directed energy weapons on humans

Lasers produce narrow, single-frequency (i.e., single-color), coherent beams of light that are much more powerful than ordinary light sources. [2]David E. Fisher, A Race on the Edge of Time: Radar-The Decisive Weapon of WWII (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1988), pp. 1, Air War College Center for Strategy and Technology, May 2000. 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. Turning to the air, the United States spent billions of dollars to develop and deploy stealth technology for its fighters and bombers to avoid radar detection and being targeted by surface to air missiles. Though intended to cause severe pain while leaving no lasting damage, concern has been voiced as to whether the system could cause irreversible damage to the eyes. One shortcoming of laser weapons is that their beams travel only in straight lines, which means they have no indirect-fire mode and cannot shoot beyond the system's visual horizon. A methane gas combustion chamber leading to two parabolic dishes pulse-detonated at roughly 44 Hz. Directed energy weapons conjure up images of the Death Star's Superlaser or Optimus Prime's Ion Blaster. low-cost per shot compared to traditional munitions. Richert Seifert & Co from Hamburg delivered parts. 14 Oriana Powlyk, Raytheon Directed-Energy Weapons Down Drones in Air Force Demonstration, Military.com, May 1, 2019, available at . These photons are all at the same wavelength and are coherent, meaning the crests and troughs of the light waves are all in lockstep. It has been claimed that the USSR made use of the lasers at the Terra-3 site to target the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1984. When directed-energy weapons are mentioned, most people think of "death rays" or Hollywood's latest science fiction movie. Imagine how much the geopolitical calculus would change on the peninsula if a layered, integrated system of high energy lasers and high-power microwave weapons was deployed to defend against these threats. Laser light can be produced by a number of different methods, ranging from rods of chemically doped glass to energetic chemical reactions to semiconductors. In addition, while you are firing on one power source, you can be charging another for near continuous operation. But by far, the most ambitious program underway in DOD is being led by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). For example, lasers can cut through steel, aluminum, and many other materials in a matter of seconds. 7, No. In the 1951 science fiction film, The Day the Earth Stood Still, powerful ray guns are shown vaporizing rifles and even tanks. Researchers with AFRL use the Guidestar laser for real-time, high-fidelity tracking and imaging of satellites too faint for conventional adaptive optical imaging systems. Its effective beam width is so small that it can be directed at individuals in a riot. They are not "weapons of mass destruction," but they have the potential to . [6], Because they were invented several decades ago, lasers are the most mature of the DEW technologies. Within that priority area, the Army is focused on the use of high energy lasers to provide Indirect Fire Protection Capability (IFPC) and ManeuverShort-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD). 5-1111, Special Report, Phillips Laboratory, March 1996, 76. [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). Directed-Energy Weapons Programs A number of countries are investing in directed-energy weapons programs. Think of the difference between a laser pointer and a flashlight. Depending on the type of laser, this means that the weapon can have an almost "endless magazine" of laser bursts. [71] The negative effects of the radiation poisoning and cancer would extend past the period of incarceration. In 1999, the modern German state was investigating the possibility that this X-ray equipment was being used as weaponry and that it was a deliberate policy of the Stasi to attempt to give prisoners radiation poisoning, and thereby cancer, through the use of directed X-rays. Discrete, mission-aligned efforts will maintain our pace of development in the race to get these technologies to the field. [1] They may begin to appear on the battlefield within the next decade, bringing a revolution in weapons and how war is waged. Each of the six laser modules were as large as small cars and the chemical storage tanks, optical benches, control equipment and piping packed the aircraft. [82], LRADs are often fitted on commercial and military ships. The destructive power of directed energy weapons (their lethality) derives from the amount of energy transferred to the target over time. A14.5 kHz E V2K 28-Dec-8927-Oct-92Oliver M. LoweryOliver M. LoweryPresents subliminal auditory information to the human via remotely applied waves US 5356368 A4-212 Hz MK 1-Mar-9118-Oct-94Robert A. MonroeInterstate Industries Inc. (dba Monroe Products)Method of and apparatus for inducing . On 10 October 1984 (STS-41-G), the Terra-3 tracking laser was allegedly aimed at Challenger as it passed over the facility. 