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Upcoming in SIGNAL: February 2015

Focus: The Sea Services

The Navy may take the point when it comes to maritime operations, but it is hardly the only service dealing with operations on, above and below the surface of the sea. The Coast Guard and the Marines both are actively involved in long-distance operations in the maritime realm, and they are facing new challenges with funding cuts to their even-smaller budgets. Technology offers a potential solution to the challenge of doing more with less, so all of the sea services are expanding their technological reach in the hope of achieving their mission goals. SIGNAL Magazine's February 2015 issue takes a look at the many issues confronting the sea services:
  • The leadership of the U.S. Navy must confront an uncertain future amid budget cuts.
  • Cyberspace offers a unique set of challenges to the fleet.
  • The U.S. Coast Guard is modernizing its airborne surveillance fleet to include unmanned systems and medium- and long-range manned aircraft.
  • New programs under the aegis of the Office of Naval Research promise to revolutionize naval warfare capabilities, especially in asymmetric areas.

Focus: Future Unmanned Systems

The missions and capabilities of unmanned systems have expanded dramatically, and now developers are looking to exploit the burgeoning fondness for these robotic systems. In addition to developing more specialized vehicles for niche capabilities, researchers are working on new platforms that might offer even more flexibility across the breadth of their missions. SIGNAL's February issue examines the new directions opening up for unmanned systems on land, at sea and in the air.
  • The Defense Department has a 15-year plan to modernize its unmanned fleet.
  • Robot swarming technology could be instrumental on the future battlefield, and no country wants to be left out.
  • The K-MAX unmanned helicopter that proved so successful in Afghanistan now is being adapted to civilian emergency response missions.
  • The U.S. Army is investing heavily in unmanned air and ground vehicles with an eye to better situational awareness and lethality.
  • The U.S. Air Force is pursuing new directions in unmanned systems.
 
The January 2015 issue of SIGNAL includes more content covering traditional and new areas of interest:
  • The biggest threat to ground- based forces may come from orbit.