The United States takes Danish AIM-120D-3 rocket to strengthen Strategic Havastrace protection

Technology

On October 29, 2024, the U.S. State Department approved a potential Foreign Military Sale to Denmark, involving the procurement of up to 203 AIM-120D-3 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), along with associated logistics, for an estimated cost of $744 million. The AIM-120D-3 variant, also known as the AMRAAM F3R, incorporates a two-way data link and GPS navigation to enhance its performance in electronic warfare environments. Denmark also became the first publicly known export customer of the AIM-120D-3, though previous sales of the AIM-120D may have included this model as well.The AIM-120D-3 represents the latest development in the AMRAAM series, reflecting continuous technological evolution. Compared to its predecessors, such as the AIM-120C-7, the AIM-120D series offers a 50% increase in range and enhanced guidance capabilities. These upgrades significantly improve the missile’s probability of kill (Pk), delivering better precision and performance in various combat scenarios. Although the exact range of the AIM-120D remains classified, estimates suggest it can engage targets at distances between 160 km and 180 km, making it a highly capable weapon for long-range engagements.
A notable feature of the AIM-120D-3 variant, known as the AMRAAM F3R (Form, Fit, Function Refresh), is its response to supply chain challenges and manufacturing issues. The F3R program integrates a two-way data link and GPS navigation into the missile’s systems, enhancing its performance, particularly in electronic warfare environments. These updates ensure that the missile continues to meet modern air combat requirements while maintaining production efficiency and reliability.
The AIM-120D-3’s versatility and precision make it a critical asset for air forces, capable of engaging multiple targets and operating under various conditions. Its upgraded systems and extended range reinforce its role as a key component in air-to-air combat. The F3R program further ensures the missile remains viable for long-term operational use, addressing potential obsolescence and updating crucial hardware for continued functionality.
The acquisition of the AIM-120D-3 AMRAAM will enhance Denmark’s air defense capabilities by providing longer-range engagement options and improved performance in complex electronic warfare environments. This missile is expected to strengthen Denmark’s ability to defend its airspace, particularly in cooperation with its Nordic allies, and ensure interoperability with modern fighter jets such as the F-16 and F-35. The AIM-120D-3’s advanced guidance systems, increased range, and robust electronic countermeasure capabilities make it a critical asset for Denmark’s strategic defense needs.

Imperial turns to Silicon Valley to fund tech partnerships

Technology

Imperial College London is targeting 100 new funded science and tech partnerships in 2025 with US firms following the launch of its Silicon Valley base.
The British university has become the first to establish a permanent science and technology base on US soil with the launch of Imperial Global USA.
The Californian physical presence of the university will look to establish partnerships to fund tech projects from its researchers, backed by Silicon Valley cash.
So far, Imperial has secured a handful of funded projects in collaboration with companies and institutions in the valley, including partnerships with Agilent Technologies, UC Berkeley and the Bezos Earth Fund – a climate project funding scheme from the Amazon CEO.
“Opening a physical presence in San Francisco is going to supercharge our capabilities to support world-leading British science and tech to collaborate with American partners,” said Imperial College London president Prof Hugh Brady.
“Our new hub will be a front door in the heart of the Bay Area to help spinouts, academics and innovators create the kind of partnerships that will lead to world-changing scientific discoveries.”
The university has pledged to create 100 new US-UK tech partnerships in 2025 in areas such as climate tech, health tech and food tech.
“California is a gateway for innovation and entrepreneurship, and Imperial College London establishing its first-ever U.S. hub in San Francisco is a win-win,” said Governor of California Gavin Newsom.
“This illustrates the power of international partnerships, bringing together top minds in science and technology to tackle the world’s toughest challenges — from climate solutions to advanced healthcare.”
UK Tech Secretary Peter Kyle added: “By building on existing successful partnerships, like advancing AI in healthcare and scaling up clean energy solutions, this hub can play a key part in accelerating new technologies that will fuel economic growth and deliver real-world solutions to global challenges for years to come.”

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Imperial turns to Silicon Valley to fund tech partnerships

