Consideration HR 3935 – FAA Reauthorization –

Yesterday, the Senate resumed consideration of the motion to proceed to consideration of H.R. 3935. Sen Schumer (D,NY) entered a motion to close further debate on the motion to proceed to consideration of the bill. The vote on that cloture motion will take place when the Senate returns on March 30^th, 2024, after the vote on the Georgia N. Alexakis nomination.

The Senate actually started this process back in September, but it lead nowhere. At the time there were suggestions that Schumer was going to use the bill as a vessel for consideration of a clean continuing resolution while the House was trying to sort out how to proceed on the spending bills under Rep McCarthy (R,CA). At that time there had been one anti-Ukraine amendment submitted by Sen Vance (R,OH).

No new amendments have been submitted yet for consideration during the actual debate on HR 3935. The first amendment will almost certainly come from Sen Cantwell (D,WA) offering the reported version of S 1939 as substitute language for HR 3935. Additional amendments will be submitted, and some will be considered.

As I noted in a post on S 1939 there is an interesting counter-UAS provision in the Senate bill:

“Section 811 would amend 49 USC Chapter 448 by adding a new § 44813 Unmanned aircraft system detection and mitigation enforcement. The new section would prohibit anyone (other than certain government agencies and employees) from operating “a system or technology to detect, identify, monitor, track, or mitigate an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system in a manner that adversely impacts or interferes with safe airport operations, navigation, or air traffic services, or the safe and efficient operation of the national airspace system.” The term “adversely impacts or interferes with’ is not defined. Violators would be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $25,000 per violation. This prohibition would terminate on September 30, 2028.”

Review - CSB Updates Accidental Release Reporting Data – 4-19-24

Yesterday in preparation for their quarterly business meeting tomorrow, the CSB updated their published list of reported chemical release incidents. They added 26 new incidents that occurred since the previous version was published in January and inserted eight ‘new’ incidents that occurred before January. These are not incidents that the CSB is investigating, these are incidents that were reported to the CSB under their Accidental Release Reporting rules (40 CFR 1604).

The table below shows the top four states based upon the number of reported incidents since the January update was published.

 

For more details on the new information in the database, including a new top ten chemical incident States list, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/csb-updates-accidental-release-reporting-fae - subscription required.

Short Takes – 4-23-24

Russia-linked hacking group claims to have targeted Indiana water plant. CNN.com article. Pull quote: ““While the video is sensational, the actions taken by the threat actor are amateur and would amount to a minor annoyance for plant operators,” Fabela, who is CEO of Infinity Squared Group, a consulting firm, told CNN.”

A powerful volcano is erupting. Here’s what that could mean for weather and climate. CNN.com article. Pull quote: “In comparison, satellite instruments have estimated Mount Ruang has released an around 300,000 tons of sulfur dioxide so far [compared to 17 million tons in 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption] , though it’s unclear how much of that plume made it into the stratosphere. While that amount is quite massive in its own right, it falls well short of the most extreme case, according to Huey.”

Could Trump Go to Prison? If He Does, the Secret Service Goes, Too.  Pull quote: “Former corrections officials said there were several New York state prisons and city jails that have been closed or partly closed, leaving wings or large sections of their facilities empty and available. One of those buildings could serve to incarcerate the former president and accommodate his Secret Service protective detail.”

FEMA is making an example of this Florida boomtown. Locals call it ‘revenge politics’. GovExec.com article. Pull quote: “Even if Lee County manages to contest the decision, homeowners in Southwest Florida are almost guaranteed to suffer more financial pain as a result of this enforcement effort. If FEMA stays the course and removes the discount, it will raise flood insurance costs for homeowners in unincorporated parts of the county between $14 and $17 million per year, equating to a $300 annual hit for each flood insurance customer in the area. But if Lee County cracks down on the 50% rule and FEMA restores the discount, homeowners who rebuilt in flood zones may have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to elevate their homes.”

Stars and Stripes Media Organization. Federal Register DOD proposed rule. Summary: “This rulemaking proposes to update authorities and responsibilities for the Stars and Stripes Media Organization (often abbreviated as Stripes) to reaffirm its editorial independence in providing media products not only to military service members and DoD civilian employees, but to U.S. veterans, families of veterans and current service members, and contractor personnel, particularly those serving overseas, based on changes in the consumption of news and information in a digital age. It additionally proposes to remove internal operational procedures of the Stars and Stripes Media Organization that do not require rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act.” Comments due June 24^th, 2024.

