USMA Digital Commons (United States Military Academy, West Point)
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Defending NATO in the High North
No full textThe alliance’s expansion to include two large Baltic Seapowers changes the military map. It will give NATO operational depth and logistic routes that it previously lacked. When Sweden and Finland were non-aligned, the main route for NATO reinforcements heading to Finnmark, the northernmost part of Norway, had to follow the single coastal road, the E6, along the Norwegian shoreland. Any Russian stand-off weaponry, or special forces, could, with limited effort, strike the E6 route and cut off Northern Norway, leaving it open to a rapid Russian advance. This lack of operational depth and NATO’s reliance on a single route to reinforce the High North has long offered an opportunity for a Russian fait accompli attack early in any conflict with NATO. A sustained fight to defend an area needs a land-based supply route to maintain the flow of equipment, logistics, and reinforcements, as these represent thousands of tons to be hauled into the operational area. Airborne or air-transported troops can only sustain a fight over a limited time. The recent battle for Hostomel Airport outside of Kyiv, where Russian airborne troops were beaten by Ukrainian ad hoc formations, shows the short duration airborne forces can sustain a fight without land-based reinforcements and a logistic tail
An Artificial Intelligence-Enabled Framework for Optimizing the Dynamic Cyber Vulnerability Management Process
No full textCyber vulnerability management is a critical function performed by a cybersecurity operations center (CSOC) that helps protect organizations against cyber-attacks on their computer and network systems. Adversaries hold an asymmetric advantage over the CSOC, as the number of deficiencies in these systems is increasing at a significantly higher rate compared to the rate at which the security teams are expanding to mitigate them in a resource-constrained CSOC environment. The current approaches employed at the CSOCs and recently published in the literature are deterministic and one-time decision-making methods, which do not consider future uncertainties when prioritizing and selecting vulnerabilities for mitigation. In addition, these approaches are constrained by the sub-optimal distribution of resources, providing no flexibility to the security team to adjust their response to fluctuations in vulnerability arrivals and thereby, weakening their security posture. We propose a novel artificial intelligence-enabled framework, Deep VULMAN, which consists of a deep reinforcement learning agent and an integer programming method to fill this gap in the cyber vulnerability management process. Our sequential decision-making framework, first, determines the near-optimal amount of resources to be allocated for mitigation under uncertainty, given an observed state of the system, and then determines the optimal set of prioritized vulnerability instances selected for mitigation. Our proposed framework outperforms the current methods in prioritizing the selection of important organization-specific vulnerabilities on real-world vulnerability data observed over a one-year period
Application of Bayesian Calibration to Improve Multiple Ballistic Impact Modeling
No full textAnalytical impact models for steel penetration, such as the Alekseevskii-Tate and Lambert-Zukas models, are a combination of physics principles and empirically derived constants fit by trial data to represent a specific experimental condition. These models are very useful to predict material performance under single impact conditions of a non-deforming or hydrodynamic projectile given suitable experimental test data but were not developed to account for the effects associated with repeated impact loading. The uncertainty in multiple impact events comes from variability in the impact location, effected area after impact, inertia induced fracture, material response to heating, and many other factors. Because of the meaningful uncertainty in multiple impact modeling, it is useful to apply Bayesian updating to formally combine the predictive capacity of an impact model with limited available test data to improve the model’s accuracy for a specific application and better quantify the uncertainty in the estimates. In this report, existing experimental data for impacts of 0.223 caliber ammunition against AR500 steel panels with 2-inch ballistic rubber is used for Bayesian updating. The existing data from the U.S. Army Aberdeen Test Center was gathered by shooting a steel plate while cycling through sixteen independent locations until one location is perforated. The total number of shots delivered to the plate was recorded as the number of shots to failure. Because sixteen independent plate locations were fired on, however, there is useful data from both locations where failure was not reached and those that were perforated. After creating the prior distribution of plate failure for a range of total impacts test data from all 48 locations is incorporated using Bayes’ Theorem to create a posterior distribution which represents an updated model for plate failure. The posterior density of plate failure strength — measured in number of shots at the failure location — can then be used as one parameter in a model to determine the safe allowable total number of impacts on the target of interest. This future model must also consider parameters such as the distribution of shots across the plate and the area affected by each impact while making assumptions about the practical variability in impact velocity and obliquity. A model of this type will inform decision makers to develop safe inspection criteria and utilize a safe number of impacts in training for current and future ammunition