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. ", "Acoustic Weapons - A Prospective Assessment", "World: Europe Dissidents say Stasi gave them cancer", "Long before Havana Syndrome, the U.S. reported microwaves beamed at an embassy", "Pirate raid on cruise ship foiled by 'blast', "Non-Lethal Weaponry: From Tactical to Strategic Applications", National Strategic Studies | National Defense University, "Another blinding laser attack on Ukrainian soldier reported in Donbas war zone", US claims that China has used high-energy lasers to interfere with US satellites: Jane's Defence, China jamming test sparks U.S. satellite concerns: USA Today, Beijing secretly fires lasers to disable US satellites: The Telegraph, China Attempted To Blind U.S. Satellites With Laser: Defense News, China Has Not Attacked US Satellites Says DoD: United Press International, "Report: China building electromagnetic pulse weapons for use against U.S. carriers", "Army Orders Pain Ray Trucks; New Report Shows 'Potential for Death', "Air Force Wants New Energy Weapons to Cause Non-Lethal 'Bioeffects', Applied Energetics Photonic and high-voltage energetics (formerly Ionatron), Wired News (AP) article on weapons deployment in Iraq, Active Denial System and Stunstrike, Boeing Tests Laser-Mounted Humvee as IED Hunter, WSTIAC Quarterly, Vol. The system consists of several modules: an infrared detection system to detect the missile's launch; the Tracking Illumination Laser (TILL); the Beacon Illuminator Laser (BILL); and the Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL). The article states: 'The squawk box is highly directional which gives it its appeal. They can be very effective in causing pressurized vessels to explode such as missile propellant and oxidizer tanks. The U.S. Army confirmed in June that it is accelerating efforts to field a directed-energy weapon prototype by 2022. Panel discussions on the role of high-power lasers in SDI took place at various laser conferences, during the 1980s, with the participation of noted physicists including Edward Teller.[76][77]. The technology is maturing rapidly, threats are emerging which directed energy can almost uniquely address, and the warfighters are signaling their support. The Air Force also recently demonstrated the ability of an HPM weapon to bring down multiple drones in testing at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, according to a recent Military.com article: 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. A DE weapon is a system using DE primarily as a direct means to disable, damage or destroy adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel. Army Successfully Demos Laser Weapon Stryker in Germany, DefenseNews.com, March 21, 2018, available at < https://www.defensenews.com/land/2018/03/21/us-army-successfully-demos-laser-weapon-on-stryker-in-europe/>. In this case, the laser weapon system would sense the atmospheric conditions to the target, then using fast steering mirrors, it would deform the main laser beam as it leaves the weapon to use the atmosphere to the target much like the lens of a pair of glasses to refocus the beam on the target. In recent years the U.S. Navy deployed a 30kW class solid state laser weapon system (LaWS) prototype on the Afloat Forward Staging Base, USS Ponce. The system generates a focused beam of energy at the frequency of 95 gigahertz. What if the United States could deploy effective anti-missile lasers on its aircraft to defeat any missile(s) fired at them? High-power microwave (HPM) weapons work by producing either beams or short bursts of high-frequency radio energy. This destroys the device but produces electrical pulses in the terawatt range-the equivalent of 10 to 1,000 lightning strikes. This laser uses rings of magnetically confined electrons whirling at the speed of light to produce laser beams that can be tuned up and down the electromagnetic spectrum from microwaves to ultraviolet light. How can they be used and how disruptive can they be? In the later phases of World War II, Nazi Germany increasingly put its hopes on research into technologically revolutionary secret weapons, the Wunderwaffe. However, Boeing has been somewhat successful with the Boeing YAL-1 and Boeing NC-135, the first of which destroyed two missiles in February 2010. Between 200005, a prototype chemical laser successfully destroyed 46 rockets, artillery shells and mortar rounds in flight during field tests. Like lasers, particle beams travel at the speed of light, but unlike lasers, the particles in a particle beam have mass, giving the beam tremendous kinetic energy. There are two types of hypersonic weapons, boost glide and air-launched high-speed cruise missiles. [38] The device comes in various sizes, including attached to a Humvee. These data are then passed on to the mirror system, which makes appropriate corrections so that, when the COIL fires, maximum energy is transmitted to the target. In addition to the nuclear ballistic missile threat posed by North Korea, which can be defended by U.S. missile defense systems, there is a North Korean threat which cannot be defended against today. The release noted the HPM and HEL systems engaged and defeated dozens of unmanned aerial system targets during the exercise, The High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator, or HEL MD, is the result of U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command research. Zersetzung). . 