[LINK] o/t Laser Weapon

[Paul Bolger]

Of course the major problem with using a laser to shoot down a missile is
that anything you happen to hit in front of, or behind the actual target
also gets destroyed. I can just see the news of first passenger aircraft
being accidentally shot down from 200km away.

On 21/01/2011 11:29 PM, <stephen at melbpc.org.au> wrote:
> Key Piece Of Laser Weapon Built
>
> By Jesse Emspak, Jan 20, 2011.
> <http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/103271/20110120/key-piece-of-laser-
> weapon-built.htm>
>
> Scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratories have developed an electron
> injector that is the key to developing a true laser weapon system.
>
> --
> Scientists at Los Alamos National Lab have built a key component to
> battlefield lasers that could arm U.S. navy ships by the end of the
> decade.
>
> As part of the Office of Naval Research, "Free Electron Laser" (FEL)
> program, the scientists demonstrated a device called an injector that
> produces the electrons needed to generate megawatt-class laser beams.
>
> In a free electron laser, electrons are accelerated to high speeds
> through an array of magnets, called an undulator. The magnets "wiggle"
> the electrons so fast that they produce laser light pulses.
>
> Two big problems in building such lasers have been getting the electrons
> into the system, and maintaining the power levels to produce lasers with
> power levels necessary to destroy targets.
>
> One advantage of FELs is that they are tunable - the power and frequency
> can both be adjusted. This allows for changing the laser to fit different
> situations.
>
> Quentin Saulter, FEL program manager, said that the research is necessary
> for the Department of the Navy to one day deploy the megawatt-class FEL
> weapon system.
>
> "The FEL is expected to provide future U.S. Naval forces with a near-
> instantaneous laser ship defense in any maritime environment throughout
> the world," he said.
>
> The FEL project began as a basic science and technology program in the
> 1980s and matured into a working 14-kilowatt prototype. ONR hopes to test
> the FEL in a maritime environment as early as 2018.
>
> --
>
> Cheers,
> Stephen
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