During Operation Desert Storm, the MM-1 monitored against a target list of approximately 10 selected chemical warfare agents most likely to be present, based on intelligence reports of the suspected chemical warfare agent threat. To speed the initial search, the MM-1 looks for only four ion peaks for each chemical warfare agent and attempts to match the target list of chemicals against the pattern and ratio of these peaks. However, this first alarm does not confirm the presence of a chemical warfare agent since there are many chemicals that have similar ion peaks and many combinations of chemicals that may yield ion patterns similar to those in the target list. Consequently, the MM-1 can falsely indicate the presence of dangerous chemical warfare agents. For more detailed analysis later, the complete ion spectrum can be printed on a paper tape.
Mustards can penetrate skin and a great number of materials.
These materials include wood, leather, rubber and paints. Because of their physical properties, mustards are very persistent under cold temperature conditions. These ions are sorted by their atomic weights, providing a unique signature for each chemical substance. The MM-1 graphically displays the relative intensities of selected ion patterns to the operator's screen.