Emerging Tech

NASA’s Out of This World Tech Advancements in 2022 

This year the agency tackled big and small ways to innovate on the moon and beyond.

Digital Government

2022 Year in Review: Critical Update

Nextgov’s favorite episodes from the final year of the Critical Update podcast.

Emerging Tech

NASA Looks to Re-Boost Satellite Orbits with Hubble Serving as a Model

Moving Hubble into a higher orbit will serve as an example of what the agency is looking to do for satellites in the future. 

Digital Government

Lawmakers Highlight Cyber, New Tech and Space in Proposed Spending Bill

The $1.7 trillion omnibus introduced by lawmakers on Tuesday would spur on investments in cutting-edge technologies, cyber defense and space during the 2023 fiscal year.

Policy

State Department Seeks Private Sector Collab on Space Infrastructure and Markets

The U.S. government is continuing its regulatory efforts of outer space’s emerging usages.

Emerging Tech

House Lawmakers Introduce Legislation on Space Situational Awareness

The bill will fund Commerce Department capabilities and NASA research and development on space situational awareness, which can help identify and locate satellites or orbital debris in current and future locations.

Emerging Tech

Future Astronaut Suits Could Feature Augmented Reality

NASA is eyeing the technology to address communication delays with Earth and help astronauts with decision making.

Policy

House Bill a First in Decades Effort to Modernize Satellite License Rules

The introduced bills aim to streamline the satellite license and market access application process, while preventing entities determined to be a national security threat from receiving a license.

Emerging Tech

Finalized 2023 NDAA Retains Many Space Tech Provisions

Orbital debris, satellites and space technology research remain front and center in the finalized version of the defense spending bill.

Digital Government

Cyber, Speed, and UFOs: A Tour of Tech Provisions in the 2023 NDAA

The defense policy bill also prods the intelligence community to follow other defense agencies’ emerging-tech efforts.

Emerging Tech

NASA Test New Robotic Arm System Functional in Minus 280 Degrees Fahrenheit

The new technology will allow it to operate without a heat source in “extreme cryogenic environments.”

Emerging Tech

NASA Awards $57M Contract to Build Roads on the Moon

The award will go toward developing technologies to build infrastructure like landing pads and roads on the surface of the moon.

Digital Government

NASA CAPSTONE Spacecraft Paves Way for Future Artemis Missions

The spacecraft is testing an orbit that will be important for future Artemis missions, while demonstrating new tech capabilities.

Defense

Ukraine is getting nervous about Elon Musk

Kyiv is looking for alternatives to Musk’s Starlink internet terminals and worrying about rising misinformation on Twitter.

Digital Government

Boeing Defense to Cut Execs, Consolidate Divisions

The reorganization is part of a wider culture change pushed by the business unit’s new CEO.

Cybersecurity

CISA Highlights Space, Bioeconomy as Possible New Critical Infrastructure Sectors

The agency also suggested existing sectors be consolidated and that there is a need for some agencies to exercise greater authority over private-sector entities.

Ideas

Artemis Launch Delay Is the Latest of Many NASA Scrubs and Comes from Hard Lessons on Crew Safety

After its fourth delay, the Artemis 1 launch is now scheduled for Nov. 16, 2022. NASA has a history of missing launch deadlines, but the private sector is slowly making launches more reliable.

Emerging Tech

New Satellite Will Allow First-Ever Observation of Nearly All of Earth’s Water

NASA’s upcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite will provide a complete measurement every 21 days.