DC3 and DCSA Partner to Announce Vulnerability Disclosure Program for Defense Industrial Base. GovDelivery.com press release. Pull quote: “Through operational agreements and strategic partnerships, DC3 and the DCSA routinely collaborate on ways to share information security data. DoD VDP vulnerability reporting is shared with DoD system owners on the Joint Force Headquarters-DoD Information Networks via the Vulnerability Report Management Network (VRMN). A parallel system, DIB VRMN, employs the same efficient and automated approach while ensuring that DIB data is tracked and held separately from DoD data. Implementation of a DIB-VDP is the most effective means of sharing DIB-sourced vulnerabilities with DIB companies. It promotes timely mitigation of identified vulnerabilities on DIB company internet-facing information systems. This enables vulnerability remediation in DIB companies at a much earlier point than in traditional vulnerability management efforts.”

Green Roofs Are Great. Blue-Green Roofs Are Even Better. Wired.com article. Pull quote: “The water levels in the blue-green roof are managed by a smart valve. If the weather forecast says a storm is coming, the system will release stored water from the roof ahead of time. That way, when a downpour comes, the roof refills, meaning there’s less rainwater entering the gutters and sewers in the surrounding area. In other words, the roof becomes a sponge that the operator can wring out as needed. “In the ‘squeezable’ sponge city, you make the whole city malleable,” says Spaan.”

Rooftop solar panels are flooding California’s grid. That’s a problem. WashingtonPost.com article. Pull quote: “But a year ago, the state changed this system, known as “net-metering,” and now only compensates new solar panel owners for how much their power is worth to the grid. In the spring, when the duck curve is deepest, that number can dip close to zero. Customers can get more money back if they install batteries and provide power to the grid in the early evening or morning.”

A rapid shift in ocean currents could imperil the world’s largest ice shelf. ScienceNews.org article. Pull quote: “These findings come at an ominous time. Even as sea ice shrank in the Arctic, it remained stable around Antarctica for decades. But Antarctic sea ice has declined steeply since 2017, especially near the Ross Ice Shelf. Scientists recently reported that the cold, salty waterfall to the Antarctic seafloor is already starting to slow. This is “alarming,” Lowry says. We now know that the ice shelf can easily switch from cold to warm. “The question is, are we observing the switch?””

Review – 2 Updates Published – 4-23-24

Today, CISA’s NCCIC-ICS published updates for two control system security advisories for products from Chirp Systems and Mitsubishi Electric.

Updates

Chirp Systems Update - This update includes additional information on an advisory that was originally published on March 7^th, 2024.

Mitsubishi Update - This update includes additional information on an advisory that was originally published on February 20^th, 2024.

 

For more information on these updates, including a summary of the changes made, and a brief look at the Chirp Systems negative response to the advisory, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/2-updates-published-4-23-24 - subscription required.

Short Takes – 4-22-24

Syphilis case increase sparks Colorado public health order. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: ““People should know that this is a treatable disease for adults. A course of penicillin generally does the trick. Some adults have very mild symptoms, there’s a lack of diagnosis, others who were symptomatic and treated with penicillin,” Polis said. “But the real danger here is for newborns.””

Suddenly micro-factories are real ... with prices starting at $300,000. NewAtlas.com article. Pull quote: ““There is an urgent need for affordable low-energy homes, but building high-quality, sustainable timber homes is hard to scale, and AUAR intends to change that. Robots and AI allow us to deliver high-quality housing at significantly lower costs, increasing margins and productivity while lowering the cost for the end users. By using our solution, construction companies can hit their sustainability targets at a cost they are comfortable with.””

Trial attention: don’t let a pecker distract from more important stories. EmptyWheel.net post. Pull quote: “All of which is my way of saying: beware of letting this trial drown out more important events. Yes, it is unprecedented to see Trump subjected to discipline. But this trial is sucking up far, far too much attention that might better be directed elsewhere — and all that attention is one of the reasons why jury and witness tampering are such a risk.”

Biomanufacturing isn’t cleaning up chemicals. CEN.ACS.org article. Shooting for the Moon too early in the technology development process. Pull quote: “But will this renewed enthusiasm for synthetic biology yield a different result? While biomanufacturing companies have already found niches for some expensive products, doubters say it might take decades before fermentation-derived molecules are cheap enough to replace oil-derived commodities. And they warn that without policies forcing the petrochemical industry to account for the health and environmental costs of its carbon emissions, fermentation may never displace fossil fuels.”

NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft finally phones home after 5 months of no contact. Space.com article. Pull quote: “By Saturday (April 20), however, the team confirmed their modification had worked. For the first time in five months, the scientists were able to communicate with Voyager 1 and check its health. Over the next few weeks, the team will work on adjusting the rest of the FDS software and aim to recover the regions of the system that are responsible for packaging and returning vital science data from beyond the limits of the solar system.”

