It was developed by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and Raytheon for riot-control duty. Retrieved 2010-01-04. When these waves interact with a person, they pass through the skin and transfer energy to the water that lies just under the surface. DEW technology is changing faster than international laws and treaties can adapt. The Army used Navy-, and Air Force- developed HPM weapons during recent conflicts to counter improvised explosive devices (IEDs). [4] Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th ed., s.v. For example, while the Chinese ZM-87 laser interference device is technically a laser dazzler, it can permanently damage the human eye at a distance of two to three kilometers. [79][80] At the time, the Soviet Union was concerned that the shuttle was being used as a reconnaissance platform. 79, No. -13.1, Electronic Warfare (Washington, DC: Department of Defense, 2012). The antenna gain of the weapon system is also very important, and when combined with the power of the RF source, yields the Effective Radiated Power (ERP) of the weapon. Funding has been cut to both of the programs. Particle-beam weapons can use charged or neutral particles, and can be either endoatmospheric or exoatmospheric. In 1995, the Chinese military marketed the ZM-87 laser interference device, a tripod-mounted battlefield laser dazzler designed to blind enemy soldiers and optics temporarily. There are numerous pathways and entry points through which microwave energy can penetrate electronic systems. [88], Media related to Directed-energy weapons at Wikimedia Commons, This article is about real uses of directed energy weapons. However, no military has yet openly deployed HPM weapons. The SOR's world-class adaptive optics telescope is the second largest telescope in the Department of Defense. [45] The energy spikes are tailored to enter missiles through antennae or sensor apertures where they can fool guidance systems, scramble computer memories or even burn out sensitive electronic components. The sensation increases in intensity until the affected individual moves out of the beam or it is shut off. This damage may create permanent effects depending upon the severity of the attack and the ability of the enemy to diagnose, replace, or repair the affected systems. Particle beams would have tremendous power as weapons. And of course, lasers employed at higher altitudes or in space would have very little to no atmospheric affects. As with all new weapons, the DOD General Counsel reviews each DEW for compliance with international and U.S. laws before the Pentagon is allowed to field it. 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]. The electrical shock is enough to stun personnel, detonate improvised explosive devices, or destroy electronic equipment. 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). HPM lethality can be affected by atmospheric conditions as well, but to a much lesser degree than high-energy laser (HEL) weapons. Russia has reportedly been using blinding laser weapons during its 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The meaning of degrade is to remove the enemys ability to operate and to potentially inflict minimal injury on electronic hardware systems. DEW technology is changing faster than international laws and treaties can adapt. In 2017, the Air Force Secretary and Chief of Staff signed the DE Flight Plan outlining the path ahead for the Air Force to develop and deploy both high-energy lasers and high-power RF weapons for its aircraft. This destroys the device but produces electrical pulses in the terawatt range-the equivalent of 10 to 1,000 lightning strikes. For example, in 2005 the cruise liner Seabourn Spirit used a sonic weapon to defend itself from Somali pirates in the Indian ocean. Lasers can be categorized as gas, solid state, or a hybrid of the two. Directed energy weapons are no longer just science fiction. Because of the strategic imperative to protect U.S. carrier battlegroups to enable us to project power, the U.S. Navy is following this prototyping effort with a much broader Navy Laser Family of Systems or NLFoS program, which will put the Navy on a path to develop and deploy lasers ranging from low power laser dazzlers to much higher power lasers capable of destroying anti-ship and high-speed cruise missiles. Particle beams as beam weapons are theoretically possible, but practical weapons have not been demonstrated yet. Microwave weapons can be aimed at computers, electronical devices and persons. umbrella term covering technologies that produce a beam of concentrated electromagnetic energy or atomic or subatomic particles. [10]Press release, "Airborne Laser Progress Continues as Northrop Grumman Runs Full-Power COIL Tests, Delivers Beacon Illuminator Laser," Northrop Grumman Corporation, January 4, 2006, at http://www.irconnect.com/noc/pages/news_printer.mhtml?d=91869 (March 15, 2006). Increasing laser power and improving the beam quality can also help to mitigate atmospheric effects in many cases. (Washington D.C.: Office of the Secretary of Defense, 2018). But there is a rule of thumb that states that an interceptor needs to be capable of three times the speed of the target it is defending against to be able to maneuver to destroy it. These lasers, combined with significant improvements in computational power, represent dramatic advances in technology over those used in the Airborne Laser program. At some point in the future, entire military units may be armed with only DEWs. The Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) is an acoustic hailing device developed by Genasys (formerly LRAD Corporation) to send messages and warning tones over longer distances or at higher volume than normal loudspeakers, and as a non-lethal directed-acoustic-energy weapon. Washington, DC 20319-5066. [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). Neuro-weapons can take the form of biological agents, chemical weapons and in the Havana case directed energy, and possibly a combination of different methods, Giordano said. However, these lasers were generally large and heavy. In addition, a technique known as adaptive optics has been developed for many years. 