00;00;00;06 - 00;00;02;20 Alex Technically speaking. 00;00;02;22 - 00;00;05;18 Chelsie Welcome to our technically untechnical Technology talk. 00;00;05;20 - 00;00;08;15 Alex A NIWC Atlantic production. 00;00;08;18 - 00;00;15;11 Joe And an award winning podcast with your hosts, Chelsie Holloway and Alex Jackson. 00;00;15;13 - 00;00;18;03 Chelsie Alex, what have you been up to lately? How are you doing? 00;00;18;08 - 00;00;23;01 Alex I'm doing pretty good. And this year's coming to an end, but I'm looking forward to the holiday season. 00;00;23;05 - 00;00;44;03 Chelsie Same. I'm actually going to try my hand at making a pumpkin pie for the first time soon. And pumpkin pie? Yeah. This is. That's Joe. For those who don't know, he's our audio tech here on the podcast. And, so, guys, I was thinking I bought a graham cracker crust for this pumpkin pie and, I don't know, I, I think it'll come out well. 00;00;44;06 - 00;00;45;05 Chelsie What do you guys think? 00;00;45;07 - 00;00;48;29 Alex Graham cracker crust for a pumpkin pie. Oh, I don't know about that one. 00;00;49;01 - 00;00;52;19 Chelsie Do you think it'll be too sweet or something? I think I'm going to have to try it. I've already bought the crust. 00;00;52;20 - 00;01;00;23 Alex Well, let us know how that goes. But I'm more of a savory person, so I'll skip the dessert. And I prefer ham and turkey at the table this year. 00;01;01;00 - 00;01;02;06 Joe Oh, wow. 00;01;02;08 - 00;01;19;21 Chelsie I love I definitely love dessert more than the savory. Okay, enough of the food talk. It's time to get into the podcast. This episode we are talking about how now Kalanick has exclusive access to government satellites in space to further communication technology. 00;01;19;22 - 00;01;44;19 Alex Coming up, we've got subject matter expert Paul Stratis, who talks to us about the project views. Then we speak to Chief Elijah Ford for our military moment, and he explains how he supports the XO in command, master chief and our Hampton Roads location and helps with the integration of military and civilian processes. So get comfy. Turn up that volume and let's get started. 00;01;44;21 - 00;01;53;06 Chelsie Let's jump in to the very cool work we are doing with government satellites, and how it leads to improved communication for the tactical warfighter. 00;01;53;08 - 00;02;07;17 Alex Paul Strauss This dynamic Atlantic most lead ground engineer sits with us and explains exactly what Muo stands for, what it is, and a little preview of the future of this capability. Let's take a listen. 00;02;07;19 - 00;02;17;09 Chelsie Paul, thank you so much for joining us. And let's start off in the most understandable way. Can you please explain what Muo is and what that acronym stands for? 00;02;17;11 - 00;02;47;13 Paul Sure. So the acronym is the Mobile User Objective system. And so Morse is a DoD communication system. With that it entails, five satellites and also ground stations. And the missile system is based off of cellular technology. And so the DoD took, you know, the 3G cellular technology and adapted that, to work over geosynchronous satellites. So we like to say that the satellite is actually the the cell phone tower in the sky. 00;02;47;15 - 00;03;11;20 Paul And so it provides global communications to the warfighter. And so it's mostly for narrowband users. And by narrowband, I mean low data rate. So Army, Marine Corps, Navy, etc., folks that are doing, communications on the move. So they need to be able to communicate while they're moving. They don't stop, set up a antenna point to a satellite, etc.. 00;03;11;23 - 00;03;24;25 Chelsie So we have our own satellites up in space that we're kind of working with within the government. And your your capability is helping create these communications to our warfighters that are narrowband. 00;03;24;27 - 00;03;35;02 Paul Yeah. That's correct. And so there are, five satellites that were designed and built and launched over the last, 10 to 15 years, to enable this capability. 00;03;35;05 - 00;03;50;17 Alex You sort of touched on it already, but could you talk about what types of communication is Morse designed for, and is it specifically for the Navy or other branches of the, DoD using this technology? 00;03;50;20 - 00;04;14;12 Paul Yeah. So it's really for all branches of the DoD. So it's really a joint communications capability. So, all the different services, Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, use the system. And it's designed in a frequency that is, unique in terms of its capabilities. So it's designed in what's called the, ultra high frequency area of the band. 00;04;14;12 - 00;04;39;21 Paul And so that allows for more secure and more, reliable communications when you are in, inclement weather, when you're in an urban terrain. And also it has some capabilities, for penetrating through foliage and so like when you're in the jungle, etc.. The frequency band that it's designed for allows for, these kind of communications in these, you know, non-optimal situations. 