Beam weapons almost ready for battle

[benEzra]

Anybody up on HAARP?

It's a really, really interesting system for modifying a couple hundred miles of ionosphere into a really, really big extremely-low-frequency virtual antenna. Great for ultra-long-range sensing of buried structures, possibly communication with deeply submerged submarines, and who knows what else you could do with a hundred-mile-wide virtual radio antenna. I don't see much weapons capability there, though...power density is extremely low.

 

[spooney]

jamz, Didn't Jim Beam, working in cahoots with some ladies, actually try to KILL somebody back in 19 and 73?

hillbilly

This may be the funniest post I have ever read.

 

[Cosmoline]

It's a really, really interesting system for modifying a couple hundred miles of ionosphere into a really, really big extremely-low-frequency virtual antenna. Great for ultra-long-range sensing of buried structures, possibly communication with deeply submerged submarines, and who knows what else you could do with a hundred-mile-wide virtual radio antenna. I don't see much weapons capability there, though...power density is extremely low.

HAARP is a well known front for secret experiments to try to turn every gun owner in Alaska into an anti-gun leftist. Thankfully my tinfoil is strong!

 

[Manedwolf]

As for the "Active Denial Technology" microwave beam weapon thing?

It can be negated by a 1970's Navy Bureau of Ships "Coverall, Microwave Protective", a full grid coverall with beekeeper hood, gloves and booties that was made to protect radar techs on ships. It functions like a microwave's door grid in blocking the appropriate wavelengths.

They're on eBay all the time. The Pentagon is too addicted, these days, to flashy "wow" tech, and doesn't think of scenarios like that, I think. Terrorists DO know those sorts of facts, and if they leave any base perimeter guarded by an ADS, they're going to be in for a nasty surprise. On the other hand, if they use it to disperse crowds, there's plenty of evidence that it can cause retina damage.

Great device. Can hurt civilians, but has an inherent weakness that lets any trained commando waltz right past it.

 

[Manedwolf]

Ok, say if we got aroung the power issues and created a usable reliable and man portable laser "rifle". What would the effect of using said weapon be? I.E. I don't believe there would be a visable beam unless in fog, smoke etc. Would it make any sound? I have read the beam would "crack" as it burned a hole in the atmosphere and also that they would be completley silent. Would there be ANY recoil however slight? How about a particle beam? Say if you shot an evil storm trooper with it, would it burn a cartarized hole in him or create a steam explosion as it superheated the water in his tissues?

I have read LOTS of scifi and the techno babble on the subject is endless. Anyone have any facts on this. Currious minds want to know!

Thanks
Jaycat

No matter how powerful a battlefield laser rifle might be, if it loses power or goes out of alignment because you banged it on the ground, the screaming jihadists running at your position with patched-up circa 1960's AK-47's are still going to win.

Didn't the "early M-16 in jungles" debacle teach the Pentagon anything about weapons that work great in cleanroom labs NOT being suitable for the battlefield without years of refinement in harsh conditions? Picture a battlefield laser in a middle east sandstorm, which would destroy its effectiveness. The enemy would quickly realize this and plan their attacks accordingly.

Personally, I wouldn't want a rifle that might need to be rebooted before I can fire it again. About the only use I can see for "battlefield" lasers is anti-missile lasers on Navy ships, fed directly by the vessel's reactor for an unlimited power source.

 

[KriegHund]

Didn't the "early M-16 in jungles" debacle teach the Pentagon anything about weapons that work great in cleanroom labs NOT being suitable for the battlefield without years of refinement in harsh conditions?

*Cough* XM-8 *Cough*
They did shoot down the XM-8 after it proved unreliable, so maybe they did learn something. At least the M-16 turned out good in the end.

Then again, they are still trying to get the XM-25 semi-auto-prorgammable-air-burst-25mm-grenade launcher out into the battlefield....

Im a little weary of something with more than 3 hyphens....

 

[Herself]

"When beam weapons are made extra-legal, only ETs will have beam weapons!"

For the fellow who wonders if he's the only one who likes ballistic weapons: please try using a muzzle-loading flintlock handgun in a combat pistol match. "Don't bring a knife to a gunfight" = "don't bring a 1911 to a beam-weapon fight," I'm sorry to say.

On the other hand, shoot the fellow behind the beam and you're home free.

--Herself

 

[50caliber123]

seriously, are energy weapons illegal already in Michigan? I live there...damn...there goes my DC17 Modifiable Blaster Rifle

I prefer ballistic weapons over these new-fangled energy wapons and I'll tell you why: In the Star Wars universe, the most "primitive" weapons are projectile weapons known as slug throwers. These "primitive" weapons are devestating against the plastic armor the storm troopers wear, as it is designed to repel blaster fire. Slug throwers are even more devestating against soft targets, as the projectiles expand when the hit a target, causing a more grievous wound.

I'll stack an AK47 up against an energy weapon anyday for better relaibility, a huge plus, and being more powerful, useful, and lighter. Try finding replacement parts for an energy weapon at the local gun store, let alone someone who can fix it if/when it breaks.

 

[Medusa]

Polyus

Soviets had a - interesting to say at least - program running, for which the Polyus spacecraft was a testbed (orbital weapons platform, equipped with lasers, anti-sat, anti-ASAT, mirrors against beam weapons, radar-absorbing coating which was also optically black, to minimize any option of detecting it). Wonder if the inertial guidance sensor would not have been faulty, where the project would be now?

BTW it was 37 m long and weighted approx. 80 metric tons and was still hauled up (Energiya has a capability to send 120 tons to LEO).

http://www.buran.ru/htm/cargo.htm
http://k26.com/buran/Info/Polyus/polyus-energia.html
http://www.astronautix.com/craft/polyus.htm

 

[iapetus]

seriously, are energy weapons illegal already in Michigan? I live there...damn...there goes my DC17 Modifiable Blaster Rifle

I prefer ballistic weapons over these new-fangled energy wapons and I'll tell you why: In the Star Wars universe, the most "primitive" weapons are projectile weapons known as slug throwers. These "primitive" weapons are devestating against the plastic armor the storm troopers wear, as it is designed to repel blaster fire. Slug throwers are even more devestating against soft targets, as the projectiles expand when the hit a target, causing a more grievous wound.

Heck, sticks and stones wielded by over-grown teddy-bears will defeat Storm Trooper armour


In general, most "blaster" type weapons in sci-fi seem to be inferior to modern firearms.

And a lot of modern sci-fi seems to be using firearms rather than energy weapons, e.g. the new Battlestar Galactica. And in Babylon 5, they only used plasma guns because they were less likely to rupture the station hull than slug-throwers were.


I've been trying to develop a far-future sci-fi story/ setting of my own (most likely will never get anywhere). In this setting, firearms coexist with lasers and more advanced (read: completely made up) weapons, as they fill different roles. (E.g. lasers - accurate, good for sniping; energy weapons - good when you have a good power source to recharge them from, or link directly to; firearms - for when you don't have access to reliable power sources; plasma weapons - short-range, high rate of fire, low penetration, used for CQB).