Shaun Waterman
@watermanreports.bsky.social
Reporter covering IT, cyber & emerging tech threats for Air&Space Forces Mag, Via Satellite Mag & others. Fmr BBC News, ex-Newsweek, POLITICO escapee, always a Unipresser. English expat in Washington DC. I'm the daddy now. Likes etc ≠ approval. DM 4 Signal
The US military is outsourcing on-orbit refuelling & servicing capabilities to commercial providers, leaving it reliant on vendors for a strategic capability — 2026 will be a critical year
@darpa.mil @northropgrumman.bsky.social
@aerospacecorp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/us-on-obit-s...
@darpa.mil @northropgrumman.bsky.social
@aerospacecorp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/us-on-obit-s...
US Bets on On-Orbit Satellite Servicing with 4 Missions in 2026
Four satellite missions will launch in the coming year to demonstrate on-orbit refueling, servicing, and repair capabilities to extend the lives of military satellites. Funded by different Department ...
www.airandspaceforces.com
December 31, 2025 at 7:44 AM
The US military is outsourcing on-orbit refuelling & servicing capabilities to commercial providers, leaving it reliant on vendors for a strategic capability — 2026 will be a critical year
@darpa.mil @northropgrumman.bsky.social
@aerospacecorp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/us-on-obit-s...
@darpa.mil @northropgrumman.bsky.social
@aerospacecorp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/us-on-obit-s...
The @usairforce.bsky.social has been talking abt using commercial IT products for years, but often that meant buying them and then customizing beyond recognition, so it did exactly what the service wanted. This time will be different, department leaders say
www.airandspaceforces.com/air-force-it...
www.airandspaceforces.com/air-force-it...
Air Force IT Leaders Adopt Commercial-First Strategy
The Department of the Air Force is embracing the new commercial-first approach to IT ordered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
www.airandspaceforces.com
December 18, 2025 at 4:55 PM
The @usairforce.bsky.social has been talking abt using commercial IT products for years, but often that meant buying them and then customizing beyond recognition, so it did exactly what the service wanted. This time will be different, department leaders say
www.airandspaceforces.com/air-force-it...
www.airandspaceforces.com/air-force-it...
New reliability rules tell major electric power co's that they must monitor traffic inside OT and ICS networks, but that's going to be a heavy lift, experts from @tenablesecurity.bsky.social Armis Security and Dragos Dragos Inc tell me in my latest story for OT Today.
www.ot.today/monitoring-e...
www.ot.today/monitoring-e...
Monitoring the Electric Grid Is Easier Said Than Done
A new reliability standard for U.S. and Canadian electric grid tells major power companies to monitor and log traffic on their operational technology and industrial
www.ot.today
December 16, 2025 at 2:27 AM
New reliability rules tell major electric power co's that they must monitor traffic inside OT and ICS networks, but that's going to be a heavy lift, experts from @tenablesecurity.bsky.social Armis Security and Dragos Dragos Inc tell me in my latest story for OT Today.
www.ot.today/monitoring-e...
www.ot.today/monitoring-e...
Incredible story. Made more interesting and positive by the fact that he didn't have a perfectly clean record. We're all imperfect and flawed. We've all made mistakes. Even the heroes.
turns out the guy was a Syrian immigrant named Ahmed al Ahmed who got his Australian citizenship in 2022 www.smh.com.au/national/nsw...
Hero who wrestled gun from terrorist says he’d do it again despite being ‘riddled with bullets’
Despite Ahmed al Ahmed being in a lot of pain, according to his migration lawyer, he felt as if disarming the gunman at Bondi was an act for the community.
www.smh.com.au
December 15, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Incredible story. Made more interesting and positive by the fact that he didn't have a perfectly clean record. We're all imperfect and flawed. We've all made mistakes. Even the heroes.
