The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory is expanding its capability in extreme cold weather research with its new Climatic Cold Chamber Building. The facility will be used for military research, development, test, and evaluation applications with a focus on the emerging needs of the warfighter. Plus, it will support the development of science and technology capabilities relevant to the 21st century, with a focus on new fields of research.

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s (ERDC) Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory’s (CRREL) new climatic cold chamber, located in Hanover, New Hampshire. The chamber is able to maintain a temperature of minus 54 degrees Celsius and can hold a running vehicle. This is the newest piece of technology for ERDC, and this one-of-a-kind-facility will be a great benefit to testing new equipment designed for the warfighter in extreme cold environments.

Are you heading to the beach this summer? Don’t forget some spare change and your smartphone, because we need you to SandSnap. So what is it? SandSnap is a collaborative project to engage citizen scientists, build a database of beach sand grain size, and educate the next generation about coastal processes. Check out this video on how easy it is to SandSnap at your favorite beach. Video Editor: Me'Kiyla Brown

The Virtual Autonomous Navigation Environment (VANE) is a suite of modeling and simulation tools developed by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC). Users can leverage VANE to analyze environmental effects on an autonomous vehicle system, from sensors and algorithms to tire-soil interactions and the vehicle's mechanical performance. VANE was created from ERDC's near-surface phenomenology and sensor research that supported IED detection in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and its rich expertise in ground vehicle mobility research dating back to World War II. Unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) must undergo rigorous testing to ensure their autonomy is reliable under challenging conditions. VANE's physics-based simulations are particularly valuable in UGV development. Using VANE, DoD researchers can explore how autonomous systems will behave in various operationally relevant environmental conditions that are often difficult to replicate with physical testing. This virtual testing capability is valuable across the complete robotic life cycle by enabling both early stage autonomy prototyping and final performance evaluation.

ERDC employees and stakeholders came together to celebrate the world's largest heavy vehicle simulator, The HVS Titan. This unique equipment can test roadways, airstrips, and even railways 23 hours a day to simulate traffic over a large period of time.

Whether you’re a hobbyist at home or a researcher at CRREL, not having that one special piece to finish a project and that isn’t readily available is universal. CRREL researchers need only ask Chris Donnelly, a CRREL engineering technician and machine shop manager, to make them the part they require.

Alan Katzenmeyer from the U.S. Army Engineer Research...

Reggie Hammond from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and...

Jeb Tingle from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and...

As missions evolve for the U.S. military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair or ADR. The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment, and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, ADR will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter. Their efforts culminated in a multi-year joint capability technology demonstration, or JCTD, and military utility assessment at McEntire Air National Guard Base, South Carolina.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has produced a new enterprise research and development (R&D) strategy focused on discovering, developing and delivering innovative solutions for our nation’s most complex engineering challenges. The USACE R&D Strategy focuses on 10 priorities and is a strategic collaborative effort that uses innovative solutions to save time, money and effort in addressing generational problems. The strategy charges USACE divisions, districts and centers to facilitate a whole-of-government approach to tomorrow’s problems. To ensure successful strategy execution, USACE will examine future research needs, focus on collaborative R&D application, enhance R&D community engagement and serve as a key partner in the whole-of-government effort for solutions. To view and download the USACE R&D Strategy, visit https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16021coll11/id/5457.

Dr. Robyn Barbato from the U.S. Army Engineer Research...

As missions evolve for the U.S. Military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair (ADR). The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, the military’s ADR capability will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter.

As missions evolve for the U.S. Military, so have the requirements for Airfield Damage Repair (ADR). The Department of Defense’s existing ADR capability requires significant manpower, equipment and pre-positioned material at key bases. But under its new adaptive basing concept of operations, the military’s ADR capability will need to be lighter and more agile. Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Geotechnical and Structures Laboratory collaborated with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC) and the Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center (NAVFAC EXWC) to develop an Expedient and Expeditionary Airfield Damage Repair (E-ADR) solution to deliver just enough, just in time solutions for the Warfighter.

Army acquisition of mobility systems such as wheeled and tracked vehicles can be a lengthy process often driven by changing requirements and budgets. Over the last several decades of ERDC’s mobility research, we have played a critical part in the entire acquisition process using mobility modeling and simulation tools. These tools have helped the Army define requirements and test vehicle designs against those requirements in many different operational environments. For acquisition stakeholders, this could lead to accelerated decision making and cost savings in the absence of physical testing.

Army acquisition of mobility systems such as wheeled and tracked vehicles can be a lengthy process often driven by changing requirements and budgets. Over the last several decades of ERDC’s mobility research, we have played a critical part in the entire acquisition process using mobility modeling and simulation tools. These tools have helped the Army define requirements and test vehicle designs against those requirements in many different operational environments. For acquisition stakeholders, this could lead to accelerated decision making and cost savings in the absence of physical testing.

Throughout history, forces have attempted to turn, fix, block, disrupt and deter others through ever-evolving scientific and technological solutions. However, current Terrain Shaping Obstacles are fixed and limited to the land domain. ERDC is working to help develop Terrain Shaping Obstacles that are mobile, adaptive and intelligent, remotely operated and capable of near-, mid- and far-term delivery in partnership with all-service air, space, land and sea assets. In the future, terrain shaping options will be controllable and reversible, embracing emergent scientific discoveries to manipulate the very nature of the multi-domain battlefield.

Dr. Brian Eick and Dr. Matt Smith from the U.S. Army...

Dr. Fleming, ERDC Deputy Chief, Invites Public to ERDC Under the Lights this weekend.