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| Wilson Announces $15.5 Million in Defense Projects |
June 13, 2006 |
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Appropriations Bill includes Key Wilson Technology Requests Produced by Albuquerque Employers
Washington, DC – Congresswoman Heather Wilson today announced that the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2007 includes $15.5 million for five key projects, each requested by Wilson and directly important to Albuquerque.
Four of the Wilson requests are for technology that is produced by Albuquerque employers. The fifth project is led by the University of New Mexico.
“New Mexico makes a disproportionate contribution to our national security,” Wilson said. “Military research in New Mexico creates jobs and helps keep America safe.”
The legislation contains the following five requests from Wilson:
$4.5 million for the University Strategic Partnerships Program. The University of New Mexico is the lead university in this program. The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is interested in research in the areas of bio-technology, nanotechnology, materials science, information sciences, infectious disease surveillance, medical sciences, and the modeling and understanding of group behavior. The University Strategic Partnerships Program has led to joint Research and Development projects at DOE National Laboratories and White Sands Missile Range.
$5.5 million for Albuquerque-based TPL, Inc. for High Energy Density Capacitors for Military Applications. The Department of Defense is seeking to develop electromagnetic (EM) weapon systems using high voltage capacitors with significantly improved electrical energy storage capabilities. TPL is developing these capacitors.
$1 million for procurement of Albuquerque-produced MIOX Corporation’s Individual Water Purifier Systems that will enable soldiers to gather water from any source, anywhere and purify it into drinking water that meets EPA standards. Soldiers in hostile environments are required to wear nearly 25 pounds of body armor in addition the heavy loads that they have to carry during their missions. This increases the risk of dehydration and overheating. In unsecured and hostile locations the extra time it takes to purify water using a pump device increases a Marine’s exposure to enemy fire. The filter and purifier technology is integrated within a Marine’s hydration pack – the camelback that hikers and cyclists use.
$3 million for procurement of Albuquerque-based MesoSystems Chemical/ Biological Detection Tactical Air Sentinels. Tactical Air Sentinel will be a mobile, deployable, lightweight, and low power biological detector to detect releases of a variety of biological materials including anthrax, tularemia, viruses, and toxins. Tactical Air Sentinel is rooted in proven technology developed with assistance from Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Tactical Air Sentinel will improve the sensitivity and specificity of the already proven Air Sentinel while at the same time reducing the size, power consumption, and hardening it for military field use.
$1.5 million for Ultra Spectral, an Albuquerque company, for the Hyper/multispectral Data Reduction and Archiving (HYDRA) capability. This software capability is needed to perform rapid anomaly detection and data management for directed energy systems such as High Energy Laser (HEL) Relay Systems. HYDRA can be integrated to use with these Laser Relay Systems for fire control and precision targeting systems. One of the biggest challenges faced by Relay Systems is the engagement of ground targets in the presence of natural and urban clutter, where both target acquisition and tracking are difficult. In addition, the project will integrate personal computers and Field Programmable Gate Arrays to provide rapid, affordable, parallel processing to accelerate the flow of tactical information to warfighters.
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