DoIT has been notified of a phishing scam where the malicious actor was trying to impersonate a UMBC staffer. Below is an example of the email with the name, the email address of the sender, and the signature of the email removed for privacy reasons.

This and other similar phishing attempts seem to target certain departments of UMBC by trying to impersonate one of the staffers in that department. In previous cases of similar scams, if the user responds, the malicious actor could ask the user to send them money in the form of iTunes cards, gift cards, prepaid debit cards, money order, or even bitcoin.

In the case above, note that the scammer sent their email from a gmail and not a UMBC email. The email also tries to trick users by having “.edu” before the @gmail. 

The scammer also tried to make the email look as legitimate as possible by putting an email signature that was meant to look similar to those the persons they were impersonating. The scammer also created a sense of urgency by having the email subject be in all caps and say “QUICK REQUEST.”

If you do receive this or a similar email that you suspect is a scam, please do not click on any URL or reply. Either of those actions confirms to the sender that your email address is valid. Please forward the message (with the email headers) to security@umbc.edu.

How do I forward full email headers?

https://wiki.umbc.edu/pages/viewpage.action?pageId=1867970

To read more articles published by DOIT visit: 

https://itsecurity.umbc.edu/critical/?tag=notice. 

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This story was written by Megan Hanks and first appeared on news.umbc.edu

UMBC’s Carlos Romero-Talamas is leading a group of researchers in designing and building a machine to produce nuclear fusion energy. The project is one of just 16 new initiatives selected for support through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy program. The researchers will use the $4 million grant to develop and build a centrifugal mirror that can conduct electricity and will generate energy from fusion reactions.

The team’s goal is to use what is essentially a rotating magnetic mirror machine to produce energy from nuclear fusion, explains Romero-Talamas, associate professor of mechanical engineering. “This type of nuclear energy is considered the ‘holy grail’ of energy sources because of its inexpensive and abundant fuel supply,” he says. He adds that fusion energy does not emit greenhouse gases. 

Design and fabrication

The research team includes researchers from both UMBC and the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). The device they will design and build will fill a large laboratory at UMD’s Energy Research Facility.

Romero-Talamas explains that the power system will consist of hundreds of large, high-voltage capacitors and electromagnets. It will also include active controls to prevent the magnets from overheating. There will also be a separate space for machine controls, because researchers will not be in the equipment room while conducting experimental runs, as a safety precaution.

The research team will design the vacuum chamber and coils, which will be fabricated by experienced suppliers. The vacuum chamber will be approximately the length of two midsize cars. However, it will weigh a lot more than that, Romero-Talamas explains. The entire structure will be more than seven feet tall. 

Solving long-standing questions

Romero-Talamas will collaborate with Adil Hassam, Tim Koeth, Brian Beaoduin, and Ian Abel, all UMD faculty serving as co-PIs. He and the team will also work with undergraduate and graduate students from both universities. 

As the PI, Romero-Talamas will direct the research project, and will play a significant role in the engineering design and construction of the technology. UMD faculty and students will take the lead on equipment safety and certification. 

“Our efforts are aimed at not only solving long-standing physics questions regarding the possibility of confining thermonuclear plasmas with centrifugal mirrors, but to help in the technology transfer to market and make fusion energy a commercial reality,” Romero-Talamas says.

The researchers will measure the density of the particles, specifically how many particles the team is able to make rotate at a high speed inside the vacuum chamber. They will also measure the temperature and speed of the particles. 

Impact in fusion energy field 

Romero-Talamas says that he has been interested in fusion energy since he was a graduate student at Caltech. “Initially, I wanted to work in plasma rocket engines, but when I took a plasma physics class, fusion energy seemed very exciting, important, and urgent to me,” he recalls. “Since then, the study of plasma physics aimed toward helping fusion energy become a reality has been central to my research.” 

In nuclear fusion, energy is released when two nuclei collide at high speeds. Romero-Talamas points out that the act of fusing nuclei is difficult to accomplish. Like magnets, when ions are brought close to one another they begin to repel, which makes the high-speed collision important to overcome the repulsion and make fusion energy a success, he says.

