DARPA: A Glimpse Of Tomorrow’s Weapons

WNU Editor: From Geopolitical Monitor, a brief summary of future weapon systems from DARPA. The link is here.

The Middle East Is The Battleground To Test Weapons Of The Future

An Iron Dome launcher fires an interceptor rocket near the southern town of Sderot November 15, 2012. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun

A Battleground For Weapons Of The Future -- Reuters

More than a week after a U.S.-Egyptian brokered ceasefire brought a fragile peace to Gaza, military analysts are busily assessing the fighting between Israel and Hamas. Their goal: Apply lessons from the eight-day battle to weaponry still in development.

Israel’s frequent conflicts with its Arab neighbors have historically been proving grounds for the latest in battlefield technology. Arab-Israeli wars inspired the first operational aerial drones, radar-evading stealth warplanes and projectile-defeating armor. All are now staples of the world’s leading militaries.

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My Comment: A good review on weapons research that has developed from Middle Eastern wars.

Emerging Technologies Will Make It Easier For The U.S. Military To Kill You

Global Strike. Photo: Air Force

7 Technologies That Will Make It Easier for the Next President to Hunt and Kill You -- Danger Room

Robotic assassination campaigns directed from the Oval Office. Cyber espionage programs launched at the president's behest. Surveillance on an industrial scale. The White House already has an incredible amount of power to monitor and take out individuals around the globe. But a new wave of technologies, just coming online, could give those powers a substantial upgrade. No matter who wins the election on Tuesday, the next president could have an unprecedented ability to monitor and end lives from the Oval Office.

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My Comment: We have already covered all of these new weapon systems in this blog. But (in my opinion) it is the ability to spot and track targets that will be a game changer on the battlefield. Couple this with precision weapons that can be launched quickly and with deadly results .... there will not be too many places for the enemy to hide.

How 3D Printers Will Revolutionise The Manufacture Of Deadly Weapons

Making Guns In Your Garage: How 3D Printers Will Revolutionise The Manufacture Of Deadly Weapons -- The Telegraph

In the very near future, someone will be killed with a gun not bought from a dealer or a dodgy bloke in a pub, but printed at home in metal and plastic with a 3D printer. The tools necessary to replicate a deadly weapon will soon be affordable to someone toiling away at home. The cost of 3D printers has dropped substantially: models are available for as little as £400. Extremely polished designs such as the MakerBot Replicator 2 and Form Labs Form1 reveal how close the technology is to becoming a mainstream consumer proposition.

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My Comment: The below video explains how this incredible tech works. One can only wonder what future developments will hold.

Fiction May One Day Become Reality

Pentagon: That Fictional Drone From That Unreleased Video Game Sure Looks Cool -- Popular Science

Art imitates life they say, and every now and then life imitates art. Which is only slightly terrifying when the art being imitated is a Call of Duty title and the real-world entity doing the imitating is the Pentagon. A fictional drone from a video game that hasn’t even been released yet has inspired a DoD office to consider pursuing the same drone in real life, Brookings Institute 21st Century Defense Initiative director and all-around drones guru Peter Singer tells Innovation News Daily.

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My Comment: After watching this video, I had only one question. When will our soldiers who are serving in the field going to get this tech.

The U.S. Army Wants A Magic Bullet

Looking to the future: The U.S Army wants small businesses to develop a floating non-lethal bullet

U.S Army Floats The Idea Of A 'Magic Bullet' That Hangs Around In The Air Waiting To Strike -- Daily Mail

It sounds like something from a science fiction film, but soon, a ‘magic bullet’ that floats around in the air waiting for its target could become science fact.

This far-fetched sounding piece of ammunition isn’t designed to kill, though.

Called ‘Nonlethal Warhead for Miniature Organic Precision Munitions’, there isn’t even a prototype yet - but it’s on the U.S Army’s wish list.

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More News On The U.S. Army's Search For A "Magic Bullet"

Army’s ‘Magic Bullet’ Will Hang Out in Midair, But Won’t Kill You -- Danger Room
The Army Is Pushing The Limit With This Insane 'Magic Bullet' -- Business Insider
Army Wants NonLethal 'Magic Bullet' Drone for Soldiers -- Live Science
Soon, ‘magic bullet’ that floats around in mid-air but won’t kill you -- Zee News

US Soldiers Will Soon Be Able To See Through Concrete Walls

MIT Tech Helps U.S. Soldiers See Through Concrete Walls -- FOX News

Invisible tanks, Iron-Man suits, and now x-ray vision?

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are developing an experimental radar system that will allow U.S. troops in combat to see through walls.

In recent tests held at MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory, the radar successfully showed humans moving behind solid concrete.

The researchers’ device is an unassuming array of antenna in two rows — eight receiving elements on top, 13 transmitting ones below — and some computing equipment, all mounted onto a movable cart. But project leader Gregory Charvat and his team believe the technology could have powerful implications for “urban combat situations.”

