Space Is Being Littered With Orbital Debris

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

MAJ GEN DeAnna Burt, vice commander of Space Force Space Operations Command, said there needs to be a way to clean up “space junk,” reports Breaking Defense. Burt was speaking at the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies Conference last week. “We need to pick up debris — we need trash trucks. We need things to go make debris go away,” she said.

Astronaut Mike Hopkins told CBS News last month that the Air Force and Space Force are constantly monitoring debris in space on the chance that one is projected to get a little too close to the International Space Station.

More than 27,000 pieces of orbital debris are tracked by DoD’s global Space Surveillance Network sensors, according to NASA.

Space.com reports that Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder, plans to bring disruption to a new industry: the long-standing effort to clean up the dangerous orbital debris. He hinted at plans to start a private space company.

The US decision to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Australia has drawn another critic. North Korea has threatened unspecified countermeasures if it finds the deal affects its security, reports Navy Times. France was upset over a canceled contract and withdrew it ambassadors from the US and Australia, reports The Associated Press, in protest.

The US Navy has begun a recovery mission to find five sailors and the wreckage of the MH-60S helicopter they were flying in when it crash late last month off the coast in Southern California, reports Navy Times. The Sea Hawk had been trying to touch down on the carrier Abraham Lincoln when “side-to-side vibrations” caused the aircraft to strike and fall off the ship.

A Navy T-45C Goshawk training jet crashed in Lake Worth, TX, on Sunday, reports Navy Times. The instructor pilot and the student aviator were injured, reports Military.com.

A B-2 Spirit bomber crashed on the runway at Whiteman Air Force Base, MO, after the aircraft malfunctioned during a routine training flight, reports Air Force Times. No injuries were reported in the September 14 incident.

The US Army has activated its first multi-domain task force in Europe, reports Army Times. The first MDTF was activated stateside in 2019 and has since been headquartered at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA. A third task force is planned for activation, also in the Pacific. Defense News reports that the new unit has already cut its teeth in the theater at a long-range, precision-fires exercise in Norway.

 

 

Lockheed Martin has unveiled its tanker design — LMXT. The platform is largely built off Airbus’ Multi Role Tanker Transport, reports Breaking Defense, with some technical upgrades and an extended range. This sets up a battle between Lockheed and Boeing over a contract that could involve buying 160 additional tankers in the future. Boeing has been working on the tanker program for more than a decade, reports National Defense.

The federal vaccine requirement has raised questions from employers, including defense contractors, about how the mandate will work and whether they could lose employees as a result, reports Defense News.

NavSec Carlos Del Toro says all Navy and Marine Corps COVID-19 deaths since he took the secretary position have involved unvaccinated service members, reports Military.com. As of September 15, there have been 46 military coronavirus deaths, according to the DoD totals.

The Marine Corps has ended its mandatory 14-day quarantine for new recruits, reports Marine Corps Times. The two-week quarantine policy had gone into effect in April 2020.

The Air Force says that nearly all of its new trainees have received their COVID vaccinations, reports Air Force Times.

Gregory Ford became the first civilian director of the Army Criminal Investigation Command on Friday, reports Army Times. Ford has more than 20 years of experience in the law enforcement field, having served in the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and with the FBI Terrorism Task Force.

The US Office of Personnel Management will temporarily drop several geographic restrictions associated with special hiring authorities for military spouses, reports Navy Times.

Several hundred retired aircrew members returned to the former Brunswick Naval Air Station, ME, for a reunion over the weekend, reports The Times Record. The gathering at the Brunswick NAS Museum commemorated the 10th anniversary of the base’s closure.

The more than 2,000-year-old General Sherman sequoia so far has not burned as fires rage in Sequoia National Forest in California, reports The Hill. The world’s largest tree is 275 feet tall and has a base diameter of 36 feet. Fire-resistant blankets have been wrapped around the tree and other nearby giant sequoias.

