Detection of Explosives and Landmines : Methods and Field Experience

This ARW is the third NATO-sponsored workshop on Explosives Detection and Humanitarian Demining. The previous events were • Detection and Destruction of Anti-Personnel Landmines Moscow, 1997 • Explosives Detection and Decontamination of the Environment Prague, 1997. Over the last decade applied research in Humanitarian Demining has made progress to some extend, but according to the tremendous tasks of Demining and the lack of scientific methods for practical detection of explosive devices, research activities are still of the same importance than ever before. Concerning countermeasures against terrorism the detection of explosives is one of the keyfactors, but the practical applications are not sufficient solved. An international exchange of research results are therefore urgent, to find out the most promising measures for application. The coincidence of this ARW and the terrible disaster of New York and Washington may demonstrate the importance of this task. In consequence the explosive device detection technologies can make a major contribution to collective, family and individual security. In developed countries, these technologies provide a strong deterrent and preventative measure against terrorist threats. In less developed regions, they can improve individual, institutional and state security, lessening the insecurity that motivates many terrorists acts. The elimination of landmine threats is just one of many ways of achieving this. However our attempts to meet the extremely difficult technical challenges posed by landmine and UXO contamination are inevitably leading us to new technological approaches.