The Marine Corps Times authored quite an interesting article on a request for information on a new cold weather tent system.

The Corps’ two-man infantry shelter and 10-man arctic tent are likely on their way out, officials said.

In separate advertisements, Marine Corps Systems Command said it is researching the development of a new two-man combat tent and an “extreme cold weather arctic shelter,” which would accommodate a squad and also withstand high winds and temperatures of at least 35 degrees below zero.

Changes to the arctic tent, in use since the 1950s, would be more dramatic. Officials want a replacement that sleeps 15 Marines, but weighs less and packs smaller than the existing 76-pound shelter, which breaks down to a 7.3-foot cube, said Capt. Geraldine Carey, a SysCom spokeswoman. Size and weight have not been determined, but the advertisement said the service is looking for a shelter that has more floor space than the 199 square feet available in the 10-man tent.

“We sent out a [request for information], which we are receiving information back on and will review,” Carey said. “We are working on the performance requirements rather than [dictating] a solution.”

Ideally, the new tent will withstand 70-mph wind and temperatures as low as minus 70 degrees, conditions nearly approached during the Korean War, when thousands of Marines suffered frostbite during engagements such as the Battle at Chosin Reservoir. The Corps has not required a fabric; the existing tent is made of cotton and wind-resistant sateen.

The new combat tent is expected to be chosen in fiscal 2010 after an industry competition is opened, with a rollout planned for the following year, Carey said. The number of tents to be purchased has not been decided, but the Corps would like to see it weigh 7½ pounds or less, at least a half-pound lighter than the current infantry shelter.

Bwaaahahaha …

Who wants to go backpacking with the Marines?  Anyone?  Raise your hands please.  Seriously, let’s get technical for a moment.  The Captain’s Journal supposes that since the tent itself will not be able to insulate*, temperature as a boundary condition for the specification pertains to embrittlement of the fabric.  Anything can break at cold temperatures.  But oh my God, who wants to be warfighting / backpacking in -70 degree F weather?  What do you think this might say about how long the Marine Corps believes it will be in the mountains of Afghanistan?

The pictures below are of the Captain (author of this journal) and a Marine just before he became a Marine, at Mount Mitchell or adjacent mountains (Big Tom?, or Mount Craig?, North Carolina).  This is the coldest the Captain wants to get.  Let’s stop at 5 or 10 degrees F please.

* Any tent fabric will be able to trap air, thus insulating since there are heat sources in the space, i.e., humans, but only very slightly due to the convective cooling of air flow across the fabric.  In this case, 70-mph winds make trapping heat virtually impossible.  Again, who wants to go backpacking with the Marines?