Technology

Imperial College London is targeting 100 new funded science and tech partnerships in 2025 with US firms following the launch of its Silicon Valley base.
The British university has become the first to establish a permanent science and technology base on US soil with the launch of Imperial Global USA.
The Californian physical presence of the university will look to establish partnerships to fund tech projects from its researchers, backed by Silicon Valley cash.
So far, Imperial has secured a handful of funded projects in collaboration with companies and institutions in the valley, including partnerships with Agilent Technologies, UC Berkeley and the Bezos Earth Fund – a climate project funding scheme from the Amazon CEO.
“Opening a physical presence in San Francisco is going to supercharge our capabilities to support world-leading British science and tech to collaborate with American partners,” said Imperial College London president Prof Hugh Brady.
“Our new hub will be a front door in the heart of the Bay Area to help spinouts, academics and innovators create the kind of partnerships that will lead to world-changing scientific discoveries.”
The university has pledged to create 100 new US-UK tech partnerships in 2025 in areas such as climate tech, health tech and food tech.
“California is a gateway for innovation and entrepreneurship, and Imperial College London establishing its first-ever U.S. hub in San Francisco is a win-win,” said Governor of California Gavin Newsom.
“This illustrates the power of international partnerships, bringing together top minds in science and technology to tackle the world’s toughest challenges — from climate solutions to advanced healthcare.”
UK Tech Secretary Peter Kyle added: “By building on existing successful partnerships, like advancing AI in healthcare and scaling up clean energy solutions, this hub can play a key part in accelerating new technologies that will fuel economic growth and deliver real-world solutions to global challenges for years to come.”

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Tourists in Spain warned of heavy rain, lightning and hail after deadly flash floods

Travel

Your support helps us to tell the storyThis election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreHalf-term holidaymakers have been warned by the Met Office to expect heavy rain in Spain’s east coast tourist destinations this week.The national meteorological service said that a risk of “significant flash flooding”, “frequent lightning” and “large hail” will continue through to the end of the week following heavy showers and thunderstorms.In a post on X/Twitter on Monday (28 October), the Met Office said: “Torrential rain and thunderstorms could bring flash flooding, landslides and significant disruption to parts of eastern Spain this week.“A further 250-350mm of rain is possible by the weekend in a few places – the average for the whole of October is closer to 50-100mm!”Popular holiday hotspots on the east coast, including Valencia, Malaga, Madrid and Alicante, are among the worst affected areas by the wet weather.The regional leader of Valencia, Carlos Mazon, said that “lifeless bodies” had been found in the area swept with flash floods.According to Spanish security and emergency bodies, the provisional death toll is 51 people and “the process of collecting and identifying victims is beginning”.Locals have been advised not to travel by road, both in the province of Valencia and in Castellon.In Alora, Malaga, cars were filmed being swept away due to a surge in the Guadalhorce River, and a high-speed train with nearly 300 passengers derailed in the heavy rain on Tuesday. No passenger injuries were reported from the incident.Aemet, Spain’s national weather agency, issued a heavy rain weather alert for the Spanish peninsula and the Balearic Islands yesterday that forecast “intense storms” and “persistent rainfall” until 31 October due to a DANA (isolated depression at high altitudes) around the Gulf of Cadiz.It said: “Instability will continue in the Mediterranean area, with probable showers and storms that would affect the Balearic Islands, the Valencian Community and Catalonia during the weekend and that could be locally strong and persistent.”A spokesperson for the Met Office said: “The worst conditions in this event occurred on Monday and Tuesday. However, river levels will remain high through the rest of Wednesday and into Thursday. We will continue to see heavy showers and thunderstorms across parts of Spain through to Saturday, but with increasing area of dry conditions developing with time.”For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast

Talking to dead people through AI: the business of ‘digital resurrection’ might not be helpful, ethical… or even legal

Business News

Earlier this year, a Spanish TV programme showed several people listening to digital recreations of the voices of their deceased relatives that had been generated by artificial intelligence from real audios. It sparked widespread debate in both public and professional spheres, as these recreations not only mimicked loved ones’ voices, but also asked poignant, evocative questions, provoking intense emotional reactions.

This phenomenon, which has been dubbed “digital resurrection”, involves using advanced AI technology to recreate certain aspects of deceased individuals, such as their voice or physical appearance. While it may offer momentary comfort, such a practice opens a raft of profound debates on ethical, philosophical and legal fronts.

The risk of creating false memories

Chief among the philosophical implications of digital resurrection is that it calls into question what it really means to “be”. By recreating the voice or likeness of someone who has passed away, we might believe we are extending their existence in some way, or perhaps that we are simply creating a shadow of them, lacking in substance.

However, the essence of a human being is undoubtedly more than a set of programmed responses or an image on a screen, and it seems unlikely that a digital simulation can capture the depth and uniqueness of a person’s lived experience, emotions and thoughts.

Memory plays an important role here. Digital resurrection can be seen as an attempt to preserve memory, to maintain the presence of those we have lost. But human memory is not static – it selects, changes, shifts and adapts, and by digitally recreating a person, we run the risk of altering our own authentic memories of them. Is it ethical to hold on to an artificial representation of someone, instead of letting the memory of them evolve and transform over time?

True identity

A person’s identity is a complex web of experiences and relationships. When we try to recreate someone, we might think we are trying to capture their identity. However, we are more likely to create an idealised version of them, one that conforms to our own expectations and desires.

