Science, technology and technology news

In the United States, on virtual exercises Virtual Flag 21 prepared in case of war with Russia

Photo: US Air Force photo / Randy Gon / Reuters

The Air Force (Air Force) of the United States during the virtual exercises Virtual Flag 21 conducted training in case of war with Russia or China, writes the American edition 19FortyFive.

“Virtual Flag 21 was designed to simulate ongoing combat in multiple areas at the same time, including air, space and cyberspace. A truly joint approach will be necessary in the event of a conflict with an adversary at the level of China or Russia, ”the publication says.

In total, the military from four Allied countries (200 military personnel from the United States and 144 from the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia) participated in Virtual Flag 21, who conducted more than 6461 joint training events for 67 different units operating seven networks and 23 systems connected to 29 sites around the world.

The publication notes that Virtual Flag 21 provided “an excellent opportunity to integrate the space domain into tactical and operational environments.”

The exercises, in particular, involved practicing joint actions in cyberspace. “The planners split the cyber operators from the four countries into two teams. The red team consisted of American, British and Canadian cyber operators posing as the enemy, while the blue team consisted of a British cyber defense team supported by Canadian military intelligence. The aim of the red team was to break through the blue defense, while the blue team tried to repel the attack of the red, ”writes 19FortyFive.

In August, Breaking Defense admitted that the Operational Data Integrated Network (ODIN) had an advantage over the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS). The publication noted that the United States and the United Kingdom are likely to gain advantages in using ODIN over other “staunch allies” operating fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II fighters.

Petersburg again overtook Moscow in the number of COVID-19 infections, 2075 cases were detected in the city

Photo: Kirill Braga / Reuters

St. Petersburg again overtook Moscow in the number of COVID-19 infections, 2075 new cases were detected in the city over the past day, according to the Telegram channel of the operational headquarters to combat the spread of coronavirus infection.

A day earlier, 1958 cases of infection were registered in St. Petersburg. During the day, 66 deaths were recorded in the city.

In total, 25,907 new cases of coronavirus infection were detected in Russia over the past day. The total number of infected people in the country since the start of the pandemic has reached 10,267,719.

According to the headquarters, as of December 17, the rate of herd immunity to coronavirus in Russia exceeded 58 percent. 70,831,362 people were vaccinated with two components of the vaccine.

The Drive: the United States does not have air defense against Russia for Ukraine

Photo: Aaron Henson / globallookpress.com

The United States does not have medium-range air defense (air defense) systems that occupy an intermediate position between the MIM-104 Patriot and FIM-92 Stinger systems, apart from the National / Norwegian Advanced Surface to Air Missile System (NASAMS), which could be supplied to Ukraine, writes The Drive.

According to the American publication, the delivery of the MIM-104 Patriot to Kiev is fraught with organizational and legal difficulties, in particular, it would require the presence of the United States military in Ukraine. In addition, training the Ukrainian military to work with this long-range air defense system would take a long time. According to The Drive, the FIM-92 Stinger portable anti-aircraft missile system could not solve the main problem of Kiev – protection from an allegedly possible massive air attack from the Russian side. Also, the United States, as the newspaper writes, is limited in the supply capabilities of NASAMS.

Nevertheless, the publication suggested a way through which the United States could help Ukraine. “The US government could try to get additional Soviet-era systems of various types, with which Ukrainian forces have more experience, from third countries, including any stocks of such weapons remaining in the former Warsaw Pact countries that are now part of NATO,” the newspaper says.

In December, the commander of the Ukrainian Navy, Rear Admiral Oleksiy Neizhpapa, admitted the possibility of the country's purchase of Harpoon anti-ship missiles from the United States.

Konstantin Gavrilov: China's support for RF proposals on European security will change the balance of power

Photo: Carlos Garcia Rawlins / Reuters

The support that the Chinese authorities have pledged to provide Russia for a security treaty could change the balance of power in the world. This was stated by Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian delegation at the talks on military security and arms control in Vienna, his words were aired on the YouTube channel Soloviev Live.

“I think China's opinion is very important. They listen to him both in Washington and in the NATO countries, ”Gavrilov stressed. Thanks to such an alliance, harsh statements in response to Moscow's proposals on European security will be smoothed out during the negotiations, he is convinced.

Earlier, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that Russia's proposals on security guarantees increase mutual trust between countries and reduce the risk of conflict.

On December 18, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov expressed the opinion that the international political situation is pushing Russia and China to strengthen their strategic partnership. At the same time, the diplomat emphasized, unlike the United States and its NATO allies, Russia and China do not pursue any geopolitical plans and goals in relation to any sovereign state.

