Thursday, July 13, 2017 • APG News B7 CBARR Frompage B1 air monitoring during intrusive operations at the site. During the initial investigation, two items were found. The first item, it was determined, contained no chemical agent and was disposed in accordance with local policies and procedures. But when this second item was discov- ered during the investigation, said Project Manager Laura Graham, an indication from the Miniature Continuous Air Monitoring Systems, known as MINICAMS, alerted workers to the potential of a chemical-filled munition. After thorough assessment, it was determined that the munition con- tained the chemical agent HD. “We used the field investigation data along with the assessment results and decided to treat it as a “leaking” munition,” Graham said. “This determination was critical in the development of the plans and procedures required to conduct the de- struction operation safely.” Although further analysis determined that the munition was not leaking, ECBC’s CBARR team developed its operational plan as if the item was leaking to ensure additional safety measures were included. “The CBARR team of operators, engi- neers and safety professionals use all information available but sometimes is best to take the most conservative path for an operation,” Graham said. “In this case, we all felt that we would be assured of no surprises if we planned to handle the munition as if it were leaking.” U.S. ARMY PHOTO The destructionwasconducted usingthe A look at the carcass of the chemical munition after it was processed in the EDS during destruction operations at the former Savanna P2U2 EDS owned by the U.S. Army Army Depot. Chemical Materials Activity, which had overall responsibility for the operations. and the site was closed by May 25. determine whether past chemical agent included soil sample analysis performed by CBARR personnel serve as operators and Savanna is located in northern Illinois on training activities have impacted the envi- ECBC laboratories, said Project Manager maintainers for all of the EDS systems. the Iowa border. Located on the banks of ronment. Satchell Doyle Jr. It was determined that The P2U2 is one of the original EDS the Mississippi River, remediated portions The first phase of the investigation was the metal was construction materials such units, and unlike its updated versions, it of the depot have been turned into public completed in November 2016 when the as metal rebar, likely associated with the uses electric heater bands to heat the vessel. wildlands. project team used ground scanning equip- demolition of numerous buildings that This is a slower process, Graham said, and ment to identify anomalies buried in the were constructed in the area after training as a result, the operation takes two days to Chanute Air Force Base ground, initially suspected to be containers activities occurred, according to informa- process the chemical munition. once used to ship and store training tion provided by the Air Force Civil The initial site visit for the EDS team was Aproject team of U.S. Air Force and U.S. materials. Engineer Center (AFCEC). No items re- held in January 2017. CBARR’s first crew Army, including ECBC, conducted the The project team evaluated the data lated to former training activities were arrived for site setup on April 17.A second phase of an environmental investi- collected and selected 100 anomalies for found and no contamination is present, said preoperational survey took place May 9-11. gation atthe formerChanute Air ForceBase further investigation in the second phase of the AFCEC. Destruction operations occurred May 13-14, in Rantoul, Illinois, earlier this year to the project conducted in early May, which DRONE Frompage B1 the lab’s Vehicle Technology Directorate. “In an aircraft, weight is everything,” Nogar said. There are a lot of vehicles out there where designers take a quad-rotor and staple it to a fixed-wing aircraft. It may have extra propellers and actuators and it’s not very efficient. You have a lot of wasted weight.” For testing, Nogar has temporarily atta- ched a large paper half-circle to the prototype to slow it down. The final design will be less than 10 inches in length. “The tilt-rotor design that is kind of like the V-22 Osprey, where the motors tilt themselves,” Nogar said. The Osprey is a multi-mission, tilt-rotor military aircraft designed for both vertical takeoff and landing. The V-22 is more than 57 feet in length. Shrinking that capability to less than one foot has been a challenge due to the complex physics that govern the U.S. ARMY PHOTO BY DAVID MCNALLY, ARL vehicle’s movement and the associated The future hybrid UAV is less than a foot in length, but for testing, its inventor has added