Defeating the darkness: U.S. labs look for edge as night vision technology spreads.

• Author: Magnuson, Stew
• Position: SOLDIER TECHNOLOGY

SINCE THE FIRST GULF WAR, night vision technology has allowed the U.S. military to "own the night."

But a quick search on the Internet shows that anyone can now own a piece of the night for $400. Binoculars, riflescopes and hands-free headsets allowing users to see in the dark are there for those with a credit card. Secondhand units can be bought on eBay for as little as $100.

An Israeli general was recently quoted in The Washington Post as saying Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon were equipped with "state of the art" night vision technology.

Meanwhile, at a recent forum on night vision technology, Army Col. Michael Williamson, program manager for Future Combat Systems network systems integration, showed a slickly produced video, where an elite commando unit launched a nighttime raid on a building surrounded by terrorists. The guards around the target building peered out into the darkness, not seeing the special forces operators creeping up on them.

With the proliferation of night vision technology, how realistic is the video? Williamson was asked.

"I don't have that concern about owning the night. We're also looking at countermeasures," he said at the forum, sponsored by the Institute for Defense and Government Advancement.

Col. Glen Lamkin, Army project manager for night vision and reconnaissance, when asked the same question said the technology is not unique to the U.S. military. "The best thing I can say is that we are investing in technologies that will give us an edge that other folks don't have.

"There are measures being taken, much as they have been in the past, to counter the threats we feel will be there," he added.

Neither Williamson nor Lambkin would elaborate on the countermeasure efforts.

While night vision technology--now more than 40 years old--is ubiquitous, military research labs continue the push to give U.S. war fighters nighttime optics that are several steps ahead of what can be bought at any hunting and fishing store, or duplicated by foreign militaries.

At the top of the want list is a system that fuses both "image enhancement," which relies on ambient light, and infrared capabilities.

Fusion will give soldiers and pilots a clearer picture of what is going on at night.

Infrared does not rely on ambient light, as does image enhancement, which emits the technology's characteristic green glow. Laying infrared over the image will help operators see camouflaged targets and give them better contrast, experts said.

"If you turn...