Integrating cold weather impacts on human performance into army M&S applications

Exposure to cold weather has deleterious effects on the performance of soldiers. Gross and fine motor skills as well as cognitive ability are all diminished by exposure to low ambient temperatures. Clothing and equipment that protect the solider from cold also encumber the soldier’s movement and dexterity. Therefore, while the solider is protected from the cold, his or her performance is reduced in terms of both time to perform a given task and accuracy. Food and water consumption are also greatly increased by exposure to the cold. For Army simulations to accurately represent missions that occur in cold weather, these impacts must be accounted for, yet they seldom have been. This paper will briefly review the physiological mechanisms for degraded performance in the cold. A sample of the data available in the literature on cold weather impacts on humans will also be presented. Finally we suggest how these impacts might be incorporated in military models and simulations.