Laser Weapon Technology and the Star Wars Program

LASER WEAPON TECHNOLOGY AND THE STAR WARS PROGRAM If a nuclear attack were launched on America, it could involve hundreds of missiles carrying thousands of warheads, each travelling at up to 4 miles a second towards targets they would reach within 30 minutes of launch. To protect themselves, the US have therefore developed their Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) or 'Star Wars' program. A major part of this program is to develop lasers that will shoot down enemy missiles within five minutes of launch. If it was left any later than this, then defense becomes much more difficult because the missile releases up to ten seperate warheads and many decoys, greatly increasing the number of targets that have to be hit. Lasers destroy their targets by directing onto them an intense beam of energy which travels at the speed of light - 186,000 miles a second. The simplest method of destruction is to focus a beam of infrared radiation on a missile so that it burns a hole in the rocket casing, causing fuel to escape so stopping the missile from reaching orbit. Another possiblity is directing the beam to disrupt the rocket's electronic guidance system. The US are developing a chemical laser in which hydrogen and fluorine react together to form hydrogen fluoride, which is a corrosive gas or liquid which can be made to release a powerful burst of infrared radiation. The laser is focused and aimed by prisms and mirrors. A chemical laser of sufficient power, at least 25 megawatts, could destroy a missile almost 2,000 miles away. The lasers would attack their targets from battle stations in space, a few hundred miles above the Earth. However, a total of about 100 stations would really be needed to give the US the possibility of complete protection, and getting that many in space would dwarf any previous space project. Just the hydrogen fluoride needed to fuel the lasers would weigh about 2000 tons! Think of the costs for that kind of payload. How would such a project be funded? A possible alternative to that might be to base the lasers on land. The difficulty then though is that the atmosphere would disperse the laser beam, making it impossible to focus on the missile's skin. Putting the lasers on top of high mountains would reduce distortion, obviously because their would be less atmosphere to penetrate. Advanced optical techniques designed to counteract the dispersive effect of the atmosphere may also help. Even so, no more than a tenth of the power of the laser could be expected to reach the target, which means that the lasers fired from Earth would need to be very powerful. They would probably need to have the power of around 400 megawatts each. This is the equivalent electricity consumption of a medium-sized city, and 1000 times more powerful than any laser known to exist today. Mirrors would have to keep the lasers locked onto the missile for several seconds before it would be destroyed. Even if this were achieved, the enemy could probably still defeat the laser by putting a heat shield around the missile or by making it spin so that the beam could not be focused on the same spot long enough to burn a hole. The Star Wars program has also been developing lasers which produce X-rays rather than a beam of light. These X-rays are produced in a single pulse rather than a continuous beam (a pulse laser). The source of the X-rays is a small nuclear explosion. When the pulse of X-rays hits the enemy missile they are absorbed by it's skin, vaporising it and blowing the missile apart. Because X-rays are rapidly absorbed by the atmosphere they would also have to be fired from space when both the laser, and the missile it was attacking, had risen above the atmosphere. This is at least 50 miles above the Earth. The idea is not to station the lasers permanently in space, but to launch them only when satellite observations show that an enemy attack is already under way. The X-ray lasers would be launched from submarines, and would then be quickly boosted into orbit where they would be aimed and fired accordingly and automatically.

Originally posted by AboveTopSecret.com
Even so, no more than a tenth of the power of the laser could be expected to reach the target, which means that the lasers fired from Earth would need to be very powerful. They would probably need to have the power of around 400 megawatts each. This is the equivalent electricity consumption of a medium-sized city, and 1000 times more powerful than any laser known to exist today.

No problem.

hypertextbook.com...

why they can just put it on satellites and boing 747 jets with the current laser the airfoce has now they have already prototypes build one for humvees to protect against artillery shells they also have put it on 747 which can engage a warhead in its boost stage 200 miles away and they are planning to put it on satellites in space.

This star wars programme will be the end of the free world in my oppinion. Once those stations are operational, whose to staop the US, i am all for the US, but i can see this ending badly. it will be impossible to destroy the star wars programme if it gets out of hand. if its able to destroy stuff on earth, and in the sky, and in space, there is nothing it cant destroy. The world will be at the hands of whoever control Star wars.