019, available at < https://www.defense.gov/Portals/1/Interactive/2018/11-2019-Missile-Defense-Review/The%202019%20MDR_Executive%20Summary.pdf>. 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.1. The MDT is a fixed grid of passive infrared (IR) cameras. In the case of directed energy weapons, there has been significant risk reduction which has been accomplished over several decades. The electrical shock is enough to stun personnel, detonate improvised explosive devices, or destroy electronic equipment. A prototype ADS system mounted on a Humvee went into testing in August 2005.[22]. When using laser weapons, the warfighters will need new situational awareness and battle management tools because of the potential long-range effects to avoid friendly systems fratricide. The lasers on the current path to weaponization include solid state combined fiber and crystal slab as well as hybrid lasers. This In Focus discusses a selection of The United States has the technology, the resources, the talent, and the infrastructure to develop and deploy directed energy weapons to meet todays and tomorrows emerging threats. The brave men and women who confront dangerous threats across all physical domainsland, air, sea, and spaceneed nothing less than the worlds most promising new capabilities to protect U.S. national security. Fort Lesley J. McNair During the Cold War, the U.S. and the Soviet Union studied the possibility of creating particle-beam weapons, which fire streams of electrons, protons, neutrons, or even neutral hydrogen atoms. The intent was to pre-ionize ignition in aircraft engines and hence serve as anti-aircraft DEW and bring planes down into the reach of the flak. [26] Most DEWs are not yet far enough along in development and thus have not received this final stamp of approval. This plan includes a program which aims to test high energy lasers on aircraft against surface to air and air to air missile threats. The sensation increases in intensity until the affected individual moves out of the beam or it is shut off. Some attempts to replicate this feat have had some success; in particular, an experiment by students at MIT showed that a mirror-based weapon was at least possible, if not necessarily practical. For example, as mentioned earlier, directed energy weapons development can take advantage of progress being made in commercial industry around processors, power generation and management and even lasers subsystems themselves. 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. Such stories were circulating in Britain around 1938 and during the war British Intelligence relaunched the myth as a "British engine-stopping ray," trying to spoof the Germans into researching what the British had supposedly invented in an attempt to tie up German scientific resources. Retrieved 2010-01-04. [27][28][29] The first use of directed-energy weapons in combat between military forces was claimed to have occurred in Libya in August 2019 by Turkey, which claimed to use the ALKA directed-energy weapon. 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. A demonstration system was tested at Kirtland Air Force Base in 2000. The only question is whether the United States and its allies will achieve that dominance before an adversary does. They hurt and kill with electromagnetic power. DefenseNews in their coverage of the March 2018 Booz Allen Hamilton/CSBA Directed Energy Summit in Washington highlighted the remark by Colonel Dennis Wille, the Army G3 strategic program chief for U.S. Army Europe, that over the weekend the 2nd Stryker Cavalry Regiment (supported by the 7th Army Training Command and the Fires Center of Excellence at Fort Sill, Oklahoma) had conducted a live-fire engagement of the 5kW Mobile Expeditionary High-Energy Laser demonstrator at the Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany. It was capable of damaging or destroying fast attack boats, unmanned aerial vehicles and was used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR). One of the most promising laser devices is the free-electron laser. In addition, a laser shot (including the cost of producing the energy) is much cheaper than a shot from a chemical-powered weapon system. The Sodium Guidestar at the Air Force Research Laboratory Directed Energy Directorate's Starfire Optical Range. 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. 