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The Army has announced an improved optical system for nightfighting.

The new "enhanced night vision goggle" will allow Soldiers to see an object, even if it's obscured by dust, foliage or other debris, by combining the image intensification technology of current PVS-14 NVGs with heat-sensing thermal data.

"Image intensification gives you great resolution. ... The thermal gives you improved target detection in all light conditions and through obscurants," said Lt. Col. James Smith, the Army's product manager for Soldier sensors and lasers.

"You put those two together and you get the combined effect to give the Soldier much greater situational awareness and target detection capability," Smith told Military.com.

Kewl. Maybe they’ll be able to mill about in the dark without falling into ditches.

Current NVGs magnify "ambient" illumination - such as light from stars and the moon - to help brighten the surroundings so troops can see objects in the dark. But if something's hidden behind trees or it's raining or dusty, standard night optics can't cut through.

Thermal imagery, on the other hand, illuminates an object's radiant heat, pulling away the mask of darkness even in the most light-deprived environments.[emph added]

So I’m going to be able to see some dude hidden behind a tree? Uh huh. The mind reels.

It is planned to start fielding these new optical in February.

The ENVG is also significantly heavier than the PVS-14, Smith admitted, weighing in at about two pounds. But to mitigate the added weight's impact, engineers have designed a system to mount the optic's battery pack on the back of a Soldier's helmet, helping distribute the weight more evenly and reduce neck strain.

This is a clever idea. Adding four pounds or so the weight of a Kevlar will be popular with the troops. Don’t you think so?

The ITT Corp.-built PSQ-20 costs about three times more than the PVS-14, running the Army about $10,000 per optic, so, it's not for everyone. Only select troops such as engineers, military police and unit leaders will be issued the new optic.

Three times as much? $10,000 a copy? Awright! Bartender! Champagne for everybody!