Field Experiments With the Tensor Magnetic Gradiometer System For UXO Surveys: a Case History

Summary: In March, 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted proof-of-principle tests of the tensor magnetic gradiometer system (TMGS) at the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program’s (SERDP) Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) Standardized Test Site at the Yuma Proving Ground (YPG), Arizona. The objective of these tests was to assess the potential of this system for UXO applications and to help us formulate design parameters for an improved tensor magnetic gradiometer system designed specifically for UXO. Although the current TMGS was not designed with UXO applications in mind, it detected the majority of the buried targets in the Calibration Area at YPG. Its performance rivaled that of the cesium vapor companion system, and it showed true tensor gradiometric performance over a selected target.