00;04;39;23 - 00;04;44;27 Alex And can you explain what narrowband communication is designed for from us? 00;04;45;03 - 00;05;08;00 Paul Yeah. So narrowband communications, it's it's not high data rate. Right. It's not going to be high speed like your home, internet. But what it provides is for comms on the move for the tactical user. So you think of dismounted, Marine Corps or Army or other operators that are out doing their maneuvers and they need to be able to communicate back to their higher level headquarters. 00;05;08;02 - 00;05;29;29 Paul And so what it allows that tactical user to do, is to communicate what's called beyond line of sight. And so if your normal, communications can't reach back to your headquarters because you're far away or there's mountains in the way, things like that, the bottom line of sight capability allows them to communicate back to higher headquarters and, report back. 00;05;30;01 - 00;05;41;12 Chelsie So let's go one step further. Right. So why does having this satellite connection to mules help the warfighter? Obviously it helps in calm, but why is that so important for the warfighter. 00;05;41;14 - 00;06;04;13 Paul So the comms that it provides are either voice or data. And so one of the, one of the big things of the mobile user objective system is that will not only brings voice communications, but it brings data communications to that tactical user. So what makes that important is they can do, different things, whether they're just reporting back their position, location of where they are. 00;06;04;16 - 00;06;22;19 Paul And they can do that, you know, without having to stop and talk on the radio. Can be used for, whether you want to do chatting with someone, other data communications. So it's not all relying on just doing voice communications, and then it's more secure in terms of, you know, being a DoD dedicated system. 00;06;22;21 - 00;06;26;05 Alex Can tell us about the team that works on us. 00;06;26;07 - 00;06;46;14 Paul Yeah. So here it and I work Atlantic. We we have a relatively small team that works on the US program. A handful of individuals, less than five, typically. But a number of us have been with the mission and working on the program for, for quite a number of years. And so very dedicated to the mission to bring this capability to the warfighter. 00;06;46;16 - 00;06;59;04 Paul And so we have been involved in some of the new technology insertion that's ongoing with the Meo system. So we've been leading up some of the digitization of our ground system, and, and working those aspects of it. 00;06;59;04 - 00;07;02;20 Chelsie And you've been on the team since you said, what, 2005? 00;07;02;21 - 00;07;29;00 Paul Yeah. So I, I've been on the muse program since 2005. Yeah. That's great. What was working on other programs for Network Atlantic came up with the opportunity, to transition over time. You awesome work on a space program and, you know, spent spent quite a number of years, actually, in plant at the, prime contractor Lockheed Martin's facility as the government technical oversight rep, where we were designing and building all the five satellites. 00;07;29;02 - 00;07;34;24 Chelsie Wow. That's amazing. And so this is a longstanding capability, Muo. It's been around for a while. 00;07;35;01 - 00;07;58;11 Paul Yeah. Some years. Started back in 2004. Is when the original diesel development contract was awarded back in 2019 is when it when it became fully operational and turned over to the joint forces in terms of using it for operations. Miles is also a replacement for a legacy system, that also did UHF communication, a satellite system. 00;07;58;13 - 00;08;06;29 Paul And so that was called the UHF follow on constellation. And so Morse is actually, replacement for a UHF capability that's been there for for quite a long time. 00;08;07;04 - 00;08;18;26 Chelsie Well, it's not a bad thing to change and and make sure things stay up to date and, everything we need them to be. And to do that, you guys are collaborating recently with the Space Force on mu ups, right? 00;08;18;27 - 00;08;41;14 Paul Sure. So the meals program, has originally been underneath the Navy for quite a number of years. Even back into the 80s, the UHF follow on program and then the muse program were all, developed and managed by the Navy. And then recently, with the stand up at the Space Force, the meals program as a program office has transitioned over to the Space Force. 00;08;41;16 - 00;09;02;21 Paul And so here at Atlantic, we're actually supporting the Space Force in this endeavor. And so we work directly with the program office. Still located in San Diego, but now reporting to the Space Force. And so, you know, you get to see a broader spectrum of other space programs as well. Right. And and different capabilities and things that are being developed, in the space domain. 