Posted on 03/23/2017 4:42:09 AM PDT by simpson96
(full article title: US military tests new 'game-changer' electromagnetic railgun that can fire projectiles from ships at 4,500mph)
The US military are in the process of testing a new electromagnetic gun that can fire ammo at 4,500mph.
The Navy have developed a weapon that will use a ship's self-generated power to fire at long-range targets.
This means that the electromagnetic railgun launcher uses electricity instead of chemical propellants.
Magnetic fields created by high electrical currents accelerate a sliding metal conductor, or armature, between two rails to launch projectiles at 4,500mph.
The railgun is powered by electricity that has been generated by the ship and stored in a 'pulse power system'.
Next, an electric pulse is sent to the railgun, creating an electromagnetic force accelerating the projectile up to Mach 6.
Using its extreme speed on impact, the kinetic energy warhead eliminates the hazards of high explosives being kept on the ship, and on land, reduces the chance of unexploded bombs which could potentially be detonated.
According to the Office of Naval Research : "The railgun is a true warfighter game changer.
"Wide-area coverage and exceptionally quick response will extend the reach and lethality of ships armed with this technology."
(Excerpt) Read more at mirror.co.uk ...
Since modern anti-ship missiles are commonly capable of violent evasive maneuvering prior to impact, I doubt this gun can do much to them.
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Missiles are able to Maneuver quite a bit but movements take time. These projectiles travel at 1-1/2 miles per second or there-abouts, so when the missile sees it from two miles out it has about 1/2 second to decide what to do and get it done before being hit. As much mass as a missile is it can't move that fast in changing course. By the time the onboard computer gets the message to the control mechanism the slug will have already hit it.
It is simply hard for a person to conceive just how fast these rail gun slugs are.
You don’t need a boat. Build your own portable rail gun.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/a17823/diy-portable-railgun-reddit/
In “gun” vernacular, 4500 mph is about 6600 fps.
They can’t even get the chemburner Advanced Gun System to work, and they are going MOAR transformative?
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