These technological advances also raise questions about grief itself. Death is a natural part of life, and mourning is essential for coming to terms with this loss. By trying to maintain a connection with the deceased through digital resurrection, we interfere with this vital process, which could prevent us from moving forward and finding peace in the acceptance of loss.

Ultimately, digital resurrection also opens serious debate on the subject of consent and ownership. Who has the right to decide whether a person should be digitally recreated? And how can you handle the consent of someone who can, for obvious reasons, no longer express their wishes?

Exploiting grief for profit

We have to remember that technology is a business, and the prospect of companies making a profit by meddling with something as profoundly human and painful as the loss of a loved one raises further philosophical, ethical and moral questions.

From an ethical point of view, this kind of business seems to transgress the fundamental principles of respect and dignity that should guide our human interactions. Grieving is an intimate and sacred process, a path to acceptance and inner peace after a significant loss. Commercial intrusion into this process could therefore be seen as a form of emotional exploitation, taking advantage of people at one of the most vulnerable moments in their lives.

Business of this sort could also distort the natural grieving process. Grief and loss are essential experiences of the human condition, and dealing with them helps us to grow as people. If commercially marketed digital resurrection prevents people from moving through this process in a healthy way – offering an illusion of a person’s presence rather than helping to accept the reality of their absence – it offers little by way of benefit.

From a moral perspective, the intentions and purposes of such businesses would be questionable. In principle they seem to have the aim of providing comfort and a way of remembering loved ones. However, where do we draw the line between offering solace and exploiting grief for profit?

Digital resurrection exacerbates grief

At the heart of “digital resurrection” lies a profound and disturbing paradox. In its attempt to bring us closer to those we have lost, technology confronts us with the inescapable reality of their absence, leading us to question not only the nature of existence, but also the essence of what it means to be human.

By attempting to make up for the absence of a loved one or fill the void they have left, these technologies deepen both our desire to hold on to what we have lost, and our own personal struggles to cope with and process grief in the face of the inescapable reality of death.

The paradox is further extended when we consider that, in our effort to preserve the memory and essence of loved ones, we resort to simulations that, by their artificial nature, can never fully capture the complexity and depth of real human experience. Thus, we are faced with an imperfect, digitised representation that, while comforting in some ways, struggles to do justice to the true essence of someone we have loved and lost.

SPEE3D ANNOUNCES AUSTAL USA PURCHASES WARPSPEE3D PRINTER TO COMPLEMENT MARITIME MANUFACTURING EFFORTS

Technology

WarpSPEE3D Printing Metal Parts at Navy’s Additive Manufacturing of ExcellenceMelbourne, Australia, Oct. 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — – SPEE3D, a leading metal additive manufacturing company, announced thatAustal USA Advanced Technologies (Austal USA AT) has purchased a WarpSPEE3D printer to further its additive manufacturing application development efforts. Austal USA AT is a leader in cutting-edge technology implementation for defense and maritime applications and is spearheading the effort to revolutionize the U.S. Navy’s supply chain by implementing additive manufacturing.Leading a team of industry partners, Austal USA AT oversees and operates the Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville, VA – the U.S. Navy’s flagship center for additive manufacturing supporting the construction and sustainment of the fleet. Austal USA AT is committed to investing in future capabilities to continue expanding post-delivery support and sustainment offerings to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.“We are excited to partner with SPEE3D at the Navy’s Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence,” commented Scott Kasen, Austal USA AT Director of Advanced Technologies “The very high deposition rates of Cold Spray AM make it an exciting technology for large part creation, and process advancements utilizing the SPEE3D system could provide additional capability for manufacturing traditionally cast parts.”SPEE3D’s proprietary Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing (CSAM) technology offers cast-equivalent metal parts on-site and on-demand at build rates up to 100g/min (3.5oz/min). High-density metal parts can be built in hours and days instead of weeks or months, accelerating prototyping and product development and minimizing operational downtime. The WarpSPEE3D printer uses patented SPEE3D technology, enabling significantly faster and more scalable production than traditional manufacturing. It builds parts up to 88 lbs. (40Kg) with a diameter up to 40″ x 30″ (1m x .7m) in hours versus days.“SPEE3D is thrilled to offer our additive manufacturing capabilities to support Austal USA Advanced Technologies,” said Byron Kennedy, CEO of SPEE3D. “We have worked successfully with the U.S. Navy in the past and understand the unique challenges they face with the need for manufacturing capabilities that are fast, reliable, and easily deployable, and our partnership with Austal USA furthers this commitment to meet the ever-changing manufacturing needs of maritime.”About AUSTAL USA: Austal USA is a ship manufacturer headquartered in Mobile, AL, with service centers in San Diego and Singapore and a technology center in Charlottesville, VA. With the most modern steel panel line in the shipbuilding industry, Austal USA manufactures aluminum and steel ships and leverages a moving module production line and strict adherence to lean manufacturing principles to deliver on schedule and budget consistently. Austal USA is under contract for several programs, including the U.S. Coast Guard’s Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC), and the U.S. Navy TAGOS-25 ocean surveillance ship, Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessel, Spearhead-class Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF), Navajo-class Towing, Salvage and Rescue ship (T-ATS), Expeditionary Medical Ship (EMS), Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Medium (AFDM), and Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) programs. Austal USA also supports Navy unmanned vessel programs leveraging its advanced autonomous machinery control system. Its service business provides global support to the U.S. Navy, Military Sealift Command, and other customers. Austal USA’s San Diego Service Center includes a waterfront facility that can drydock small combatants and ships of similar size. Earning 27 safety excellence awards, it continues to be one of the safest shipyards in America. Source & references /Public Release.

