Nguyet Anh Duong (Dương Nguyệt Ánh; born 1960 in

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

) is an American scientist responsible for the creation of an American

thermobaric weapon A thermobaric weapon, also called an aerosol bomb, a vacuum bomb or a fuel air explosive (FAE), is a type of explosive that uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion. The fuel–air explosive is one of the be ...

.news.pacificnews.org
Dec 8, 2003 Bomb Lady She is noted as the "Scientist who developed the bomb that ended the war with Afghanistan" by the

Vietnamese American National Gala Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

. __TOC__

Biography

Early life

During the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, her family left their homeland on April 28, 1975, right before the

Fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Saigon, the capital of ...

Becoming one of the

Vietnamese boat people Vietnamese boat people ( vi, Thuyền nhân Việt Nam), also known simply as boat people, refers to the refugees who fled Vietnam by boat and ship following the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. This migration and humanitarian crisis was at its h ...

, they eventually arrived in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. From there, they were assigned to a refugee camp. Her family then contacted the

Embassy of the United States, Manila The Embassy of the United States of America to the Philippines is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the Philippines. is situated in the Chancery Building of the Manila American Embassy along Roxas Boulevard (formerly Dewey Boulevard ...

and were given

political asylum The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another enti ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. She graduated from the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of Mary ...

with both a B.S. degree in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

and a B.S. degree in

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

Career

In 1983 she started working as a

chemical engineer In the field of engineering, a chemical engineer is a professional, equipped with the knowledge of chemical engineering, who works principally in the chemical industry to convert basic raw materials into a variety of products and deals with the ...

at the

Indian Head Naval Surface Weapons Center Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division (NSWC IHD)—also known as Naval Support Facility Indian Head—is a United States naval military installation in Charles County, Maryland, that is a NAVSEA Warfare Center (WFC) enterprise dedica ...

. From 1991-1999, she managed all navy basic, exploratory research and advanced development programs in high explosives. She also served as the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

focus point for

explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

s and the transition of Navy explosives into weapon systems, providing consultation to government/military, industries and allied nations. From 1999-2002, she managed all NSWC Indian Head's technical programs in Explosives and Undersea Weapons, from concept through engineering development to production and demilitarization. She successfully assembled and led a team of scientists and engineers to develop a thermobaric bomb. They then proceeded to limited production and delivery to the

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

, all in an unprecedented period of 67 days.YouTube
Award of 2007 National Security Medal Nguyet Anh successfully led the development and transition of a total of 10 high-performing explosives into 18 different weapons in the past 12 years, which is an unprecedented record of its kind. She has served as a U.S. Delegate at the

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

AC310 Subgroup I for Explosives, and chairman/member of many national and international Panels/Technical Steering Groups. Since 2002, Nguyet Anh has been the director of Science and Technology of Naval Surface Warfare Center,

U.S. Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secur ...

, where she was responsible for Indian Head's overall technical investment strategies, guiding and overseeing research and development programs in all areas of science and technology and focusing these efforts toward the creation of future weapon generations for the United States. Since 2009, Duong has been the director for the Borders and Maritime Security Division within the

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the Federal government of the United States, U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the I ...

Science and Technology Directorate.www.dhs.gov
Science & Technology Directorate Borders & Maritime Security DivisionYouTube Duong Nguyet Anh part 1(of 7), English, to Youths, Sydney
/ref>

Awards

In 1999 she was awarded the Dr. Arthur E. Bisson Prize for Achievement in Naval Technology and had her name engraved in a plaque on permanent display at the Office of Naval Research. In 2001, she was awarded the Civilian Meritorious Medal for superb leadership, technical expertise and significant contributions to the

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

in the area of High Performance Explosives. In 2007, she was awarded the

National Security Medal The National Security Medal is a decoration of the United States of America officially established by President Harry S. Truman in Executive Order 10431 of January 19, 1953. The medal was originally awarded to any person, without regard to natio ...

for significant contribution to the nation in activities related to national security.

References

External links

Bomb Lady: Vietnamese American Makes Tools for War on Terror
by ''

Pacific News Service Pacific News Service (PNS) was an American nonprofit alternative news media organization. PNS ceased operations in 2017. The organization was located in Berkeley, California. History PNS was founded in 1969 by historian and sociologist Fr ...

''
Naval Surface Warfare Center, U.S. Department of Defense
* George F. Will
Anh Duong, Out Of Debt
''Newsweek'', December 17, 2007, Issue.
YouTube
Award of 2007 National Security Medal
YouTube Duong Nguyet Anh part 1(of 7), English, to Youths, Sydney
{{DEFAULTSORT:Duong, Nguyet Anh Living people People from Ho Chi Minh City American chemical engineers University of Maryland, College Park alumni Vietnamese emigrants to the United States Year of birth missing (living people)