Washington, DC - NASA and the Republic of Korea are developing plans for a cooperative field study of air quality in May and June to advance the ability to monitor air pollution accurately from space.

New York - The automotive aftermarket industry grew to $14.6 billion in 2015, with dollar sales increasing by 3.9 percent and units/quarts by 1.7 percent*, according to global information company The NPD Group. While dollar sales have been accelerating since 2013, unit/quart sales have been down, and 2015 marked the first year in which both ended positively. New and used car sales, an increase in miles driven, and atypical weather were factors that influenced the aftermarket’s strong performance during the year.

Mexico City, Mexico - The U.S.-Mexico High-Level Economic Dialogue (HLED) is the premier forum for bilateral economic cooperation, promoting mutual economic growth and prosperity, job creation, and global competitiveness for Mexico and the United States.  Today, in Mexico City, U.S. Vice President Biden and Mexican Secretary Videgaray co-chaired the third Cabinet-level meeting to highlight the significant progress made during 2015 and discuss goals for 2016 and beyond.

Washington, DC - Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Catherine Novelli will travel to Mexico City February 24-26 to participate in the United States-Mexico High Level Economic Dialogue (HLED).

Washington, DC - Following the January 28 announcement by Secretary of Defense Ash Carter establishing a Department of Defense-wide 12-week maternity leave policy, the Navy released its guidance today in NAVADMIN 046/16.

San Diego, California - An international team of computer scientists developed a method that greatly improves researchers’ ability to sequence the DNA of organisms that can’t be cultured in the lab, such as microbes living in the human gut or bacteria living in the depths of the ocean. They published their work in the Feb. 1 issue of Nature Methods.