9 Eileen Walling, High Power Microwaves, Strategic and Operational Implications for Warfare, Occasional Paper no. The deuterium fluoride chemical laser fires, hitting the rocket or shell and causing it to explode far short of its intended target. Laser light is created when the electrons in atoms in special glasses, crystals, or gases absorb energy from an electrical current or another laser and become excited. The excited electrons move from a lower-energy orbit to a higher-energy orbit around the atoms nucleus. Directed energy weapons could also play a key role in defending against what has been described as the number one threat to the United States by the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Dr. Mike Griffinhypersonic weapons. 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. [11], The megawatt-class laser was tested at full power in early 2006. 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. Today, solid state electrical (including fiber) and hybrid lasers are being developed that are much lighter and smaller. How can they be used and how disruptive can they be? We proved that the technology could be effective, but its size, weight, and power (SWaP) requirements made the laser weapons impracticable to field. The ABL is a system that uses a megawatt chemical laser mounted on a modified Boeing 747 to shoot down theater ballistic missiles. [26] Most DEWs are not yet far enough along in development and thus have not received this final stamp of approval. [48] 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. National Defense University Discrete, mission-aligned efforts will maintain our pace of development in the race to get these technologies to the field. The article states: 'The squawk box is highly directional which gives it its appeal. Research was also conducted on a mobile version of the THEL called the MTEL. . This In Focus discusses a selection of The countries abandoned particle-beam weapon research as impracticable. DE weapons include high-energy lasers, high-power radio frequency or microwave devices, and charged or neutral particle beam weapons.2 Microwaves and lasers are both part of the electromagnetic spectrum, which includes light energy and radio waves. 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. However, no military has yet openly deployed HPM weapons. High-power microwave (HPM) weapons work by producing either beams or short bursts of high-frequency radio energy. Zersetzung). [59][60] He and colleague Arnold Wilkins quickly concluded that it was not feasible, but as a consequence suggested using radio for the detection of aircraft and this started the development of radar in Britain. The Symptoms of Being Attacked by Directed Energy Weapons DEW symptoms: Causes headaches, intense psychological and physiological stress in that you can feel all your insides. The skin of the missile heats up, melts, and deforms, and the target breaks up in midair. A composite image of a satellite firing an energy weapon at a target on Earth. These devices have also been demonstrated to stall or damage car, truck, or boat motors. They have strong physical and psychological effects and can be used for military and terrorist activities. The kinetic energy imparted by a particle stream destroys the target by heating the target's atoms to the point that the material literally explodes. What exactly is a directed energy weapon? But again, advances in computational power coming out of the gaming industry (such as graphics processing units) and artificial intelligence coming from autonomous automobile development can be instrumental in providing these needed capabilities. Existing directed-energy weapons are in the range of tens of thousands of kilowatts: the American ADS fires a 100kW millimetre-wave beam which can cause burns to the skin; the Turkish ALKA dual EM/laser system for use against combat vehicles reportedly has a power of 50kW; the LAWS laser weapon generated 33kW during testing; and Dynetics and . 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. Depending on the type of laser, this means that the weapon can have an almost "endless magazine" of laser bursts. The megawatt-class laser was tested at full power in early 2006. [37] Some examples of weapons which have been publicized by the military are as follows: Active Denial System is a millimeter wave source that heats the water in a human target's skin and thus causes incapacitating pain. With the ever-increasing use of electronics in weapons systems, HPM devices could have a devastating but nonlethal effect on the battlefield. 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. low-cost per shot compared to traditional munitions. Even the most conservative market projections for directed energy weapons indicate nearly $30 billion being spent by the United States during the next ten years. However, considerable work still needs to be done before they can be deployed. However, directed-energy weapons (DEWs) are a reality, and several have already been tested under battlefield conditions. The Soviet Union invested some effort in the development of ruby and carbon dioxide lasers as anti-ballistic missile systems, and later as a tracking and anti-satellite system. Future research will seek to increase the power and decrease the size of DEW systems. This concentrated energy can have effects across the entire spectrum from non-lethal to lethal. High-power microwave (HPM) weapons work by producing either beams or short bursts of high-frequency radio energy. This technology delivers very high-frequency millimeter-wavelength electromagnetic rays that heat skin on contact, causing a painful burning sensation. 