Contracts:

WinTec Arrowmaker Inc., Fort Washington, Maryland, was awarded a $17,577,203 cost-plus fixed-fee contract to discover, explore, integrate, mature and demonstrate new technologies and design concepts for future warrior technologies integration. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Fort Washington, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 19, 2025. Fiscal 2021 research, development, test, and evaluation, Army funds in the amount of $231,808 were obligated at the time of the award. US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W909MY-21-C-0027).

TFS-APTIM JV LLC, Wasilla, Alaska (N62473-21-D-2213); Bethel-Tech Pacific JV, Anchorage, Alaska (N62473-21-D-2214); North Wind-CDM JV LLC, San Diego, California (N62473-21-D-2215); OCH JV, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (N62473-21-D-2216); EA-Wood-1 MP JV, Hunt Valley, Maryland (N62473-21-D-2217), are awarded a combined $240,000,000 cost-plus-award-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, multiple award contract for environmental remediation projects located at predominately Navy and Marine Corps installations primarily within the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Southwest area of operations and other locations nationwide. The work to be performed provides for environmental remediation actions at environmentally contaminated sites to include, but are not limited to removal actions, pilot and treatability studies, facility operation, maintenance, and instruction, other related activities associated with returning sites to safe and acceptable levels, environmental program assessment, site characterizations, groundwater characterization studies, remediation on sediment sites, emergency or expedited response, contamination assessment, and subsequent decontamination. Additional actions include remediation prior to returning to normal operations, closure reports for removal and remedial actions, geophysical surveys, hydrogeological and geotechnical testing and data analyses, multimedia sampling and analysis for physical, chemical, and geotechnical characteristics, hydrographic surveys, optimization reviews of remediation facilities and remediation strategies, and munitions response quality assurance. No task orders are being issued at this time. Each contractor will be awarded $5,000 (minimum contract guarantee per award) at contract award. All work on this contract will be performed primarily within the NAVFAC Southwest AO which includes California (90%); other locations in the US (5%); Nevada (3%); and Arizona (2%). The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of September 2026. Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Navy) contract funds in the amount of $25,000 are obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by operation and maintenance (Navy) funds. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website with 11 proposals received. These five contractors may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contract. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, Southwest, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity.

Atlantic Diving Supply Inc., Virginia Beach, Virginia, has been awarded a $27,498,524 General Services Administration order for temporary aircraft maintenance structures. This contract provides for the purchase and installation of Pre-Engineered Panelized Modular Relocatable Buildings (PPMRBs) for aircraft maintenance. Work will be performed in Virginia Beach, Virginia; and Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and is expected to be completed by April 21, 2023. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and two offers were received. Fiscal 2021 working capital funds in the amount of $27,498,524 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Sustainment Center, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, is the contracting activity (FA8227-21-F-0056).

Dominion Energy Virginia, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $75,133,349 modification (P00271) to a 50-year contract (SP0600-06-C-8252) with no option periods for electric utility services. This is a fixed-price with prospective price redetermination contract. Location of performance is Virginia, with an Aug. 1, 2057, performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2018 through 2057 operations and maintenance funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

Reams Enterprises Inc., Macon, Georgia (W9124C-21-D-0006); Native American Services Corp., Kellogg, Indiana (W9124C-21-D-0007); PM Jenkins Group-Professional Management DBA W4 Construction Group, Kalamazoo, Michigan (W9124C-21-D-0008); Boyer Commercial Construction Inc., Columbia, South Carolina (W9124C-21-D-0008); and New Dominion Construction LLC, Dumfries, Virginia (W9124C-21-D-0010), will compete for each order of the $140,000,000 firm-fixed-price contract for real property repair and construction at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Bids were solicited via the internet with 10 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 16, 2021. US Army 419th Contracting Support Brigade, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, is the contracting activity.

Dewberry Engineers Inc., Fairfax, Virginia, was awarded a $22,666,666 firm-fixed-price contract for photogrammetric and lidar surveying and mapping. Bids were solicited via the internet with 38 received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Sept. 19, 2026. US Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis, Missouri, is the contracting activity (W912P9-21-D-0038).