Combining Hard and Soft Power to Gain Access: Lessons from NATO’s Success
Get PDFThe emerging great power rivalry is causing grave concern amongst policymakers, who fear China’s growing military and economic expansion at the expense of the US and its allies. By focusing narrowly on material sources of power, however, these worries largely ignore the emerging role of soft power or what E.H. Carr labelled “power over opinion” for influence over partners, which sometimes result in tangible security benefits such as operational access, basing, and overflight rights. To change perceptions of the benefits of cooperation, major powers may leverage the information tool of statecraft to alter the preferences of domestic actors, such as politicians, military officers, or the general public. In order to better understand the logics by which major powers gain access, this paper explores a case of NATO’s successful use of soft power for material benefit: the attainment of overflight privileges in Eastern Europe for the air campaign against Serbia in 1999. By understanding NATO’s success, the alliance can better leverage the effective combination of economic and soft power to compete in today’s challenging international system
Evaluating the Relationship between Data Resolution and the Accuracy of Identified Helicopter Landing Zones (HLZs)
No full textHelicopters provide critical advantages in military operations because of their ability to land at small and unimproved sites. While the military uses models to identify helicopter landing zones (HLZs), little research has been conducted on their accuracy. This study evaluated the performance of an HLZ detection model derived from existing selection criteria that incorporated elevation and land cover data with spatial resolutions ranging from 1 m to 30 m. Multiple HLZs were selected as study sites at three geographically varied locations. The HLZ boundaries identified using the derived model were then compared to surveyed reference boundaries to assess their accuracy. This study found that as the spatial resolution of the data became coarser, accuracy decreased across all sites. However, there were some instances where noticeable increases in error were observed at certain resolutions for some sites. The resolution at which this occurred was always related to the size of features either bounding or located within the landing area. Thus, this study found that the most important consideration when determining ideal resolution for HLZ detection is the geography of the study area. While additional research is needed, this study presents initial findings and a framework upon which future assessments can build
A Radio-Over-Fiber System for Wireless Packet Radio Network Backhaul
No full textA radio-over-fiber (RoF) link design is presented for remote use of antenna by radio transceiver in a digital packet radio network operating in the very high frequency (VHF) band. The base station and antenna were geographically separated by approximately 7.5 km and connected by the RoF system. A commercial RoF module was used to convert a digital VHF radio signal into an optical signal for backhaul over a patched fiber network. The optical signal was then received at a radio module that converted the signal back to the electrical domain and subsequently coupled it into a radio receiver for demodulation. An uplink and downlink RoF channel were coupled to common transmission lines with radio and antenna using radio frequency circulators. The link introduced 20 dB of gain, but also incurs a 10 dB increase in the noise floor relative to received signals likely due to the circulator. Nonetheless, the receiver was successful at monitoring packets from mobile users in the coverage area. Additionally, the packet traffic was able to be hosted on a local area network – enabling global access by way of virtual private network
A Data-Driven Approach for Estimating Postural Control Using an Inertial Measurement Unit
