DETECTION AND DEFEAT OF IMPROVISED EXPLOSIVE DEVICES: A NEW CHALLENGE FOR THE SOCIETY

摘要

Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), more commonly known as "roadside bombs", constitute a large and growing threat in the global war on terrorism (GWOT). They are not only the single largest cause of coalition casualties in Iraq, they have also been used to terrorize civilian populations around the globe and influence public opinion in democratic societies. Both the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are keenly interested in finding ways to defeat IEDs across a spectrum of activities that includes prediction and detection of IED emplacements, prevention of IED detonation, neutralization and disposal of detected lEDs, and protection against the effects of IED explosions. This paper provides an unclassified overview of the IED threat, as well as DoD's efforts to mitigate it, including a description of representative approaches and technologies. The paper concludes with a summary of unresolved technical issues, and challenges the Society to consider non-traditional applications of its expertise and technology to develop creative solutions to this most pernicious threat to national and international security.