2022 Panel Discussion: Facilitating Advanced Material Development for the Acceleration of Hypersonic Capabilities Accelerating hypersonic capabilities has been a major priority for DoD’s research and engineering efforts to stay ahead of rapidly modernizing adversaries. The extent to which hypersonic weapons are adopted for the future fight depends on a variety of technological limitations. Currently, DoD is working to advance alloys, coatings, and structures that can withstand the intense heat of hypersonic environments while also being stronger but lighter in weight. This session will ask experts from AFRL, NASA, Industry & Academia to provide their insight into the acceleration of hypersonic capabilities. Panelists will offer their perspective on the following topics:

Subsequent Challenges and Solutions to Developing Hypersonic Weapons
Advanced Materials Required for the Development of Hypersonic Weapons
Developing Functional and Resilient Hypersonic Capabilities

Panelists: Dr. Charles D. Ormsby, Chief, Manufacturing and Industrial Technologies Division, Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, AFRL
Dr. David Glass, Senior Technologist; Technical Advisor, Hypersonic Technology Project, NASA Langley Research Center
Dr. David Maranchi, Program Area Manager, Signature, Electromagnetics, and Energy, JHU/APL
Christina Bain, Director (Acting), Hypersonics and Advanced Materials, Lockeed Martin

Moderator:
Dr. Thomas Corke
Director, Hypersonic Systems Initiative
University of Notre Dame

China News Service: On August 30, Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif thanked China for its assistance to his flood-affected country. Disasters caused by the heavy rain have resulted in the death of 1,136 people and more than 33.04 million people are affected by the floods. Can you update us on China’s assistance to Pakistan?

Wang Wenbin: Since the floods hit Pakistan, China has been closely following the situation. We responded immediately and made every effort to provide relief assistance. The spokesperson of the foreign ministry shared relevant information on August 29.

On the same day, President Xi Jinping sent a message of sympathy to the Pakistani President Arif Alvi over the severe floods hitting the country. He noted that as all-weather strategic cooperative partners and “ironclad” friends, China and Pakistan have been sharing weal and woe, rendering each other assistance in times of need. China will continue to provide Pakistan with urgently-needed help and support the Pakistani side’s disaster relief work. Premier Li Keqiang also sent a message of sympathy to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Reuters: American chip designer Nvidia Corp said on Wednesday that US officials told it to stop exporting two top computing chips for Artificial Intelligence to China. And this move could cripple Chinese firms’ ability to carry out advance work like image recognition. Does the foreign ministry have any comment on this?

Wang Wenbin: What the US has done is typical “sci-tech hegemony”. The US has been stretching the concept of national security and abusing state power. The US seeks to use its technological prowess as an advantage to hobble and suppress the development of emerging markets and developing countries. This violates the rules of the market economy, undermines international economic and trade order and disrupts the stability of global industrial and supply chains. China firmly rejects it.

The US politicizes, instrumentalizes and weaponizes tech and trade issues, and engages in tech blockade and decoupling in an attempt to monopolize the world’s advanced technologies, perpetuate its hegemony in the sci-tech sector, and damage the closely-knit global industrial and supply chains. Such moves will not succeed.