directed energy weapons on humans

Directed energy weapons could have several main advantages over conventional weaponry: Some devices are described as microwave weapons; the microwave range is commonly defined as being between 300MHz and 300GHz (wavelengths of 1 meter to 1 millimeter), which is within the radiofrequency (RF) range. The countries abandoned particle-beam weapon research as impracticable.[3]. [56] Their weapons capability has been controversially used in the USA to disrupt numerous protests. General DOD policy is that directed-energy weapons can be used legitimately on the battlefield. This revolution changed the nature of warfare: not just tactics, but also the usefulness of armor, castles, and then-popular weapons. For example, a recent test of a solid-state laser by Northrop Grumman produced a continuous 27-kilowatt beam that lasted just under six minutes.[23]. A year later, testing showed that the ADS could produce effects at ranges beyond current small-arms range. One of the most promising laser devices is the free-electron laser. But by far, the most ambitious program underway in DOD is being led by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). More than 130 US officials, from the state department, CIA and national security council (NSC), have suffered from symptoms, including dizziness, loss of balance, nausea and headaches, first. Putting the proper protocols in place should mitigate these concerns. Because electrical noise from car engines would interfere with field strength measurements, sentries would stop all traffic in the vicinity for the twenty minutes or so needed for a test. While DEWs are not the solution to all combat situations, these technologies would provide the U.S. military with additional flexibility in tailoring its response to different types of threats. 15-31. Examples of NLFoS weapons include: a 60kW laser called HELIOS (High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance) expected to be deployed by 2021 that will be capable of burning through small boats and shooting down drones; the SSLTM (Solid State LaserTechnology Maturation system), which will eventually be a 150kW laser weapon on the LPD27 amphibious ship; and the ODIN (Optical Dazzling Interdictor, Navy) that will also go on a destroyer.11. While DEWs are not a panacea, the armed services should fully support research and development of these useful technologies. (Washington D.C.: Office of the Secretary of Defense, 2018). National Defense University The weapon's long-range capabilities limit opportunities for the user to assess on-the-ground conditions, potentiating the risk for its inappropriate or disproportionate use. They can be very effective in causing pressurized vessels to explode such as missile propellant and oxidizer tanks. 1 Directed Energy Weapons. Both the Allies and the Axis powers conducted basic research and studies into primitive directed-energy weapons before World War II. In a much more dramatic application, the recently released Missile Defense Review (MDR), the first update to U.S. Missile Defense Strategy in nearly a decade, delivers a visionary plan to protect the United States from ever-intensifying threats around the world. 3. [13], A related project is the Advanced Tactical Laser (ATL) system, which uses a less powerful version of the ABL's COIL laser, instead of missiles, to attack ground targets. 7, No. High-power microwave (HPM) weapons work by producing either beams or short bursts of high-frequency radio energy. Therefore, HELs and HPMs could also play a role in the midcourse/terminal phase of both types of hypersonic missile flight. The Air Force Research Lab's Propulsion Directorate has studied using generators that use high-temperature superconducting wire and high-voltage capacitors. The power levels are driven by prime power generation limitations, and ERPs depend on the antenna design and aperture (i.e., size).6, Almost everyone has probably experienced the lethality of a microwave device when they inadvertently put a metal object into a kitchen microwave oven and watched the sparks fly. This same energy can be applied at higher powers for weapon effects. As another example, high energy lasers could be used to protect forward-deployed troops and bases from attacks by swarms of unmanned aircraft carrying explosive devices. On August 24, 2004, the Tactical High Energy Laser (THEL) system destroyed a salvo of mortar rounds in midair during a test. This is just the beginning of a plan to deploy 50kW lasers on four of its Stryker vehicles over the next few years for operational use.12, A fire support noncommissioned officer with 4th Division Artillery, 4th Infantry Division, who participated in the testing of a 2kW version of the laser vehicle at Fort Sill, Oklahoma against unmanned drones was quoted in a February 28, 2018 Army Times article as saying, It was extremely efficient, I was able to bring them down as [fast as] they were able to put them up.13. Directed-Energy Weapons Programs A number of countries are investing in directed-energy weapons programs. This also includes fundamental differences such as the wavelength of the lasers and the beam quality required for success. However, because beam strength degrades rapidly as the particles react with the atoms in the atmosphere, it requires an enormous power plant to generate a weapons-grade beam. They have strong physical and psychological effects and can be used for military and terrorist activities. This type of weapon shows great potential as a riot-control device or area-denial system. Finally, the concept of destroy involves the ability to inflict catastrophic and permanent injury on the enemy functions and systems. The humanitarian community is also concerned about the long-term biological effects of DEWs (microwaves in particular) and their possible use against civilian targets.