September 12, 2019 | Local, Land
DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN
A Carleton University research team led by Shulabh Gupta, a professor in the Department of Electronics, has received $1.5 million in funding from the Department of National Defence's Innovation for Defence, Excellence and Security program to create the next generation technology for electronic camouflaging.
The project will develop an artificial electromagnetic veil to protect military equipment from enemy detection based on cutting-edge Metamaterial technology, according to a news release from Carleton University. The veil would cover the surface of the military asset and hide it from a range of detection methods operating is various spectral bands, including radio frequencies, infrared and optical.
The project, officially known as the Artificially Intelligent Biomimetic Metasurfaces for Electromagnetic Camouflage, is a collaboration with the University of Ottawa and Polytechnique Montreal, Carleton University noted. “In much the same way an octopus dynamically senses and adapts to its background, changing its colour as it moves, these smart electromagnetic veils would be able to sense their backgrounds, even while moving, and in real time adapt to blend into their surroundings while protecting the important targets,” Gupta said in the news release. “While an octopus is only capable of hiding from the optical detection of predators, assets utilizing the new veil would be hidden from a broad range of detection.”
For example, radar can detect and distinguish a vehicle driving through a forest because the vehicle reflects a different signal back compared to its background, the university noted. To prevent this, the veil on the vehicle would predict the signal being reflected back by the surrounding trees and mimic it, making the vehicle indistinguishable from the trees as it drove through the forest.
July 10, 2023 | Local, Other Defence
Trudeau held a joint press conference with Latvian Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš at the Ādaži military base outside Riga on Monday, where he also greeted some of the 800 Canadian Armed Forces members deployed to the mission.
October 23, 2020 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security
OTTAWA - Canada has taken a big leap closer to meeting its promise to the NATO military alliance to spend a larger share of its economy on defence thanks to an unexpected assist from COVID-19. New NATO figures released Wednesday show that largely thanks to the pandemic, Canada is poised to spend the equivalent of more of its gross domestic product on defence this year than at any point in the past decade. That is because the alliance expects the Liberal government to hold Canadian defence spending steady even as COVID-19 batters the country's economic output. Yet defence analyst David Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute says the results are unlikely to appease the United States, as Canada continues to fall far short of its promise to NATO to spend two per cent of GDP on defence. “I think they'll be pleased to see positive momentum,” Perry said of the U.S., “but it doesn't resolve their concern about where we are.“ All NATO members, including Canada, agreed in 2014 to work toward spending the equivalent of two per cent of their GDP — a standard measurement of a country's economic output — on defence within the next decade. The promise followed complaints from the U.S. about burden-sharing among allies and broader concerns about new threats from Russia and China as the two countries increased their own military spending. NATO and the U.S. have repeatedly criticized Canada for not meeting the target, with President Donald Trump in December calling Canada “slightly delinquent” during a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. His predecessor, Barack Obama, also called out Canada over its defence spending during an address to Parliament in 2016. The U.S. spends more than any other NATO member on defence, both in terms of raw cash and as a share of GDP. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday said the continued importance of increasing military spending would be discussed when defence ministers from across the alliance meet this week. The NATO figures show that Canada is poised to spend 1.45 per cent of its GDP on the military this year. That is not only a big jump from the 1.29 per cent last year, but the largest share of the economy in a decade. It also exceeds the government's original plan, laid out in the Liberals' defence policy in 2017, to spend 1.4 per cent of GDP on the military by 2024-25. That is when NATO members were supposed to hit the two-per-cent target. Yet the figures show the expected increase isn't the result of a new infusion of cash for the Canadian Armed Forces this year as spending is expected to hit $30 billion, up just over $1 billion from 2019. Rather, NATO predicts Canadian GDP will shrink by about eight per cent this year as COVID-19 continues to ravage the economy. The fact Canadian defence spending is expected to remain largely steady despite the pandemic is noteworthy, particularly as there have been fears in some corners