Astronomers Find Evidence Of A Massive Object Beyond The Orbit Of Neptune. IFLScience.com article. Pull quote: “Carrying out simulations to try and discover what best explains the orbits of these objects, the team found that a model that includes a massive planet beyond the region of Neptune explained the steady state of these objects much better than in simulations where planet 9 was not included. In the model, the team included other variables, such as the galactic tide and the gravitational influence of passing stars.”

Bird Flu Is Infecting More Mammals. What Does That Mean for Us? NYTimes.com article. Pull quote: “Government leaders are typically cautious, wanting to see more data. But “given the rapid speed at which this can spread and the devastating illness that it can cause if our leaders are hesitant and don’t pull the right triggers at the right time, we will be caught flat-footed once again,” Dr. Bright said.”

Review - S 3943 Introduced – ANCHOR Act

Last month, Sen Padilla (D,CA) introduced S 3943, the Accelerating Networking, Cyberinfrastructure, and Hardware for Oceanic Research (ANCHOR) Act. The bill would require the National Science Foundation (NSF) to submit a plan to improve the cybersecurity and telecommunications of the Academic Research Fleet. No new funding is authorized by the legislation. The bill is very similar to HR 7630. That bill was adopted without amendment by the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee on March 20^th, 2024.

Differences From HR 7630

The major difference from the House bill is that Section 4 of the earlier bill is absent in the Senate version. That section authorized NSF to support cybersecurity upgrades described in the plan required in §3. Section 4 would have also required a report to Congress on progress made on the implementation of the plan.

Moving Forward

While Padilla is not a member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee to which this bill was assigned for consideration, two of his three cosponsors are members. This means that there could be sufficient influence to see this bill considered in Committee. I see nothing in this bill, especially since it contains no new funding or regulatory requirements, that would engender any organized opposition to the legislation. I suspect that there would be bipartisan support for the bill. Unfortunately, this is yet another bill that is not politically important enough to take up the time to considered by the full Senate. If this bill is to move forward, it would need to be considered under the unanimous consent process (a politically fraught process) or be included in some larger, more politically necessary bill.

 

For more details about the provisions of this bill, see my article at CFSN Detailed Analysis - https://patrickcoyle.substack.com/p/s-3943-introduced - subscription required.

Short Takes – 4-22-24 – Space Geek Edition

Dragonfly: NASA Just Confirmed The Most Exciting Space Mission Of Your Lifetime. Forbes.com article. Pull quote: “Titan is the only other world in the solar system other than Earth that has weather and liquid on its surface. It has an atmosphere, rain, lakes, oceans, shorelines, valleys, mountain ridges, mesas and dunes—and possibly the building blocks of life itself. It’s been described as both a utopia and as deranged because of its weird chemistry.”

NASA reveals 'glass-smooth lake of cooling lava' on surface of Jupiter's moon Io. LiveScience.com article. Pull quote: “The new images show Loki Patera, a 127-mile-long (200 km) lava lake on Io's surface. Scientists have been observing this lava lake for decades. It sits over the magma reservoirs under Io's surface. The cooling lava at the center of the lake is ringed by possibly molten magma around the edges, Scott Bolton, principal investigator  for the Juno mission, said during a news conference Wednesday (April 16) at the European Geophysical Union General Assembly in Vienna.”

Starship Faces Performance Shortfall for Lunar Missions. AmericaSpace.com article. Pull quote: “This is likely what happened to Starship.  To mitigate the risk that one exploding Raptor engine might cause a cascade of failures, SpaceX installed extra shielding around each of the 33 motors on the Super Heavy booster.  In addition, it installed a steel “hot staging” ring between the booster and the ship, which allows the latter to ignite its engines while the two stages are still attached.  It is worth noting that this component was supposed to increase the performance of the vehicle by 10%; SpaceX has not disclosed whether those gains were realized.  Other additions to the vehicle included components which mitigated the propellant leaks which partially contributed to the failure of the first test flight.  Each additional gram of mass ate into Starship’s payload capacity.”

America's Next Great Space Station Gets a Vote of Support from Japan. Fool.com article. Pull quote: “Of the three teams discussed, the most "international" of the teams vying to replace the International Space Station is Voyager's. In addition to American aerospace company Northrop, Voyager's team also includes the European aerospace champion Airbus. As of last week, it will also include an industrial leader from Japan: As the companies announced earlier this month, Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation (MSBHF 1.65%) is taking an equity stake in the Starlab project.”