The greatest technical challenge for UXO on land is the detection and classification of buried or sub-surface UXO. SERDP and ESTCP investments focused on overcoming this challenge, an achievement that enabled DoD to conduct a more effective and efficient munitions response program.

The traditional process to identify and remove sub-surface UXO involves the following steps:

• a survey of the site using appropriate geophysical sensors,
• analysis of the sensor data to identify anomalous responses above background,
• construction of a “dig list” based on the analyses, and
• an excavation of locations identified on the “dig list” and removal of all metallic objects.

The primary sensors used for these geophysical surveys are total-field magnetometers and electromagnetic induction sensors. These devices are deployed either singly or configured as arrays, and GPS or alternative geolocation methods are used to determine the locations of sensor readings.