UW MIA Recovery and Identification Project

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UW MIA Recovery and Identification Project

We are the University of Wisconsin-Madison Missing in Action Recovery and Identification Project.

The UW Missing In Action (MIA) Recovery and Identification Project (RIP) primary mission is to enhance the identification of our missing United States Armed Forces from past wars. The current focus is on recovery and identification of World War II US Forces in the European Theater. Four scholarly disciplines are engaged in the discovery, careful exhumation and the identification of remains: Histor

y, Archaeology, Forensics and Genetic Analysis. Researchers and student veterans from across these disciplines are building a multi-disciplinary team to help accelerate the recovery of lost service members. In 2014 the Center helped identify the remains of PFC Lawrence S. Gordon, a United States soldier who was killed in action on August 13, 1944, but whose remains were later misidentified as a German soldier. The project's primary goal is to identify new technologies to enhance the recovery and identification process and apply these technologies towards the final goal, repatriation.

05/25/2026

On this Memorial Day, take a moment to remember and honor those U.S. service members who have died while serving.

This day also serves as an opportunity to recognize the importance of continuing the work to recover and identify those still missing because every service member deserves to be remembered and brought back home to family and friends.

05/21/2026

This past week, a few of our students had to opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. They scanned documents from the National Archives in College Park, MD, which will be helpful for future casework. They also enjoyed a night sightseeing around D.C., visiting all the different monuments.

05/05/2026

UW MIA Project Archaeologists Eric Nordstrom (left) and Dan Joyce (right) gave a poster presentation on our work in Papua New Guinea at the 91st meeting of the Society for American Archaeology (SAA) last week. Eric is completing his Master’s Degree in Anthropology at Mississippi State and has been a team member since 2025. Dan joined the team in 2024 and is a PhD candidate in Anthropology at UW-Milwaukee and Curator Emeritus at the Kenosha Public Museum.

05/01/2026

On Wednesday, our students had a chance to showcase their semester long commitment by presenting their research and progress on their cases to a small group of supporters. It was an impressive display of knowledge, skills, and creativity!

Thank you so much for your hard work and dedication!

04/27/2026

The Wisconsin MIA Foundation is hosting a special fundraiser at Smoke on the Water, featuring music from singer-songwriter Taylor Davis. Enjoy great food, connect with your community, and help bring our nation’s missing heroes home.

We hope to see you there!

04/24/2026

The UW MIA Project is hosting its first hands-on archaeology workshop this summer. Join us to learn how we do our recovery missions to locate and help repatriate the remains of American MIA.

Check out the attached flyer for more information!

04/23/2026

The MIA Project had the honor of hosting Scott Rubitsky, a former UW MIA Board Member, to lead a training session on reading grid coordinates.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Scott!

04/20/2026

This past Friday, some of our undergraduate students had the opportunity to present their research within the UW MIA Project at the Undergraduate Research Symposium.

Maddee, Miya, Thomas, and Trinity presented "An Interdisciplinary Approach to Historical Missing in Action Investigations." They are being considered for an award. Also, Haley and Jack presented "A Geospatial Approach to X-File Identification for MIA Servicemembers."

Thank you so much for sharing your research!

04/13/2026

This past weekend, the UW MIA Project had the opportunity to host visitors during the 2026 Science Exploration Weekend. Families were able to learn more about the project, conduct mini excavations, and learn about the process of identifying skeletal remains.

03/27/2026

https://mia.biotech.wisc.edu/rits/

We will be hosting the second “Recovery Innovation Technology Summit” (RITS) at the UW Biotechnology Center on September 22-24, 2026 on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. It is intended for all those working (or interested) in the recovery and identification of the missing, both civilian and military, from a broad range of backgrounds including forensics, history, archaeology, law, military, technology and science.

Defense POW / MIA Accounting Agency

03/16/2026

Every Friday Maj. General Tim Zadalis, a 34-year Air Force Veteran, UW MIA Project Board Member, and Belgium Recovery Mission Team Member, volunteers his time at the War Room, helping out our students with their cases by answering any questions and offering direction. You can read more about General Zadalis’ active duty biography on the Air Force website. Thank you General Zadalis for sharing your time and advice with our researchers!

Address

425 Henry Mall
Madison, WI
53706

Telephone

+16082628607

Website

https://mia.biotech.wisc.edu/

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