SPEE3D ANNOUNCES AUSTAL USA PURCHASES WARPSPEE3D PRINTER TO COMPLEMENT MARITIME MANUFACTURING EFFORTS

Technology

WarpSPEE3D Printing Metal Parts at Navy’s Additive Manufacturing of ExcellenceMelbourne, Australia, Oct. 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — – SPEE3D, a leading metal additive manufacturing company, announced thatAustal USA Advanced Technologies (Austal USA AT) has purchased a WarpSPEE3D printer to further its additive manufacturing application development efforts. Austal USA AT is a leader in cutting-edge technology implementation for defense and maritime applications and is spearheading the effort to revolutionize the U.S. Navy’s supply chain by implementing additive manufacturing.Leading a team of industry partners, Austal USA AT oversees and operates the Navy’s Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Danville, VA – the U.S. Navy’s flagship center for additive manufacturing supporting the construction and sustainment of the fleet. Austal USA AT is committed to investing in future capabilities to continue expanding post-delivery support and sustainment offerings to the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.“We are excited to partner with SPEE3D at the Navy’s Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence,” commented Scott Kasen, Austal USA AT Director of Advanced Technologies “The very high deposition rates of Cold Spray AM make it an exciting technology for large part creation, and process advancements utilizing the SPEE3D system could provide additional capability for manufacturing traditionally cast parts.”SPEE3D’s proprietary Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing (CSAM) technology offers cast-equivalent metal parts on-site and on-demand at build rates up to 100g/min (3.5oz/min). High-density metal parts can be built in hours and days instead of weeks or months, accelerating prototyping and product development and minimizing operational downtime. The WarpSPEE3D printer uses patented SPEE3D technology, enabling significantly faster and more scalable production than traditional manufacturing. It builds parts up to 88 lbs. (40Kg) with a diameter up to 40″ x 30″ (1m x .7m) in hours versus days.“SPEE3D is thrilled to offer our additive manufacturing capabilities to support Austal USA Advanced Technologies,” said Byron Kennedy, CEO of SPEE3D. “We have worked successfully with the U.S. Navy in the past and understand the unique challenges they face with the need for manufacturing capabilities that are fast, reliable, and easily deployable, and our partnership with Austal USA furthers this commitment to meet the ever-changing manufacturing needs of maritime.”About AUSTAL USA: Austal USA is a ship manufacturer headquartered in Mobile, AL, with service centers in San Diego and Singapore and a technology center in Charlottesville, VA. With the most modern steel panel line in the shipbuilding industry, Austal USA manufactures aluminum and steel ships and leverages a moving module production line and strict adherence to lean manufacturing principles to deliver on schedule and budget consistently. Austal USA is under contract for several programs, including the U.S. Coast Guard’s Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC), and the U.S. Navy TAGOS-25 ocean surveillance ship, Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessel, Spearhead-class Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF), Navajo-class Towing, Salvage and Rescue ship (T-ATS), Expeditionary Medical Ship (EMS), Auxiliary Floating Dry Dock Medium (AFDM), and Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) programs. Austal USA also supports Navy unmanned vessel programs leveraging its advanced autonomous machinery control system. Its service business provides global support to the U.S. Navy, Military Sealift Command, and other customers. Austal USA’s San Diego Service Center includes a waterfront facility that can drydock small combatants and ships of similar size. Earning 27 safety excellence awards, it continues to be one of the safest shipyards in America. Source & references /Public Release.

Greece’s most popular island is so packed with tourists it feels ‘like a theme park’

Travel

Santorini, known for its stunning scenery and iconic blue-domed churches, is buckling under the strain of over-tourism, leaving locals and visitors feeling the squeeze. The idyllic Greek island’s beauty spots are becoming a victim of their own success as travel expert and founder of staynewengland.com, Michael Donovan, alerts holidaymakers about the pitfalls of peak season…