MANAMA, Bahrain. Amphibious transport dock ship USS Portland (LPD 27) conducted a high-energy laser weapon system demonstration, Dec. 14, while sailing in the Gulf of Aden, according to an announcement by the U.S. Navy.

U.S. NAVAL FORCES CENTRAL COMMAND, Gulf of Aqaba. U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) is now operationally testing a new unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the Gulf of Aqaba (off the coast of Jordan) as part of a drive to integrate new unmanned systems and artificial intelligence (AI) into U.S. 5th Fleet operations.

RESTON, Va. Engineering firm CACI International announced that it has won a five-year, $80.5 million task order to support the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division, under a U.S. Department of Defense Information Analysis Center (DOD IAC) multiple-award contract.

The ability to harness ocean-wave energy is a rapidly evolving field that the U.S. Navy is actively exploring to expand its maritime C4ISR [command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] capabilities.

OTTAWA, Ontario. Geospatial-software Kongsberg Geospatial announced that its TerraLens geospatial software development kit (SDK) was selected by Ultra Naval Systems and Sensors to provide the geospatial display and rendering engine for the next generation of U.S. Navy surface-search radars.

PROMONTORY, Utah. The Navy Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) conducted a second test of the First Stage Solid Rocket Motor (SRM) as part of the development of the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) offensive hypersonic strike capability and the Army’s Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW). 

TYSONS, VA. Software company CORAS has won a prototype project agreement (PPA) with the U.S. Navy’s Naval Information Warfare Center (NIWC) Atlantic for the Information Warfare Research Project (IWRP) that aimes to use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies to improve and troubleshoot shipboard information technology (IT) systems.