Modeling Terrain Effects on Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons

Date

2024-05-02

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Society for Industrial and Systems Engineering

Abstract

Building upon previous work, this project improved an existing simulation program for the tactical employment of non-strategic nuclear weapons by improving its predictive damage equations and incorporating shielding effects of terrain. Using data from the United States Geological Survey, this research created a sub-routine within the model to determine if there is a line of sight between detonation location and a potential target, adjusting the predicted damage accordingly. We found that this addition could have a significant impact on casualty estimates. However, the increased runtime had a detrimental effect on the usability of the estimate. The improved model will provide battlefield commanders with more accurate casualty estimates during wargames and will increase mission readiness for a nuclear battlefield. Further research should focus on increasing the efficiency of the simulation.

Description

Keywords

Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons, Wargaming, Simulations, Viewshed

Citation

O’Connor, Michael, Zachary Dugger, and Alexander Withenbury. “Modeling Terrain Effects on Non-Strategic Nuclear Weapons.” Proceedings of the 2024 General Donald R. Keith Memorial Capstone Conference, May 2, 2024. https://www.ieworldconference.org/content/WP2024/Papers/GDRKMCC24_57.pdf.

DOI