Methodology Investigation, Environmental Realism-Battlefield Obscuration in the Tropics

摘要

A joint methodology investigation between US Army Waterways Experiment Station (USAWES) and US Army Tropic Test Center (USATTC) was conducted in the humid tropics of the Republic of Panama from July through October 1980. The objective was to determine the relationship between soil parameters and obscuration features of clouds produced by munitions and explosives in the humid tropics. A combined total of sixty-six 15-pound TNT charges and 105- and 155-millimeter ammunition rounds were detonated in various types of vegetation at three sites, including an ocean beach site. It was concluded that obscuration from munitions and explosives is minimal in the humid tropics during the wet season. Correlations between soil parameters and obscuration parameters were weak; however, vegetation levels did have an effect on cloud size. (Author)