No full textIn this paper, we propose a probabilistic multi-Gaussian parameter estimation technique which addresses the complex relationship between acceleration and ground force signals used to derive a human’s static center of pressure. The intent of this work is to develop an accurate accelerometer-based method for determining postural control and neuromuscular status which is more portable and cost-effective than force plate-based techniques. Acceleration data was collected using an inertial measurement unit while ground reaction forces were simultaneously measured using a force plate. Various metrics were calculated from both sensors and probabilistic data models were built to characterize the relationships between the two sensors. These models were used to predict force-based postural control metrics corresponding to observed acceleration metrics. Data collected from one participant was used as a training set to which the test data of two individuals were then applied. We conclude that converted acceleration-based metrics on average can accurately predict all the corresponding force-based metrics we studied here. Furthermore, the proposed multi-Gaussian parameter estimation approach outperforms a more basic linear transformation technique for 75% of the metrics studied, as evidenced by an increase in correlation coefficients between true and estimated force plate metrics
The Design and Fabrication of a Load-Attenuating Launcher for Multiple Air-Launched UAS
No full textCurrent air-launched unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are often limited by the quantity that can be carried and their interactions with the host aircraft. This study proposes a device which increases the number of UAS carried on an aircraft while reducing the loads imparted on the airframe and improving other launch characteristics. After defining the customer requirements and constraints of the problem, an iterative design process was used to reach a final prototype. The design incorporates elastomeric springs to reduce the impulsive loads on the host aircraft. Further analysis led to the selection of 6061-T6 aluminum as the primary material in the device. We developed an instrumentation package consisting of strain gauges and inertial measurement units and a testing apparatus was designed. After testing, the team found that the mount reduced the force on the airframe by 34.3%, which was below the initial goal. Furthermore, as input force increased, the force reduction increased. Therefore, the design will meet the force reduction requirement at the expected launch loads. The processes and selected design used here will lead into follow-on testing with the goal of producing an airworthy design that satisfies the demands of the problem
Targeting a Satellite: Contrasting Considerations between the Jus ad Bellum and the Jus in Bello
No full textWith the development and greater availability of counter-space capabilities, satellites are becoming a prime target of military threats. However, the legal assessment for the targeting of a satellite requires careful analysis because of its impacts on terrestrial activities and the potential to affect the rights and interests of third parties when their payloads are carried by the targeted satellite. With these two unique characteristics in mind, this article unravels the complexity of international legal regimes applicable to military operations conducted against a satellite by contrasting threshold legal considerations necessary for the identification and application of relevant legal requirements under the law governing the use of force (jus ad bellum) and those under the law governing the conduct of hostilities in situations of armed conflict (jus in bello). It finds that while its terrestrial impact is arguably relevant under the jus ad bellum and more so under the jus in bello to the legal characterization of satellite targeting and the identification of an injured or belligerent State, there is no need to afford special protection to the rights and interests of a third State that may be affected as a result of the operation
Velocity and Heat Transfer Studies of an Impinging Jet Using Magnetic Resonance Velocimetry and Infrared Thermometry
No full textHeat transfer performance of a single cylindrical orthogonal jet impinging on a flat plate was obtained through steady-state infrared (IR) thermometry. One Reynolds (Re) number of 23,000 based on pipe exit diameter was considered. The distance of the jet exit plane from the shim varied from two to ten times the impingement jet diameter in increments of two diameters. The observed temperature and constant heat flux boundary condition allowed for the calculation of a Nusselt (Nu) number distribution to estimate the heat transfer performance of the impingement jet. At the smallest separation distance of two diameters, the relative maximum heat transfer performance is found at the stagnation point followed by a second peak occurring at a radial distance of approximately two diameters from the stagnation point. Compared to all jet exit separation distances studied, the distance of six diameters exhibited the greatest magnitude Nusselt number at the stagnation point. A paired fluids experiment using Magnetic Resonance Velocimetry (MRV) techniques collected hydrodynamic data of a single impinging jet at a matching Re number of 23,000 and jet exit plane distances. This work provides relevant data for correlation of impingement cooling design through unique analysis of the fluid mechanics and heat transfer characteristics of a single impinging jet. Measurement uncertainty was assessed to range from +/−1% to +/−10% for Nusselt number and +/−7% for velocity