Landsat Next likely to bear little resemblance to its predecessors - SpaceNews

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NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) plan to issue a Request for Information by the end of the year on instrumentation and platforms for Landsat Next, the Earth observation system to follow Landsat 9.

“Rather than one single large satellite bus, which is what Landsat has been historically, we’ve looked at other options,” USGS Director Jim Reilly said in an interview.

NASA and USGS recently completed an 18-month Sustainable Land Imaging Architecture Study to evaluate the capabilities of existing and planned government and commercial satellites.

“The revolution in space is underway and we’ll want to capitalize on that as much as we possibly can,” said Reilly, a former NASA astronaut. “The critical piece for NASA and USGS is looking at how we combine all that information and how we calibrate and validate it.”

Iceland’s Ok Glacier has lost so much mass since Landsat 1 launched in 1972 to monitor changes to the Earth’s land surface that Ok lost its status as a glacier in 2014. Credit: USGS

Landsat, a program established in the 1970s, offers a continuous global record of land areas. Since 2008, NASA and USGS have provided Landsat data free of charge, a policy the agencies are committed to continuing, said Karen St. Germain, NASA Earth Science Division director.

NASA and USGS are preparing to launch Landsat 9 in September 2021. Landsat 9 is slightly different from its predecessor Landsat 8 in terms of the volume of data it produces but “operationally it is essentially identical to Landsat eight,” Reilly said.

Landsat Next, on the other hand, is likely to be a significant departure.

In the architecture study, “we didn’t hold anything sacred” when considering how to acquire Earth imagery “for everything from mapping to hazards to resource assessment and land use,” Reilly said. “A lot of those things now are available in a number of different platforms that can all be brought together as a system of systems.”

NASA and USGS may consider sharing Earth observation imagery obtained by other U.S. government agencies. NASA and USGS could work, for example, with the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency to obtain data that “can be used by the whole government in the future,” Reilly said.

In addition, NASA and the USGS evaluated opportunities to work with international allies conducting initiatives like the European Space Agency’s Sentinel land imaging program.

For now, that’s all NASA and USGS officials will say about Landsat Next.

“NASA and USGS anticipate being able to share information about the next Landsat mission in more detail following the planned release of the fiscal year 2022 president’s budget request in February 2021,” St. Germain said by email.

LANDSAT 9

In the meantime, NASA and USGS attention turns to Landsat 9, a satellite built by Northrop Grumman in Gilbert, Arizona, to house the Operational Land Imager 2 from Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado, and the Thermal Infrared Sensor 2 from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

The price tag for Landsat 9 program, including the satellite, launch and flight operations plus imagery collection, data processing and dissemination over multiple years, is expected to be around $1 billion.

A 2019 report published by the U.S. Interior Department and USGS, “Economic Valuation of Landsat,” determined the 2017 imagery was worth more than $3.4 billion to international users and worth approximately $2.1 billion to U.S. customers alone.

“Studies have shown Landsat provides multibillion dollar annual economic benefits to the nation in support of applications including agriculture monitoring and forecasting, water resource management, wildfire mapping and remediation, forest and rangeland management, and hazards monitoring and mitigation,” Tim Newman, USGS National Land Imaging director, said by email.

This article originally appeared in the Sept. 14, 2020 issue of SpaceNews magazine.

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September 28, 2020 at 04:50PM
https://spacenews.com/landsat-next-likely-to-bear-little-resemblance-to-its-predecessors/

Landsat Next likely to bear little resemblance to its predecessors - SpaceNews

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'New York Times' Reports Trump Paid Little In Federal Income Taxes - NPR

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The newspaper's probe reveals details about Donald Trump's federal tax filings, including reports that he paid just $750 in federal income taxes each of his first two years in the White House.

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September 28, 2020 at 06:15PM
https://www.npr.org/2020/09/28/917680708/new-york-times-reports-trump-paid-little-in-federal-income-taxes

'New York Times' Reports Trump Paid Little In Federal Income Taxes - NPR

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Dear Abby: Husband has little room in his life for anything but himself - OregonLive

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DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been married for 30 years. He has always been self-centered. We have discussed this over the years, and it hasn’t changed his disposition. I bought him an “It’s All About Me” coffee cup years ago as a joke, and he enjoys using it!

We both have office jobs and day-to-day issues and problems with our employees and co-workers. If we talk on the phone at lunch or over dinner, he describes his daily issues in excruciating detail, looking for my feedback/input and then moves on. There is never a time I can update him on my issues and get his input to help with mine because he’s too busy thinking about his issues.

