Thursday, February 3, 2011

Are You IPv6 Ready?

Today, the international organizations that are responsible for IP addresses are expected to announce full allocation of the IPv4 address space. This means that the entire range of 4 billion IPv4 addresses have been spoken for.

A researcher from USC explains the exhaustion of IPv4 addresses and the solution of IPv6 in this great video.

Understanding Internet Address Space Usage from Aniruddh Rao on Vimeo.


June 8, 2011 has been designated World IPv6 Day when major organizations enable IPv6 connections to their sites in order to test connectivity of this next generation Internet protocol.

SSC Pacific is IPv6 ready now.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Our Sewer Plant "Marathon"

In the 1970s, Hal Goforth was a young biologist and runner who started a lunchtime running group with his co-workers. The group ran a 1.5 mile loop from Seaside to the Sewer Plant (aka Water Treatment Facility). In 1976, Hal took a one year leave to teach Marine Science at Key West Community College. As a going away gift/party, his running co-workers affectionately held the "Goforth Memorial Sewer Plant Marathon" on their regular 1.5 mile course. The tradition continues.

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Friday, January 21, 2011

DUSN visits SSC Pacific

Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy for Business Operations and Transformation Eric Fanning recently stopped by the command to learn about how SSC Pacific is creating transformational technologies that provide information dominance to the fleet.




SSC Pacific is a Navy Working Capital Fund, which provides an inherent agility for the command to place priorities on the warfighters' needs. Department of Defense customers can come to us with their needs, and our highly skilled professionals quickly field new capabilities.

SSC Pacific, and Team SPAWAR as a whole, is committed to providing the best service to the fleet and fellow warfighters.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

SSC Pacific uses patents to protect intellectual property, support the fleet

Scientists and engineers at SSC Pacific are committed to creating innovations in support of the warfighter. That process includes protecting the Navy's intellectual property and ensuring capability is delivered at the lowest possible cost. According to the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Power Patent Scorecard 2010, US Navy patent portfolio ranks #1 among government agencies worldwide. In fiscal year 2010, SSC Pacific was issued over 40 patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). When patents are licensed for commercialization -- a process that allows for large-scale production of a capability needed by the warfighter -- the SSC Pacific inventor gets to share in the royalties.

Our Technology Transfer Office helps commercialize technologies. Check it out on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/SPAWARPacificT2

Also check out:
http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=54156
http://spectrum.ieee.org/static/patentpower2010

Monday, November 15, 2010

Playgoers Club has enchanted night to remember at the Broadway adaptation of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast"

"Tale as old as time, true as it can be..." More than 50 SSC Pacific employees and family members attended the smash hit Broadway musical "Beauty and the Beast" on Oct. 29, at the Civic Theatre in San Diego. The Playgoers Club is just one of many clubs available to all SSC Pac employees and is a great way to spend a night out enjoying art and entertainment.

Not only does the Playgoers club provide quality entertainment for SSC Pacific employees and their families, but it provides yet another enjoyable avenue to get to know our fellow "Spawarriors". Just another great reason we love working for SSC Pacific!

Friday, September 17, 2010

Honoring Our Fallen Heroes

September 17, 2010 is National POW/MIA Recognition Day where we honor the sacrifices of our nation's prisoners of war and those who are still missing in action. To this day, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) continues its efforts to find, recover, repatriate, and identify our fallen heroes.



SSC Pacific is collaborating with JPAC to see how we can assist their mission of achieving "the fullest possible accounting of all Americans missing as a result of the nation's past conflicts." JPAC teams tirelessly canvas the globe upholding our nation's promise to find comrades and to keep searching "until they are home."

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Oahu In Step Science Show

SSC Pacific engineers participated in the Oahu In STEP (Science and Technology Education Partnership) Science Show and Exposition and had the opportunity to meet with Hawaii's Lieutenant Governor Duke Aiona.



During the August event, SSC Pacific was one of the exhibitors encouraging the estimated 2,600 fourth, sixth, and eighth graders from the local Farrington Complex school district to consider Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers. "Plasma, the Fourth State of Matter" was the focus technology of the show, and our representatives demonstrated SSC Pacific's diversity of projects and provided hands-on interactive demos on math and science.

Monday, July 26, 2010

Cornell University defends title at 13th Annual Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition

SAN DIEGO, July 2010 — Cornell University defended its title as champion at this year’s Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition.

