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  • June

    Data is collected using the Coastal Research Amphibious Buggy at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Field Research Facility (FRF) in Duck, N.C. The FRF’s civil works mission includes Coastal Ocean Data System and Coastal Field Data Collection under the Flood and Coastal Risk Management Research, Development and Technology (RD&T) program.

    Civil Works Research Area Review Groups go virtual during COVID-19 pandemic

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) recently overcame the hurdle of conducting its annual Environmental, Navigation and Flood Risk Management Research Area Review Groups (RARGs) virtually due to physical distancing considerations related to COVID-19. The RARG meetings, typically held over the course of a few days in April, are the cornerstones of the present USACE civil works research and development (R&D) process, facilitating review and ranking of research needs submitted by districts, divisions, centers of expertise and researchers across the organization. During typical in-person RARGs, the meetings also facilitate team-building, technology transfer and hands-on learning about facilities, emerging products and methods.
  • Led by Research Physical Scientist David “Keith” Wilson, Ph.D., third from left, his research team with CRREL’s Signature Physics Branch received a patent for their “System for Modeling Intelligent Sensor Selection and Placement” awarded July 2019. Team members included, from left, Rachel Romond, postdoctoral student; Jordan Bates, research computer scientist; Wilson; John Gagnon, retired civil engineering technician; Lauren Waldrop, computer scientist; and Matthew Kamrath, research physical scientist.

    ERDC inventors earn patent for sensor planning software

    Inventors at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) recently received a patent for sensor planning software tools designed to assist the U.S. Soldiers’ need to identify effective placement locations for sensors to accomplish their mission. Led by Research Physical Scientist Dr. David “Keith” Wilson, the research team, consisting of CRREL’s Signature Physics Branch, received the patent for their “System for Modeling Intelligent Sensor Selection and Placement” in July 2019.
  • First Lt. Eoghan M. Matthews receives the Army Achievement Medal for his contributions during a deployment to New York City to assist the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New York District with construction of several alternate care facilities in the fight against COVID-19.

    ERDC Soldiers serve in the fight against COVID-19

    Although the vast majority of employees with the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) are Department of Defense civilians, the select few U.S. Army Soldiers assigned to the ERDC are making a significant impact during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 2020, Soldiers from across the ERDC have deployed around the country to aid in the fight against the disease, many mobilizing to “hotspots” to confront the unique challenges of fighting an unseen enemy.

  • May

    U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory Research Associate Army 1st Lt. Eoghan Matthews walks across the Brooklyn Bridge on his way to work at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) New York District, March 26, 2020. Matthews was activated to assist the USACE New York District with completing site assessments, which are provided to local, state and federal partners, so that decisions can be made about where and when alternate care facilities are constructed as additional support to hospitals during the COVID-19 outbreak.

    Answering the Call

    In late March 2020, Army 1st Lt. Eoghan Matthews, a Soldier assigned to the U.S. Army Engineering Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Cold Region Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL), received a call. The instructions were cryptic but direct: “Pack a bag, and be ready to go somewhere in the Northeast.”
  • The screenshot illustrates the May 22 debut of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Susceptible Exposed Infected Recovered (ERDC-SEIR) model on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website. The ERDC-SEIR is one of 16 models featured on the CDC’s COVID-19 model ensemble website, and the ERDC COVID-19 Modeling and Analysis Team will continue to provide results to the CDC going forward.

    ERDC COVID-19 model debuts on CDC website

    The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) COVID-19 Modeling and Analysis Team (C-MAT) developed a COVID-19 model that debuted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) website, May 22. The ERDC model, also referred to as the ERDC-SEIR (Susceptible Exposed Infected Recovered) model, is one of 16 models featured on the CDC’s COVID-19 model ensemble website.
  • The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center Team developed a three-step process for assessing regionally adjusted COVID-19 outcomes in Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa.

    ERDC researchers model COVID-19 for the Nation

    VICKSBURG, Miss. – When the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Dr. Brandon Lafferty sleeps these days, he dreams about predictive models. That’s because since mid-March, Lafferty, a researcher from the ERDC Environmental Laboratory, has been helping lead ERDC’s Modelling and Simulation Team develop the ERDC Susceptible Exposed Infected Recovered ⸺ or SEIR ⸺ model for COVID-19, and it’s an intense effort.
  • U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center Commander Col. Teresa Schlosser, front right, welcomed the five selectees for the 2020 six-month session of ERDC University, sponsored by the Office of Research and Technology Transfer and the Directorate of Human Capital. Participating in kickoff activities March 3-6 were, from left, ERDC-U Program Manager and ORTT Technology, Knowledge and Outreach Division Chief Tisa Webb; Civil Engineer Ceyda Polatel, Jacksonville District, assigned to the Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory; Natural Resource Specialist Jason Knight, Tulsa District, assigned to the Environmental Laboratory; Cost Civil Engineer Ian Pumo, Seattle District, assigned to the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory; Biologist Aaron McFarlane, St. Paul District, assigned to EL; Geologist David Robison, Louisville District, assigned to Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory; and Directorate of Human Capital Director Dr. Gary Anderton. Corps division and district participants partner with ERDC subject matter experts to apply and implement technical solutions.

