Northrop Grumman tooling up first Ray Gun line

Northrop Grumman Corporation today opened a specialized facility exclusively for system integration and production of high-energy laser systems for military uses - the first of its kind by private industry in the United States. Located at the Space Technology sector's Space Park campus, the Directed Energy Production Facility is specifically designed for the production of high-energy, solid-state lasers and their integration onto military vehicles. "Powerful military lasers, with their speed-of-light targeting capabilities and cost-effective operation, have the potential to transform the way we equip our armed forces defending our country abroad and protecting it at home against terrorist threats," said Alexis Livanos, president of Northrop Grumman's Space Technology sector. The first work in the facility will be for Phase 3 of the Joint High-Power Solid State Laser (JHPSSL) program, which will build and demonstrate the first 100 kW solid-state laser sufficient for a variety of force protection battlefield and precision strike missions. The facility also will house other laser systems the company is spearheading. The facility will provide the capability to produce current and future generation technologies of lasers including fiber lasers even more powerful than 100kW. There will also be an integration area where electric lasers are integrated onto various military platforms, such as armored combat vehicles. With class 1,000 clean rooms and integrated laser safety systems, the facility can produce multiple laser systems at the same time.

Here we go.

Science fiction takes one more step towards reality.

It WAS only a matter of time before production began.

C

Now if they would just make real life light sabers we could form a United States Jedi council But seriously the thought of laser beams across the battle field is wild..

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Digital_Reality]

The devices can be mounted on anything, they have been tested by destroying solid in-coming mortar rounds in mid-air at a distance of 500 yards.

I blogged about it this morning.
US Navy makes a real rail gun

Pretty wild stuff.

Very cool but what exactly is the timeline on me gettin' me hands on a gotdang laser pistol!

And I'm still waiting for my flying car by the way...no moller skycar links please. Don't get me wrong I really like those guys but I don't think they'll be rolling them off the assembly line anytime soon.

Now of course if laser beams are successful as weapons let's hope somebody figures out a way to protect our soldiers from the other guys laser wepons.

SPiderj

it's about time we started to make attempts to keep up with the russians !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

aren't rail guns much different from lasers? either way kick ass! we got lasers nah nah nah na nah na!

While I am not really a big fan of energy weapons (I like sold projectiles better) I do believe they are excellent feats of technology.

A railgun is very different from a LASER, a railgun uses electromagneticly projected rails to accelerate a slug or another solid projectile, it fires very straight and very far, it is possible to put a nuclear warhead on a railgun projectile and you would have the ultimate delivery system for nuclear weapons, a very scary thought indeed.

Railguns, Coilguns, Gaussguns and Mass drivers are all based on the same idea but differ in how they allign the electromagentic propulsion.

Naval ships will get railguns in the future and possibly there will be hand held versions of this devastating weapon, some say they are already here.

could you give me a basic breakdown of these various electromagnetic devices? Either on this thread or in a U2U. I am very familiar with a Railgun and how it works mechanicaly. I've never heard of a coilgun, guassgun, or a mass driver. At first I assumed that they were all different names for a rail gun but you said that each lay down the electromagnetic fields differently to fire the projectile. Curious and would like to discuss.

Also, I feel pound for pound or joule for joule a projectile weapon is superior to all currently known directed energy weapon systems or concepts.

Rail guns on naval ships will be awsome. Question though. What would the slugs look like? because at the velocities these things would be fireing, I could see a projectile shooting through the enire width of a cruiser and come clean out the other end leaving a small wound channel and not too much damange, although I could see it perferctly in use for surgical fireing on other ships. want to take out their propulsion, shoot a 20 lb slug at 5 miles a second into the ships main turbine. The range on a rail gun for shooting over the horizon targets must be increadable, and imagin how scary our tanks are going to be once these get implemented in them too.

Originally posted by Spiderj
Now of course if laser beams are successful as weapons let's hope somebody figures out a way to protect our soldiers from the other guys laser wepons.

Presuming the laers are the weapon... would mirrors work?? a reflective coating on the uniforms (kinda like the sprays some people put on their number plates to fight against the flash of a speed camera)? perhaps some crystals or prisms woven into the uniform that would redirect the laser?

If it's targeting, then there's no protection from it... the only protection will be against whatever it's targeting for - which will probably make a sound like 'swoosh - thud - boom'.... not much hope for protection there...

