io9: railgun

U.S. Navy Developing Lasers and Huge Guns

Ed Grabianowski — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 08:00:00 PDT

The year is 2019. The destroyer U.S.S. Mason patrols enemy waters, and is suddenly faced with a barrage of incoming missiles. Almost instantly, dozens of brightly colored lasers beam out of the Mason, intercepting the missiles and destroying them harmlessly in the air. Then a massive deck-mounted gun turns and takes aim at an onshore target 70 miles inland. The ship's lights dim for a moment, and the magnetic railgun fires a projectile at roughly Mach 7. The impact is audible as a dull, subsonic thud. Want to find out what else the Navy's researchers are cooking up?

Once each year, the Office of Naval Research holds a conference where they explain what they're currently working on. This year, the ONR detailed several weapons systems that seem like they were lifted straight out of your favorite military sci-fi novel.

Solid state fiber lasers could be mounted in "pods" on aircraft, able to deliver 100 kW blasts. Free Electron Lasers will begin development in 2010, and will hopefully have the ability to take out incoming ordinance or even small attack (or suicide) boats. The lasers don't stop there - helicopters could be equipped with laser terrain finding gear to help them land in "brownout" conditions.

Lasers not sexy enough? How about directed microwave weapons? I've been dreaming of one of these for years, to take out the thumping audio systems of cars that drive past my house. The Navy would rather use them to fry the electronics in enemy equipment.

The ultimate naval weapon might be the hyper-velocity railgun. It could propel projectiles up to 230 miles with killer accuracy at speeds close to Mach 7. The Navy holds a world record for "highest electromagnetic muzzle energy launch of a projectile" using such a weapon. I have no idea what that means, but I know I wouldn't want to get hit by one. These megaguns aren't without their flaws, though. That kind of muzzle velocity tends to destroy the barrel of the gun, and each firing draws something like three million amps. Image by: U.S. Navy.

Navy Wants Lots of Lasers [Defense Tech]

The Navy's Explosive Super Weapon Crushes Speed Records

charliejane — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 14:40:23 PST

Here are some photos of the Navy testing its new electromagnetic railgun at the Naval Surface Warfare Center. The railgun fires at 10.44 megajoules, with a muzzle velocity of 2520 meters per second. Click through for more details and a gallery of splodey pics.

Future Navy ships will use electric drive propulsion, making the electric-powered railgun possible. The railgun sends current along parallel rails, creating an electromagnetic force so powerful, it can shoot a metal projectile at record-breaking speeds. Photos by AP/U.S. Navy, John F. Williams [Gizmodo]

Man Hops Off A Freight Train At 7,000 KPH In Space

charliejane — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 09:59:01 PST

Rockets may be a thing of the past one of these days. Instead, we may use huge electromagnetic "rail guns" to escape from the gravity of a body such as Earth or the Moon. But this concept hasn't appeared much in movies or TV yet. Hence this new short film (which is still in development, hence the unfinished test footage, just posted last night.)

Maelstrom II is based on a short story by Arthur C. Clarke.

An engineer hitches a ride on the lunar rail, hoping to visit his family on Earth. But the rail malfunctions and falls 1,000 KPH short of the 8,500 KPH speed needed to escape lunar gravity. He winds up in a decaying lunar orbit, and only a risky spacewalk (or a jump, really) can save him. NASA scientists are helping with this digital short, which director Jeroen Lapré hopes to show in schools as "a teaching tool in the colonisation of space." Given that Lapré works at ILM and is using ILM resources on his own time, you can expect the final special effects to look way better. The acting and costumes won't ever improve, alas. But maybe Maestrom II can inspire more cool DIY films that use real science.