LifeofthisWorld

The Army Is Bringing Back an Old Gun for New Fights Popular Mechanics   23 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet The United States Army will soon begin distributing a weapon system introduced in 1946. The M3 Carl Gustav rocket launcher will bolster the firepower of rifle platoons, giving them a much-needed edge. Developed by Bofors (now Saab), the Carl Gustav is a lightweight, man-portable recoilless rifle. Recoilless rifles are like a cross between an artillery gun and a bazooka: While they have propellant at the base of the projectile like a rocket, the propellant doesn't burn beyond the barrel, meaning the projectile flies unpowered like a bullet or artillery shell. Unlike artillery, propellant gasses are directed backwards, counteracting the weapon's recoil and making it "recoilless". The weapon is ...

3-Minute Video Explains a U.S. Navy Carrier Air Wing Popular Mechanics   21 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet U.S. Naval Institute News has put together an awesome video titled "What's In An Air Wing?" The clip neatly explains how the 70-plus aircraft of the USS John C. Stennis are organized into the eight squadrons—and one detachment —of Carrier Air Wing 9.  CWV9 is just one of ten air wings and includes everything from Super Hornet strike fighters to C-2 Greyhound cargo aircraft. There's also a cool graphic breakdown of the squadrons and the aircraft assigned to the Stennis: ...

China's military is building a mysterious space station in Argentina The Week   3 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet China is constructing its first space tracking, telemetry, and command facility outside of its borders in Patagonia, Argentina, and some critics are already expressing concerns that it will be doing more than just looking at the stars. Chinese military personnel will reportedly operate the space center, although officials have claimed the antenna is "totally civilian, and is not operated by military personnel." While the official purpose of the project is to monitor the moon, others believe that it could also be used to intercept communications from foreign nation's satellites. The Diplomat points out that in 2015, the former representative of Argentina to the Arms Trade Treaty said the base would have a dual use. It would possess "the capacity to interfere with communications, electronic networks, electromagnetic ...

A top China official warned that everyone will pay a price if Hong Kong becomes chaotic Business Insider   9 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet Visiting state leader Zhang Dejiang warned everyone would have to pay the price if Hong Kong became chaotic, in a 20-minute speech to more than 220 representatives from various sectors at the government headquarters this morning. “We are all in the same boat. If Hong Kong does well, everyone would benefit. If Hong Kong becomes chaotic, everyone has to ‘mai dan’,” said Zhang, using the Cantonese term for footing the bill. The state leader, who chairs the National People’s Congress Standing Committee, called on Hongkongers to support Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying and his administration, stressing they were elected in accordance with the Basic Law and appointed by the central government. Zhang ...

The US Navy has a new trick up its sleeve, and it could be a game changer Business Insider   Wed, May 18 10:00 PM PDT   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet The US Navy is preparing to roll out an advanced network of targeting information that will revolutionize the fleet's capabilities in a time when they are increasingly being threatened by regional rivals. Russia and China are at or near parity with US Naval forces in key strategic areas and developing convincing anti-access/area denial defenses. The US Navy has lately been focused on a concept called "distributed lethality," or equipping even their smallest ships with powerful, stealthy, and long range missiles that can sink enemy ships or signal emitters from a safe distance. This will afford the Navy "the ability for us to utilize air-launched capabilities, surface launched capabilities and subsurface launched capabilities that are tied together with an all domain [information network],...

Okinawa: Japan PM voices anger after body dump arrest BBC News   6 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has expressed his anger after a US military worker in Okinawa was arrested on suspicion of dumping a woman's body. The body of the 20-year-old woman, missing since April, was found at a location given by the 32-year old man. Police say the man admitted abandoning the body. They also suspect he killed her but have not charged him with this. The case is likely to fuel discontent in Okinawa over the large US military presence and crimes by personnel. It also comes a week before US President Barack Obama visits Japan for a G7 summit. Police say the man, Kenneth Franklin Shinzato, was a contractor at the US Kadena Air Base. Mr Abe told reporters on Friday: "I feel ...

