Laser weapons
May 21, 2021
Light amplification by stimulation of electromagnetic radiation. My first exposure to lasers, no play on words, was the laser pointer for the classroom.
Consumer laser tools have replaced contractor’s levels and chalk lines and lasers soon found use in the military, pinpointing the delivery of missiles, bombs, and personnel weapon rounds. Advances in miniaturization will allow lasers with destructive power to be used as weapons. Mounted to a tank, they will eliminate ammunition and onboard generators will theoretically provide an unlimited number of shots. As a defensive weapon, they could replace missiles such as those used in Israel’s “Iron Dome,” utilized effectively in the on-going conflict.
Since lasers travel at the speed of light, they are difficult to dodge, making the defense of them require Star Wars technology, such as the deflector shields deployed by The Millennium Falcon.
Would the laser disable a missile by frying electronics, damaging aerodynamics, or exploding warheads? The answer is all the above. To be effective, the laser cannon will produce enough energy in one stream to heat the target to the point that it fails or explodes. Obviously, a guided missile at high-speed coming at you will be hard to target. That’s where artificial intelligence and computer technology will take the gunsight out of the equation.
The drawbacks are that lasers start losing strength the farther they travel and can be disrupted by water vapor or smoke. Laser weapons will become the go-to as humans continue to develop new ways to kill one another.
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