The competition brought together 22 teams from five countries for the 13th annual event. SPAWAR Systems Center (SSC) Pacific has hosted the competition, which is sponsored by the AUVSI Foundation, the Office of Naval Research and several corporate sponsors, at the Transducer Evaluation Center (TRANSDEC) Pool for the past nine years.



Students had to build and program their own autonomous underwater vehicles that would complete a course of various obstacles including recognizing colors and reacting to sounds. The theme this year was Underwater the 13th – a horror film theme.

Dave Novick, technical director for the competition, said the pool was “Camp TRANSDEC,” with various summer camp-themed obstacles. First, the robots had to get a life jacket (recognize the colored buoys), jump the hedges (move over piping suspended in the water), select tools for weapons (identify shapes), fire a crossbow through the window (launch a torpedo), and finally save the counselor by pulling him out of a cabin (in this case, surface).

“Releasing is new this year,” Novick said. “They have to release the counselor before surfacing.”

He said most of the obstacles rely on visual cues because cameras are cheap and easy to use. But he said he hopes to incorporate a wider variety of challenges in future years.

Also new this year was the SAE International Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS) Interoperability Challenge that accounted for about 15 percent of the total possible points. Teams have had the opportunity to attempt the JAUS Challenge in the past, but it was not an official part of the competition.

The requirement was a late addition to this year’s event, but 11 teams gave it a try. About half of them got a perfect score.

“So much of what they do is on the research and science side,” said Ralph “Woody” English, president of SAE AS-4, a group that publishes documents on JAUS. “We think it challenges them to think about things they will do on the job side.”

The event is open to the public during the qualifying rounds and finals each year.

Steve Koepenick, Deputy of Program Development for SSC Pacific's ISR/IO Competency, Autonomous Systems Division, said the competition is a great opportunity for community outreach.

“When we first did this nine years ago it was obvious to me we could do outreach,” he said. “We can show off our facility, capability and what we do for the community.”

“Plus, the competition helps foster young, bright minds,” he said.

In the past, the Center has hired some of the students who participate in the competition. Just by preparing for the competition, they show that they can work across disciplines, defend their work and apply concepts to real-world applications.

“We hire the best and brightest,” Koepenick said. “(These students would) know what to do when they get here.”

Final results for the competition were as follows:
1st Place - Cornell University
2nd Place - U.S. Naval Academy
3rd Place - University of Maryland
4th Place - Team SONIA -École de Technologie Supérieure
5th Place - Amador Valley High School
6th Place - University of Texas at Dallas
7th Place - Kyushu Institute of Technology
Best Run of Teams Not in Finals: University of Central Florida
Never Give Up Award: Iceland
Best Presentation: San Diego City Robotics

SSC Pacific is recognized worldwide as a leader in command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance in support of the Nation's warfighters.

Serving as host of the AUVSI competition for the last nine years is just one example of the command's commitment to young people who want to learn more about the practical application of science and engineering. In 2009, the command was awarded the Maritime Alliance Educational Outreach Award for its educational outreach efforts.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Pac Puzzler

How about a mental exercise to get you through the week? What's the solution to this Pac Puzzler?

You are a medical researcher and have a presentation in 24 hours for which 12 samples of placebo and 1 sample of vaccine has been prepared. Unfortunately your lab assistant forgot to label any of the samples and now can't remember which is which! On top of that you now only have four lab rats yet to receive the vaccine. You can administer the samples as you wish to the four rats but it will take 23 hours before you can test to see which received the vaccine.

How can you, without a doubt, find the 1 sample of vaccine out of the 13 total unlabeled samples with only four subjects to administer vaccinations to?! Time is ticking...

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Experiencing RIMPAC 2010

With 32 naval ships, five submarines, more than 170 aircraft, and 20,000 personnel participating in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2010 exercise, it is indeed the largest international maritime event. Partnering with Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Peru, Republic of Korea, Singapore, and Thailand, the U.S. Navy component, led by Commander, Combined Task Force, is emphasizing "Combined Agility, Synergy, and Support" for RIMPAC 2010.

Throughout the planning, preparation, and actual execution stages, SSC Pacific personnel have been supporting this massive event in a variety of ways - strategic planning, specialized coalition network communications engineering, and equipment installations to name a few.

Supporting RIMPAC 2010 gives our employees opportunities to experience and interact with different cultures, learn about foreign navies, and most importantly, lend their expertise to an event promoting stability in the Pacific Rim region.

Enjoy some pictures from the RIMPAC 2010 opening ceremony and a tour of Japan's JS ATAGO destroyer.



Follow RIMPAC 2010 on Facebook and Twitter.