US Navy 4 years away from ship-mounted laser cannon prototypes
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XiaNaphryz
LATIN, MATRIPEDICABUS, DO YOU SPEAK IT
The Navy's already planning on having fewer surface ships out there, and the laser programs are part of that plan.
Slappers Only
Junior Member
Doesn't the TSA already have that?
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
That's pretty nifty. Hopefully there are some helpful commercial applications for this tech, too.
Jason's Ultimatum
Member
So when do I get my proton pack?
lastplayed
Member
Can they use it to write stuff on the moon?
This so much.
worked for battleships.
we just need a world war where carriers get melted from 600km away.
Randolph Freelander
Member
Lionel Mandrake
Member
Close enough
jchap
Member
This is the implementation of the fiber laser they are refering to in the article:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqLkpcHavZE
It's essentially an array of COTS fiber cutting lasers and an automated mount. They will be used to down incoming UAVs, missiles, and combat small vessel swarms. They won't ever be viable for ship to ship combat due simply to range.
As for the free electron laser: IMO they are too complicated, inefficient, and large to ever become a practical shipboard weapon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqLkpcHavZE
It's essentially an array of COTS fiber cutting lasers and an automated mount. They will be used to down incoming UAVs, missiles, and combat small vessel swarms. They won't ever be viable for ship to ship combat due simply to range.
As for the free electron laser: IMO they are too complicated, inefficient, and large to ever become a practical shipboard weapon.
Awesome in the context of our technological advancement and living out sci-fi fantasy. Depressing in the context of the money being spent on this and the idea of what these weapons would do to actual human beings. I'm imagining warfare being even more horrific with people being sliced to pieces by laser beams =[
ElectricBlue187
Member
How many years till we have stealth fighter planes with laser cannons?
shadowsdarknes
Member
Can this weapon be used to stop nuclear weapons?
Biff
Member
I did el-oh-el eye-are-el
I doubt it. The modern nuclear strategy is to spray and pray. The aim is to drown your enemy in incoming nuclear warheads. Those things are small, fast, deadly and numerous.
The US Navy's R&D budget would cover healthcare costs for less than 2.5 days.
Considering the last several major military projects (Army's FGS, Marine Corps' Osprey, F35, F22, and the Stryker) which were developed based on projected future needs of the military instead of what it actually needs today were abject failures at anything other than giving several corporations huge amounts of money, I'd say this stuff is not going to work anytime soon.
Some hints from the article - the solid state laser doesn't work well in polluted conditions. What this actually means is that the solid state laser doesn't work at all in anything but perfect conditions.
The one mega-watt laser isn't yet usable on a ship, which really mean that the megawatt laser sometime works in a laboratory when there's a perfect power supply, the thing is completely stationary, and 150 man hours of maintenance go into it between each shot.
The navy doesn't have the littoral capabilities to deal with some Somali pirates, but lasers is where the R&D money is going? Pretty crazy...
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
That's what a missile defense shield is for. No idea if this tech could be used for that purpose, though.
Rebel Leader
THE POWER OF BUTTERSCOTCH BOTTOMS
If we can set lasers to stun....
ultimate laser tag here we come
ultimate laser tag here we come
Hell honestly, I'd rather the gun than to parents with 1 or 2 kids they can't feed.
Genuine cases aside
most mirrors would have enough imperfections that the laser would fuck them up within seconds. It takes a special kind of mirror to be a good defense against a laser, and even then it wouldn't be for very long.
Who gives a flying fuck about Somali pirates really? I mean...really? They're a nuisance at worst, and a useful excuse to be in the area. The Navy did have littoral ship projects but they ran on the expensive side, so I think they were either downrated or stopped. Fuck pirates, get lasers. We will fuck any ship any other country comes up with, sunburn antiship missiles, all of it.
Pirate aren't a threat to national security. Sure they're annoying and a real problem, but they're of little risk to your or I and the safety of the American way of life. The Navy is attempting to stay ahead of the curve and if that means 150 man hours of maintenance between shots in the near future in order to create 1 second per shot in the distant future, then so be it.
You really think this technology will never reach that point? Of course it will given enough time and money. Two things the US has. They realize the limitations of kinetic weapons..energy is the future. Don't you ever watch tv?
mclaren777
Member
I have a hard time believing that.
speculawyer
Member
shadowsdarknes
Member
What is a missile defense shield? It sounds like a joke.
Tesseract
Banned
Randolph Freelander
Member
Two near full pages and not one "is such a thing even possible."
WeAreStarStuff
Member
Al-ibn Kermit
Junior Member
I feel like this is designed for disabling vessels rather than just destroying them. I don't see how a weapon that can just burn a hole into something within a direct line of sight as being more destructive than the regular ship artillery much less cruise missiles.
I was thinking that maybe this is also designed for anti-aircraft but their test with the 15 kilowatt laser had a target that was only 1 mile away so I don't really know if the 100 kilowatt one would get up to a range that can take out aircraft.
Maybe some sort of glazed ceramic coating so that it can both diffract and insulate the energy?
Or you could just use submarines.
ElectricBlue187
Member
I'm sure this technology will help with laser propulsion
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_propulsion
Ask yourself what's more important: Finding other worlds to live on, exploring the universe, unveiling its secrets, and utopias OR killing everyone you love. You know which is more important. Killing. Because we don't know if there's anything worth killing in space yet. If we KNEW there were things to kill in space you bet your bottom dollar those pillars would be reversed.
... Not sure if you know how solid state lasers work. The only reason why you'd want multi-wavelength lasers is to decrease laser scattering and absorption... which, at 100kW to >1MW, is pretty much a moot point. Solid state lasers -- and in fact all lasers -- will lase regardless of externalities.
The difference between the laser working in a polluted environment and in a clean environment at that power level is like wanting something extra-crispy.
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