Ukraine Reconnaissance Review: A Lesson Learned by an Engineer
The US Army is preparing to replicate the success of DeepStateMAP, an Ukrainian open-source intelligence cell, by developing a real-time, crowdsourced media integration platform. This innovative approach aims to enhance battlefield awareness and decision-making speed.
Combat engineers and geospatial engineers will play pivotal roles in this process. Combat engineers, with their expertise in terrain analysis and infrastructure assessment, will contextualize real-time media within operational terrain and infrastructure frameworks. Geospatial engineers, on the other hand, will manage spatial data integration, map production, and geolocation accuracy, ensuring the media is correctly positioned and visualized on the Common Operational Picture (COP).
The solution for the US Army lies in the utility of engineer reconnaissance, as defined in the Army's manual. Within brigade engineer battalions, the route clearance platoon is a candidate for exclusively engineer reconnaissance missions. Engineer reconnaissance involves obtaining information about the activities and resources of an enemy or adversary, or securing data concerning the meteorological, hydrographical, or geographical characteristics of a particular area.
By training the route clearance platoon as a specialized reconnaissance force within the brigade engineer battalion, it is possible to facilitate the transfer of data necessary for more custom mapping. The route clearance platoon is equipped with ENFIRE kits, which contain laser range finders, laptops, cameras, and more, allowing them to create similar media to DeepStateMAP.
The priority for combat engineers tasked with engineer reconnaissance is to ensure that their observations are formatted correctly for integration with the systems used by geospatial engineers. The assistant brigade engineer, the primary engineer officer on a brigade staff, is in the best position to bridge interactions between engineer reconnaissance teams and the geospatial intelligence cell.
The assistant brigade engineer does not have a direct supervisory role over the geospatial intelligence cell; all geospatial engineers work under the S2, the brigade's intelligence officer. However, the assistant brigade engineer can maximize the utility of engineer reconnaissance, from collection to analysis, by championing the work of engineer reconnaissance teams and ensuring it is reflected in brigade fragmentary orders and product updates.
To replicate the success of DeepStateMAP, the US Army can develop or partner with platforms that aggregate open-source and social media content with strong metadata extraction and verification tools. These platforms should integrate this data pipeline into existing COP systems used by the Army for seamless updates. The Army should also train combat engineers to interpret and assess infrastructure and terrain cues from media, contributing ground-truth to the operational picture. Geospatial engineers should be employed for mapping the metadata-inferred locations and ensuring the geospatial integrity of layered data.
This holistic method, combining real-time media metadata exploitation with expert geospatial and engineering input, mirrors the Ukrainian success in fusing crowdsourced information into operational planning and execution on the front lines.
References:
[1] Liveuamap - opendata-driven media platform showing real-time conflict zones via mapped media. [2] Institute for the Study of War (ISW) 2025 interactive maps using metadata and OSINT for tracking frontline changes.
- The US Army aims to improve battlefield awareness and decision-making speed by leveraging engineer reconnaissance, as defined in the Army's manual, where combat engineers will obtain information about the geographical, meteorological, or geographical characteristics of a particular area, and format their observations correctly for integration with the systems used by geospatial engineers.
- To mirror the success of DeepStateMAP, the US Army can develop or partner with technology platforms that aggregate open-source and social media content, equipped with strong metadata extraction and verification tools, and integrate this data pipeline into the Common Operational Picture (COP) systems for seamless updates.
- Geospatial engineers, working under the S2, the brigade's intelligence officer, will manage the spatial data integration, map production, and geolocation accuracy, ensuring the media is correctly positioned and visualized on the COP, while combat engineers, alongside their geospatial counterparts, will provide ground-truth based on their assessment and interpretation of infrastructure and terrain cues from media.
