000 miles above Earth.
Unlike existing optical systems, DARC will operate regardless of daylight.
Northrop Grumman secured a $341 million contract in 2022 for the first DARC site in Western Australia.
The UK Ministry of Defence revealed plans to redevelop Cawdor Barracks in Pembrokeshire, Wales, to host the DARC radar site.
Previously slated for closure by 2028, the barracks would be redeveloped to accommodate up to 100 personnel to operate and maintain the radar system.
The Ministry of Defence said it will conduct an environmental assessment to gain approval for the redevelopment of Cawdor Barracks.
This step is crucial for the project to proceed as planned. Local residents and environmental activists have raised concerns about the potential impacts of the radar installation.
The MOD said it will ensure compliance with safety and environmental standards.
https://spacenews.com/space-force-awards-200-million-contract-to-northrop-grumman-for-uk-radar-site/
https://www.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3883120/space-warfighting-forum-reinforces-need-for-joint-approach/
Space Warfighting Forum reinforces need for joint approach
Published Aug. 23, 2024
Space has been making headlines more and more in recent years with the dawn of commercial space flight, the introduction of proliferated constellations in Low Earth Orbit, and the invention of reusable rockets, but access to space is not something that can be taken for granted.
In a joint prepared statement to Congress in June 2017, the Honorable Heather A. Wilson, U.S. Air Force Gen. David L. Goldfein, Gen. John W. Raymond, and U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Samuel A. Greaves state that “Clearly, freedom to operate in space is not guaranteed.
In fact, space is now a warfighting domain, similar to the more familiar air, land, and maritime domains our men and women are fighting in today.”
Two years later, on Aug. 29, 2019, U.S. Space Command was reestablished, and shortly after that in December 2019, the U.S. Space Force was established, solidifying the important role space plays in national defense and joint warfighting.
Space-based systems are essential for modern life, supporting various sectors such as agriculture, trade, transportation, security, and connecting remote communities.
Given the increasing threats to space-based systems and their critical importance for national security, a joint military approach to space operations is essential to ensure the protection and sustainability of space assets.
“Given the rapid growth of the threats we now see in our domain and the ever-advancing pace of broader space advancements at U.S. Space Command, we talk about our mission in terms of three moral responsibilities,” said Gen. Stephen Whiting, USSPACECOM commander, during a National Defense Industrial Association Space Warfighting Forum in Colorado Springs, Aug. 15.
“First, we must ensure the delivery of space effects to the joint force, our nation, and our allies.
Second, we must protect and defend our existing space systems in the face of the threats now arrayed against us, and third, we must protect the joint force from space-enabled attack.
During the forum, leaders in commercial space gathered with military leaders and policymakers to discuss the future of space warfighting.
“We need to challenge our assumptions about space being there for the joint force,” said the Honorable Kari Bingen, former principal deputy under secretary of defense, intelligence.
“Our joint force will be seen with everything China is doing, and they will have to learn how to fight with degraded space.”
During a USSPACECOM service component panel discussion, Space Force, Navy and Army component panelists further reiterated the joint nature of space and ways that their respective services are contributing to the space fight.
"Protecting the joint warfighter is about more than resources,” said Lt. Gen. Douglas Schiess, U.S. Space Forces-Space (S4S) commander.
“We need policies in place and the authorities to act and be agile … and then we need to let Guardians, who are the people doing the mission, do what they do best."
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While S4S is primarily focused on assets in space, these assets are largely supported by an array of ground-based space systems such as radars, ground stations and C2 centers.
“As we look at that the terrestrial infrastructure that is so important to space we need to recognize that 70% of the Earth is covered by water,” said U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Heidi Berg, USN deputy commander, Navy Space Command and deputy commander, Fleet Cyber Command.
"It's important to ensure that part of that infrastructure is a maneuver force.”
The Army also brings unique perspectives, mission sets and capabilities to space warfighting.
