Site Description

The New Boston Air Force Station (NBAFS) is a 2,826-acre site located within the towns of New Boston, Amherst, and Mont Vernon, New Hampshire. The land immediately surrounding NBAFS is heavily wooded, rural, and consists primarily of low-density residential areas.

The ESTCP study is being conducted on a subset of the MU705, the Shooting Fields, which is a 115-acre area located in the northwestern portion of NBAFS, directly southeast of Joe English Hill. The boundaries of MU705 were defined based largely on the 1995 UXO clearance boundary data obtained from NBAFS GIS. MU705 is a moderately sloped area with portions heavily forested with dense brush. Data were collected within approximately 10 acres of open field and portions of the woods.

Suspected Munitions Present at the Demonstration Site

20-mm projectiles

2.25-inch and 5-inch practice rockets

5-inch high explosive (HE) rockets

3-lb, 4.5-lb, 100-lb, 500-lb, and 1,000-lb practice bombs

100-lb general purpose HE bombs

325-lb and 350-lb HE depth bombs

M69 incendiary bombs

M46 photoflash bombs

Demonstration Summary

Two advanced EMI systems were used to collect data onsite. Demonstrators collected Time-domain Electromagnetic Towed Array Detection System (TEMTADS) 2x2 data in the open area in dynamic and cued survey mode. Data were collected with the Man Portable Vector (MPV) in dynamic survey mode to detect anomalies in the open field, followed by cued interrogation of the anomalies detected. The MPV was also used in dynamic survey mode to detect anomalies in portions of the wooded area, followed by cued interrogation of the anomalies detected.

There are two facets to the data analysis for this demonstration. The demonstrators preprocessed their detection survey data and, in conjunction with the Program Office, identified anomalies. The ESTCP data collection demonstrators then collected cued data and processed it through background subtraction and geolocation. The data analysis demonstrators will employ physics-based models to extract target parameters and then classification algorithms to produce a ranked anomaly list.

The site was seeded with inert munitions, and all anomalies were dug to confirm technology performance. Demonstrators will be scored based on their ability to eliminate nonhazardous items while retaining all detected munitions. Results of the data analysis from this demonstration will be posted as they become available.

Demonstration Projects

Continued Discrimination Demonstration Using Advanced EMI Models at Live UXO Sites: Data Quality Assessment and Residual Risk Mitigation in Real TimeLead Organization: Dartmouth College/White River Technologies

Dipole Discrimination Techniques Applied to Live SitesLead Organization: Black Tusk Geophysics, Inc.

UXO Characterization in Challenging Survey Environments Using the MPVLead Organization: Black Tusk Geophysics, Inc.

Technical Report: Empirical Evaluation of Advanced Electromagnetic Induction Systems – Factors Affecting Classification Effectiveness in Challenging Geologic EnvironmentsLead Organization: CH2M HILL