Reposted by Shaun Waterman
NASA lost contact with MAVEN, which is orbiting Mars, on Dec 6, but now have recovered a fragment of tracking data suggesting it was rotating in an unexpected manner and its orbital trajectory may have changed after emerging from behind Mars. 1/2
December 15, 2025 at 6:03 PM
NASA lost contact with MAVEN, which is orbiting Mars, on Dec 6, but now have recovered a fragment of tracking data suggesting it was rotating in an unexpected manner and its orbital trajectory may have changed after emerging from behind Mars. 1/2
There's a growing head of steam behind the idea of a new military service to recruit/train/equip a force for war fighting in the #cyber domain. It's an intuitive ask: The Air Force fights in the air, who fights in cyber? But it's not as simple as that
www.airandspaceforces.com/former-cyber...
www.airandspaceforces.com/former-cyber...
Former CYBERCOM Bosses Urge Caution on New Cyber Service
The last two heads of U.S. Cyber Command argued that reforms to CYBERCOM need time before the Pentagon establishes a new military service.
www.airandspaceforces.com
December 10, 2025 at 8:26 PM
There's a growing head of steam behind the idea of a new military service to recruit/train/equip a force for war fighting in the #cyber domain. It's an intuitive ask: The Air Force fights in the air, who fights in cyber? But it's not as simple as that
www.airandspaceforces.com/former-cyber...
www.airandspaceforces.com/former-cyber...
Fmr officials say @deptofwar.bsky.social plans for US Cyber Command create tension b/w the push to normalize cyber operations, and efforts to give CyberCom unique authorities. My story featuring the @csis.org & CSC 2.0 Commission on Cyber Force Generation.
www.airandspaceforces.com/cybercom-for...
www.airandspaceforces.com/cybercom-for...
Can the Latest Plan for CYBERCOM Stave Off Calls for a New Service?
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has a new Cyber Force Generation plan, meant to give U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) more authority.
www.airandspaceforces.com
November 17, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Fmr officials say @deptofwar.bsky.social plans for US Cyber Command create tension b/w the push to normalize cyber operations, and efforts to give CyberCom unique authorities. My story featuring the @csis.org & CSC 2.0 Commission on Cyber Force Generation.
www.airandspaceforces.com/cybercom-for...
www.airandspaceforces.com/cybercom-for...
I Work For an Evil Company, but Outside Work, I'm Actually a Really Good Person www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-w...
I Work For an Evil Company, but Outside Work, I’m Actually a Really Good Person
I love my job. I make a great salary, there’s a clear path to promotion, and a never-ending supply of cold brew in the office. And even though my j...
www.mcsweeneys.net
November 16, 2025 at 4:13 PM
I Work For an Evil Company, but Outside Work, I'm Actually a Really Good Person www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/i-w...
www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...
If the guy from DeepSeek, speaking at a PRC government conference, says he is "pessimistic" about the impact of AI, how terrified should the rest of us be?
If the guy from DeepSeek, speaking at a PRC government conference, says he is "pessimistic" about the impact of AI, how terrified should the rest of us be?
DeepSeek researcher pessimistic over AI's impact in startup's first public appearance since success
Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) developer DeepSeek made its first public appearance in almost a year after it became a global sensation, fielding a senior researcher who told a government-organised internet conference that he was pessimistic about AI's future impact on humanity.
www.reuters.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:22 AM
www.reuters.com/world/asia-p...
If the guy from DeepSeek, speaking at a PRC government conference, says he is "pessimistic" about the impact of AI, how terrified should the rest of us be?
If the guy from DeepSeek, speaking at a PRC government conference, says he is "pessimistic" about the impact of AI, how terrified should the rest of us be?
When Space Force leaders discuss cyber threats against the commercial satellite providers they use, they talk abt attacks from nation state adversaries.
But for cyber defenders in the commercial space sector the daily reality can be rather different.
www.airandspaceforces.com/satellite-op...
But for cyber defenders in the commercial space sector the daily reality can be rather different.
www.airandspaceforces.com/satellite-op...