Originally posted by BASSPLYR
could you give me a basic breakdown of these various electromagnetic devices? Either on this thread or in a U2U. I am very familiar with a Railgun and how it works mechanicaly. I've never heard of a coilgun, guassgun, or a mass driver. At first I assumed that they were all different names for a rail gun but you said that each lay down the electromagnetic fields differently to fire the projectile. Curious and would like to discuss.

Also, I feel pound for pound or joule for joule a projectile weapon is superior to all currently known directed energy weapon systems or concepts.

Rail guns on naval ships will be awsome. Question though. What would the slugs look like? because at the velocities these things would be fireing, I could see a projectile shooting through the enire width of a cruiser and come clean out the other end leaving a small wound channel and not too much damange, although I could see it perferctly in use for surgical fireing on other ships. want to take out their propulsion, shoot a 20 lb slug at 5 miles a second into the ships main turbine. The range on a rail gun for shooting over the horizon targets must be increadable, and imagin how scary our tanks are going to be once these get implemented in them too.

I dont think its going to be in our tanks in the next 20 years as these things are still huge. Just like lasers these systems are still too big and expensive to put into things like tanks and their energy requirement is still too high for those units. But in the near future yes. But then again wouldnt it make all tanks obsolete? I mean what kind of armor could produce to defend against that? But then again arent missiles going to be obsolete as well when lasers can be fitted into aircraft? I mean that thing travels at the speed of light must have incredible BVR range. But then again with a laser you have to see what your shooting.

he he he gauntanamo bay would have sore eyes and ears

Originally posted by pilotshinjiikaru
I dont think its going to be in our tanks in the next 20 years as these things are still huge. Just like lasers these systems are still too big and expensive to put into things like tanks and their energy requirement is still too high for those units.

I would disagree:

In 1994-1995, The High Temperatures Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences sold the Pamir-3U mobile electric generator to the United States. The Pamir-3U had an output of 15 megawatt, dimensions of 2.5 x 2.65 x 10 meters, and weighed about 20 tons. The generator could be used in Russia (USSR) on the ground or in outer space for power supply to long-range laser and super high frequency weapon systems.

The Soviet Union also worked on designing of an "orbital fortress" based on a space station of the Mir type. Modules of the aiming system served as the side blocks of the station. The side blocks were attached to the basic module. The blocks were to be delivered to the station in cargo compartments of the Buran shuttle orbiter. The station was intended for killing of warheads of ballistic missiles from outer space when the crew was on board.

www.fas.org...

In 1983 flight trials of the approximately 60t laser device commenced on an Ilyushin Il-76MD heavylift transport. At the same time research was being carried out on the propagation of laser beams in the atmosphere.

Starting at the end of the 1960s, the Russians also developed ground-based nuclear laser systems for combating spacecraft. Unlike the American x-ray lasers, they could be used several times over. The programme was terminated after the USSR announced a unilateral moratorium on trials of the space defence system and the puzzling deaths of the two project managers in the mid-1980s.

The mobile Pamir-SU electro-generator, with an output of 15MW and a mass of around 20t, could supply power to long-range lasers and ultra-high-frequency weapon systems. It could be used both on the Earth and also in space. In 1994/1995 this equipment was sold to the USA.

www.flug-revue.rotor.com...

The Soviets built high-energy laser devices in the 1980s and generally placed more emphasis on the weapons applications of lasers than did the West. The tactical laser program had progressed to the point that by the mid-1980s, U.S. analysts anticipated that laser weapons would be deployed with future Soviet forces.

www.dia.mil...

And they DIA had at least some evidence ( not verified or verifiable as i remember) that the USSR deployed experimental ground mobile weapon systems against the Afghani resistance in the mid late 80's.

But in the near future yes. But then again wouldnt it make all tanks obsolete?

The main function of armor is survive the loss of tactical initiative when you must abandon cover for assault or due to enemy action; since that is a primary requirement 'armor' ( it might be 1 mm thin but resistant to laser weapons) will probably be with us for some time to come.

I mean what kind of armor could produce to defend against that?

We seemed to have been quite inventive if the past is anything to go by. Nothing comes between states and waging wars it seems.....

But then again arent missiles going to be obsolete as well when lasers can be fitted into aircraft?

