got geoint?

Many of us got to experience some pretty fun things while in college. From travels abroad to sports and let’s be honest, some good old-fashioned college partying. But, we have yet to run across any college students who get the rare privilege of crashing a NASA satellite. University of Colorado at Boulder undergraduates were lucky to have the opportunity to crash (come on now – how cool is that?) the Ice, Cloud and Land Elevation Satellite, or ICESat, in the Arctic. The satellite had been in orbit for seven years – and UC Boulder students have been controlling the satellite for that time period. Why did they crash the satellite? The satellite had outlasted its targeted design life, before its primary sensor – a laser device intended for measuring ice thickness, forest cover – failed last year. So, yes, while college can often include learning how to do keg stands, it can also present an incredible opportunity like this for students. Go U.C. Boulder.

Full Article

We often take for granted the fact that most of our cars have a built in GPS systems, and it is soo pervasive that even grandma knows how to use one. GPS gets us where we need to go, and it removes the most common road trip challenges: getting lost. So, we were a bit stumped when we came across this NY Times story about how American Airlines just NOW followed a satellite-based approach to Bradley International Airport near Hartford last week. According to the article, it was a momentous occasion, at least according to the pilot. Wouldn’t one assume that airlines would be using one of the most ubiquitous technologies available? Yes, rhetorical question. The reason for the delay is that the American air traffic infrastructure is so well established, and change is well, hard. Check out the full NY Times story here.

Full Article

Welcome to the Friday’s Food for Thought post from got geoint? We hope everyone had a productive week and are gearing up for back to school time – man, how fast summer flies by. This week’s FFT theme is all about the next generation of GEOINTers and what makes them tick. By better understanding this new generation — many who are enrolling as freshmen in college — we will be better suited to create the next leaders of our community. And, we end this post with the anthem for how to deal with the upcoming generation – treat them right. Happy Friday!

Full Article

While technological advances in the areas of geospatial imagery, full-motion video, and other raw data have increased the volume of information available to decision makers and warfighters, the intelligence community (IC) still struggles to ensure that data is timely and truly actionable. In many ways, this is the Achilles’ heel for our nation’s overall intelligence capabilities. With the help of industry, the IC has built out the most innovative and forward-thinking intelligence-gathering solutions through imagery and mapping, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) data collection, and video, but none of this innovation is of use if it does not help advance our missions abroad.

Full Article

We live in an area of full transparency — where everything is shared out in the open. And, perhaps we are a bit too transparent? This was further reinforced by a NY Times story about Adam Savage (pictured), host of the popular science program “MythBusters,” who posted a picture on Twitter of his automobile parked in front of his house. Problem was that photo was geotagged and it let everyone know where Adam lives. On top of that Adam’s Twitter message was: “Now, it’s off to work.” So, he let everyone know where his house and that it is empty. Hmmm…not the brightest idea, eh? Security experts and privacy advocates have recently begun warning about the potential dangers of geotags, which are embedded in photos and videos taken with GPS-equipped smartphones and digital cameras. What do you all think?

Full Article

Small is the new big. At least according to the U.S. Army who is developing a Multipurpose Nanomissile system — the smallest orbital launch vehicle — for the sole purpose of launching swarms of tiny satellites for various tactical missions. According to Fox News, it stands at just a little taller than a basketball hoop, and the rocket’s modularity could make it useful not only as a launch vehicle but potentially a missile defense target, sounding rocket and hypersonic test vehicle as well. This move reinforces the Army’s mission of developing cheap constellations of spacecraft that can be easily replaced, as opposed to the Air Force’s MO of building a small number of very expensive satellites. So, it’s a small world after all — well at least it is when it comes to the U.S. Army. Welcome all thoughts and feedback.

Full Article

Today, it’s time to say farewell and to express deep appreciation to the entire NGA workforce. You continue to do remarkable work every day. At all the places NGA has been asked to take on a new task or support a new mission, you – the men and women of NGA – have taken on the challenge and excelled.

Full Article

As most of us know, today was a special day in the GEOINT world. The U.S. intelligence community got its first female head of a major agency as intelligence veteran Letitia Long took over the helm at the National Geospatial- Intelligence Agency (NGA). And, the staff of got geoint? was able to attend the event, and we have provided a number of photos from the event (courtesy of the Department of Defense). We hope you enjoy.

Full Article

We all know that the discipline of GEOINT keeps getting bigger and bigger, but it is also clear that geospatial approaches seem to be taking hold in other parts of the national security community, like development and diplomacy. This trend was underscored by a recent Huffington Post article by USGIF board member Chris Tucker that lays out an ambitious plan for creating a peaceful and prosperous Palestine state in the West Bank through the development of sustainable communities. Yes, that is correct. Dr. Tucker has laid out a vision for achieving Middle East peace through the development of the ARC Project, which was developed jointly by the RAND Corporation and Suisman Urban Design. What is the ARC Project? Check out the Friends of the ARC web site , which is a growing community of people who see economic development strategies based on sound urban planning as the path to Israeli-Palestinian peace. We also highly recommend you check out the video on the Friends of the ARC site – clearly geospatial analysis and visualization can have a powerful role in development and diplomacy. The video lays out clearly what the plan would be for creating a prosperous Palestinian state. Learn more about a GEOINT visionary’s view on how our discipline can take geographic data and tradecraft and address major national security priorities, here.

Full Article

Yesterday, the Air Force Times ran a story about the House Armed Services Committee denying a recent Pentagon request to cut hundreds of millions of dollars from several key UAV programs. Specifically, the committee ordered the Defense Department to keep $71 million for the RQ-4 Global Hawk strategic spy jet. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo. and committee chairman recently stated in a letter that the “program has been consistently underfunded in the area of spare parts.” The letter also stated that “the committee encourages the Air Force to obligate these funds as soon as possible in order to support ongoing operations in” Iraq and Afghanistan. One of the key issues that the Air Force has with the program is that the Northrop Grumman-run Global Hawk program per-plane cost keeps rising. While Northrop Grumman officials say thay the costs are rising because the military keeps increasing the requirements while also buying the UAVs in small batches.

Full Article