Not Just Spies: Satellite Operators Say Cybercrime Is Major Threat
The Space Force and commercial providers are concerned about Chinese and Russian cyberattacks, but low-level cybercrime is a concern too.
www.airandspaceforces.com
October 24, 2025 at 4:09 PM
When Space Force leaders discuss cyber threats against the commercial satellite providers they use, they talk abt attacks from nation state adversaries.
But for cyber defenders in the commercial space sector the daily reality can be rather different.
www.airandspaceforces.com/satellite-op...
But for cyber defenders in the commercial space sector the daily reality can be rather different.
www.airandspaceforces.com/satellite-op...
My 1st story for ISMG, where I'm covering OT cybersecurity takes off from @60minutes.bsky.social report on Chinese hacking of US power and water utilities. I look at @istorg.bsky.social Josh Corman's efforts to help shore up security in the water sector.
www.bankinfosecurity.com/weak-exposed...
www.bankinfosecurity.com/weak-exposed...
Weak and Exposed: US Water Utilities a Chinese Hacker Target
Rural America is a long way from Taiwan. But cyber power is no respecter of geography. Should China make good on its repeated threats to reunify the island by
www.bankinfosecurity.com
October 22, 2025 at 2:57 AM
My 1st story for ISMG, where I'm covering OT cybersecurity takes off from @60minutes.bsky.social report on Chinese hacking of US power and water utilities. I look at @istorg.bsky.social Josh Corman's efforts to help shore up security in the water sector.
www.bankinfosecurity.com/weak-exposed...
www.bankinfosecurity.com/weak-exposed...
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed $1.4B savings from cancelling the Air Force's Cloud One contract. But my reporting shows it's not that simple. Cloud services will still be needed, still have to be paid for. In fact, they may cost more.
My story:
www.airandspaceforces.com/dod-canceled...
My story:
www.airandspaceforces.com/dod-canceled...
Did Air Force's Canceled $1.4B Cloud One Contract Save Money?
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth canceled the Air Force's Cloud One contract, declaring $1.4 billion in savings. But the move might cost more.
www.airandspaceforces.com
October 15, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed $1.4B savings from cancelling the Air Force's Cloud One contract. But my reporting shows it's not that simple. Cloud services will still be needed, still have to be paid for. In fact, they may cost more.
My story:
www.airandspaceforces.com/dod-canceled...
My story:
www.airandspaceforces.com/dod-canceled...
ICYMI: @spaceforcedod.bsky.social Sapce Force Building Tools to Detect #Cyberattacks on Satellites www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
Space Force Building Tools to Detect Cyberattacks on Satellites
U.S. Space Force contractors are building an AI-powered tool to detect cyberattacks on satellites by monitoring their behavior and telemetry.
www.airandspaceforces.com
October 13, 2025 at 2:53 PM
ICYMI: @spaceforcedod.bsky.social Sapce Force Building Tools to Detect #Cyberattacks on Satellites www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
USAF training doesn't test kill chains to failure, sez Jon
Rhone, fmr cmdr of the 505th Test & Eval “If the first time that we fail at [closing long-range kill chains] is when the blood is flowing, I think we’ve prob done the country a disservice."
#asc2025 www.airandspaceforces.com/industry-exp...
Rhone, fmr cmdr of the 505th Test & Eval “If the first time that we fail at [closing long-range kill chains] is when the blood is flowing, I think we’ve prob done the country a disservice."
#asc2025 www.airandspaceforces.com/industry-exp...
Industry Execs: Test Long Range Kill Chains to the Point of Failure
The Air Force should place more emphasis on exercising and training for long range kill chains right now, a panel of industry experts said.
www.airandspaceforces.com
September 26, 2025 at 4:44 PM
USAF training doesn't test kill chains to failure, sez Jon
Rhone, fmr cmdr of the 505th Test & Eval “If the first time that we fail at [closing long-range kill chains] is when the blood is flowing, I think we’ve prob done the country a disservice."
