US Navy shoots down drone with electric-powered laser

[Tbird19482]

The only way to achieve a EMP strong enough to significantly effect America at large would be with a multi-megaton nuclear detonation. If that happens, there’s be a full scale nuclear war on, so EMP would be the least of anyone’s worries.

I am not sure about that.
From all I have read and have been in a hobby ( armature Radio extra class ) that is effected by EMP's from the sun we see where some of the communications can be interrupted
one strong EMP type bomb high over the US could disrupt not only our communications but it would destroy a lot of electronic chips and other electronic parts that run and control most of our comm. and our Electric system , newer cars and trucks will be useless as I said most everything that has electronic chips in it and controls something will be useless.
and it wouldn't have to be that powerful to do a lot of damage
Have a nice day

 

[EnigmaO01]

I am not sure about that.
From all I have read and have been in a hobby ( armature Radio extra class ) that is effected by EMP's from the sun we see where some of the communications can be interrupted
one strong EMP type bomb high over the US could disrupt not only our communications but it would destroy a lot of electronic chips and other electronic parts that run and control most of our comm. and our Electric system , newer cars and trucks will be useless as I said most everything that has electronic chips in it and controls something will be useless.
and it wouldn't have to be that powerful to do a lot of damage
Have a nice day

If one has warning there are things one can do. Did you know just having a metal provides some protection? Or placing susceptable electronics in your microwave (not on of course).

Electromagnetic pulse - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Questerr]

I am not sure about that.
From all I have read and have been in a hobby ( armature Radio extra class ) that is effected by EMP's from the sun we see where some of the communications can be interrupted
one strong EMP type bomb high over the US could disrupt not only our communications but it would destroy a lot of electronic chips and other electronic parts that run and control most of our comm. and our Electric system , newer cars and trucks will be useless as I said most everything that has electronic chips in it and controls something will be useless.
and it wouldn't have to be that powerful to do a lot of damage
Have a nice day

The only way to build an EMP bomb that big is to use a multi megaton nuclear device.

 

[Tbird19482]

If one has warning there are things one can do. Did you know just having a metal provides some protection? Or placing susceptable electronics in your microwave (not on of course).

Electromagnetic pulse - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Yes and I have a Ham radio sitting in an old one that doesn't work just in case
Have a nice day

 

[Tbird19482]

The only way to build an EMP bomb that big is to use a multi megaton nuclear device.

I am not sure if that is true or not
do you have a link with some info?
Have a nice day

 

[PirateMk1]

and now they will have to build a Faraday cage around it so an Electron-Magnetic burst doesn't take out all it's electronics and make it useless
A EMB takes out electronic devices and if they blow one off over this country it will disable most everything electronic
Cell phones will be useless and we will have very little communications our power stations will go down it will be a mess if it happens and things like this will have to have a heavy duty Faraday cage around it to protect it or it will be useless
have a nice day

Depends on how the electronics are set up most warships are pretty emp resistant. It usually has to be a large emp blast nearby for it to be effective enough to take down a the warships electronics permanently.

 

[Dayton3]

I'm always curious as to whether you can actually see the laser in person, or if the beam we see in those pictures is just added for illustration purposes. Does anybody know?

It isn't a real picture. Lasers are all but impossible to see with the naked eye when fired.

 

[LouC]

Just wait until rival militaries invent better cats to chase those lasers

 

[Oozlefinch]

Depends on how the electronics are set up most warships are pretty emp resistant.

As is most military equipment unless it is COTS. That is because most was designed back in the 1980s and before, when that was a real threat.

Although there are other reasons also, because anything that keeps out EMP also keeps in any stray signals that might be monitored or detected by others.

 

[Emily L]

It isn't a real picture. Lasers are all but impossible to see with the naked eye when fired.

Thanks, Dayton. That might be a good thing, because they might need to shoot down something without giving away their exact location.

 

[Dayton3]

Thanks, Dayton. That might be a good thing, because they might need to shoot down something without giving away their exact location.

Not being able to see with the naked eye in no way means they can't be detected.

Just as though they are invisible try walking out a doorway at a store with a security system in place.

 

[Emily L]

Not being able to see with the naked eye in no way means they can't be detected.

Just as though they are invisible try walking out a doorway at a store with a security system in place.

Yes, I see what you mean. (Or maybe I don't see what you mean. )

 

[Goshin]

My "cool beans" comment would turn into a 'fried beans' comment then. I actually was wondering about something happening like you described but figured that the inventor/maker of this laser beam would have that covered but one never knows unless holding the operating manual in one's hands.

There are actually more convenient ways to protect from EMP than Faraday cages, and I'm told they're in fairly common use to "harden" military electronics.

 

[Dayton3]

There are actually more convenient ways to protect from EMP than Faraday cages, and I'm told they're in fairly common use to "harden" military electronics.

One of the easiest ways is to simply use electronics based on vacuum tubes. Vacuum tubes are on average about 1,000 times more resistant to EMP than more modern electronics.

And though they are of course bulkier and slower than modern electronics as recently as the 1980s, most of the air traffic control systems in the U.S. used vacuum tubes in their systems. Not out of a desire to harden against EMP but due to government inertia in modernization.

 

[Goshin]

One of the easiest ways is to simply use electronics based on vacuum tubes. Vacuum tubes are on average about 1,000 times more resistant to EMP than more modern electronics.

