Short Takes – 12-5-24

Indiana begins offering water systems free cyber assessments. StateScoop.com article. Pull quote: ““We strongly encourage Indiana drinking water and wastewater utilities to take advantage of this opportunity. Safeguarding the integrity of public utility infrastructure is vital to ensuring safe, clean water for Hoosiers,” Brian Rockensuess, commissioner of Indiana’s environmental management agency, said in the release. “IDEM is excited about this partnership, which will help water systems identify vulnerabilities and implement practices to deter and respond to potential threats.””

Trump moves spark fear of brain drain at environment agencies. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “He also raised concerns about a loss of career staff from the EPA’s chemical division, saying this could lead to both rushed reviews potentially causing dangerous chemicals to be allowed onto the market, as well as longer wait times for the approval of new and innovative chemicals if there are fewer people on the job.”

How did the CEO of an online payments firm become the nominee to lead NASA? ArsTechnica.com article. Pull quote: “So wither NASA? Under the Trump administration, NASA's role is likely to focus on stimulating the efforts by commercial space entrepreneurs. Isaacman's marching orders for NASA will almost certainly be two words: results and speed. NASA, they believe, should transition to become more like its roots in the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, which undertook, promoted, and institutionalized aeronautical research—but now for space.”

The Rush for AI-Enabled Drones on Ukrainian Battlefields. LawFareMedia.org article.  Pull quote: “According to Martynov, U.S. companies have reached out with inquiries about field-testing weaponized drones. “If companies abroad are serious about weaponization and validation, Ukraine’s battlefield is the proving ground,” he remarked. U.S. defense tech company Anduril recently started selling its new autonomous drones after successful tests that were carried out in Ukraine. Ukrainian and Western drone manufacturers are also partnering more closely on both drones and AI development. The U.S.—in its desire to speed up the deployment of cheap autonomous systems through its “Replicator” program—is also working with the private sector to bring more of these drones into operation.”

NASA delays Artemis II human moon mission once again as it wraps up heat shield investigation. NPR.org article. Pull quote: “The Artemis II mission, which was targeting liftoff for late 2025, will now launch no earlier than April, 2026. The mission will send NASA's Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, along with Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, on a trip around the moon and back, testing key systems of the Orion space capsule like its life support hardware.”

NGSO Fixed-Satellite Service (Space-to-Earth) Operations in the 17.3-17.8 GHz Band. Federal Register FCC final rule. Summary: “In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) adopts rules to permit use of the 17.3-17.7 GHz band by non-geostationary satellite orbit (NGSO) space stations operating in the fixed-satellite service (FSS) in the space-to-Earth (downlink) direction. The Report and Order modifies the United States Table of Frequency Allocations (U.S. Table) to enable NGSO FSS to operate in the 17.3-17.8 GHz band in the downlink direction on a co-primary basis with incumbent services and on a shared, co-primary basis with geostationary satellite orbit (GSO) services. The Report and Order also enables NGSO FSS downlink use of the 17.7-17.8 GHz band on a co-primary basis with GSO services and on an unprotected basis with respect to terrestrial fixed services. The Commission additionally adopts technical requirements to establish safeguards to reduce the likelihood of harmful interference to incumbent operators. The actions taken in the Commission's Report and Order promote spectrum efficiency, foster competition and U.S. leadership, and expand the ability of satellite operators to deploy advanced services, including high-speed internet access to unserved and underserved areas.”

Florida should use next six months to prepare for the 2025 hurricane season. FloridaPhoenix.com article. This applies to much of the Gulf Coast. Pull quote: ““Climatologists are unsure what next year has in store for the tropics, but early signs point to a similar hurricane season to the one that is just ending,” the Tampa Bay Times reported.” And we need to talk about uh Bruno….