    Louisville District Geologist Selected for Engineer Research and Development Center University

    A developmental assignment and subsequent deployment delayed his Army Engineer Research and Development Center University application, but Louisville District geologist David Robison was selected for the class of 2020 and is now working with his mentors to develop tools and methods for possible incorporation into regular levee inspection and risk assessment programs.   

  • April

    CRREL technician Kate Liddle-Broberg and contractor Ken Robbins finish marking the mining face for excavation control of the Engineer Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory's Permafrost Tunnel Research Facility in Fox, Alaska, as part of the phase four expansion of the permafrost tunnel, which excavated a 300 foot tunnel and improved 200 feet of pre-existing tunnel.

    Discovering the Mural in Permafrost

    In the forests of Fox, Alaska, carved into a frozen hillside is a unique manmade 350-meter long research tunnel. Situated on a 16-acre parcel near the confluence of Goldstream and Glenn Creeks, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory’s Permafrost Tunnel Research Facility was excavated deep into a large block of discontinuous permafrost that has been going through several recent periods of expansion. The expansion project began back in 2011, taking advantage of the digging seasons when the ground is at its coldest, with an overall project goal of expanding the tunnel facility to better support ongoing and growing research and engineering needs. The most recent expansion effort, this year, has added 300-feet of new tunnel, improved 200 feet of the existing tunnel and added links between the old and new tunnel sections at several locations, to include at an interface between subsurface bedrock and overlying gravels.
  • The U.S. Army Engineer and Development Center’s Justin Wilkens, a research biologist with the Environmental Laboratory, checks the waypoints using the SubSeaSail’s G6 navigation software on his laptop. The unmanned surface vessel was taken to Vieques, an island off the coast of Puerto Rico, for a demonstration by Wilkens and a team of ERDC-EL research biologists, including Dr. Guilherme Lotufo and Dr. Mark Ballentine. The USV gathered data indicating the presence of munitions constituents from unexploded underwater ordnance, a problem at sites around the world. Chris Todter, far left, a SubSeaSail partner, and Tom Goddard, far right, SubSeaSail Fabrication and Testing, are also visible in the photo.

    Team successfully tests new unmanned autonomous surface vessel

    Anxious at first about the specter of possible software glitches that would derail the project, the U.S. Army Engineer and Development Center’s Justin Wilkens, a research biologist with the Environmental Laboratory, soon confirmed that everything was functioning well. He and a team of other EL research biologists, including Dr. Guilherme Lotufo and Dr. Mark Ballentine, visited Vieques, an island off the coast of Puerto Rico, for five days in February to demonstrate a new unmanned autonomous surface vessel, or USV.
  • ERDC’s Directorate of Public Works staff work to build two types of mock-up hospital rooms.

    U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center prototypes makeshift hospital rooms

    The Commanding General of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lt. Gen. Todd Semonite has made headlines for his plans to construct makeshift hospital rooms across the country as the Nation prepares for an onslaught of COVID-19 patients. Recently, Semonite called on the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Develeopment Center in Vicksburg to ask for help in accomplishing that mission.

  • March

    Dr. Cody Gray congratulates Dr. Linda Nelson as she receives the President’s Award from the Aquatic Plant Management Society in 2015 for her dedication to the organization over the course of her career. Nelson retired from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Environmental Laboratory, February 28, 2020, wearing three hats: associate technical director for Civil Works, Environmental Engineering and Sciences, and program manager for the Aquatic Nuisance Species Research and the Aquatic Plant Control Research Programs.

    Career opportunities made Corps a compelling place for Nelson

    Looking back on her 35-year career, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Dr. Linda Nelson thinks the opportunities were so plentiful, she couldn’t resist staying with the Corps. The associate technical director for Civil Works, Environmental Engineering and Sciences, wore three hats until she retired, February 28, 2020, serving also as program manager for the Aquatic Nuisance Species Research and the Aquatic Plant Control Research Programs.
  • A Civil Works titan retires from 40-year research career with the Corps

    A Civil Works titan retires from 40-year research career with the Corps

    A noteworthy but humble figure exited the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Environmental Laboratory for the last time, February 28, 2020. Dr. Alfred Cofrancesco, Jr. retired from his position as senior scientific technical manager and director of the Civil Works environmental research area for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
  • Daniel Hickman, a civil engineering technician and member of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Team, sets up equipment for a UAS flight over a landslide at the Vicksburg National Military Park

    U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center assists in mudslide assessment

    A team of researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center assisted the Vicksburg National Military Park in assessing landslides and erosion on the grounds.
  • The Information Technology Laboratory’s newest facility will make you feel like you’ve traveled forward in time. The Dynamic Immersive Virtual Environment (DIVE) laboratory allows researchers to test and develop solutions for the Department of Defense using leading augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) gear. The rise of this technology has already changed the way we work and learn, and it will now be used to allow Army engineers, scientists, and stakeholders to immerse themselves in true scale, 3D environments.