Fusion energy can be generated from water and lithium, and doesn’t require many additional resources. It requires a small amount of material compared to traditional energy extraction methods, like burning fossil fuels, says Romero-Talamas. When a fusion reactor launches particles at each other at a high speed, their collisions can generate temperatures that are nearly 10 times hotter than the center of the sun.

Romero-Talamas and his research team will also work with experts at Virginia Tech and the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory on simulations needed for this work. And students will be involved in every step of the research, from design and construction to presenting findings at conferences and in peer-reviewed journal articles. 

This effort, which we call the Centrifugal Mirror Fusion Experiment, is an important step towards the realization of commercial fusion energy, Romero-Talamas explains. “A commercial reactor based on our concept would be relatively compact with respect to other fusion contenders, lowering the cost and time to market,” he says. “While there will be important materials and engineering questions that will need to be addressed before scaling up to a commercial reactor, we will address the most important physics questions that could put us in a path to a demo reactor in years, not decades. We are very excited to be working on a truly transformational technology that will enable a virtually inexhaustible energy source with very small impact to our planet.”

Banner image: Carlos Romero-Talamas. Photo by Marlanya Demond ‘11 for UMBC.

This story was written by Sarah Hansen and first appeared on news.umbc.edu

UMBC’s Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter (HARP) Satellite, which began in Vanderlei Martins’s imagination more than a decade ago, has been flying in low-Earth orbit since February 19. It contains new technology that can collect detailed information about tiny particles in the atmosphere—previously unmeasurable data that will inform climate studies for years to come. The HARP team, including a large number of students, overcame obstacles at every step of the satellite’s journey to space, and its success is already being recognized.

On August 6, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) named HARP the Small Satellite Mission of the Year. To qualify as a “smallsat,” satellites must weigh less than 150 kg (330 lbs.). To win, a smallsat must demonstrate significant improvement in the capability of small satellites. That could mean advances in their structural design, scientific instrumentation, communications ability, or other factors.  

A popular vote informed the AAIA SmallSat Technical Committee’s final decision. After voters selected HARP as a finalist, the smallsat went up against nine other finalists, including teams from the U.S., Guatemala, Singapore, and France. Votes for HARP poured in from all over the world, including ballots from 40 states and countries on six continents. In the end, HARP emerged as the winner.

A moment of joy

“I would like to thank the HARP team as a whole, because HARP is really the result of the perseverance of the team over many years,” said Martins, director of UMBC’s Earth and Space Institute, as he accepted the award. “There has been no shortage of problems, but we have always worked together to overcome them.”

HARP’s innovative design and ability to collect new kinds of data that will be crucial for future research sealed the win. The HARP instrument, designed and built by a UMBC team and funded by the NASA Earth Science Technology Office, is smaller than a loaf of bread. Yet, its pioneering polarimeter (the first ever in orbit) can measure certain properties of particles in the atmosphere for the first time, offering a new look at the properties of clouds and tiny particles in the atmosphere called aerosols. The first observation from HARP arrived back on Earth on April 16, and it’s been collecting data continuously since. 

The small spacecraft developed by UMBC’s partners at Space Dynamics Lab (SDL) carried HARP to space, and the SDL team manages the satellite while it is in orbit. The whole satellite (instrument plus spacecraft) is the size of a large loaf of bread and only weighs about 6 kg (13 lbs.). UMBC shares the award with Space Dynamics Lab, which is affiliated with Utah State University.

“All of us at UMBC are so very proud of the efforts and the impact of Vanderlei Martins and the Earth & Space Institute,” says Karl Steiner, UMBC’s vice president for research. “Looking back at the launch of the HARP satellite at Wallops Island this past November, I know that today’s recognition as SmallSat Mission of the Year brings a much-needed moment of joy and encouragement to our campus community during a very different time.”