TASS: the main flaw of the frigate “Marshal Shaposhnikov” has been fixed

Photo: MOD Russia / globallookpress.com

The recent use of the Russian anti-submarine system “Answer”, with the help of which the frigate “Marshal Shaposhnikov” hit an underwater target in the Sea of Japan, had two significant nuances. They are revealed by the TASS military observer Dmitry Litovkin.

“The first is that they fired from a large Soviet-built project 1155 anti-submarine ship of the Udaloy type. Second, the torpedo missiles were tested in the Sea of Japan, ”the author writes.

According to the observer, modern Russia has managed to correct the main drawback of the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov built by the USSR – to equip it with anti-ship missiles and enhanced anti-aircraft missile weapons. According to Litovkin, the modernization of Marshal Shaposhnikov has strengthened the capabilities of the Russian Navy in the Far East, which is especially important against the backdrop of the creation of the American-British-Australian military alliance AUKUS.

The launch from the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov of the anti-submarine complex “Answer”, which successfully hit a target in the Sea of Japan, took place earlier in December. At the same time, military expert Dmitry Boltenkov said that the “Answer” complex, which received missiles with a homing torpedo, was a step forward for the Russian military-industrial complex.

Blogger Varlamov: Mayors of Russian cities earn millions of rubles on Christmas trees

Photo: Shutterstock

Mayors of Russian cities prefer to erect artificial trees for the New Year in the main squares, noted the famous blogger Ilya Varlamov in his next publication on his Telegram channel. He revealed the secret of love for fake trees – supposedly you can make good money on them.

“In Europe, natural trees are almost always installed. What's the difference? Very simple. It is difficult to make money on natural wood. Transportation and decoration? Well, give a little to the forestry enterprise, where a wide bureaucratic soul can roam here, ”explained Varlamov.

In turn, “an artificial tree can cost as much as you want, and no one will get to the bottom, because this is no longer a tree, but a small architectural form,” the blogger pointed out. “This is how these mediocre and vulgar glowing cones are sculpted all over Russia,” he complained. – When you pass by this, you must understand – this is millions of rubles, which means, perhaps, someone will have an extra jar of caviar on the table (not you).

According to Varlamov, the massive installation of artificial Christmas trees has nothing to do with concern for the safety of forests. “Once a year, cutting down a Christmas tree in the forest in order to install it in the central square is normal,” he stressed. “This is not normal – these are uncontrolled felling, forest fires through human fault, and garbage being thrown into the same forest.” The production of shawl trees causes significant harm to nature, the blogger stated, urging Russians to write letters to mayors demanding the installation of “normal” trees.

Earlier in December, residents of the Yakut village of Vitim made fun of a tree shaped like a penis. Some described the set as erotic, while others considered the installation unfinished. The Vitim administration explained that the tree will soon take on its usual appearance: its construction had not yet been completed at that time.

The NYT: US and UK secretly sent cybersecurity specialists to Ukraine

Photo: Shutterstock

The United States and the United Kingdom have secretly dispatched cybersecurity specialists to Ukraine to protect the country from Russian digital aggression. This is reported by The New York Times, citing sources in the US government.

Officials recalled the hacker attacks of 2015 and 2016, as a result of which power plants on the territory of Ukraine, including Kiev, went out of order and cities were left without electricity. High-level officials and experts noted that the hacker activity of the Russian side against the Ukrainian infrastructure has not stopped since then.

“This is a widespread campaign targeting numerous Ukrainian government agencies, including the internal affairs agencies – the national police – and their utilities,” Dmitry Alperovich, a leading researcher of Russian cyber activity in Washington, confirmed to the NYT.

The iPhone 14 Pro will receive support for recording 8K video

Photo: Nubelson Fernandes / Unsplash

In 2022, Apple will release the first smartphone with a 48 megapixel camera. This is reported by the MacRumors edition.

Reporters read the report of Ming-Chi Kuo, an authoritative analyst at TF International Securities. According to the disclosed data of the insider, Apple made a large order from its Taiwanese partner Largan Precision. According to Min-Chi Ko, the order will allow the manufacturer to increase its market share, revenue and profit.

Ko also revealed that the iPhone 14 Pro will come with a camera that will have a 48-megapixel lens. Also, the phone will receive support for video recording with a resolution of 8K. High-resolution footage can be used in Apple's VR / AR headset, which could be unveiled by the end of 2022, he said.

Currently, current smartphones from Apple have lenses with a resolution of 12 megapixels. In 2023, the American company is due to unveil the iPhone 15, which will have a periscope camera that will significantly increase the quality of optical zoom. The journalists recalled that there are already similar smartphones on the market: for example, the Huawei P40 Pro + perescopic lens supports 10x optical zoom.

In early December, insider Min-Chi Ko announced that Apple had planned two generations of its VR headset at once. The first generation of the device will be released in 2023, the second in 2024.