Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

DARPA Past Contributions ¹⁾

1998 DARPA Site - The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is the central research and development organization for the Department of Defense (DoD). It manages and directs selected basic and applied research and development projects for DoD, and pursues research and technology where risk and payoff are both very high and where success may provide dramatic advances for traditional military roles and missions and dual-use applications.

This website is divided into several tracks. Please select from the following list. ²⁾

Describes what DARPA does, and provides background on the Agency

DARPA's primary responsibility is to help maintain U.S. technological superiority and guard against unforeseen technological advances by potential adversaries.

Consequently, the DARPA mission is to develop imaginative, innovative and often high risk research ideas offering a significant technological impact that will go well beyond the normal evolutionary developmental approaches; and, to pursue these ideas from the demonstration of technical feasibility through the development of prototype systems.

Director,DARPA, Dr. Frank Fernandez' presentation to the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Technology Conference, September 23, 1998. 98smdc.pdf (1868kb)

DARPA Over the Years, 8/97.

DARPA Technology Transition study is available electronically! Published January, 1997, the study chronicles the process by which DARPA technologies and concepts have transitioned into military capabilities for U.S. forces. (1635k .pdf Format)

Presentations from DARPATech '97, held in September 1997, are online.³⁾

Organization - DARPA's offices and links to their individual web sites. Click here if you are trying to find out about a specific DARPA program or technology area.

A description of each of the Technical and Support Offices. If you are unsure which office is sponsoring a particular program, click here and read the description of each office's mission and focus to help you determine the proper office.

A list of the Offices with links to all of the Office Home Pages

Doing Business with DARPA - Information available to the public, including how to communicate with DARPA

Information for Small Businesses (SBIR/SBSC) DARPA Planned Procurements, November 1998

News Releases - News releases about activities of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Budget - DARPA's FY 1999 budget request Solicitations - A listing of current solicitations for the technical offices of DARPA

DARPA Technical Offices (1998 org chart)

DSO The Defense Sciences Office mission is to identify the most portentous new ideas within the basic science and engineering community and develop those ideas into new DoD capabilities.

ETO The Electronics Technology Office focuses on electronics technology to produce smaller, lighter, and more mobile information systems.

ISO The Information Systems Office provides technologies and systems to allow the commander dominant battlefield awareness and superb force management.

ITO The Information Technology Office advances the frontier of computing systems, information technology, and software to insure that DoD has the technologies needed for the future.

STO The Sensor Technology Office investigates applications of advanced sensor technology in civil and strategic environments, as well as technology to counter military threats in the tactical environment.

TTO The Tactical Technology Office engages in high-risk, high-payoff advanced military research, emphasizing the “system” and “subsystem” approach to the development of air, land and naval systems technologies.

DARPA Support Offices

COMP Office of the Comptroller is the nucleus of “corporate” fiscal activities and prepares and submits the consolidated annual Agency budget, and also manages the planning, programming, and budgeting system process. COMP develops and implements the proper procedures and controls for program execution, maintains adequate program accountability documentation, provides for liaison with the General Accounting Office and the DoD Inspector General on audit activities, and serves as the Congressional focal point for the Agency. COMP also maintains a management information system to support DARPA requirements for accurate and timely fiscal, contractual, and programmatic information services.

GC The General Counsel (GC) supervises the Freedom of Information (FOI) and Privacy Act programs within the Agency, assists in the negotiation of Cooperative Agreements, monitors the Ethics and Procurement Integrity programs, and provides legal advice and counsel to the Agency's management.

OMO The Office of Management Operations (OMO)provides administrative support to the Director of DARPA, Technical Office Directors, Program Managers, and the DARPA staff. OMO comprises five major functional directorates: Human Resources Directorate; Information Resources Directorate; Contracts Management Directorate; Security and Intelligence Directorate; and the Administration and Small Business Directorate. The responsibilities of each of these directorates is described below.

ASBD The Administration and Small Business Directorate (ASBD) plans, develops, and coordinates the administrative service functions of the Agency. This office supervises records management, technical information programs, the library, travel services, correspondence and classified document control, web information services, supply functions, and the DARPA Potential Contractor Program; and serves as the liaison between the technical offices and the DARPA Agents. ASBD also administers the Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization program and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.

CMD The "Contracts Management Directorate (CMD) plans, negotiates, and awards contracts, grants, and agreements for select new-start technology projects and for consortium and other cooperative projects where innovative contractual arrangements may be desired.

HRD The Human Resources Directorate provides civilian and military personnel management functions, including recruitment, hiring, billet and manpower allocation, civilian pay and benefits administration, and all personnel management actions.

IRD The Information Resources Directorate (IRD) is responsible for the DARPA management information system that provides information services in the areas of finance, communications, records management, and prototyping and research.

S&ID The Security and Intelligence Directorate (S&ID) plans, executes, and directs the information, personnel, industrial and physical security programs at DARPA and at specified contractor sites. This includes Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI), Special Access Programs (SAP), declassification management activities, security classification management program, and the Communications Security Program (COMSEC). S&ID also formulates and implements security policy and procedures at DARPA and represents DARPA on security matters with external organizations.

Other Offices

Discoverer II The Discoverer II program is a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Air Force and National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) joint initiative. Its mission is to develop and demonstrate an affordable space-based radar (SBR) with Ground Moving Target Indication (GMTI), Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imaging capabilities and Digitized Mapping Elevation Data (DTED) that will revolutionize reconnaissance, surveillance and precision geolocation support to the tactical warfighter.

HAE UAV Management of the High Altitude Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Program has transferred to the Air Force.

JDUPO The Dual Use Science and Technology (DUS&T) Program (www.dtic.mil/dust) and the Commercial Operations and Savings Initiative]] (COSSI) (www.acq.osd.mil/es/dut) have moved to the Office, Director, [[:Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E), OSD (A&T). ⁴⁾

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