He cares deeply about our adult children, but doesn’t give them input on their issues either. If I don’t remind him about the challenges (i.e., buying a new car, looking for a new job, etc.) they want our advice on, he would never reach out to them to assist. I am not sure if this is a personality trait I must live with or if you have some ideas to improve this situation. -- ALL ABOUT HIM

DEAR ALL ABOUT HIM: Has it occurred to you that in some areas your husband may be less self-centered than an empty vessel? He may not help you with your daily issues because he doesn’t have the answers. Assuming you have talked to him about this until you are blue in the face, the next time he asks for your input, you might consider being less helpful. Or, beat him to the punch and tell him about your problems before he has a chance to tell you the ones he is having.

As to your adult children, they should go directly to their father when they seek his advice and continue to approach him until they get it.

DEAR ABBY: I have a dear friend I’ve known for 25 years and I consider to be family. We recently had a falling-out because I set some boundaries I feel are necessary for my own wellness as I grow into my 40s. The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.

My friend is gay and excuses the disrespect as the way his community speaks among themselves. He often calls me the b-word in fun, as well as similar names. I have told him it hurts me, but he refuses to acknowledge it, dismissing it as “you know, since high school that’s how we talk.” He might show some restraint at times, but when he’s drinking (which is often), he reverts back to making cruel or hurtful comments.

I am now a single mother, looking to grow and evolve into a better person, rebuild my self-esteem and possibly find a partner in life, but my friend keeps pulling me back into a dark place every time we speak. I care too much about him to walk away from this friendship. What can I do? -- BOUNDARIES SET IN CALIFORNIA

DEAR BOUNDARIES: You have already taken the first step. You told your friend (frenemy?) you will no longer tolerate being called a b**** or any other offensive name. For some in the gay community this may be considered “fun,” but it ISN’T funny to you. That he would continue doing this after you expressed that it hurt your feelings makes me wonder if he values your relationship as much as you do.

Maintain your boundaries by leaving his presence if he uses that language. Oh, and one more thing: When you know he’s been drinking, avoid him because, if you don’t, you know what will follow.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

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September 28, 2020 at 02:04PM
https://www.oregonlive.com/advice/2020/09/dear-abby-husband-has-little-room-in-his-life-for-anything-but-himself.html

Dear Abby: Husband has little room in his life for anything but himself - OregonLive

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Two Green Bay women will remember friend by creating 'little libraries' in her honor - Fox11online.com

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September 28, 2020 at 06:43AM
http://fox11online.com/news/making-a-difference/two-green-bay-women-will-remember-friend-by-creating-little-libraries-in-her-honor

Two Green Bay women will remember friend by creating 'little libraries' in her honor - Fox11online.com

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Trump Dismisses 'New York Times' Reporting That He Paid Little In Federal Income Taxes - NPR

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Enlarge this image

President Trump takes a question during a news conference at the White House on Sunday, where he dismissed reporting from the "New York Times" that he has paid little or no federal income taxes in recent years as "fake news." Joshua Roberts/Getty Images

Joshua Roberts/Getty Images

Updated at 8:40 p.m. ET

A New York Times investigation published on Sunday found that President Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes each year in 2016 and in 2017, which the president denied at a news conference using a familiar retort: "fake news."

The Times cites Trump's long sought-after tax returns, further reporting that he paid no income taxes at all in 10 of the previous 15 years, as Trump reported massive losses to his businesses.

Among its other findings, the investigation determined that Trump has hundreds of millions of dollars in loans that are set to come due within the next four years — potentially his second term in office — and that he's battling the Internal Revenue Service over a nearly $73 million tax refund he claimed a decade ago. The Times said an "adverse ruling [in that audit case] could cost him more than $100 million."

All told, the investigation provides the most detailed accounting yet of the finances of a president with massive business interests who's sought to shield the details of those finances from the American public.

NPR has not confirmed any of the details from the filings; the Times didn't post any of its source documents to protect sources, according to the story.

When asked about the report during a Sunday evening news conference, Trump refused to detail what he's paid in federal income taxes, saying simply: "I've paid a lot."

He said "it'll all be revealed" when his tax returns can be released after audit — something he's said for years. (In fact, an audit would not prevent the president from releasing his records.)

Trump has previously bragged about not paying taxes.