That depends on what type of countermeasures other aircraft may deploy to survive laser attacks... Lasers might provide a means of long distance surprise attack but maybe with a active countermeasure it's completely ineffective thus forcing planes to close and trade ordnance of other types? Impossible to say what will happen and it's not impossible that with a dozen types of countermeasures we might in a thousand years be stuck with exchanging old style cannon fire at close ranges....

In the near future aircracft will probably have to become unmanned and far far cheaper with the ability to loiter and sensor suits to deliver their relatively small payloads very accurately against ground or air targets. If not that all airplanes might turn into even cheaper and smaller 'hunting' weapons that can be deployed en mass but are unlikely to be recovered for whatever reason.

I mean that thing travels at the speed of light must have incredible BVR range. But then again with a laser you have to see what your shooting.

IFF type technologies/implementation are going to remain a headache , in my opinion, under battlefield and intense ECM/EM/RF conditions for some time to come making doctrinal/force structure dependence on such weapons, in a true global conflict, problematic at best. That being said WFR becomes far too 'fair' when large numbers of planes are involved and those who can solve the IFF and BVR employment issues will probably be able to dictate events in the air.

Stellar

imagine, and america was worried about some crummy chinese satelitte that could destroy sats up there, wonder what the usa has in space.

The question regarding the laser gun on everbody's mind is this....

...can it be set to "stun"

There is a directed energy weapon being developed (looking for a link) that has adjustable stun vs. kill capability. As I understand it, the way it works is to first use a laser beam to create a channel of ionized air to the target and then a second beam - likened to a bolt of lightning - follows that channel to the target and either stuns or kills, depending on the energy used.

www.ionatron.com

Ionatron’s directed-energy weapons work like "man-made lightning" to disable people or vehicles that threaten our security. Ionatron intends to use our compact, non-lethal LIPC (Laser-Induced Plasma Channel) technology to replace guns as the weapon of choice in close-range defense.

Also check out the video under government prototypes page. I didn't notice it the first time I watched it, but you can actually see the weapon being fired from tanks, boats and other vehicles. It kind of resembles one of the "Star Wars blasters", where you see what looks like this short "piece of a beam" traveling away from the weapon.

IMO it is this kind of technology that really scares russia, china, iran and other countries into trying to confront the U.S. now because they know that by the time they catch up to what this does, the U.S. will then be far beyond this technology - if it isn't already now. And all the money and effort they've put into their current weapons systems will have been wasted.

[edit on 1/23/2007 by centurion1211]

Originally posted by centurion1211
Also check out the video under government prototypes page. I didn't notice it the first time I watched it, but you can actually see the weapon being fired from tanks, boats and other vehicles. It kind of resembles one of the "Star Wars blasters", where you see what looks like this short "piece of a beam" traveling away from the weapon.

Nothing new under the sun as far as i can see and i doubt (meaning i have not seen evidence for) anything smaller is or has been deployed in the US.

Stream, or Potok in Russian, is a new portable laser weapon developed by the St. Petersburg Institute of Special Materials. Unlike all other laser weapons already known to the world, Stream can temporarily stun a human being without causing irreversible blindness or death.

"I guess you could call it a true technological breakthrough," said Arkady Khalyavitsky, one of the three inventors of Stream. "The most important thing is that the laser is non-lethal. To our knowledge, this is the first thing of this kind to be made in Russia or the world."

Weighing just 300 grams and around 15 centimeters long, Stream looks more like a pocket flashlight than a crowd-control weapon. In fact, it looks so ordinary that, at first glance, one would think it was just one of those laser pointers you can easily find down at Sennaya Ploshchad.

www.sptimes.ru...

IMO it is this kind of technology that really scares russia, china, iran and other countries into trying to confront the U.S.

I don't understand how you would want to confront someone that is so far ahead that you have no chance at all? Does the confrontation with the US not make more sense based on the following?

According to the Hong Kong media, in June 2000 the Chinese military was developing sophisticated laser artillery (also known as "death ray" artillery). It was listed in China's "1998 National Security System Project," adopted by Jiang Zemin in 1999.

The PLA successfully tested laser artillery – for the second time – in intercepting low-flying missiles in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in early June 2000. This laser weapon could significantly upgrade the anti-aircraft and anti-missile capability of, particularly, the PLA navy. Reportedly, new tests of "laser artillery" took place in 2001.