#asc2025 www.airandspaceforces.com/industry-exp...
Rhone, fmr cmdr of the 505th Test & Eval “If the first time that we fail at [closing long-range kill chains] is when the blood is flowing, I think we’ve prob done the country a disservice."
#asc2025 www.airandspaceforces.com/industry-exp...
Space Systems Command’s Front Door - the one-stop shop for vendors, is getting a rebrand and a leg-up. It will now be called Space Force Front Door and will be a single touchpoint for the whole Space Force. My story for @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-system...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-system...
Space Force’s Front Door For Industry Is Opening a Little Wider
Space Systems Command’s Front Door, the contact point for private industry to introduce themselves to the Space Force, is expanding.
www.airandspaceforces.com
September 25, 2025 at 2:31 AM
Space Systems Command’s Front Door - the one-stop shop for vendors, is getting a rebrand and a leg-up. It will now be called Space Force Front Door and will be a single touchpoint for the whole Space Force. My story for @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-system...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-system...
U.S. Cyber Command should be replaced by a U.S. Digital Command, which would have CyberCom's cyber role and lead infowar and electromagnetic war ops as well. DoD should also stand up a new military service, the U.S. Digital Corps, argues @scsp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/pentagon-nee...
www.airandspaceforces.com/pentagon-nee...
Pentagon Needs Digital Command for New Approach to Key Tech
The Pentagon needs a Digital Command, a Digital Warfare Corps, and other changes to take advantage of new technologies like AI and autonomy.
www.airandspaceforces.com
September 18, 2025 at 11:25 PM
U.S. Cyber Command should be replaced by a U.S. Digital Command, which would have CyberCom's cyber role and lead infowar and electromagnetic war ops as well. DoD should also stand up a new military service, the U.S. Digital Corps, argues @scsp.bsky.social
www.airandspaceforces.com/pentagon-nee...
www.airandspaceforces.com/pentagon-nee...
Silicon Valley firms like Microsoft have built an electronic carceral for the CCP, using cutting edge data collection and management to enable a totalitarian state. Fuck them.
apnews.com/article/chin...
Silicon Valley enabled brutal mass detention and surveillance in China, internal documents show
apnews.com/article/chin...
Silicon Valley enabled brutal mass detention and surveillance in China, internal documents show
Silicon Valley enabled brutal mass detention and surveillance in China, internal documents show
U.S. technology firms such as IBM, Dell and Cisco largely designed and built China’s surveillance state, an AP investigation finds. The tech companies deny wrongdoing.
apnews.com
September 9, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Silicon Valley firms like Microsoft have built an electronic carceral for the CCP, using cutting edge data collection and management to enable a totalitarian state. Fuck them.
apnews.com/article/chin...
Silicon Valley enabled brutal mass detention and surveillance in China, internal documents show
apnews.com/article/chin...
Silicon Valley enabled brutal mass detention and surveillance in China, internal documents show
New #AI tools from data giant Palantir could help reduce risks to civilians in war, but only if the military using them has a prof culture that values the laws of war and reducing harm to civilians. My latest story in @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/can-ai-help-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/can-ai-help-...
Can AI Help Targeteers Curb Civilian Casualties?
Some see AI as a way to minimize civilian casualties, even as others argue technology is no substitute for warfighters’ judgment.
www.airandspaceforces.com
August 12, 2025 at 8:13 PM
New #AI tools from data giant Palantir could help reduce risks to civilians in war, but only if the military using them has a prof culture that values the laws of war and reducing harm to civilians. My latest story in @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/can-ai-help-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/can-ai-help-...
Air Force’s Big IT Programs Need ‘Course Correction,’ General Says www.airandspaceforces.com/air-forces-b...
