Weekly GEOINT Community News

Pentagon to Amp Up UAV Program; Dewberry to Evaluate New LiDAR Forms for USGS; Google Launches Project Sunroof

Military-UAV

Pentagon to Amp Up UAV Program

According to MarketWatch, the Pentagon plans to expand the number of U.S. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flights over the next four years. The increase in UAV flights would broaden surveillance and intelligence collection in locations such as Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, the South China Sea, and North Africa. This is the first significant increase to the U.S. UAV program since 2011.

Dewberry to Evaluate New LiDAR Forms for USGS

Under its geospatial products and services contract with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Dewberry is executing a task order to evaluate two new forms of light detection and ranging LiDAR. This will determine whether a single photon LiDAR and Geiger mode LiDAR can satisfy USGS LiDAR base specification. This task order is in support of the USGS 3D Elevation Program.

Google Launches Project Sunroof

Vox reports Google has launched Project Sunroof, a tool that can help users determine whether their U.S. home would be solar-panel friendly. Users enter their address and Google uses its satellite imagery capabilities to make a determination. The tool calculates how big a roof is, how much sun it gets per year, and estimates the cost of different solar panels to help users find the best financial option. Currently, there is only data available for the San Francisco Bay area; Fresno, Calif.; and the Greater Boston area.

BeiDou Chinese Satellites Now Operating Autonomously

Two BeiDou satellites launched July 25 are now operating autonomously, reports GPS World. The satellites were launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province in Southwest China. China plans to complete the BeiDou constellation of 35 satellites in 2020.

Peer Intel

Textron Systems promoted Daryl Madden to senior vice president and general manager of the company’s geospatial solutions business. Madden will set the strategic path for the geospatial solutions division, supervise development of new products, and oversee the execution of customer programs.

Col. Steven D. Fleming joined the faculty at the University of Southern Calfornia’s Spatial Sciences Institute as a professor of practice in spatial sciences teaching USC geospatial intelligence and other GIS technology courses. Fleming recently served as a professor of geospatial information science and deputy head of the department of geography and environmental engineering at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

Juniper Systems announced that after 14 years current president and CEO Rob Campbell is stepping down to accept a position as president of Campbell Scientific. DeVon Labrum, who previously served as Juniper Systems’ vice president of sales and marketing, will become president and CEO. Labrum has been with Juniper Systems for nearly 18 years, including serving several years on the Board of Directors, bringing with him a considerable amount of experience and industry knowledge.

Photo Credit: U.S. Department of Defense

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