US Navy trial laser weapon (footage)

Burnt

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13033437

BBC News wrote:

11 April 2011 Last updated at 12:47
Laser gun fired from US navy ship

The US Navy has fired a laser gun from one of its ships for the first time.
Researchers used the high-energy laser (HEL) to disable a boat by setting
fire to its engines off the coast of California.

Similar systems had previously been tested on land, however moist sea air
presented an extra challenge as it reduces a beam's power. The navy said
that ship-borne lasers could eventually be used to protect vessels from small
attack boats.

The US military has been experimenting with laser weapons since the 1970s.
Early systems used large, chemical-based lasers which tended to produce
dangerous waste gasses. More recently, scientists have developed solid state
lasers that combine large numbers of compact beam generators, similar to
LEDs.

The US Navy system uses a Joint High Power Solid State Laser mounted on
deck. Until now, much of the development of HELs has focused on shooting
down missiles or hitting land-based targets.

The latest round of tests showed its wider possibilities, according to Peter
Morrison from the Office of Naval Research. "This test provides an important
data point as we move toward putting directed energy on warships. "There is
still much work to do to make sure it's done safely and efficiently," he said.

While a weaponised system would likely be restricted to military vessels,
merchant shipping has also expressed an interest in laser technogy. A gun
which uses visible laser light to temporarily blind pirates was announced by
BAE Systems in 2010.

The technology is still being tested, ahead of a commercial launch.

PatsytheNazi

Burnt wrote: »

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13033437

Extraordinary, the American's are decades in front of everyone.

Raging_Ninja

It was a 15 kilowatt laser, which is cool, but it took about 30 seconds of concentrated fire to get the boat to burn. Here's the video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awsQs4ct0c4

Due to energy and coolant restraints on current ships, the current generation of naval vessels will have to make due with 15 kilowatt lasers, like the one that was just successfully demonstrated, but future ships could have directed energy weapons up in the 100 kilowatt range, enough to burn missiles out of the sky.

The next steps will be to "develop the tactics, the techniques, the procedures, and the safety procedures that sailors are going need to develop" when using laser weapons, said Rear Admiral Nevin Carr.

But the Navy's not done with its laser research; far from it. Work is being done on weaponizing free electron lasers (different from solid-state ones), which can blast through 2000 feet of steel per second with about a megawatt of power. You heard me right. 2000 feet. Of steel. Per second.

It was then that Admiral Carr said perhaps the greatest thing ever said by a living Admiral: "This is an important data point, but I still want the Megawatt death ray."

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/109103-Ship-Mounted-Laser-Weapon-Torches-Enemies-a-Mile-Away

Burnt

PatsytheNazi wrote: »

Extraordinary, the American's are decades in front of everyone.

I don't know Paddy, it's just a big laser tbh and going by the footage
it isn't doing anything a well placed 50cal wouldn't have done faster
and cheaper. Laser death rays are cool and all, but is it a big gain
versus blunt force trauma?

Next Headline, "Pirates deploy mirror against laser weapon"?

Raging Ninja, Free electron lasers take up the space of a medium
size shed currently, and are quite the pain to build.

delos

Burnt wrote: »

I don't know Paddy, it's just a big laser tbh and going by the footage it isn't doing anything a well placed 50cal wouldn't have done faster and cheaper.
Laser death rays are cool and all, but is it a big gain versus blunt force trauma?

Next Headline, "Pirates deploy mirror against laser weapon"?

Raging Ninja, Free electron lasers take up the space of a medium size shed currently, and are quite the pain to build.

While kinetic energy weapons will always be there, I remember my first mobile phone was about the size of a brick and about as useful as shouting really loudly. It's about proving the concept - give it 20 years.....

tightropetom

Burnt wrote: »

I don't know Paddy, it's just a big laser tbh and going by the footage
it isn't doing anything a well placed 50cal wouldn't have done faster
and cheaper. Laser death rays are cool and all, but is it a big gain
versus blunt force trauma?

Next Headline, "Pirates deploy mirror against laser weapon"?

Raging Ninja, Free electron lasers take up the space of a medium
size shed currently, and are quite the pain to build.

I suppose, it's a weapon in its infancy, all inventions have to start somewhere.

ps
LOL at the mirror idea!

Overheal

Thats far from the only thing they've tried. I know Boeing has at least a couple contracts to develop vehicle-borne laser systems. Some have already been seen successfully knocking out test missiles. The potential is there, eventually, for Reagan's Star Wars program. Oh and don't forget the rail guns.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y54aLcC3G74

Number Nine

NAIROBI, Kenya – A ship-based laser tested by the Navy's research arm could put the heat on Somali pirates.
The Navy for the first time last week successfully tested a solid-state high-energy laser from a ship. The beam, which was aimed at a boat moving through turbulent Pacific Ocean waters, set the target's engine on fire.
The Office of Naval Research says the laser traveled over "miles, not yards." For now, the test is a proof of concept, and it's not yet known when it might be deployed as a weapon.
The baseball-sized laser beam, though, could be used to stop small crafts from approaching naval ships. It could also target pirates.
"You can use the laser to ward off an attack, or you can dial it down to a non-lethal level where it basically becomes a very bright light so they know they are being targeted," Michael Deitchman, the director of air warfare and weapons at the Office of Naval Research, said Wednesday.
Deitchman said the laser provides two benefits not seen in other military weapons. The laser is precise, unlike bullets that can ricochet and hit unintended targets, and the laser's strength can be dialed down from a lethal level to a nuisance level.
Graeme Gibbon-Brooks, the head of Dryad Maritime Intelligence, said the test was "remarkable" for how the Navy was able to concentrate the beam over such a long distance at sea, and given how the boat was being tossed about in rough water.
"Hats off to the U.S. Navy because that is very, very impressive," he said. "It was pitching and rolling and yet they got this very fine beam to focus on one part of an engine casing. That they managed to keep the energy in one place is remarkable."
Somali pirates attacks have become increasingly violent in recent months. Pirate assaults typically involve multiple skiffs zooming in on a target. The pirates often carry and fire AK-47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades at targets.
Some cargo ships now carry private security guards to defend against pirates. They also can use such defensive measures as water cannons and sound blasters. But those measures may not be enough to overcome an armed attack.
Gibbon-Brooks said the new laser "absolutely" could be deployed against pirates, but says a sniper rifle could work just as well. He suspects the Navy has bigger hopes for its sea-based laser. The Navy released a video of the test on YouTube. It's been viewed more than 600,000 times.
"It's a very, very interesting moment for naval warfare in that we have a whole new genre of weapons," he said.
"It's certainly a remarkable step forward. The ability to apply more power in a burst or the ability to manipulate that power is really where I see this going," he said. "I think if you watch the video and think that's what they intend to do to Somali pirates in a year, you don't understand what's being set out in front of them. It could be used in any type of naval warfare."
The laser test was carried out by the Navy and Northrop Grumman as part of a $98 million contract.
The Office of Naval Research's big project is a megawatt-level electron laser that could be used to defend Naval ships against supersonic and ballistic missiles, said Deitchman. The recent laser test helps the Navy move in that direction.
"It demonstrated once and for all that we could get material damage effects with a laser at sea, and it really gives us confidence to proceed on with directed energy systems," Deitchman said.

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