Air Force's Big IT Programs Need 'Course Correction,' 2-Star Says
The Air Force is reorganizing the office that runs some of its most complex combat connectivity programs to repair trust with troops.
www.airandspaceforces.com
August 10, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Air Force’s Big IT Programs Need ‘Course Correction,’ General Says www.airandspaceforces.com/air-forces-b...
Outsourcing the ground segment — the antennas, modems & switches needed to keep contact with a satellite in orbit — is attractive to operators, especially start-ups looking to keep down headcount and capital expenditures.
My latest for Via Satellite Mag
interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/august-2...
My latest for Via Satellite Mag
interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/august-2...
Ground Station Operators Look to Software for Simplicity in Smallsat Operations | August 2025
Outsourcing the ground segment may be cheaper and easier for smallsat operators than building their own network of ground stations, but it is still a complicated and difficult process. A new generatio...
interactive.satellitetoday.com
August 7, 2025 at 4:07 PM
Outsourcing the ground segment — the antennas, modems & switches needed to keep contact with a satellite in orbit — is attractive to operators, especially start-ups looking to keep down headcount and capital expenditures.
My latest for Via Satellite Mag
interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/august-2...
My latest for Via Satellite Mag
interactive.satellitetoday.com/via/august-2...
Orbital Watch, the threat sharing service run by @spaceforcedod.bsky.social's Front Door aims to share classified info w cleared companies and execs, and to distribute anonymized threat data from industry. My story for @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
Space Force Aims to Share Classified Threat Info with Industry
The Space Force initiative to share info with the private sector about threats in orbit will eventually include classified intelligence.
www.airandspaceforces.com
August 3, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Orbital Watch, the threat sharing service run by @spaceforcedod.bsky.social's Front Door aims to share classified info w cleared companies and execs, and to distribute anonymized threat data from industry. My story for @airandspaceforces.com.web.brid.gy
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
The House & Senate versions of the 2026 NDAA both contain provisions aimed at expanding or speeding the processes to get new tech to warfighters, including two new authorities or mandates for the Defense Innovation Unit. My story for Air & Space Forces Mag:
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
How ’26 Defense Policy Bill Takes Aim at Speed, Ease of Tech Innovation
The different versions of the 2026 defense policy bill contain provisions to speed up efforts to get new software and tech to warfighters.
www.airandspaceforces.com
July 21, 2025 at 6:48 PM
The House & Senate versions of the 2026 NDAA both contain provisions aimed at expanding or speeding the processes to get new tech to warfighters, including two new authorities or mandates for the Defense Innovation Unit. My story for Air & Space Forces Mag:
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
In an essay out this week, but written last year, Mark Berkowitz, who has since been tapped by the Trump White House as asst secdef for space policy, says that merging the spy agency NRO into Space Force could turbocharge national security space acquisition.
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
Defense Policy Nominee Has Advocated Merging NRO and SSC
Combining the NRO with the Space Force's Space Systems Command could be useful, argues a Trump administration Pentagon nominee.
www.airandspaceforces.com
July 17, 2025 at 3:58 PM
In an essay out this week, but written last year, Mark Berkowitz, who has since been tapped by the Trump White House as asst secdef for space policy, says that merging the spy agency NRO into Space Force could turbocharge national security space acquisition.
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
www.airandspaceforces.com/defense-poli...
A half-dozen new space start-ups, two w research contracts from Space Force or Air Force #technology incubators, are currently planning low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellations of small satellites offering more accurate, harder to jam alternatives to GPS. Story
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
Space Force Boosts Ecosystem of GPS Alternatives in LEO
The Space Force is fostering a new ecosystem of commercial satellite constellations providing alternatives to GPS from much closer to Earth.
www.airandspaceforces.com
July 6, 2025 at 9:02 PM
A half-dozen new space start-ups, two w research contracts from Space Force or Air Force #technology incubators, are currently planning low-Earth orbit (LEO) constellations of small satellites offering more accurate, harder to jam alternatives to GPS. Story
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...
www.airandspaceforces.com/space-force-...