about cuts to help keep the federal deficit under control. The NATO report instead appears to lend further credence to recent assertions from Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, Defence Department deputy minister Jody Thomas and others that the Liberals are not readying the axe. Canada also remained 21st out of 29 NATO members in terms of the share of GDP spent on the military as other allies also got a surprise boost from the economic damage wrought by COVID-19. At the same time, Perry said the government has yet to lay out a timetable for when it plans to meet the two per cent target. Military spending is instead expected to start falling after 2024-25, according to the Liberal defence plan. Despite having agreed to the target during the NATO leaders' summit in Wales in 2014, successive Canadian governments have repeatedly described the NATO target as “aspirational.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2020. https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/21/canada-jumps-closer-to-military-spending-target-thanks-to-covid-19s-economic-damage.html
December 17, 2018 | Local, Naval
SIDNEY, BC, Dec. 14, 2018 /CNW/ - Keeping our oceans and waters safe is a priority for our Government. Two new search and rescue lifeboats have arrived to join the Canadian Coast Guard fleet on the West Coast, enhancing the critical marine search and rescue services provided by the Coast Guard in the region and helping to keep Canadians and our Canadian waters safe. The Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, was in Sidney, B.C.today to announce the arrival of the new High Endurance Self-Righting Search and Rescue Lifeboats, named CCGS McIntyre Bay and CCGS Pachena Bay. The Canadian Coast Guard informally refers to the lifeboats as "Bay Class", as each one is named after a Canadian bay. The boats are 19-metre long, have a top speed of 25 knots in calm conditions, and can operate up to 100 nautical miles from shore. They are considered all-weather vessels, with the ability to operate in hurricane force conditions, and will right themselves should they capsize. CCGS McIntyre Bay will be deployed to Prince Rupert, B.C. in 2019, and CCGS Pachena Bay will be deployed to Port Hardy, B.C. in 2019. The two new search and rescue lifeboats are the third and fourth of 20 such vessels being built under the Federal Infrastructure Initiative, the Fleet Renewal Plan and the Oceans Protection Plan. The Coast Guard has already taken delivery of CCGS Baie de Plaisance, which will be stationed in Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, and CCGS Pennant Bay,which will be stationed in Atlantic Canada. Quotes "The Government of Canada will continue to provide the Canadian Coast Guard with the equipment it needs to ensure the safety of mariners, and to protect the marine environment. Our investment in these new Bay Class search and rescue lifeboats is enhancing the essential marine search and rescue services we provide in Canada's waters every day, while supporting and promoting Canada's marine industry." The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Quick Facts The Canadian Coast Guard leads the maritime component of the federal Search and Rescue system through distress monitoring, coordination of maritime incidents, and by providing assistance to disabled vessels and those in distress on the water. Chantier Naval Forillon won a $45.8 million contract in July 2015 to build six new lifeboats. This contract created 25 new jobs for workers at the Chantier Naval Forillon Inc in Gaspé, Quebec, as well as sustaining approximately 35 jobs at the shipyard. Hike Metal Products won a $43.4 million contract in July 2015 to build six new vessels. This contract created and sustained 45 jobs for workers at Hike Metal Products in Wheatley, Ontario. On December 6, 2018, Public Services and Procurement Canada announced contracts for the construction of eight new lifeboats, bringing the total to 20 new vessels for the Coast Guard. Through the Oceans Protection Plan, the Government of Canada is working with Indigenous and coastal communities and marine stakeholders to help keep Canadian waters and coasts safe and clean for today and into the future. Associated Links Canadian Coast Guard Search and Rescue Program Government of Canada to invest in eight search and rescue lifeboats for Canadian Coast Guard Stay Connected Follow the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Follow the Canadian Coast Guard on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Subscribe to receive our news releases and more via RSS feeds. For more information or to subscribe, visit http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/media/rss-eng.htm. SOURCE Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Canada For further information: Jocelyn Lubczuk, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, 343-548-7863, Jocelyn.lubczuk@dfo-mpo.gc.ca; Media Relations, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 613-990-7537, Media.xncr@dfo-mpo.gc.ca https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/canadian-coast-guard-welcomes-two-new-high-endurance-search-and-rescue-lifeboats-to-the-west-coast-702810062.html