00;09;02;23 - 00;09;07;22 Chelsie You've mentioned the term satellite constellation. What do you mean when you say that? 00;09;07;24 - 00;09;26;23 Paul So it's really just the five Meo satellites that are in orbit today. So by constellation, we just mean the locations, and, you know, the capabilities that the five satellites provide. And today they're in a geosynchronous orbit. So they're approximately 22,000 miles above the equator. And that's that's where the satellites live and fly. 00;09;26;29 - 00;09;31;20 Alex And can you give us a sneak peak on what may be the next four months? 00;09;31;26 - 00;09;52;18 Paul Yeah. So yours, is undergoing a service life extension, designing and building two more satellites to replenish some of the constellation that's up there. And so that service life extension will carry the system out, into the 2030s timeframe. And then in addition to that, the DoD is also studying what is the next, us next going to look like. 00;09;52;18 - 00;10;03;09 Paul So beyond that, keeping up with technology, new capabilities, what is the next satellite constellation for narrowband communications going to be? And that's all being done via an analysis of alternatives. 00;10;03;11 - 00;10;18;21 Chelsie That's so exciting. I love hearing that I work Atlantic is involved with satellites in space, and we've been involved in this a long time. And are currently collaborating with the Space Force on it. So it's great work that you're doing, and we really thank you for coming on and speaking with us on the podcast. 00;10;18;23 - 00;10;21;00 Paul Thank you. Thank you for having me. 00;10;21;02 - 00;10;36;16 Chelsie Alex. I was glad to hear that. Now, Caitlin, Nick has connected with the Space Force on this capability because they are the newest branch of the military, and I think establishing that collaboration with them early is going to be really useful, for our commanders in the future. 00;10;36;16 - 00;10;51;19 Alex I've heard over the years the term cyber space, which is a common phrase that is supposed to embody a range of excellence from our Navy, and that's exactly what muse does, provides quality and secure communications to our warfighters from seabed to space. 00;10;51;20 - 00;11;04;09 Chelsie Next, we have our military moment with Chief Ford, who explains how his administrative work directly affects warfighter performance. Please introduce yourself and let us know what you do for the Navy. 00;11;04;09 - 00;11;47;15 Chief Ford Hi. I'm, Chief Elijah Ford, and I'm the Exos executive assistant up here in Hampton Roads. I essentially help the Exos at CMC and in the team down here in Hampton Roads take care of administrative requirements, attend required meetings, and then a big chunk of my job is also as the department leading chief petty officer, working with the military admin department in integrating the military and civilian processes, and also figuring out where there's a lack of awareness or simplicity on the different programs, and kind of working to fix those and make things easier for everyone. 00;11;47;16 - 00;11;49;24 Alex And can you explain how this helps the mission? 00;11;50;00 - 00;12;14;11 Chief Ford Yeah, I've always looked at the job of admin professionals is to try to reduce the stress and added requirements on on people, so they can focus on the mission and what they do. And so that's been a major focus is I feel like the less our military personnel have to worry about knowing, how do I take care of this or that? 00;12;14;16 - 00;12;17;07 Chief Ford The more they can focus on getting work done. 00;12;17;10 - 00;12;31;19 Chelsie Absolutely. The more you can take off their mental load, the more they can focus. Like you just said, on getting the work done and doing what they need to do to further that mission of providing information warfare solutions. So please tell me, why did you join the Navy? 00;12;31;19 - 00;13;02;07 Chief Ford So I joined the Navy to see the world. Really? I had a friend who came home from boot camp, and he said, I move into psych analysis, and I went, where's that? And he said, Italy. And I immediately started googling furiously and joined the Navy. And, I've managed to live in San Diego, California, Yorkshire in the United Kingdom and Singapore, Seattle, Washington, Jacksonville, Florida, which is less of an adventure. 00;13;02;07 - 00;13;05;01 Chief Ford And then now I'm here in, in Norfolk. 00;13;05;03 - 00;13;09;24 Alex What kind of advice would you give to someone who's interested in joining the Navy? 00;13;09;27 - 00;13;32;14 Chief Ford So as far as living England, I dream about it all the time. It was the most spectacular place I've ever been or I've ever lived. And then I think Tokyo, Japan is probably my favorite big city. And then Laos in long for long is probably a place that I think about all the time. It was just such an incredible place to visit. 