It should be emphasized that China received from Russia much of its laser technology, both for civilian and military use, from 1992 to 1998. And in June 1999, in Moscow, Col.-Gen. Zhang Wannian concluded agreements on joint laser-weapons development.

www.newsmax.com...

There have been occasional reports of actual laser weapons, usually in the Hong Kong press.[5] In late 2003 Taiwanese military sources reported that the PLA had deployed a “laser cannon” with a 100km range in the Nanjing Military Region. [6] While this alarming report received no coverage in the U.S., if true it would handily precede U.S. intentions to deploy its first ground-based laser weapons by 2007 or 2008.[7] The U.S. hopes to test an airborne chemical laser in 2004 and is developing a range of military lasers to include air, naval and land-based solid-state lasers. If it indeed exists, the PLA’s laser would be useful for shooting down aircraft, cruise missiles, some PGMs and some ballistic missiles. In addition, Internet sources indicate the PLA Army has a laser-radar (LIDAR) system small enough to place on an armored personnel carrier for chemical detection purposes.

The Pentagon’s Congressionally-mandated annual reports on PLA modernization have been warning about potential breakthroughs in laser weapons since their first issue in late 1998. In its 2002 report the Department of Defense stated, “China reportedly is focusing its laser weapon development on anti-personnel, counter-precision guided munitions air defense, and ASAT roles.”[8] Beginning with its 1998 report the Department of Defense noted the probable PLA use of ground-based lasers to damage satellites. In its 2002 report the U.S. Department of Defense stated this observation as follows:

In 1984 Russia used a laser to track the U.S. space shuttle and caused some malfunctions.[15] In the early 1990s Western observers were surprised to discover the KDKhR-1N laser-based “chemical reconnaissance system.” Russian ships have used lasers to ward off U.S. aircraft, and on occasion have blinded U.S. pilots. Developed in the 1980s it is a laser-radar on a tracked APC chassis configured to detect and classify chemical agents. Russia markets a variety of laser tracking and designating systems. One system marketed at the 2003 Moscow Airshow, the Nudelman Precision Engineering Bureau’s PAPV uses lasers to locate enemy optics, like a sniper scope, and deliver a laser blast that blinds the sniper, or worse.

www.uscc.gov...

Lasers. The PLA’s intense interest in laser weapons exemplifies its quest for next-generation technology that also exploits the weaknesses of potential enemies. Lasers were a key area on investment for the “863-Program.” Pro-RMA officers view lasers as a key weapons technology for the future. The PLA envisions using lasers for anti-air, satellite tracking, anti-satellite, and for radar functions.[xiii] In 1995 the PLA company Norinco marketed its ZM-87 battlefield laser dazzler. The 1998 Pentagon PLA report noted that the PLA might already have a ground-based laser capable of damaging low-orbit reconnaissance satellites. Last year the Select Committee suggested that Russia might be a source of nuclear-pump laser technology for the PRC for use in space.[xiv] Last October the PLA revealed for the first time its Type-98 main battle tank, which has a box on the hull that may be a low-light camera or a laser dazzler. According to the Pentagon’s PLA report released in June, China “reportedly is investigating the feasibility of shipborne laser weapons for air defense.”

www.fas.org...

I wont bore you with the pages and pages of information that so strongly suggests that the Russian still retains their lead in direct energy weapon research and deployment but will if you persist in making claims you have absolutely no knowledge about.

now because they know that by the time they catch up to what this does, the U.S. will then be far beyond this technology - if it isn't already now. And all the money and effort they've put into their current weapons systems will have been wasted.

As long as the baseless accusations and ridicule is leveled at other countries all is good it seems; if nothing else this type of prevalent ignorance&arrogance will ensure the eventual downfall and destruction of the American 'empire' as surely as it did all those before.

Stellar

[edit on 24-1-2007 by StellarX]

Now here's a great "invention". And it works amazingly well. I just click the word "ignore" below stellarx's avatar and "poof", all the BS disappears out of this thread and a bunch of others that I was interested in before it became too tedious to have to scroll through the endless diatribes and repetitions.

Try it or not for yourself, as you like. All I'm saying is it worked for me.

Russia had 1 reason why to put more emphasis on lasers. complementing sam's.....