[25]. Modern battlefield weapons are the descendents of muskets and cannon. [74] Some of the victims of this method suffered from suspicious cases of cancer and have claimed that they had also been targeted with directed X-rays. But let us broaden these applications somewhat. However, considerable work still needs to be done before they can be deployed. Havana syndrome is a set of medical symptoms reported by US personnel in Havana, Cuba and other locations, suspected by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to be caused by microwave energy. "'[68][69], In East Germany in the 1960s, many people were arrested and interrogated for holding politically incorrect views or for performing actions deemed hostile by the ruling socialist state. "Mobile/Tactical High Energy Laser (M-THEL) Technology Demonstration Program,", Richard M. Roberds, Ph.D., "Introducing the Particle-Beam Weapon,", GlobalSecurity.org, "Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3)," at, Bill Gertz, "N. Korea Fired Laser at Troops,", "Mobile/Tactical High Energy Laser (M-THEL) Technology Demonstration Program. For example, in 2005 the cruise liner Seabourn Spirit used a sonic weapon to defend itself from Somali pirates in the Indian ocean. A DE weapon is a system using DE primarily as a direct means to disable, damage or destroy adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel. Early reports claimed that this was responsible for causing "malfunctions on the space shuttle and distress to the crew", and that the United States filed a diplomatic protest about the incident. In an electrolaser, twin laser beams create an ionized channel inside the atmosphere, which conducts electricity. In this case, the enemy would be required to totally replace entire systems, facilities, and hardware if it was to regain any degree of operational status.9. What exactly is a directed energy weapon? So how close are they to becoming weaponized? The deuterium fluoride chemical laser fires, hitting the rocket or shell and causing it to explode far short of its intended target. The number of "shots" a laser weapon can produce is limited only by its power supply. When the LaWS was being integrated onto the ship, the designers and developers envisioned that it would be used several hours a day. The United States has come a very long way in the development of directed energy weapon capabilities and is now at a critical juncture. [49] These high-speed missiles fly at Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound) and greater. [16]U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, "High-Power Microwaves," fact sheet, September 2002, at http://www.de.afrl.af.mil/Factsheets/HPM.swf (March 15, 2006). Loading. It was developed by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and Raytheon for riot-control duty. For example, a Navy ship-to-air laser will have different requirements than an Air Force air-to-air system, which will have different requirements than a space-based missile defense system and therefore different technological considerations. Today, Directed Energy weapons are being developed by the US and its adversaries for land, sea, and air and space applications. [48] [18]Carlo Kopp, "The Electromagnetic Bomb-A Weapon of Electrical Mass Destruction," at http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1996/apjemp.htm (March 15, 2006). speed of light engagement which makes responsiveness and tracking much faster than kinetic weapons; deep shot magazines which are only limited by the electrical power supplied to and re-generated by the system; stealth-like performance (quiet and invisible beams) that are hard to detect or intercept; precision targeting for both lethal and non-lethal applications; and. In 1935, the British Air Ministry asked Robert Watson-Watt of the Radio Research Station whether a "death ray" was possible. This page was last edited on 21 February 2023, at 22:00. Colonel Craig Hughes, Office of Force Transformation, U.S. Department of Defense, "Re-directed Energy: the Tactical Relay Mirror System," presentation at The Heritage Foundation, Washington, D.C., February 13, 2006. . Electrical blooming occurs only in charged particle beams, as ions of like charge repel one another. The idea of damage is to inflict moderate injury on enemy communications facilities, weapons systems, and subsystems hardware, and to do so in order to incapacitate the enemy for a certain time. X-ray lasers may be possible in the not too distant future. However, a variety of optical methods can be used to correct for blooming. In this manner someone could be debilitated even though they were no longer imprisoned. ), is an Executive Vice President and Directed Energy Lead at Booz Allen Hamilton and the former Director of the Missile Defense Agency. [citation needed], Another approach was Ernst Schiebolds 'Rntgenkanone' developed from 1943 in Groostheim near Aschaffenburg. They are well-suited to defending against threats such as missiles and artillery shells, which DEWs can shoot down in mid-flight. 