Skip to main content (Press Enter).
 News
    
        Photos

    Week in Photos

    Air Force TV

    Commentaries

    Features

    Art

    About Us
    
        Air Force Senior Leaders
    
        SECAF

    CSAF

    CMSAF

    Biographies

    Fact Sheets

    SECAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library
    
        CSAF Leadership Library 2022

    CSAF Leadership Library 2021

    CSAF Reading List Pre-2020 Archive
    
        2018 CSAF Reading List

    2017 CSAF Reading List

    2016 CSAF Reading List

    CSAF Leadership Library 2023

    CMSAF Leadership Library

    50 Years of the CMSAF

    Adjunct Professors

    Air Force Strategic Documents

    Arctic Strategy

    Empowered Airmen

    State Licensure Portability

    Careers

    AF Federal Advisory Committees

    AF 75th Anniversary

    Policy Updates

    AF Content Management

    Contact Us

    AF Sites
    
        Site RegistrationU.S. Air Force LogoAir Force

        Policy UpdatesNewsroomReoptimizationBIOGRAPHIESAF Senior Leaders      U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Derrick C. Johnson, a field test technician assigned to the Systems Development Directorate at the Air Force Technical Applications Center, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, lifts the fabric from a small geodesic dome he developed to collect hydroacoustic data. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matthew S. Jurgens)Using dynamite and TNT to enhance nuclear mission
                        
                        
                        Staff Sgt. Derrick Johnson, a field test technician assigned to the Systems Development Directorate at the Air Force Technical Applications Center, Patrick Air Force Base, Fla., lifts the fabric from a small geodesic dome he developed to collect hydroacoustic data. (U.S. Air Force photo by Matthew S. Jurgens)
                
                Photo Details /
                        Download Hi-Res

Using dynamite and TNT to enhance nuclear missionPublished April 11, 2019
                    
                    By Susan A. Romano
                    
                    
                    AFTAC Public Affairs
            **CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. (AFNS) --**Ten sticks of medium-grade dynamite, 60 pounds of C4 plastic explosive, two-and-a-half pounds of Semtex and six canisters of TNT made for an explosive day for members of the Air Force Technical Applications Center.
With the assistance and expertise of explosive ordnance disposal Airmen from the 45th Civil Engineer Squadron, AFTAC’s Systems Development Directorate personnel tested a new system to determine if their creative ingenuity could be operationally deployed in the field.
AFTAC, the Department of Defense’s sole nuclear treaty monitoring center, is responsible for operating and maintaining a global network of sensors to detect nuclear explosions around the world. One of the ways it executes that mission is through the use of infrasound equipment.
Staff Sgt. Derrick C. Johnson, a field test technician, wanted to simplify the way AFTAC collects infrasound data, so he set out to field test a concept he drafted based on his knowledge in the field.
“After attending an infrasound course at ENSCO, I learned about the dome idea from the course instructor, Dr. Roger Waxler,” said Johnson. “He mentioned during the course that the company used Papasan chairs covered in a patented material called Sunbrella. It’s a high-performance fabric that’s commonly used in outdoor furniture, awnings and marine upholstery.”
Johnson built a small geodesic dome using a 3D printer with the help of Staff Sgt. Josh Van Horne, an AFTAC Innovations Systems technician. The duo printed hexagons and pentagons and using wood dowels, they glued all the pieces together.
“The fabric cover was made up of six equal sized panels, but I had to come up with a way to mesh them all together,” Johnson continued. “My mom has sewn things together for as long as I can remember, so asked her if I could borrow her sewing machine. Stunned and amused all at once, she brought her machine to my house and sewed the first dome cover together to show me how it’s done. When it was my turn, I managed to break about five needles, but I got that second one put together!”
Once the covers were completed, Johnson was ready to test his invention. But in order to do so, he needed a way to measure sound waves that would register on the equipment. That’s when happenstance entered into play.
“I was attending Airman Leadership School here at Patrick Air Force Base, and Staff Sgt. Evan Weier was one of my classmates,” Johnson said. “Through our conversations, I learned he was an EOD technician, so I told him about the project I was working on, and how we had been using recent rocket launches to test the equipment. Then we came up with the idea of using explosives at the EOD range at the Cape to measure the sound waves emanating from the detonations.”
Weier thought it would be a great win-win situation for both organizations.
“We are required to stay proficient and train around explosives to remain current in our career fields,” Weier said. “One of the ways we do that is through monthly live detonations at our range. So, when Derrick told me about his project, I figured we could kill two birds with one stone, so to speak, and help each other out with our respective missions.”
The team from AFTAC and the team from EOD met at the Cape on a brilliant, cloudless day for a series of detonations using different weights of explosives in order for the infrasound equipment to capture varying degrees of sound waves given off by the blasts.
“From a data analysis perspective, the test was valuable as it provided information that will be beneficial to AFTAC mission planning,” said Maj. Jason Heller, special projects division chief. “We have already discussed some of the implications from the test, and we’re planning a follow-on test to corroborate the data.”
AFTAC has consistently been on the cutting edge of innovation and non-traditional problem solving, and leadership within the center encourages the workforce to think out of the proverbial box.
“This is a textbook example of innovation at its finest,” said Col. Richard Mendez, deputy director of the Systems Development Directorate at the treaty monitoring center. “Sergeant Johnson and his crew created a rapid prototype for $500, which reduces the current kit size by 80 percent and mimics the performance of the current system that traditionally costs upwards of $5,000. I’d say that’s a win for the Air Force.”Air Force 



innovation 



mission 



nuclear 



Air Combat Command 



AF 



AFTAC 



cape canaveral air force station 



Air Force Technical Applications Center 



45th Civil Engineer Squadron 



dynamite 



TNT 



ACC Featured News
        Senior Leader Priorities
                DAF leaders talk budget, reoptimizing the force
                    
                    DAF leaders speak at National Character and Leadership Symposium
                    
                    DAF members recognized during BEYA STEM awards
                    
                    DAF senior enlisted advisors discuss Airmen, Guardians in the fight
                    
                    SecAF Kendall AFA Warfare Symposium Q&A: Reoptimizing for Great Power CompetitionInnovation
                AFWERX director discusses role of tech startups, quick innovation in Great Power Competition
                    
                    DAF delivers lethality at the speed of data during Project Convergence Capstone 4
                    
                    DAF welcomes industry partners to HQ development program
                    
                    DAF announces Spark Tank 2024 finalists
                    
                    Chief Digital, Artificial Intelligence Office to host hackathon in HawaiiMAJCOM News
                Safety enterprise announces new mission, vision, goals in 2024 strategic plan
                    
                    Air Combat Command welcomes new commander
                    
                    USAFE-AFAFRICA commander discusses Integrated Air, Missile Defense during Munich Security Conference
                    
                    Flosi to AFMC family: Embrace change, make every day count
                    
                    AMC rises to increasing global tension
 Quick Links
AccessibilityContact UsEqual OpportunityFOIA | Privacy | Section 508Information QualityInspector GeneralJAG Court-Martial DocketLink DisclaimerNo FEAR ActOpen GovernmentOSI Tip LinePlain LanguageQuestionsResilienceRSSSite MapVeterans Crisis LineCareers
Join the Air ForceAir Force BenefitsAir Force CareersAir Force ReserveAir National GuardCivilian ServiceConnect
            Get Social with Us
            
            Official United States Air Force Website
    Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil