MELBOURNE, FLA. Northrop Grumman has unveiled a major new Cyber Warfare Integration Network (CWIN) as part of an aggressive initiative to develop better network-centric warfare procedures and software for critical systems such as Global Hawk, Joint-STARS and the B-2, as well as future assets like UCAV and the Multisensor Command and Control Aircraft.

WASHINGTON The U.S. Navy is pursuing an aggressive strategy to develop a landbased, endurance UAV to serve as an adjunct to its maritime patrol fleet. But barely out of the starting blocks, the initiative is running into funding problems that are likely to derail the service’s plans to field a system by 2008.

PARIS The European Space Agency is expected to confirm this week that its member states endorsed a council decision giving final approval to funding the Galileo satellite navigation system. In the aftermath of a tense political battle, ESA members agreed to become equal partners in the Galileo investment plan.

TOKYO A clean launch on the fourth mission of the H-IIA medium-lift rocket appears to have put Japan back in business studying global climatic change, particularly global warming. The Dec. 14, 10:31 a.m. launch from the National Space Development Agency’s Tanegashima space center put the second Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (Adeos-2) into a 500-mi. high polar orbit.

WASHINGTON The European Space Agency hopes to open negotiations with NASA early next year on a possible role in the U.S. agency’s proposed Orbital Space Plane that would build on work ESA already has performed under the canceled X-38 program.

WASHINGTON The U.S. Navy is initiating development of a motor upgrade for the AGM-88 High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missile to make it fly faster and provide increased range, adding a third element to the improvement strategy for the Pentagons primary suppression of enemy air defenses weapon.

WASHINGTON Sending and receiving communications at the same time or listening to enemy communications while jamming them has long been considered impossible. But researchers say the barriers to such electronic multi-tasking are giving way to digital advances such as sophisticated algorithms to manipulate data and increased computer processing speed.

LONDON The British Defense Ministry is considering an unsolicited offer from helicopter manufacturer Westland for another batch of its Merlin variant of the EH101 as it considers how to meet a capability shortfall in its mediumto heavy-lift capability.