Three sailors assigned to USS Maine (SSBN 741) and USS Wyoming (SSBN 742) became the first female unrestricted line officers to qualify in submarines Dec. 5. Lt. j.g. Marquette Leveque, a native of Fort Collins, Colo., assigned to the Gold Crew of Wyoming, and Lt. j.g. Amber Cowan and Lt. j.g. Jennifer Noonan of Maine’s…

While many Americans know Dec. 7, 2012, as the 71st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, few are familiar with the role Gen. George Patton played in foreshadowing it. The Japanese Empire had been on the move in the Orient since its defeat of Russia in 1904 at Port Arthur, Manchuria. Next came the…

Reaction Engines Ltd. of Great Britain has announced successful tests of its light weight heat exchanger, a critical component of its Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine. The engine functions as both an air breathing jet, and then switches to use stored liquid oxygen, as does a rocket engine. Their studies show that single stage to orbit…

General Dynamics NASSCO held a keel laying ceremony for the future USNS John Glenn (MLP 2), Dec. 4, in San Diego, Calif. MLP 2 is the second ship in the Mobile Landing Platform program that will provide the Navy with the capability to transfer vehicles and equipment at sea and to interface with surface connectors…

“It was the first time I had ever seen a plunging dive bomber and it was an awesome sight. Nothing in warfare is more frightening,” said Pvt. Wilfred D. Burke, 72d Pursuit Squadron, Wheeler Field, whose experience in the attacks on Pearl Harbor are recorded in “7 December 1941: The Air Force Story” compiled by…

Jedi Masters, Titanium Tigers, Panthers, F-22 Raptorbots and other robotic teams gathered at Joe Walker Middle school in Quartz Hill, Calif., to participate in the 3rd Annual AV Techno Classic LEGO Tournament. The 2012 theme was ëSenior Solutions: Independent. Engaged. Connected. First Lego League is a robotics program designed to excite students 9 to 14…

Thanks to improved data analysis techniques and a new operating mode, the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor aboard NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is now 10 times better at catching the brief outbursts of high-energy light mysteriously produced above thunderstorms. The outbursts, known as terrestrial gamma-ray flashes, last only a few thousandths of a second, but their…

Two local youths transitioned from boys to young men when they achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America organization. Dylan Swenson and Ben Wright, both 17, shared the achievements that won them their hard-earned Eagle Scout rank Nov. 28, when they previewed their service projects at…

The Navy accepted delivery of the eighth LPD 17 class amphibious transport dock ship, the future USS Arlington (LPD 24), from Huntington Ingalls Industries Dec. 7. Accepting delivery of Arlington represents the official transfer of the ship from the shipbuilder to the Navy and is a major milestone in the ship’s transition to operational status….

Lockheed Martin photograph by Andrew McMurtrie HC-130J Combat King II takes off for Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., from the Lockheed Martin facilities in Marietta, Ga., Dec. 5. Aircraft number 5709 is the sixth of 15 HC-130Js to be delivered to the U.S. Air Forceís Air Combat Command. Maj. Gen. Timothy Zadalis, Director of Intelligence,…