Originally posted by _Ghostrider_
This star wars programme will be the end of the free world in my oppinion. Once those stations are operational, whose to staop the US, i am all for the US, but i can see this ending badly. it will be impossible to destroy the star wars programme if it gets out of hand. if its able to destroy stuff on earth, and in the sky, and in space, there is nothing it cant destroy. The world will be at the hands of whoever control Star wars.

Good point! The biggest Danger in the whole Star Wars project, is that it is design to undermine the concept of deterrence. By intergrating it into an air defense network, you can (in theory) undermine the ability of any country to retaliate. If you combine that with nuclear weapons, you have trouble! I am American, and I am proud of Most of my nation's haratige(I'm not trying to Brag!) I see Star Wars as a potential Pandora's Box. It is very dangerous, no matter whose hands it's in. Bottom line is this: Don't Open Pandora's Box, unless you Really WANT Trouble!!

Tim
ATS Director of Counter-Ignorance

"Close range only.Due to the atmosphere,even if rarified."2IC
Masers are the way to go,but you are cautioned on this.

Well I think that any star wars program will just encourage rogue nations to put energy into building small briefcase nukes that don't need to be launched..

But the laser system would undoubtedly be veery useful against land targets..

Btw how sensitive is the laser to bad weather? Is it possible to use smoke or something to lessen the effect?

They have had 747 style planes with huge lasers mounted in them for this testing for years, and as far as I know it has been fairly successful so far. Star Wars is just one part of the very large Missle Defense program.

I remember about the US testing lasers since the 60's.Already claimed to have one in service! Ain't heard nuthin since!

These lasers would'nt happen to be blue ,would they?

I believe the plane mounted lasers are very powerful, and not the type that you would see similar to a lazer pointer. I thought this was old news? The gov. has been working with lasers as possible weapons for decades.

The NOVA laser is probably strong enough to ward off any large alien assault vessel coming in at low orbit.

This laser is used for creating fusion, but the military applications exceed those of civilian applications.

I can't imagine what the beam looks like or how large it is.

Is the barrel really 100 yards long?

Shattered OUT...

P.S. any pics?

This star wars programme just triggered an interesting theory in my head, the star wars programme "could" be used to control the world from the heavens, and ones of the things hitler said was that he shall rule from the heavens, hence the birth of the U2 rocket. Whoever can control the heavens control the Earth.

Originally posted by _Ghostrider_
This star wars programme just triggered an interesting theory in my head, the star wars programme "could" be used to control the world from the heavens, and ones of the things hitler said was that he shall rule from the heavens, hence the birth of the U2 rocket. Whoever can control the heavens control the Earth.

U2 Rocket? You mean the U2 Plane? or the V-2 Rocket.

I remember about the US testing lasers since the 60's.Already claimed to have one in service! Ain't heard nuthin since!

Dude just look up the THEL they have a working model in the White Sands missile testing range. It has already shot down Artillery shells and missiles. And its still works. models of this laser will be used in Humvees starting in 2013.

Btw how sensitive is the laser to bad weather? Is it possible to use smoke or something to lessen the effect?

Solid state lasers are not affected by smoke mirrors and they are virtually not affected by the weather that much. If you put them in space they might be affected but the ones here on earth are not affected that much.

Sorry, V2, got very confused, Im sorry Dear Dragon Lady.

Originally posted by WestPoint23


Solid state lasers are not affected by smoke mirrors and they are virtually not affected by the weather that much. If you put them in space they might be affected but the ones here on earth are not affected that much.

How could the laser in space be affected by weather? The main reason why put the lasers on orbit(although it is much more expensive than install them on earth) is that there is no weather AT ALL! No waether, extremly thin or nonexistent atmosphere, nothing. The space lasers are limited only by power input, focusing devices and accuracy.

tsk tsk longbow,
weather will affect the actual beam, as in disperse the beam etc

Originally posted by _Ghostrider_
tsk tsk longbow,
weather will affect the actual beam, as in disperse the beam etc

But I think that some adjustments in freq can be made to compensate. Thats why the navy went with developing a laser that could be tuned. However, I doubt it would compensate for heavy clouds though. High energy physics is not my strong suit. Could you double pulse the bean to clear a path?

Originally posted by _Ghostrider_
tsk tsk longbow,
weather will affect the actual beam, as in disperse the beam etc

How could the bad weather affect the laser stationed in space? I think we are talking about Star wars - shooting down balistic misilles. Now tell me how could a bad weather afect the shotdown of enemy balistic misille by laser stationed let's say 300 km over Earth surface?