a lightweight paper wing to slow it down. control methods, Nogar said. With this hybrid UAV, transforming from ronment. much of his time coding. have to work as a team to achieve their hovering to horizontal flight offers speed, “If you’re going to land on something, “I waskind of surprised,but in retrospect objectives.” agility and mission flexibility. you need to know very quickly how fast it makes sense,” he said. “A robot is a That objective may be finding out what’s “Looking forward, we want to look at that’s coming up to you as you come in to computer and you have to program a over the next hill, or scouting out enemy perching or landing on something in the land,” he said. “We will need to enable the computer. Programing is a basic tool of the forces. environment,” Nogar said. “That means we UAV to sense and perceive its environment roboticist.” “We cannot put a lot of sensors on this have to be able to sense the environment.” using visual techniques such as machine The next step is continuing to experi- vehicle,” Nogar said. “It’s basically what we Imagine a future drone that knows how learning.” ment, refine and experiment more. can do with just one camera. It takes a lot to land itself to conserve power while Building robots involves mastering de- “These vehicleswill better integrate with more work to do the control and study the gathering situational awareness. The UAV sign concepts, repair of the hardware Soldiers,” he said. “Soldiers are going to dynamics of this vehicle, but it we will will need to be able to detect walls, avoid during testing and a lot of software have to be able to interact with these definitely benefit from the effort once it’s obstacles and rapidly understand its envi- programming. Nogar said he has spent vehicles all the time and they’re going to finished.” DID YOU KNOW?

The was dedicated in the Hollywood Hills, , , July 13, 1923.

The famous landmark and cultural icon originally read “Hollywoodland,” but the four last letters were dropped after renovations in 1949. The sign, situated on Mount Lee, in the Hollywood Hills area of the , overlooks Hollywood, Los Angeles. The sign, with white, capital letters spelling out “HOLLYWOOD” standing 45-feet tall, is 350 feet long. The sign was created as an advertisement for local real estate development, but its unexpected popularity and recognition prompted promoters to leave it in place. It has undergone restorations including security system installations to protect it against vandalism. It is protected and promoted by The Trust for Public Land, a nonprofit organization and its site and surrounding land are part of . The sign makes frequent appearances in popular culture, particularly in establishing shots for films and television programs set in or around Hollywood. Signs of similar style, but spelling different words, are frequently seen as parodies. The original purpose of the sign was to advertise the name of a new segregated housing development in the hills above the Hollywood district. Real COURTESY PHOTO estate developers dubbed it “Hollywoodland” and advertised it as a “superb wood and sheet metal structure continued to deteriorate. environment without excessive cost on the Hollywood side of the hills.” In 1978, a restoration campaign led by Hugh Hefner raised $250,000 from nine Thomas Goff, owner of the Crescent Sign Company designed the sign. Each donors – who included singer, Andy Williams and actor Gene Autry - to letter stood 30 feet tall and 50 feet wide. Cost of the project, which included transform the sign into a permanent structure made of steel and supported by thousands of blinking lights as well as a searchlight, cost $21,000; about steel columns on a concrete foundation $295,189 in 2016. The new letters were 45 feet tall and ranged from 31 to 39 feet wide. The The rise of American cinema in Los Angeles during the Golden Age of revamped sign was unveiled Nov. 11, 1978, during a live CBS television special Hollywood brought the sign international recognition of an official symbol and it commemorating the 75th anniversary of Hollywood’s incorporation as a city. was left in place. During a refurbishment in 2005 the letters were repainted white. Over the course of more than half a century, the sign, designed to stand for only 18 months, sustained extensive damage and deterioration. In 1949, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce contracted the City of Los Sources: https://hollywoodsign.org/; Angeles Parks Department to repair and rebuild the sign and to remove “land” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Sign; leaving “Hollywood” to reflect the district, not the housing development. The http://www.discoverlosangeles.com/blog/best-views-hollywood-sign