US Achieves Breakthroughs in Laser Weaponization

choi

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William Lawther, US Laser Could Fend off PRC Boats. Taipei Times, Apr 16, 2011 (available now).
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2011/04/16/2003500888

Quote:

"Just three months ago, the US Office of Naval Research issued a statement saying that scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, had perfected a way to generate megawatt laser beams. When developed into a weapon, these beams could shoot down large numbers of incoming missiles at low cost and long before they reached their targets.

"until now, no one has been able to use lasers against ocean targets because the moist sea air can reduce a beam’s power and in effect neutralize it.

My comment:
(a) Geoff S. Fein, MLD Test Moves Navy a Step Closer to Lasers for Ship Self-Defense. Office of Naval Research (ONR), Apr 8, 2011.
http://www.onr.navy.mil/Media-Center/Press-Releases/2011/Maritime-Laser-MLD-Test.aspx
(b) Quotation 1 alludes to
Rob Anastasio, Office of Naval Research Achieves Milestone With Free Electron Laser Program. ONR, Jan 19, 2011.
http://www.onr.navy.mil/Media-Center/Press-Releases/2011/Free-Electron-Laser-Milestone.aspx
(c) Until this, the previous laser tests (on missiles, that is) deployed chemical laser. This time, it is solid-state laser. The difference lies in the way to produce laser.

laser
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser
(section 6.1 Gas lasers[:]
6.1.1 Chemical lasers[,]
6.1.2 Excimer lasers[;]
section 6.2 Solid-state lasers)
(d) Another contrast: The chemical laser has to be housed in Boeing airplane. But it appears solid-state laser is much smaller. Judging from the photo released

Media. Northrop Grumman, undated.
http://www.as.northropgrumman.com/media/index.html
(photo captions: "Models of the U.S. Navy's Maritime Laser Demonstration system, designed and built by Northrop Grumman Corp")
(e) US contemplated an airborne laser (ABL) test on a missile, in last January--around the time defense secretary Robert Gates visited China. It was postponed and eventually canceled. I speculated that the project was dead. It turned out the opposite is true.

Nathan Hodge, Flying Laser to Attempt Another Missile Shoot-Down. Jan 10, 2011 (blog).
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/01/10/flying-laser-to-attempt-another-missile-shoot-down/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+wsj/washwire/feed+(WSJ.com:+Washington+Wire)


------------------------------Separately
(1) 俄中海南岛商谈新军火交易项目. VOA Chinese, Apr 15, 2011.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20110415-Russian-President-Visits-in-ChinaNew-Arms-Deals-Talks-119911264.html

(2) 台美关系中的瘦肉精僵局. VOA Chinese, Apr 15, 2011.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20110415-A-Deadlocked-issue-in-Taiwan-US-relation-119907269.html
(台湾淡江大学战略研究所助理教授黄介正: 如果瘦肉精问题处理不当，执政当局在选举时受到很大的责难，这也是政治人物不希望见到的情况)

(3) 美议员：中国把美国视为敌人. VOA Chinese, Apr 14, 2011.
http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20110414-USCC-China-Foreign-Policy-Hearing-119877764.html
(Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (California 46th))

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