General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) and Boeing are working together to scale 100 kW-class lasers to 250 kW-class High Energy Laser (HEL) weapon system to they can shoot down missiles and not just drones. The HEL weapon system will combine GA-EMS’ scalable distributed gain laser technology, HELLi-ion battery systems and integrated thermal management with Boeing’s …
In 2022, the US Army will field test two high-energy lasers. A 50-kilowatt weapon to destroy enemy drones and incoming artillery rockets and a 300-kW weapon that could potentially shoot down cruise missiles. The US Navy has installed and tested 150 kilowatt lasers and will be testing 300-kilowatt lasers. US Army’s Six Modernization Priorities 1. …
Jeff Greason presented a radically new kind of power beaming. This will enable radical changes to drones, planes and eventually space launch. #SpaceAccess2019
The Defense Department will continue to research and study space-based weapons like megawatt lasers, particle beams, and orbiting missiles. Michael Griffin, the defense undersecretary for research and engineering, has pushed to expand U.S. missile defenses and to enable hitting ICBMs during the initial boost phase and hypersonic weapons. This was reported by Patrick Tucker at …
The US Missile Defense Agency had a request for “Develop the enabling technologies required to field an operational exo-atmospheric Neutral Particle Beam (NPB) system”. Neutral beam accelerator technology was developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory. A prototype neutral hydrogen beam weapon was launched aboard a suborbital sounding rocket from White Sands Missile Range in July …
The US Senate’s version of the annual defense bill provides $200 million for rapid prototyping of directed energy weapons. There’s no shortage of U.S. military interest in battlefield lasers and other directed-energy weapons. From truck-mounted lasers to high-powered microwaves that take down small drones, the Army, Navy, and Air Force are all exploring the possibilities. …
