SKIRMISHER

This news bit on some new-fangled railgun is so brimming with enthusiasm, it makes destroying enemy objects and killing people seem like a lot of fun.

A demonstration of the futuristic and comparatively inexpensive weapon yesterday at the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Dahlgren had Navy brass smiling.

The weapon, which was successfully tested in October at the King George County base, fires nonexplosive projectiles at incredible speeds, using electricity rather than gun powder.

The technology could increase the striking range of U.S. Navy ships more than tenfold by the year 2020.

“It’s pretty amazing capability, and it went off without a hitch,” said Capt. Joseph McGettigan, commander of NSWC Dahlgren Division.

“The biggest thing is it’s real–not just something on the drawing board,” he said.

…

The projectile fired yesterday weighed only 3.2 kilograms and had no warhead. Future railgun ordnance won’t be large and heavy, either, but will deliver the punch of a Tomahawk cruise missile because of the immense speed of the projectile at impact.

Garnett compared that force to hitting a target with a Ford Taurus at 380 mph. “It will take out a building,” he said.

Warheads aren’t needed because of the massive force of impact.

Isn’t it exciting?

via DIGG

Stumble it!