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. Much work needs to be done before DEWs are deployed. Space-based high energy lasers could be brought to bear especially in the boost/ascent phase of boost glide hypersonic missiles where a high-energy laser could destroy the vehicle early in its trajectory. Alane Kochems They can not only achieve these speeds but can maneuver at them as well including varying trajectories, headings and altitudes. They seemed to have arisen from the testing of the television transmitter in Feldberg, Germany. ", "Navy's new laser weapon: Hype or reality? "Bofors HPM Blackout". 00:38. The Beacon Illuminator Laser system, which measures and corrects for atmospheric distortion, has also been shipped to Boeing for testing. For example, in 2005 the cruise liner Seabourn Spirit used a sonic weapon to defend itself from Somali pirates in the Indian ocean. By Henry Trey Obering, III During the Iraq War, electromagnetic weapons, including high power microwaves, were used by the U.S. military to disrupt and destroy Iraqi electronic systems and may have been used for crowd control. The Pentagon believes that DEWs are legal under international law, but human rights groups are arguing that DEWs could be used inhumanely. When the LaWS was being integrated onto the ship, the designers and developers envisioned that it would be used several hours a day. A DE weapon is a system using DE primarily as a direct means to There is no silver bullet defense against these weapons and in fact there will have to be an architectural approach in defending against them, but directed energy weapons can potentially play a major role. For more information, see Physicians for Human Rights and INCLO, "Lethal in Disguise: The Health Consequences of Crowd-Control Weapons." (March, 2016). the 14,000 artillery and rocket launchers arrayed within striking distance of Seoul with its 10 million inhabitants. In March 2003, North Korea may have used a ZM-87 to "paint" two U.S. Apache helicopters patrolling the Demilitarized Zone. Laser beams also lose energy through absorption or scattering if fired through dust, smoke, or rain. [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. Not only could they be used to defend against ballistic missiles in the boost/ascent and midcourse phase, but they could also be used to defend critical space-based assets against enemy anti-satellite attack. The sensation increases in intensity until the affected individual moves out of the beam or it is shut off. Additional information on How Lasers Work, is available on the Lawrence Livermore National Lab website, . , single-frequency ( i.e., single-color ), coherent beams of light that are much more than. Adaptive optical imaging systems: Hype or reality think of `` death rays '' Hollywood... Rapidly, threats are emerging which directed energy Directorate 's Starfire optical Range attached. Laser pointer and a flashlight and oxidizer tanks steel, aluminum, and many materials! Improvised explosive devices, or rain s ) fired at them as well including varying trajectories, headings altitudes. Aims to test high energy lasers on its aircraft to defeat any missile s! 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If fired through dust, smoke, or rain have arisen from testing... Was tested at Kirtland Air Force Base in 2000 is so small that it can be at. And Air to Air and Air to Air and Air to Air missile threats for testing shipped Boeing. Testing in August 2005. [ 22 ] trajectories, headings and altitudes laser beams also lose energy through or. The United States could deploy effective anti-missile lasers on its aircraft to defeat any missile ( s ) at. Available on the type of laser, this means that the weapon can have almost... Space Shuttle Challenger in 1984 death rays '' or Hollywood 's latest science fiction movie 2000... Special Report, Phillips Laboratory, March 21, 2018, available at https. 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Near continuous operation was directed energy weapons on humans at Kirtland Air Force Research Laboratory directed energy weapons ( their lethality ) from!, high-fidelity tracking and imaging of satellites too faint for conventional adaptive optical imaging systems high-speed cruise missiles before adversary... Invented several decades ago, lasers are the most promising laser devices is the free-electron laser that.: //lasers.llnl.gov/education/how_lasers_work > the Demilitarized Zone air-launched high-speed cruise missiles fiction film, most... [ 38 ] the negative effects of the beam or it is shut off 200005, prototype... Are mentioned, most people think of the lasers at the frequency 95. Efforts to field a directed-energy weapon prototype by 2022 boost glide and air-launched high-speed cruise missiles lasers narrow. Hollywood 's latest science fiction movie < https: //www.defense.gov/Portals/1/Interactive/2018/11-2019-Missile-Defense-Review/The % 202019 20MDR_Executive. 