Army to test microwave weapon in New Mexico

[Judi Lynn]

Source: The Albuquerque Journal

https://www.stripes.com/polopoly_fs/1.469386.1495254655!/image/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_900/image.jpg


By KEVIN ROBINSON-AVILA | The Albuquerque Journal (Tribune News Service) | Published: May 20, 2017


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base has turned its massive MaxPower microwave defense system over to the Army for new rounds of research and development.

The system, which the AFRL built to destroy improvised explosive devices, will now be housed at New Mexico Tech’s Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center near Socorro. The center, which includes a 40-square-mile field laboratory in the mountains adjacent to the university, has been used for explosives research and testing by NM Tech for government and private clients for more than 60 years.

The Army’s Armament, Research, Development and Engineering Center took over the MaxPower program this week.

The system packs a full gigawatt of concentrated electromagnetic power into an armored truck. That’s one billion times the power of an average home microwave oven, allowing the vehicle to instantly destroy IEDs as it cruises through battle zones.

Read more: https://www.stripes.com/news/us/army-to-test-microwave-weapon-in-new-mexico-1.469385#.WR_NemjyvIU

[Rollo]

1. Plus, it can take photos inside kitchens hundreds of miles away...

[murielm99]

2. Does it listen in on conversations?

Remember, Obama has one of those.

[gldstwmn]

3. Is that where Kookyanne is? N/t

[burrowowl]

6. Maybe

[kristopher]

4. 4 words

North Korean missile failures?

[Thor_MN]

8. Seriously? Physics says that a ridiculous notion.

Electromagnetic radiation, including microwaves, obey an inverse square law. Double the distance and the target gets one fourth of the energy. So a device that could detonate an IED from, say, 100 feet would only put 1 two thousand, eight hundredth (1/2787th) the energy into a similar sized object a mile away. Consider how to get a truck sized device within a mile of a North Korean missile and the realities will become apparent.

In 4 words. Missiles? No freaking way.

[kristopher]

10. That is what the entire program was developed to do -

shoot down missiles. They used to have it mounted in a modified C-135 and it was workable at considerable distance. The challenges at the time (1981) were tied to aiming and holding the beam on a target for a duration long enough to effect destruction. Given the advances in computer technology I doubt that is a problem today.

[hack89]

13. You are thinking about the Airborne Laser system

This is not a laser.

[kristopher]

18. The version of the system I saw was a "maser"

I received a pretty comprehensive briefing from the project manager as part of my duties at Kirkland AFB, it was a maser that I was briefed on.

[Igel]

15. Illuminence--light--follows the same law.

And yet lasers.

Microwaves are just long-wavelength "light". In fact, there are masers. Microwave lasers, if you will.

If they have a point microwave source and let it freely emit in all direction, you're right.

If they focus it, then it's focused.

[Thor_MN]

17. Yeah, you really ought to do some reading...

Here's something to start you off.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/first-practical-maser-microwave-laser-is-built/

[eggplant]

5. They're hoping to increase its power levels to 1.21 gigawatts.

And shrink it down to fit into a Delorean.

[Quemado]

7. Kellyanne onsite in NM:

[link:|

[HAB911]

9. How long before local law enforcement has this?

[Blues Heron]

11. great for heating up leftovers in .000000000001 sec.

BTW that's our healthcare/infrastructure/schools money they're wasting on this BS

[EX500rider]

19. ".... money they're wasting on this BS"

US troops who have to run convoys thru IED zones in future wars may disagree.

[Blues Heron]

23. Oh great future wars

I don't think so. It's BS, and yes, it's a theft of your money.

[EX500rider]

24. Expecting a completely war free future are you?

How is protecting US troops from IED's "BS"?

[Blues Heron]

25. Here comes the 101st Chairborne

Bang Bang club is in tha house! You guys are going down. Buh bye

[EX500rider]

27. Some prefer our troops have protection from IED's...some don't...

[Blues Heron]

28. you guys have had decades to get the job done

But you want to keep it going. Time to bring them home. You're making matters worse. You bang bang boys are a plague on this planet.

[EX500rider]

30. So if I want IED protection for US troops I am a "plague on this planet"?

lol, if u say so...

[mwooldri]

12. I misread the headline...

"Army to test microwave popcorn in New Mexico".

I think this would be a more delicious alternative.

[They_Live]

21. And I misread it as

"microwave oven". Then I checked the source, and tried reading again.

[Sunlei]

14. There goes 1,000 new hospitals for Americans.

[guillaumeb]

26. Echoes of Dwight Eisenhower.

The last GOP candidate who ran an honest campaign.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

16. Correction...

"The system packs a full gigawatt of concentrated electromagnetic power into an armored truck. That’s one billion times the power of an average home microwave oven..."

A gigawatt is 1 billion watts (1,000,000,000). The average microwave oven is 1 kilowatt (1,000). The power ratio between those two would be 1 million (1,000,000 or a megawatt).

[bigtime]

20. i hope

i hope it fires scalding-hot burritos

[Adrahil]

22. Hot pockets. Way more dangerous!

[Archae]

29. I'd gladly see this developed than any more go into the F-35 hangar queen...

The more I read about the F-35, the more it looks like the 1930's planes we went into WW2 with.

Junk that was easily shot down.