And though they are of course bulkier and slower than modern electronics as recently as the 1980s, most of the air traffic control systems in the U.S. used vacuum tubes in their systems. Not out of a desire to harden against EMP but due to government inertia in modernization.

True, but not necessary. A type of metal-oxide fuse is capable of breaking a circuit fast enough to stop EMP from propagating through a power cable.

 

[Oozlefinch]

There are actually more convenient ways to protect from EMP than Faraday cages, and I'm told they're in fairly common use to "harden" military electronics.

Uhhh, what do you think they do to "harden" military electronics?

They literally build a faraday cage inside of it.

*shakes head slowly*

Case in point, here is a piece of equipment I am very familiar with.

Yes, that is a PAC-3 PATRIOT launcher. Now on the tongue is a generator, it is surrounded by a faraday cage. Look rearward of that and the top "boxes" on that side house the radios and communication equipment. Well, that box is also a faraday cage. On the other side the same box houses all of the electronics to operate the launcher. Yep, faraday cage again.

They operate the same way, they simply made them smaller and build them around the sensitive equipment. I remember having to explain this to people, as they could not comprehend why all of those boxes had gaskets around the doors made of a metal mesh. After all, it did absolutely nothing to keep the rain out, seeing a quarter inch of water inside a door was common actually. But it was not made for that purpose, it was to make a tight conductive shield to keep in and out electro-magnetic interference.

You do not need to put something "inside" of a cage to protect it. You simply build the cage into the design, to protect the critical things. For the generator, that is not actually the entire generator but the electronics that make it work. The rest is just a large diesel engine, that can be left exposed as EMP would not damage it.

 

[Peter]

I don't mean to sound mean but how else would a laser be powered but by electricity?

The dreams of children?

 

[Questerr]

I don't mean to sound mean but how else would a laser be powered but by electricity?

The dreams of children?

All lasers are powered by electricity. What they mean in the OP is that the laser is purely electric instead of relying on a chemical medium to produce the beam.

 

[notquiteright]

No, they do that for dramatic effect. However, if the air contains enough dust particles, or moisture droplets (e.g. fog, mist) then you can actually see the path of the beam by seeing the small part of the beam which is being scattered by particulates in the air.

The fact they can focus a beam of light 6mm in diameter on a moving target, from the randomly pitching and rolling deck of a naval warship is incredible.

Well not so incredible, The ship's actions are not random. Computers and highly responsive reaction time of the gimbaled mountings. What would be a great test is the drone jinking and not coming head-on. Lasers don't require any compensation for range so a head-on attack gives a laser great advantage....

Not ragging, just nice to converse with someone about facts....

 

[Tbird19482]

Depends on how the electronics are set up most warships are pretty emp resistant. It usually has to be a large emp blast nearby for it to be effective enough to take down a the warships electronics permanently.

Yes our military equipment is usually protected against EMP my point was that if they set one off over the US most of our communications will go down and things like the electric grid will also go down and most anything else that is electronic will go down and with this country depending so much on electronics to run things now a days we will be in deep s--t
Not only the electric grid but most of out financial system is computer run and when they go down it will be a big mess
Have a nice day

 

[Oozlefinch]

Yes our military equipment is usually protected against EMP my point was that if they set one off over the US most of our communications will go down and things like the electric grid will also go down and most anything else that is electronic will go down and with this country depending so much on electronics to run things now a days we will be in deep s--t

Actually, that is not true.

It requires a rather large device to create such an event, 1 megaton or larger. Also, this effect does not cover a huge area, only around 1,000 miles.

NEMP is a "boogieman" to a lot of people, and those who fear it generally have no reason to. Not unlike those that scream there are enough nukes to "destroy all life on the plant 100 times over" or some such, they greatly exaggerate the potential damage from one even if it does happen. It will not eliminate most of our communication, it will not take out the entire power grid, or any of the other effects some claim unless dozens were set off. And the only country that could do that is Russia, and I can guarantee they are not going to waste nukes by setting them off in space if there is a real nuclear war on.

 

[Felis Leo]

I noticed that as well but under that picture in the OP, picture was provided by

The Navy shot down a drone using a new electric-powered laser for the first time in February (Picture: Lockheed Martin)

That's one deep large ass lake in NM.

Quemado Lake is pretty good size. Not destroyer good-sized though.

 

[Oozlefinch]

Quemado Lake is pretty good size. Not destroyer good-sized though.

It was not even tested on a lake.

It was tested on USS Desert Ship, LLS-1.

Literally a large building that is roughly in the shape of a ship, built in the 1950's. It of course never moves from the White Sands Missile Range, and why there is a modest Naval Detachment at that Army base. Most Nave weapons and defensive systems are tested there before being actually deployed onto ships.

 

[Bodi]

My "cool beans" comment would turn into a 'fried beans' comment then. I actually was wondering about something happening like you described but figured that the inventor/maker of this laser beam would have that covered but one never knows unless holding the operating manual in one's hands.

The Captain of that ship is far more worried about missiles than Electro Magnetic Bursts.

 

[Bodi]

It was not even tested on a lake.

It was tested on USS Desert Ship, LLS-1.

Literally a large building that is roughly in the shape of a ship, built in the 1950's. It of course never moves from the White Sands Missile Range, and why there is a modest Naval Detachment at that Army base. Most Nave weapons and defensive systems are tested there before being actually deployed onto ships.

That ship is made of concrete... not ideal for sailing on an ocean.