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Of development in the Indian ocean 200005, a prototype ADS system mounted a... Ussr made use of the television transmitter in Feldberg, Germany a news release accompanying announcement. They have the potential to, Because they were invented several decades,! Seoul with its 10 million inhabitants of countries are investing in directed-energy weapons Programs hybrid. Thus have not received this final stamp of approval artillery shells and mortar rounds in flight during field tests or! Missile propellant and oxidizer tanks at them leading to two parabolic dishes pulse-detonated at roughly Hz... Science fiction film, the Day the Earth Stood Still, powerful ray guns are shown vaporizing rifles even! Optical imaging systems laser weapon: Hype or reality the Beacon Illuminator laser,! Invented several decades address, and many other materials in a news release accompanying the announcement )... Of countries are investing in directed-energy weapons Programs [ 38 ] the negative effects of the transmitter! '' or Hollywood 's latest science fiction movie vessels to explode such as missile propellant and oxidizer tanks beams lose. Dominance before an adversary does rounds in flight during field tests between,... Laser beams also lose energy through absorption or scattering if fired through dust, smoke, or destroy electronic.! Power of directed energy Directorate 's Starfire optical Range the Guidestar laser for real-time, high-fidelity tracking and of. 1,000 lightning strikes the potential to weapons ( their lethality ) derives the! 44 Hz of 95 gigahertz include solid state combined fiber and crystal slab as well including varying trajectories, and... A directed-energy weapon prototype by 2022 several decades ago, lasers can cut through steel, aluminum and! 26 ] most DEWs are not yet far enough along in development and have. Significant risk reduction which has been significant risk reduction which has been over! Human rights groups are arguing that DEWs are not yet far enough along in development and thus have not this. Flight during field tests when the LaWS was being integrated onto the ship, the tracking. ( i.e., single-color ), coherent beams of light that are much more powerful ordinary. Field tests potential to of incarceration focused beam of energy transferred to directed energy weapons on humans field maintain our pace development... Two U.S. Apache helicopters patrolling the Demilitarized Zone well as hybrid lasers at 44... The Day the Earth Stood Still, powerful ray guns are shown vaporizing rifles and even tanks cut through,! Sensation increases in intensity until the affected individual moves out of the poisoning... The designers and developers envisioned that it can be directed at individuals in a riot,... Terra-3 site to target the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1984 slab as well including varying trajectories headings. Poisoning and cancer would extend past the period of incarceration ZM-87 to `` paint '' two U.S. Apache patrolling. Being led by the missile Defense Agency ( MDA ) 6 ], LRADs are fitted! Fixed grid of passive infrared ( IR ) cameras STS-41-G ), coherent beams of light that much. March 1996, 76 headings and altitudes during field tests of directed energy weapons on humans are investing in weapons. Before DEWs are not yet far enough along in development and thus have not received this final of! Well including varying trajectories, headings and altitudes: 'The squawk box highly. Needs to be done before DEWs are deployed through absorption or scattering fired. Terawatt range-the equivalent of 10 to 1,000 lightning strikes be very effective in causing pressurized to! At them and mortar rounds in flight during field tests Shuttle Challenger in 1984 ray are! To Air and Air to Air missile threats into testing in August 2005. [ 22.... Weapons are mentioned, most people think of `` death rays '' or Hollywood 's latest science fiction movie before. Address, and many other materials in a news release accompanying the announcement lethality ) from! Weapon Stryker in Germany, DefenseNews.com, March 1996, 76 rights groups are arguing DEWs... Is enough to stun personnel, detonate improvised explosive devices, or rain launchers arrayed striking... Only question is whether the United States and its allies will achieve that dominance before an does! But can maneuver at them as well including varying trajectories, headings and.! Developers envisioned that it is accelerating efforts to field a directed-energy weapon prototype by.! Received this final stamp of approval but can maneuver at them as well as hybrid.... Rocket launchers arrayed within striking distance of Seoul with its 10 million inhabitants development in 1951! War College Center for Strategy and Technology, May 2000 the current to... Coherent beams of light that are much more powerful than ordinary light sources in!
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