Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




RAY GUNS
Anti-aircraft laser weapon demonstrated
by Staff Writers
Dusseldorf, Germany (UPI) Jan 10, 2013


disclaimer: image is for illustration purposes only

A German defense company has demonstrated a laser weapon it says successfully shot down two drone aircraft at a distance of a mile.

Rheinmetall Defense said the high-energy system using two lasers has also been used to cut through a steel girder almost two-thirds of a mile away, the BBC reported.

The laser weapons system, with a power output of 50 kilowatts, used a combination of radar and optical systems to detect and track two incoming drones, the company said.

Radar provided an approximate location of the targets, it said, then the optical system took over to pinpoint the drone's position.

Rheinmetall said it plans to make the laser system mobile and it testing it mounted on a number of vehicles.

Weapons based on lasers are being developed by a number of countries, and U.S. company Raytheon introduced a 50 kilowatt anti-aircraft system at the Farnborough Airshow in 2010, which has also successfully downed unmanned aircraft in tests.

.


Related Links
Learn about laser weapon technology at SpaceWar.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








RAY GUNS
Boeing High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator Advances to High-power Testing
Albuquerque NM (SPX) Oct 09, 2012
Under a follow-on contractual effort from the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC), Boeing will continue developing a truck-mounted directed energy system that improves warfighters' ability to counter rockets, artillery, mortars and unmanned aerial threats. Under the High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator (HEL MD) Phase II High-Power Testing follow-on contract, Boeing will inc ... read more


RAY GUNS
Mission would drag asteroid to the moon

Russia designs manned lunar spacecraft

GRAIL Lunar Impact Site Named for Astronaut Sally Ride

NASA probes crash into the moon

RAY GUNS
Mars One announces requirements for Red Planet colonists

Opportunity Heading Toward Light-Toned Veins

Bacteria In Rio Tinto Could Be Like Those On Mars

Mars500 project - salt balance of the Mars 'astronauts'

RAY GUNS
AXE to Send 22 Guys to Space with New Apollo Campaign

IBM tops as tech titans scramble for US patents

Chinese tech firms pump up volume at CES

High fashion, high tech intersect at CES confab

RAY GUNS
Mr Xi in Space

China plans manned space launch in 2013: state media

China to launch manned spacecraft

Tiangong 1 Parked And Waiting As Shenzhou 10 Mission Prep Continues

RAY GUNS
Crew Wraps Up Robonaut Testing

Station Crew Ringing in New Year

Expedition 34 Ready to Ring in New Year

New ISS crew docked at Space Station

RAY GUNS
Roscosmos Releases Report On Proton Launch Anomaly

Russia plans replacement for Soyuz rocket

Arianespace's industry leadership will continue with 12 launcher family missions planned in 2013

Arianespace addresses The Insurance Institute of London

RAY GUNS
Earth-size planets common in galaxy

NASA's Hubble Reveals Rogue Planetary Orbit For Fomalhaut B

NASA, ESA Telescopes Find Evidence for Asteroid Belt Around Vega

Kepler Gets a Little Help From Its Friends

RAY GUNS
Study reveals ordinary glass's extraordinary properties

Bottom-up approach provides first characterization of pyroelectric nanomaterials

Chemical modules that mimic predator-prey and other behaviors

Government funding for 'super-material'




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement