New Navy laser gun is a steel burner

William Atkins
Saturday, 19 February 2011 23:40

Science - Energy

The U.S. Navy and Jefferson Lab are teaming up in the development of a new type of laser that is so powerful it can burn through 200 feet of steel in one second. It now holds a new record in sustained voltage capacity.

The U.S. Navy's 'laser gun' produces so much energy that it has the ability to input a sustained voltage of 500 kilovolts (kV).

And, it is able to burn through 200 feet of steel in a matter of one tiny second.

So far it has run for a total of eight hours, but only at an output level of 14 kilowatts (kW).

So far, the Navy's laser has sustained a voltage of 500 kV with the use of a particle accelerator for eight hours.

This amount of voltage capacity is a new record in the amount of power input into such a device in order to develop the most powerful and precise laser beam. The old input record was 320 kilovolts (kV).

The U.S. Navy states that the laser needs to run with a power (output) level of 100 kilowatts (kW) to be a viable weapon. So, its 14 kW level is yet to be considered a laser weapon.

However, personnel working with the laser gun say that the ultimate output goal is to reach 1 megawatts (MW), or 1,000 kilowatts (kW).

The new laser gun has the ability to shoot cruise missiles out of the sky in a matter of seconds with an accuracy that is unprecedented with past technologies.

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