9 Eileen Walling, High Power Microwaves, Strategic and Operational Implications for Warfare, Occasional Paper no. Additional information on How Lasers Work, is available on the Lawrence Livermore National Lab website, . The MDT is a fixed grid of passive infrared (IR) cameras. Design specifications are already being determined. These technologies need the full support of the armed services, and the Department of Defense (DOD) needs to generate clear guidelines for their use. But again, there are major advances in these areas being made especially with the technology that has been developing in the electric car industry. Potential applications of this technology include weapons that target personnel, missiles, vehicles, and optical devices. The ABL is a system that uses a megawatt chemical laser mounted on a modified Boeing 747 to shoot down theater ballistic missiles. There are two types of hypersonic weapons, boost glide and air-launched high-speed cruise missiles. A directed-energy weapon (DEW) is a ranged weapon that damages its target with highly focused energy without a solid projectile, including lasers, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs: Hearings Gulf War Illnesses; Testimony to the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee; Meryl Nass, MD, Director of Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Mount Desert Island Hospital Bar Harbor, Maine; September 25, 2007, Last edited on 21 February 2023, at 22:00, United States Army Armament Research Development and Engineering Center, Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, "Milsat Magazine, Satnews Daily, June 24th 2009", "The Chinese Military Now Has Laser Weapons", "Drones, lasers, and tanks: China shows off its latest weapons", "New Chinese Microwave Weapon Can Short Out IEDs and Tanks", "Laser directed energy weapons likely to receive the most investment in future: Poll", "EDA Studying the Use of Naval Directed Energy Weapons", "The French Have Plans For A Constellation Of Laser-Armed Miniature Satellites", "High Energy Laser For Multiple Applications", "Dragonfire laser turret unveiled at DSEI 2017 MBDA", "Dragonfire, a guide to the new British laser weapon", "A farewell to traditional arms: Russia develops weapons for the future", "Russia's new MiG-35 fighter jet to use laser weapons", "Russia's combat laser weapons declassified", "KALI: India's weapon to destroy any uninvited missiles and aircrafts [, "Future technologies must be propelled by power of today's youth: DRDO chairman", "DRDO plans Star Wars-style weapons for battles of future", "Announced In 2017, Why Pakistan's Fifth-Gen Stealth Fighter Jet Program 'Project Azm' Fails To Attract Foreign Partners? [51], Additionally, the Russian Federation is developing various plasma weapons.[52]. [38] The device comes in various sizes, including attached to a Humvee. The system consists of a missile-detecting and tracking subsystem (MDT), a command and control system, and a scanning array. to reduce size, weight, and power required to operate these weapons. The system generates a focused beam of energy at the frequency of 95 gigahertz. This article will examine answers to these questions. [55] The power of the sound beam which LRADs produce is sufficient to penetrate vehicles and buildings while retaining a high degree of fidelity, so that verbal messages can be conveyed clearly in some situations. [46] Potentially lethal effects are produced only inside 100 meters range, and disruptive effects at distances on the order of one kilometer. There are also three types of EM 16 R. Jeffrey Smith, Hypersonic Missiles Are Unstoppable and Theyre Starting a New Global Arms Race, New York Times Magazine, June 19, 2019. DE warfare is military action involving the use of DE weapons, devices, and countermeasures to either cause direct damage or destruction of adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel, or to determine, exploit, reduce, or prevent hostile use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) through damage, destruction, and disruption, After decades of research and investment, we believe these advanced directed-energy applications will soon be ready for the battlefield to help protect people, assets and infrastructure. Thomas Bussing, Raytheon Advanced Missile Systems vice president, said in a news release accompanying the announcement. HPM weapon technology is based on the same technology as radar devices, which already have a long history of research and development. 12 Jen Judson, U.S. PRISM Vol. In the weapons version, the microwave energy effects or lethality depends on the power and range to target, but the energy beams tend to be larger and not as sensitive to jitter as is the case for the high energy lasers. The U.S. military has developed a directed energy technology that shoots beams of a slightly longer wavelength in a focused area over distances up to a mile. Some applications of directed energy weapons to solve todays challenges have already been described, such as stopping swarms of small adversary boats which have been harassing U.S. ships in international waters, or stopping vehicles carrying improvised explosive devices at a safe distance from U.S. personnel. In addition, a laser shot (including the cost of producing the energy) is much cheaper than a shot from a chemical-powered weapon system. 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