1. DARPA’s is seeking purpose-built unmanned systems for close air support, as well as unmanned versions of manned fighters, including the “QF-4, QF-16 and UA-10”. The QF-4 and QF-16 designates target drone versions of the original F-4 and F16 fighters, while the UA-10 is presumably a reference to an unmanned version of the A-10.
The project is targeting demonstrations in 2012 or 2013 of the unmanned component for a next-generation close air support system.
DARPA has set different performance requirements for unmanned versions. An unmanned variant of the A-10 would have to demonstrate comparable endurance to the manned version, while a purpose-built UAS would have to equal the persistence of the MQ-1 or MQ-9.
The payload of weapons and sensors sought by DARPA is comparable with the MQ-9, with only 907-2,270kg (2,000-5,000lb) requested. The aircraft, however, should have more agility than the Reaper
2. DARPA is planning an April test flight for a prototype of a hypersonic weapon
The flight test is part of the Falcon program, a Darpa-Air Force project to develop the tech that could lead to a reusable hypersonic vehicle that could take off and land like a plane. It would carry 12,000 pounds of payload over 9,000 nautical miles in less than two hours.
They’re currently doing human trials of the DEKA Arm, a prosthetic that allows users to complete day-to-day tasks with unprecedented ease. That arm uses a joystick-style interface, with a user tapping commands with their toes to trigger movements with the arm. At Johns Hopkins, DARPA-funded researchers are still working on an arm that uses a 100-sensor neural interface to create a brain-body meld much like what’s inherent in natural limbs.
But although DARPA had hoped to have a fully-functional, neuro-prosthetic model ready by 2010, the agency’s researchers have yet to master the integration of human neural pathways with artificial platforms.
DARPA’s launching a new program, Histology for Interface Stability Over Time, in hopes of creating not only a neurally-controlled limb, but one that has a 70-year lifespan and flawless integration with the human body.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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