Student-driven success

The AIAA also gave out a People’s Choice Award (PCA) at the ceremony. The awards committee selects a PCA when a project has made substantial, unique contributions, but doesn’t necessarily meet the requirements for Mission of the Year. This year, Quetzal 1, Guatemala’s first-ever satellite, received the People’s Choice Award. Quetzal 1 has “opened the whole field of space science and technology in Guatemala,” shared Emily Clemens, awards committee chair.

Guatemala currently has no engineering graduate school programs and no space agency, noted Luis Zea, one of Quetzal 1’s co-directors, “but the students here accomplished something that I think is a good example of what young people can do when they set their minds to solving problems.”

Students are at the root of HARP, as well. The team has included scientists and engineers at every level. High school students, undergraduates, and graduate students all made important contributions in collaboration with faculty researchers.

“HARP is a small satellite, but we always had very big ambitions,” Martins says. At long last, those ambitions are bearing fruit. Some of the students who worked on HARP, and some new ones, are now at work on HARP2, which will build on technology developed for HARP. HARP2 will travel on the major NASA PACE mission, scheduled to launch in 2023. HARP2 will collect data that will inform studies of air quality, clouds, precipitation, and climate.  

With only a tinge of disbelief, and a big smile, Martins says, “And that’s all due to this small satellite.”  

Banner image: Core HARP team members Vanderlei Martins (left); Roberto Borda, assistant research scientist with UMBC’s Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology (JCET); and Dominik Cieslak, assistant research scientist with JCET. Photo by Marlaynd Demond ’11 for UMBC.

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The Many Faces of Structural Racism: A Campus Conversation - UMBC is committed to facing the challenge of understanding our position in society and our role in dismantling structural racism

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Africana Council - promotes the study of people of African descent by broadening the educational and cultural experiences of students in all majors and those who demonstrate an interest in this discipline

Women’s Center - advances gender equity from an intersectional feminist perspective through programming, support services, and advocacy for marginalized people

Mosaic Center - dedicated to creating an environment that supports cross-cultural education and collaboration at UMBC

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Curated by Samuel Dupuy ('20), Health Administration and Policy Program

We’ve all hit the same turbulence, a pandemic! Therefore, we all need to take good care of ourselves, our bodies, and our minds.

Self-care is the practice of taking an active role in protecting one's own well-being and happiness, especially during periods of stress.

Here are some of the areas that you can keep healthy by practicing self-care: Finance, Nutrition, Mental, Personal Hygiene, Fitness, and Social.

There are many areas of need for self-care. Knowing how to balance each area will help to keep your well-being in a healthy state - meaning being cautious and aware of your own physical and mental health. Keeping yourself healthy helps to transmit good vibes towards those around you.

Some negative consequences of not caring for yourself include:

●      Fatigue and loss of energy

●      Poor relationships

●      Addiction

●      Weight gain

●      Sleep deprivation

Self-care is not something that only corresponds to female-identified people; male-identified people are often misled to believe they must toughen up when it comes to self-care or even mental health. However, that is not the case! Here are some positive self-care tips that anyone can use:

●      Take care of your personal hygiene (e.g., shave/trim, wash your face, etc.)

●      Sweat out the stress

●      Prioritize your needs before others. This is not selfish!

●      Manage your diet

●      Schedule a checkup with your healthcare provider

●      Get mental health support. If you feel vulnerable, reach out and talk to someone!

●      Fuel and move your body properly!

●      Stay socially connected with loved ones and friends

●      Get enough sleep. Do not skip sleep to get more things done

If you are looking for additional self-care resources, try checking these out:

·       Recreation and Physical Education are offering Group Fitness Classeswith instructors via Instagram and YouTube to work on your health and wellness while the RAC is closed.

·       These unprecedented times could be hard to deal with and hard to adjust to, whether you are a student or a parent, here are some tips

·       Knowing how to deal with and take care of your mental health is crucial for your own well-being. Everyone reacts and copes differently. This resource gives you ways to reduce and take care of your stress/anxiety.