    Want a glimpse of the future? Look no further than ITL’s new DIVE laboratory.

    The newest facility at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Information Technology Laboratory (ITL) will make you feel like you’ve traveled forward in time. The Dynamic Immersive Virtual Environment (DIVE) laboratory allows researchers to test and develop solutions for the Department of Defense (DoD) using leading augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) gear. The rise of this technology has already changed the way we work and learn, and it will now be used to allow Army engineers, scientists, and stakeholders to immerse themselves in true scale, 3D environments.

  • February

    LaKenya Walker and Cameron Thomas are winners of the 2020 Black Engineer of the Year Award for Modern Day Technology Leaders.

    Two ERDC researchers earn Black Engineer of the Year awards

    At the office, LaKenya Walker spends her time using high-performance computing to help the military better understand its weapon systems. Cameron Thomas works just a few buildings away as an expert in explosive weapons effects. Though their jobs are a bit different, the two U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center employees now have something very special in common—they are both winners of the 2020 Black Engineer of the Year Award (BEYA) for Modern Day Technology Leaders.
  • U.S. Army dive team members pause for a photo during training on the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory's Multifunctional Assessment Reconnaissance Vessel II

    Multifunctional Assessment Reconnaissance Vessel allows for remote survey of marine structures

    A team of researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, led by principal investigator Thad Pratt and including co-pi William Butler and research engineers Jonathan Marshall and David Nguyen, have developed and improved a prototype Multifunctional Assessment Reconnaissance Vessel that allows for remote survey of pile-supported marine structures. Operators can produce final data products within 12 hours of arriving on site, allowing structural engineers to deliver a repair plan within 24 hours. The U.S. Transportation Command and Office of the Secretary of Defense-funded project has resulted in the schedule of five units to be delivered to Army dive detachments as part of the Instrument Set, Reconnaissance and Surveying (ENFIRE) program.
  • The facilities at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Field Research Facility at Duck, N.C., include a 1,840-foot steel and concrete pier used in coastal observation and data collection. The FRF is an internationally recognized observatory and premier location for conducting complex and comprehensive nearshore research and engineering studies.

    The Corps’ Field Research Facility unsurpassed for coastal observation and research

    Duck, N.C., (February 18, 2020) -- Along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, in the small coastal town of Duck, the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Field Research Facility has supported the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ coastal engineering mission for more than 40 years.
  • The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center-Environmental Laboratory’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems team members Barry Barnett, Kenneth Matheson and Shea Hammond watch the Vapor 55, a UAS that weighs just under 55 pounds and carries both the LiDAR sensor and 42MP camera, as it follows its flight path around the installation.

    Uniquely qualified unmanned aircraft systems team completes data collection project

    VICKSBURG, Miss. (Feb. 14, 2020) -- As the installation asset mapping project nears completion, U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Manager Jenny Laird said she feels proud of her team. “This has been a two-year project in the making, and it’s a huge accomplishment for our group, the Environmental Laboratory and the ERDC as a whole to have created a comprehensive map for a 700-acre installation,” Laird said. “That’s a large data collection to take on as our first go-around with this type of application.”
  • Sears Point is the site of a Natural and Nature-Based Features wetland restoration project in San Pablo Bay, Sonoma County, Calif. To build up marsh elevation, Sonoma Land Trust, Ducks Unlimited and federal, state and private partners utilized round marsh mounds to buffer wind and wave energy, thereby allowing sediment to accrete in the area through natural processes.

    Landmark guidelines on natural and nature-based features is an international effort

    Nearly four years ago, a team led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and that now includes 189 scientists, engineers and resource managers from 73 worldwide organizations gathered to begin work on a set of international guidelines for utilizing Natural and Nature-Based Features. Today, the project is nearing completion with the publication of “Guidelines on the Use of Natural and Nature-Based Features for Sustainable Coastal and Fluvial Systems” expected in 2020. The guidelines will provide practitioners with the best available information concerning the conceptualization, planning, design, engineering, construction and maintenance of NNBF to support resilience and flood risk reduction for coasts, bays and estuaries, as well as river and freshwater lake systems.
  • Head shot of Dr. Scott Morton by Rhonda Schaefer.

    Morton elected AIAA Fellow

    Dr. Scott Morton, a senior computational physicist in ITL’s Computational Science and Engineering Division, has been elected as an American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Fellow. AIAA, the world’s largest technical society dedicated to the global aerospace profession, inducts only one member as Fellow for every 125 Associate Fellows each year, a practice that allows the recognition to be bestowed on only the most influential members of the field.

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