"That makes me smart," he said in a 2016 debate against Hillary Clinton, when she accused him of not paying federal income taxes.

Responding to the Times, Alan Garten, a lawyer for the Trump Organization, told the publication that "most, if not all, of the facts appear to be inaccurate."

The Times says it obtained over 20 years of tax return data for Trump and the myriad companies that make up his organization.

Here are other key findings of the New York Times:

• Some reductions in the president's tax liability came from unexplained consulting fees. The Times cites evidence that some of the fees may have been paid to his daughter, Ivanka Trump, though she was not an outside figure, given her role as a top official in the Trump Organization. If that were true, it could create further legal peril.
• Trump's long-running IRS audit stems from a refund he claimed in 2010 totaling $72.9 million, which appears to be based on a questionable move by the president to claim he was walking away from his Atlantic City casino business.
• More than $70,000 paid to style Trump's hair for his former reality show The Apprentice was written off on his taxes as a business expense. He's also written off costs related to residences and aircraft that many would consider personal expenses.
• The president's businesses have brought in lots of money from overseas, detailed precisely for the first time in this report, according to the Times. In his first two years in the White House, Trump earned $73 million from overseas, mostly from his golf courses in the British Isles. He also earned millions from the Philippines, India and Turkey.
• Trump and his companies paid taxes of $15,598 in Panama, $145,400 in India and $156,824 in the Philippines in 2017, one of the years the report says Trump paid just $750 in income taxes to the U.S. government.

The Times report was explicit that it did not find any previously unknown connections to Russia, something that critics of the president have speculated would be revealed in his tax returns.

Trump's political opponents for years have sought his personal financial records, after he broke decades of presidential precedent by not voluntarily releasing his tax returns during the 2016 campaign or since.

Trump has also not divested from his family business, creating layers of financial entanglements and potential conflicts of interest, including business deals that could be subject to decisions by foreign leaders.

Last year, House Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal, D-Mass., sued federal officials to try to obtain six years of Trump's tax returns. In July of this year, the Supreme Court sent the case back to a lower court.

"It appears that the President has gamed the tax code to his advantage and used legal fights to delay or avoid paying what he owes," Neal said in a statement Sunday evening. He added: "Our case is very strong, and we will ultimately prevail."

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September 28, 2020 at 06:28AM
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Trump Dismisses 'New York Times' Reporting That He Paid Little In Federal Income Taxes - NPR

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Steelers guard David DeCastro 'little rusty' but effective in season debut - TribLIVE

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September 28, 2020 at 04:47AM
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Steelers guard David DeCastro 'little rusty' but effective in season debut - TribLIVE

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Little Movement On Closed Golf Course Frustrates Residents - Bay News 9

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HUDSON, Fla. — A Hudson golf course that fell into disrepair could eventually rise as a tree farm. 

But that may not be soon enough for the property owner and nearby residents.

---

What You Need To Know

---

Five-foot weeds at the Links Golf Club are the only thing growing now on land that was once pristine. That's one of the main problems between the owner of this property and the residents that live right near it.

Jay Cybart is one of those neighbors living in the estates at Beacon Woods.

"Myself, our friends and neighbors are put into a position that we were treated unfairly," Cybart said.

Cybart and neighbors were notified the owner of the course has looked to turn the land into a tree farm after it closed last year, but to him it’s hard to see any trees through the weeds. The problems have been ongoing for more than a year, and even reached the point where homeowners asked Pasco County commissioners to force the course owner to maintain the land.

"How is this a tree farm?" Cybart asked. "To me, it’s a weed farm. Now if you were selling weed, you’d make a lot of money. But that’s not the case here. This is supposed to be a tree farm."  

Course owner Matt Lowman said he wanted to keep the links as a golf course but he couldn’t reach an agreement with neighbors on chipping in to help fix it. Neighborhoods surrounding the former course include The Estates, Fairway Oaks, The Reserve, Beacon Point, Barrington Woods and Millwood Village.

So he got an agricultural exemption to grow trees. Loman said he is willing to work with neighbors on keeping up the property.

Cybert said he can live with that, as long as it is maintained. 

"If you really want a tree farm, make it a true tree farm," Cybart said. "Spend the money. Prep the land, maintain the trees."

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September 27, 2020 at 09:24PM
https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2020/09/27/little-movement-on-closed-golf-course-frustrates-hudson-residents

Little Movement On Closed Golf Course Frustrates Residents - Bay News 9

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