“The Space and Missile Defense Center provides trained and ready forces that execute space control planning space electronic warfare theater missile warning and space staff support to U.S. Space Command,” said U.S. Army Col. Russell Nowels, SMDC deputy chief of staff G3, Operations and Plans.
“In addition, at the SMDC G3, we provide training force tracking capability to U.S. Space Command as well as the greater Department of Defense, our partners agencies and other government organizations.”
Two things were made clear during the Space Warfighting Forum. The first is that space is a difficult domain as emphasized by panel moderator, retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Dave Buck.
“Space is contested, it's degraded, it's operationally limited, it's no kidding or war fighting domain,” Buck said.
“We all need to acknowledge that, and we all need to get after that.”
The second is that space warfighting is a joint effort that requires mutual support by all branches of military service.
“While Space Command has a special relationship with U.S. Space Force as we are the only pairing of a combatant command and a service solely focused on the same domain, we benefit from and are dependent upon the integration of capabilities from every service,” Whiting said.
“We need all those capabilities to be able to achieve the elements of victory.”
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Full special: Confessions of a UFO Hunter
Aug 24, 2024 / 07:18 AM CDT
He’s a former Pentagon insider, a veteran and investigator. Today, he’s quite possibly the most important voice in the modern UFO movement.
Luis Elizondo — risking his career, his family, and possibly his life — tells the story of what he claims the American government really knows about alien craft.
There are many people responsible for the resurgence of interest in potential alien life in the universe, but perhaps no one has played a bigger role than a muscle-bound man with tattoos, a soul patch and one heck of a story to tell.
Luis Elizondo’s new book, “Imminent: Inside the Pentagon’s Hunt for UFOs,” lays out allegations that the United States military has been running an unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) retrieval and reverse engineering program for years — and has even recovered nonhuman specimens.
“We’re not alone,” Elizondo told NewsNation.
“We are not alone in this universe, and it is a simple fact. The U.S. government has been aware of that fact for decades now.
I think if the American public knew just how deep this lie went, that we would have a very significant constitutional crisis on our hands.”
There’s controversy about aspects of Elizondo’s resume and what exactly he did in the Pentagon with UFOs.
But everyone agrees he is an Army veteran who has served in hotspots around the world.
He would then go on to oversee counterespionage and counterterrorism investigations for the Department of Defense.
To make sense of the man and his claims, you need to go back to when it all started in 2009 when Elizondo was working as an intelligence operations specialist for the Department of Defense.
He’d risen to the coveted GS-15 pay scale: The highest level federal employees can attain.
He’d set up a comfortable life in Kent Island, Maryland, with his wife, Jennifer, and their two daughters.
“We had a really nice place to live; this was a great place to raise our kids,” Jennifer said.
“And it was just a really laid-back area to raise a family and to live here.”
But Elizondo said that all changed after he met Jim Lacatski, a renowned missile systems expert.
He was running the Advanced Aerospace Weapons System Application (AAWSAP) program.
“I distinctly remember Jim pulling me into his office and asking, and I mean bluntly asking, ‘What do you think about UFOs?’”
In response, Lacatski told NewsNation, “I was the sole program manager for the complete duration of DIA’s AAWSAP, September 2008 — December 2010, and worked alongside DHS in the follow-on Kona Blue program through 2011.
Lue Elizondo was not involved in either AAWSAP or Kona Blue.”
Elizondo, at the time, said it was something he had little interest in.
“I wasn’t particularly interested in science fiction as a kid,” said Elizondo.
“I wasn’t a big Star Trek fan or Star Wars fan. So, I consider myself kind of a gumshoe investigator, old school. Just the facts kind of guy.
And Lacatski said, ‘That’s fair. But make sure that you don’t let your analytic bias get the best of you. You have to remain open-minded.’”
cont.
https://www.newsnationnow.com/space/ufo/special-report-confessions-of-a-ufo-hunter/
https://www.newsnationnow.com/space/ufo/pentagon-official-alien-implant/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgM5V44eQHU