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. Lung tissue was affected at only the closest ranges as atmospheric air is highly compressible and only the blood rich alveoli resist compression. When the LaWS was being integrated onto the ship, the designers and developers envisioned that it would be used several hours a day. However, the Army felt the fixed-base laser system was too large and cut funding for the program after the demonstration phase. Its effective beam width is so small that it can be directed at individuals in a riot. 8, No. First, the choice of a lasers wavelength can help to mitigate the affect because different laser wavelengths perform much better in the atmosphere than others. But let us broaden these applications somewhat. The Ukrainian army are reported to use the Ukrainian KVS G-6, with a 3.5km range and able to operate continuously for 30 minutes. Current HPM research focuses on pulsed power devices, which create intense, ultrashort bursts of electrical energy and would be used to power the microwave generator of an HPM weapon. This type of weapon shows great potential as a riot-control device or area-denial system. But again, there are major advances in these areas being made especially with the technology that has been developing in the electric car industry. [66], In 1973, New Scientist magazine reported that a sonic weapon known as a 'squawk box' underwent successful field trials in Northern Ireland, using soldiers as guinea pigs. On 10 October 1984 (STS-41-G), the Terra-3 tracking laser was allegedly aimed at Challenger as it passed over the facility. Finally, the concept of destroy involves the ability to inflict catastrophic and permanent injury on the enemy functions and systems. In this last factor, the frequency of the laser and the engagement altitude will have a significant impact on how much the atmosphere effects the lasers lethality. However, a variety of optical methods can be used to correct for blooming. Putting the proper protocols in place should mitigate these concerns. 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But the fact that the. The DOD Office of Force Transformation (OFT), in conjunction with the Air Force Research Laboratory, is developing the Tactical Relay Mirror System (TRMS), which would use a mirror system mounted on an aerostat or UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) to redirect the beams from laser weapons such as the ATL and ABL. [1][2] In the United States, the Pentagon, DARPA, the Air Force Research Laboratory, United States Army Armament Research Development and Engineering Center, and the Naval Research Laboratory are researching directed-energy weapons to counter ballistic missiles, hypersonic cruise missiles, and hypersonic glide vehicles. DEWs send energy, instead of matter, toward a target, and can be separated into three types: laser weapons, particle-beam weapons, and high-power microwave (HPM) or ra-dio-frequency (RF) weapons. 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. Directed energy weapons are among the high-tech arms of the century. Challenges remain in terms of the size, weight and power input requirements of todays laser systems, especially in the thermal control and power management subsystems. 2 According to the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. General DOD policy is that directed-energy weapons can be used legitimately on the battlefield. "Mobile/Tactical High Energy Laser (M-THEL) Technology Demonstration Program," Defense Update, at http://www.defense-update.com/directory/THEL.htm (March 10, 2006). U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, "High-Power Microwaves," fact sheet, September 2002, at, Dr. Stephen Adams, "Electrical Power and Thermal Management for Airborne Directed Energy Weapons," U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, September 2001, at, Carlo Kopp, "The Electromagnetic Bomb-A Weapon of Electrical Mass Destruction," at, GlobalSecurity.org, "High Power Microwave (HPM)/E-Bomb," at, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, "Active Denial System," fact sheet, September 2005, at, Press release, "Northrop Grumman Surpasses Power, Run-Time Requirements of Joint High Power Solid-State Laser Program for Military Use," Northrop Grumman Corporation, November 9, 2005, at, China North Industries Corporation, "ZM-87 Portable Laser Disturber Fact Sheet," quoted in Human Rights Watch, "Blinding Laser Weapons: The Need to Ban a Cruel and Inhumane Weapon," September 1995, at, "Electromagnetic Weapons: Come Fry with Me,", David Ruppe, "Directed-Energy Weapons: Possible U.S. Use Against Iraq Could Threaten International Regimes," Global Security Newswire, Russias New START Breach Means U.S. Nuclear Weapons Modernization Is a Must, North Koreas Growing ICBM Threat: How America and South Korea Should Respond, China Surpasses U.S. in Nuclear Missile Launchers; U.S. Unprepared to Deter Growing Threat. They are not "weapons of mass destruction," but they have the potential to . They seemed to have arisen from the testing of the television transmitter in Feldberg, Germany. For example, while the Chinese ZM-87 laser interference device is technically a laser dazzler, it can permanently damage the human eye at a distance of two to three kilometers. Similar to the Armys RCCTO and the Navys Accelerated Acquisition (AA) Process, the Air Force is leveraging both Air Force Research Laboratorys DE Directorate and Air Force Strategic Development Planning and Experimentation Office to expedite delivery of capabilities to address key capability gaps identified in the DE flight plan: Forward Base Defense, Precision Strike, and Aircraft Self-Protect. While some uses may be illegal (e.g., targeting an unarmed civilian who in no way poses a threat), other uses are just as assuredly legal and legitimate. They can not only achieve these speeds but can maneuver at them as well including varying trajectories, headings and altitudes. In the late Middle Ages, a revolution in the weaponry occurred when chemical-powered (gunpowder) weapons began to replace swords and bows. [18], Paired with a microwave generator, an EPFCG could produce an ultrashort, intense microwave burst. It suggested that lasers, perhaps space-based X-ray lasers, could destroy ICBMs in flight. Conceptual MindWorks in San Antonio, TX received a $7 million cost-plus fixed-fee contract to provide for research support around emerging directed energy weapons (including non-lethal weapons) and their effects on humans.Work will be conducted in cooperation with the Air Force Research Laboratory, Human Effectiveness Directorate (AFRL/HEDR), Directed Energy Bio-effects Division, Radio . For more information, see Physicians for Human Rights and INCLO, "Lethal in Disguise: The Health Consequences of Crowd-Control Weapons." 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