China: We’re ready if US ‘stirs up any conflict’ in South China Sea Seema Mody, CNBC   20 hours ago   Comments   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Share   Tweet   Email BEIJING —  China   's attempts to claim a nearly 1.4-million-square-mile swathe of open ocean are without precedent and probably without legal merit, but Beijing continues to assert its right to the economically critical zone — and increasingly puts its claims in military terms. Speaking to a small group of reporters in Beijing on Thursday, a high-ranking Chinese official made his warning clear: The United States should not provoke China in the South China Sea without expecting retaliation. "The Chinese people do not want to have war, so we will be opposed to [the] U.S. if it stirs up any conflict," said Liu Zhenmin, vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "Of course, if the Korean War or Vietnam War are replayed, then we will have to defend ...

Freedom of Navigation Operations in the South China Sea Aren’t Enough Foreign Policy Magazine   7 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet International tensions are rising over the shipping lanes and land formations in the South China Sea. Last week, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force scrambled fighter jets in response to a U.S. Navy ship sailing near the disputed Fiery Cross Reef. Sometime very soon, possibly this month, the United Nations is expected to resolve South China Sea claims by the Philippines, where the President-elect, Rodrigo Duterte, is making offers to broker peace in the region. How much has the status quo changed and what will it mean for the counties involved? —The ChinaFile Editors Like the two other recent U.S. freedom of navigation operations (FONOP) in the South China Sea, the most recent U.S. FONOP was ...

U.S. on North Korea travel: Don't go CNN   6 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet Washington (CNN)The State Department is urging any American thinking of a trip to reclusive North Korea to think again. The agency usually issues travel warnings every six months on a variety of countries, but recent legislation now requires it to issue travel warnings about North Korea every 90 days. The department issued its first travel warning under the new law Friday and doubled down with a four-page statement that makes it clear that Americans travel to North Korea at their own peril. The State Department strongly urges U.S. citizens to avoid all travel to North Korea, the warning states, before going on to list all the ways it is possible to get into trouble, including "showing disrespect" to the country's current or former leaders, taking unauthorized photographs and shopping at stores not designated for foreigners. ...

Strong quake shakes eastern Japan; no tsunami danger Fox News   13 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet A strong earthquake shook Tokyo and other cities in eastern Japan on Monday, but officials said there is no danger of a tsunami. The Meteorological Agency said the earthquake had an initial magnitude of 5.6 and was centered in southern Ibaraki prefecture, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) northeast of Tokyo. The agency said the earthquake was located about 40 kilometers (24 miles) underground, and there was no danger of a tsunami. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage. The earthquake also shook Tsukuba, where science and technology ministers from the Group of Seven nations are meeting. "There were strong vertical motions, but nothing fell to the floor or broke," Hiroyuki Oseki, ...

Georgia launches U.S.-led military drill despite Russian warning Newsweek   20 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet Georgia has launched a two-week military exercise with NATO allies led by the U.S. despite Russia’s warnings that they have been following the preparations and consider Georgia’s actions provocative. Relations between Georgia and Russia took a severe turn for the worse in 2008 when, after years of political deadlock with separatists in two of its regions near its border with Russia, Georgia opted for a military solution. In response, Russia, who had supported separatists in both regions—South Ossetia and Abkhazia—advanced forces to fight Georgian troops away from the territories. Since then Russia has moved towards effectively incorporating the two regions under its leadership, while Georgia has refused to recognize them as anything but its sovereign territory, temporarily out of its control. ...

Chandra Captures Expanding Debris from a Stellar Explosion SciTech Daily   19 hours ago   Sign in to like   Reblog on Tumblr   Tweet By combining the Chandra data with 30 years worth of observations, scientists have made a movie of the evolution of Tycho’s supernova remnant. When the star that created this supernova remnant exploded in 1572, it was so bright that it was visible during the day. In modern times, astronomers have observed the debris field from this explosion − what is now known as Tycho’s supernova remnant − using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, the NSF’s Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) and many other telescopes. Today, they know that the Tycho remnant was created by the explosion of a white dwarf star, making it part of the so-called Type Ia class of supernovas used to track the expansion of the Universe. ...