Science, technology and America's military in the 21st century

PNNL capabilities are supporting the armed forces in a time of change. The U.S. Department of Defense contends that it is America's oldest, largest, busiest and most successful company. With roots that reach back to the nation's founding days, a workforce of more than two million people (civilian and active duty), responsibilities that span the globe and an impressive legacy of protecting the country, DoD is indeed one of the nation's premier institutions.

And while some might add "resistant to change" to the department's list of attributes, actually change--or "transformation" as the defense community terms it, is front and center these days at DoD.

In a speech last year at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C., Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, keying on the transformation theme, recounted some of the details of the 2001 battle of Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan. Rumsfeld told the story of how U.S. Special Forces personnel, on horseback, signaled enemy targets to the coalition aircraft flying above. Then, joined by Afghan fighters, the Americans rode their horses into battle just as precision-guided bombs rained down on Taliban and al-Qaida positions.

The point of his remarks, Rumsfeld emphasized, was not that America should start stockpiling saddles, nor that the battle was a model for future warfare. "Coalition forces took existing military capabilities--from the most advanced (laser-guided weapons), to the antique (40-year-old B-52 planes updated with modern electronics) to the most rudimentary (a man on a horse with a weapon)--and used them in unprecedented ways, with devastating effect on enemy positions."

Rumsfeld added that preparing for the future will require the military to adopt very innovative approaches, to think differently and creatively.

The challenges ahead

Many experts agree that transformation of the U.S. military from a heavy, "grind it out" fighting corps to a more rapid and tactical force is necessary. They also agree that the "symmetrical" warfare that most people think of--two enemies squaring off on a battlefield-- is not the scenario of the future.

"America's military is more or less configured for Cold War threats.

The threats we face today are very diverse, from terrorists to rogue nations. We have to be able to rapidly move a major force to a distant place and respond," said Terry Doherty, director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Department of Defense Programs. U.S. war efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq, he noted, have provided glimpses of how a transformed military would operate--quickly and lethally.

Mario Bagaglio, deputy director of DoD Programs at PNNL, contends that the U.S. military force "is the best in the world, and that has been proven over and over." But changes around the globe, he continued, "dictate that we be able to go anywhere at anytime and be able to fight when we get there, without an extensive buildup of forces over months."

Doherty, Bagaglio and their PNNL colleagues are well acquainted with the military's transformation initiatives, which were launched in the late 1990s and continue to gather momentum. In fact, PNNL researchers are working in many different areas to supply breakthrough technologies that will help march the military from its Cold War configuration--and costly infrastructure--to a leaner, more affordable and effective defense system.

The desired capabilities will require innovation, which good research and development can deliver. "When you look at the next three to five years, I believe there are some fruitful opportunities across the spectrum of basic and applied research and development," Doherty said. "We're seeing changes in military philosophy, prompted partly by the 9/11 tragedy and Iraq. Ideas that were being talked disciplines, ranging from fundamental science inquiries to development of energy efficiency strategies that will help military bases spend less money for electricity and other power sources.

"At PNNL, we don't build planes and ships, but we support the military in many ways. Our capabilities are focused in areas such as advanced sensors and electronics for diagnostic and prognostic devices, lightweight power systems and new materials, which contribute to current and future armed forces needs," Bagaglio said.

And according to Russel Rhoads, a senior logistics program manager at PNNL, "The largest single area we are impacting is U.S. Army logistics, where we are providing about several years ago are beginning to become reality. Science and technology have a role to play."

PNNL: long-standing support and a focus on the future

PNNL has played an integral role in national defense for many decades. The Laboratory's involvement stretches back to its genesis in the 1940s as the research arm of the Hanford Site. Over time, PNNL's capabilities and contributions have evolved and diversified. Now, with science and technology as key ingredients in the recipe for military transformation, Bagaglio believes PNNL's legacy of defense-related research will serve as a vital resource for a new generation of military needs and challenges. The Laboratory's capabilities span the scientific and technical new approaches to policy, processes and technology that improve the coordination of Army activities. We played a major role in development of the Army's new logistics system." PNNL currently has staff co-located with the Army's Logistics Transformation Agency at Fort Belvoir, Va. The group of PNNL experts advises the Army on a wide range of logistics issues.

PNNL also is working with the Army at Fort Lewis, Wash., to create "Stryker Brigade" combat teams. Each team is designed for rapid deployment and is built around the "network-centric" approach, which depends on acquisition of intelligence and related information to rapidly pinpoint enemy positions and take action before the enemy has time to think. The project also is deploying a new set of interim fighting vehicles that are lighter than tanks, and thus easier to transport from one location to another.

"PNNL has a team of staff helping Fort Lewis to plan and execute how they put the brigades together and how to deal with supportability issues (supply lines, etc.), which is key to deployment. Our staff members also are watching how this brigade is coming together and are identifying issues and impacts," Rhoads noted. "We are in a unique position. We are gaining insights to the technology issues that are going to occur between assembling this highly deployable force and the end-state future combat system."

PNNL is making contributions to the military in a number of other areas, including:

Fundamental science--The state-of-the-art William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, located at PNNL, and PNNL's strengths in areas such as chemistry and biology will continue to produce key scientific knowledge that can be applied to the development of new chemical and biological detection technologies.

Environmental technology--PNNL will continue to help solve emerging environmental issues, such as working with the Army to ensure minimal impacts to the environment from the operations and training activities carried out at various installations and demilitarization of other sites.

Energy--PNNL is applying its capabilities in fuel cells, materials and other disciplines to provide small power sources for soldiers and deliver energy efficiency applications that reduce energy consumption at military installations. PNNL's Decision Support for Operations and Maintenance™, an intelligent diagnostic software program that increases productivity and helps ensure that equipment is running efficiently, is being used at Marine Corps installations where it is significantly reducing energy usage and saving taxpayer dollars.

Information technology--PNNL's visualization technologies, which sort through large amounts of data (text, images, video, sound) to find common themes and relationships, currently are being used by the military, particularly for intelligence purposes. Similar to homeland security, making good use of a diverse array of information is critical for identifying potential threats, now and in the future.

"PNNL's strengths in DOE mission areas connect well to the nation's defense challenges. Many of the researchers at PNNL who are looking at these challenges are scientists and engineers who themselves were in the military in the past," Doherty said. "For them, and all of us, it's a personal priority to develop the next generation science that will protect our homeland and win our battles around the globe."