00;13;32;17 - 00;13;36;27 Chelsie What's your favorite place that you've been to? So far since you like to travel? 00;13;37;00 - 00;13;59;10 Chief Ford Definitely. I would recommend that people spend some time online reading about the different jobs that you can do in the Navy, and put the work in to know what you're getting into, because the Navy is very different depending on what job you do. I think some people kind of have this idea that they're just going to, you know, I don't know, I'll just see what they tell me about. 00;13;59;10 - 00;14;19;02 Chief Ford But, you know, everybody has a different perspective. And the internet lets us get a lot of perspectives all at once. So I would definitely say, do your homework before you join and understand that, and just know that it's not going to be easy for your first four years. But what you get back from the military is absolutely incredible. 00;14;19;02 - 00;14;37;21 Chief Ford I always tell people that, you know, if you join the military and you really work hard your first four years, even if you don't stay in, it's kind of your ticket to, you know, moving your station in life. So regardless of where you came from, you can come out of it and have job opportunities and college education opportunities. 00;14;37;21 - 00;14;48;04 Chief Ford It's one of the few places you can do that in America where you can grow up in the poorest situation and leave owning a house as a 2223 year old. 00;14;48;06 - 00;15;23;15 Chelsie It really does open a lot of doors because not only are you able to see the world like you get to do and the job opportunities that you mentioned, but there are a lot of benefits that when you mentioned the house like that you get from serving. So if you stay in or get out, you have certain benefits that help you financially into owning a home, going back to school, it's it's really a great way to kind of get a little bit of head, if you did come from a situation that didn't help you get ahead in life and you get so much training and expertise, knowledge as a part of it. 00;15;23;15 - 00;15;33;25 Chelsie So, I definitely agree there. I think those are very wise words. And thank you so much for what you do, with Narvik, Atlantic and the Navy and for speaking with us today. 00;15;33;28 - 00;15;37;18 Chief Ford Of course. Thanks for having me. 00;15;37;21 - 00;16;02;15 Chelsie The military really is a great place to get some traveling under your belt. I also related to when he was talking about how joining could really help him kind of get ahead in life in some ways, and that was coming from personal experience. I was both active duty and a reservist for the Air Force, and I got to benefit from all those, from all of those things like the GI Bill, VA Home Loan and I got to travel, which was pretty great. 00;16;02;23 - 00;16;20;11 Alex Yes, that was really great advice that he provided and how it's important to sort of stick out those four years. And I think it's similar to being in the civilian workforce as well. You want to get your footing as you start out in the government career. And I've been here for a while now, but I've really enjoyed, being a part of the Navy. 00;16;20;17 - 00;16;26;20 Chelsie You have been here for a while, Alex. Hasn't it been, like, over ten years, 15 years that you've been here with Mike Atlantic? 00;16;26;25 - 00;16;29;00 Alex Yep. I just hit my 14th year. 00;16;29;06 - 00;16;32;23 Speaker 3 I was just a child when he started. 00;16;32;25 - 00;16;42;01 Chelsie Well, thank you for your service, Alex. And we're all kind of coming together and trying to support that war fighter here. And I like Atlantic, and, And you're a member of the Navy, too, in a sense, you know. 00;16;42;03 - 00;16;43;23 Alex Absolutely. And thank you for your service as. 00;16;43;23 - 00;16;54;15 Chelsie Well as we come to a close, please remember to learn about anything we've mentioned in the podcast, check out our social medias under Nav or our Dynamic Atlantic website. Links are in the description. 00;16;54;19 - 00;17;07;18 Alex And that wraps up another episode. Thank you, as always for listening. If you have a story that you think should be included in this podcast, please contact us at our Public Affairs email address, which is listed in the description. 00;17;07;20 - 00;17;24;23 Chelsie Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, also known as Violet, is the East Coast branch of the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command within the Department of the Navy, we develop a range of technologies that provide state of the art capabilities to the United States military.