No matter how much a combat system has been developed within a laboratory, or tested through virtual or simulated environments there will be unforeseen issues arise when that system is subjected to military operations in the extreme climactic conditions of arctic, tropical, or hot desert environments.
This is why the U.S. Army conducts developmental testing at the test centers of Yuma Proving Ground (YPG). According to Technology Investments Manager Jonathan Olbert, it is important to have scientific evidence that relates its test centers to the extreme natural environments of the potential Future Operating Environments.
In doing so, YPG has utilized world-renown scientific organizations such as the Desert Research Institution (DRI) to conduct environmental research at areas across all three test centers.
“They have been out here on and off for quite a while, as different requirements come up, or different money comes available,” Olbert said. “We like to study and research our environments in order to be better prepared, and to draw an analogous to possible future locations where we might have threats.”
DRI, which conducts cutting-edge environmental research and is a part of the Nevada System of Higher Education, was awarded its most recent contract in September of 2023. The nonprofit organization has been assisting YPG with environmental research and terrain characterization, along with soil and imagery data since the early 1990s.
Over the years YPG has been incorporating the findings garnered from this type of research into its knowledge base, which has led to having a greater understanding of the types of challenges posed by the combined effects of extreme environments on combat systems.
“We have many different types of soil and terrain formations across the range that have different characteristics and physical, chemical and biological properties,” Olbert said. “They can all interact with vehicles and weapons systems differently.”
One of the most important concerns when it comes to the developmental testing of current and future military equipment is that it must function as intended in all three of the extreme natural environments in which YPG conducts testing: desert, cold regions, and tropic regions.
“If there is a piece of equipment that is going to get fielded to the Soldiers, typically it will undergo testing at the three test centers to make sure it can withstand those extremes, so we need to understand our environments really well,” Olbert said.
Olbert added that future plans at YPG call for using drones with special sensors to examine the landscape at certain sites so customers will have as much information as possible about the composition of the environment where they have chosen to conduct their test.
“If you look at the soil using hyperspectral imagery there are certain physical characteristics or mineral deposits on the surface that can affect different radio waves and frequencies,” said Olbert, who manages DRI’s contract. “That type of detailed understanding of the environment is exactly what we need.”
DRI has also conducted aerial surveys using drones to map out YPG’s vehicle test tracks, many of which consist of unimproved dirt and gravel roads that have been used for decades.
“Some of test courses we have used to be rocky and bumpy and have steep slopes but have degraded over time from the natural terrain,” Olbert said. “The aerial surveys have helped us make developmental decisions as to whether we should realign our test courses to improve the roughness or difficulty of them.”
Olbert added that it’s not just about understanding the effects the environment, but also the need to assist customers on developing solutions based on the analysis.
For example, during the 1991 Gulf War, M1A1 Abrams crews complained about sand getting into the tank’s air filtration system, which led to additional testing at YPG that solved the problem, as well as other improvements being made.
“Research done in the past by DRI has shown that the soil we have here is similar to the soil in Iraq, which is called moon dust,” Olbert said.
When soil particles mixing with the lubricants used to clean the M-16 began causing the rifle to jam, DRI was able to, based on research it had conducted at YPG, make some good scientific recommendations for what a good cleaning protectant would be to use in a desert type environment.
Research done by DRI was also crucial to overcoming the threat of Improvised Explosive Devices (IED)s. Researchers worked extensively with the countermine team at YPG to build sensor calibration sites to support the developments in ground penetrating radar and cameras to detect disturbed soil patterns.
“If you were to look overhead at an IED site with a thermal imagery camera you would be able to say there was a disturbed soil pattern, which meant munitions could be buried there,” Olbert said. “Or maybe that it was buried at some point prior so it is not immediately disturbed, but there could be a temperature gradient between the surrounding soil and the location of the IED.”
Olbert concluded by saying that the relationship with DRI has been so positive that YPG has established an Educational Partnership Agreement which would allow them to coordinate on future research requirements of YPG and explore future educational opportunities in STEM fields.
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