·       Not knowing where to go for help? MHA’s Mental Health & COVID-19 Resources can help you during these times of uncertainty.

Remember, self-care is not selfish! You must fill your own cup before you pour into others’.

Written by Samuel Dupuy ('20), Health Administration and Policy Program

By Jeffrey B. Halverson, professor, Geography & Environmental Systems, Associate Dean of the Graduate School, UMBC

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Why does some rain fall harder than other rain? – Naomi B., age 9, San Fancisco, California

There are some days when the rain falls peacefully and gently, nourishing the Earth. But on some other days the rain comes down in a torrential downpour that meteorologists like me call a cloudburst. Standing outside in one of these intense rainstorms can feel like being smothered in a heavy, wet towel. These storms can flood the lands below them and lead to great destruction.

So what causes this difference?

All rain comes from a combination of two things: moisture in the air – usually in the form of clouds – and currents of air moving upwards. As moist air rises up through a cloud, the air cools and the water in it turns into tiny raindrops.

This is the same thing that happens when you can see your breath on a cold evening. The temperature change from warm to cool causes water droplets to form in your breath.

In a cloud, these tiny raindrops are very light and float as the rising air pushes them up. But the higher they go, the larger and heavier they get. Eventually, they get so heavy that they fall to the Earth as rain.

All-day drizzles come from steady storms that don’t have much upward wind flow. AP Photo/Matt Rourke

Cold air storms are steady and slow

Cold air can hold much less moisture than warm air, so wintertime clouds don’t have much water in them; they are thin and layered rather than puffy and tall and full of water.

Since cold air likes to sink to the ground, it’s difficult to get that air to rise quickly, so these wintertime clouds have only gentle upward air currents. As these slow currents sweep up through the thin clouds that don’t have much moisture, small raindrops form. Gravity easily pulls them down against the air current before they get too big. When clouds are thin and the air is moving slowly, you get nice calm rain.

Massive thunderstorms called supercells can form when the right weather ingredients come together. Greg Lundeen/NOAA

Thunderstorms and big winter storms are quick and intense

Hard rainstorms happen when there is a lot of moisture in the air and the air moves upwards very fast. Summer thunderstorms are the perfect example.

The warm, moist air rises very quickly – like a hot air balloon – and can be moving as fast as 30 to 40 miles per hour. The air also holds much more moisture than winter clouds – up to five times as much.

All of this creates very tall, thick clouds that are full of moisture. Water droplets form quickly as the air moves up through the clouds. But since the wind is blowing upwards so fast, the droplets can get huge before gravity drags them down to Earth. When the weight of all the water droplets gets to be too much for the wind, the wind current collapses, and all the raindrops in the cloud come crashing down at once. These are summer thunderstorms.

Thunderstorms can drop one, two or even three inches of rain in less than an hour. These sudden torrential downpours, called cloudbursts, can lead to flash flooding that can overflow streams and roads and trap people wherever they are.

Thankfully, because thunderstorms are so violent and relatively small, they don’t last very long. Once the rain falls from the clouds and squashes the upward air currents, the clouds disappear and you often see a nice blue sky.

Of course, winter can deliver some strong storms too – especially over the warmer ocean water. When strong winter storms drop lots of heavy rain, the same principles are at work: lots of moisture in the air, fast upwards wind currents and tall clouds.

No two rainstorms are ever the same. Sometimes clouds can rain so hard it feels like you are standing in the shower. Other times they bring only a nice peaceful drizzle. Now, whether you are soaked or singing in the rain, you’ll know why.

Hello, curious kids! Do you have a question you’d like an expert to answer? Ask an adult to send your question to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

Please tell us your name, age and the city where you live. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.

Jeffrey B. Halverson, Professor of Geography & Environmental Systems, Associate Dean of the Graduate School, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Header image: David Pinzer Photography/Moment via Getty Images

[The Conversation’s science, health and technology editors pick their favorite stories. Weekly on Wednesdays.]