Short Takes – 12-16-24

Lawmakers struggle to reach deal to avert government shutdown. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “Key players had indicated this week that the forthcoming CR, which keeps the government funded at current levels, would also include another one-year extension of the 2018 farm bill, as both sides have struggled to agree on a longer-term plan. But lawmakers had also ramped up talks of potential add-ons to provide economic assistance for farmers as part of the broader funding plan.” (Morning’s story)

Funding meltdown foreshadows Johnson’s tough year ahead. Politico.com article. Pull quote: “Congressional leaders on Monday were circling a final funding deal with $10 billion in economic aid for farmers as part of the agreement, possibly up to $12 billion depending on what Republicans agree to on Democratic demands in return. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told reporters Monday morning that leaders may be able to release the text of the massive bill in the coming hours, but he stressed that nothing was final yet.” (This evening’s story)

Request for Comment on the National Cyber Incident Response Plan Update. Federal Register CISA request for comments. NCIRP Update: “The NCIRP Update is being led by CISA through the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC), a public-private cybersecurity collaborative established by CISA to unite the global cyber community in the collective defense of cyberspace. The JCDC leverages joint cyber planning authorities granted to the agency by Congress in the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (codified at 6 U.S.C. 665b). The update addresses changes in the cyber threat and operations landscape by incorporating feedback and lessons learned from stakeholders to make the updated NCIRP more fully inclusive across non-federal stakeholders—further establishing a foundation for continued improvement of the nation's response to significant cyber incidents.” Comments due January 15^th, 2025. This is a short comment period given the holidays

Italy kicks off project to develop small nuclear reactors to power moon settlements. InterestingEngineering.com article. Pull quote: “The key objective of the ASI’s project is the study of innovative technological solutions for the creation and management of an energy infrastructure Moon Energy Hub (MEnH), which gravitates around the use of SNRs, a solution that promises to overcome the limits of traditional energy technologies, such as radio-isotope systems and solar panels. The latter, although used until now, have shown inefficiencies, poor scalability, short operational life, and weakness (as per cosmic radiation).”

ULA pitches ‘space interceptor’ role for Vulcan rocket’s upper stage. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “Bruno has long advocated expanded capabilities for the Centaur upper stage. In 2020, he outlined plans for an enhanced Centaur V featuring increased energy, thrust, and duration capabilities to enable complex trajectories and ambitious future missions. More recently, he has promoted a “high-performance, long-duration” version that could operate for days or weeks in support of U.S. military operations.”