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More News On How MIT Tech Will help The Military To See Through Walls

MIT tests wall-piercing radar for US soldiers -- MSNBC
MIT researchers devise see-through-wall technology -- CNN
MIT Radar System Can "See" Through Walls -- Daily Tech
MIT radar gives real-time video through concrete walls -- TG Daily
MIT's New Radar Technology Lets You See Through Walls (VIDEO) -- Huffington Post
MIT's X-Ray Vision System Can See Straight Through Concrete Walls -- Popular Science
New radar sees through walls, takes video -- UPI

New Israeli Weapon System Would Guide Combat Troops Toward Source Of Fire

Photo by: IAI

New System Would Guide Combat Troops Toward Source Of Fire -- Jerusalem Post

“Soldier Alert and Response System” in advanced development stages; would provide IDF with superior capability, particularly in urban warfare.

Imagine a battlefield where every soldier can automatically detect the source of gunshots fired in his direction and immediately turn his weapon and engage the enemy.

Israel Aerospace Industries has developed such a system called the “Soldier Alert and Response System,” which employs infrared and electro-optical technology and detects the location of enemy gunfire within a wide area, enabling a fast and effective response.

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My Comment: This JP post is short on details .... but it is still very intriguing.

Reducing The Size And Cost Of Smart Weapons Is Changing The Way Wars Are Fought

US Navy Produces Smart, Cheap 6kg Fire+Forget Missile -- The Register

US military boffins have added cheap "fire and forget" autonomous seeker heads to basic, lightweight dumb rockets of a type which can be fired in large numbers. By seriously reducing the size and cost of smart weapons, this development is yet another big step towards changing the way wars are fought.

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My Comment: The Register is correct ..... this reduction in size and cost of smart weapons is another "big step towards changing the way wars are fought".

Device Lets You See Through Walls

Backpack To The Future: The Device That Lets You See Through Walls (And Is Small Enough To Fit In A Rucksack) -- Daily Mail

* The Prism 200c can see through wood, concrete and bricks
* It is the first device of its kind to be small enough for one person to use

A British company has developed a backpacked-sized machine that lets you see through walls.

The Prism 200c looks through solid objects then displays an image of what is on the other side on a hand-held screen.

It is the first time such a device has been manufactured small enough for just one person to use.

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My Comment: I am sure that the military/special ops/police are looking at this.

Looking At A Possible Sixth-Generation U.S. Fighter

Image: A possible sixth-generation U.S. fighter / Northrop Grumman

Vroom! Boom! -- Time Magazine

No sooner does Defense Secretary Robert Gates succeed in ending production of the Air Force's F-22 fifth-generation jet fighter than the service is off into the wild blue yonder developing its sixth. The so-called Next Generation Tactical Aircraft -- they always begin with boring names before the marketeers get involved and dub them Raptor, the F-22's official nickname, or something equally cool -- should begin flying about 2030. The Air Force's wish-list for its next warplane is included in a new solicitation for the purchase:

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My Comment: I do not see the funds there to even contemplate developing a sixth generation aircraft .... but fund it they probably will. Manufacturing it (and paying for it) .... now that is another story.

Tomorrow’s Weapons Of Doom (Video)

From The Danger Room:

The Army held its annual pageant, known as the Association of the U.S. Army conference, in Washington D.C., last month. For three days, we walked the floor of the cavernous conference hall, checking out the weapons, vehicles and ideas that hundreds of military contractors are developing for the Army — and what futuristic stuff they're trying to pawn off on the nation's ground forces. Whatever these companies come up with, rest assured you're going to be paying for it.

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Smart Bullets/Weapons Are Now Being Tested In Battlefield Conditions

The XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System calculates the range to a target with a push of a button and transfers the data to the electronic fuse built into the 25mm round. When fired, the projectile is designed to explode directly above a target, raining shrapnel down on an enemy crouched behind cover. CHRIS MADDALONI / STAFF

GIs Testing 'Smart' Weapons That Leave Nowhere To Hide -- Stars And Stripes

STUTTGART, Germany — The combat zone just got a little more high-tech as soldiers in Afghanistan began testing and training on five prototype weapons that fire smart bullets.

Army officials are calling the XM25 Counter Defilade Targeting Engagement System revolutionary since it is the first time soldiers will have a smart weapon in their hands. Smart weapons have some form of a processing unit that allows them to be self-guided or, in this case, have self-adjusting sights and programmable rounds.

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My Comment: Memo to the enemy .... you can duck and hide, but our smart bullet will find you.

The Search For Neuroweapons

Controlling the Brain Let's think outside the box National Science Foundation

Air Force Seeks Neuroweapons To Enhance US Airmen's Minds And Confuse Foes -- Popular Science

Intelligent advanced aircraft is one thing, but if the Air Force wants to be in prime warfighting condition, its pilots had better come with advanced weaponry, too. That’s why the Air Force wants neuroweapons that can enhance airmen’s performance, while degrading the mental states of their foes.

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The Army's New Artillery Explosive Could Phase Out TNT Entirely Within A Decade

The M777 Howitzer IMX-101 will replace the TNT in standard 155-millimeter Howitzer artillery shells and could replace TNT in all large caliber munitions within ten years.

From Popular Science:

The U.S. army has enjoyed a long and incendiary relationship with TNT, but the explosive that has provided the pop in everything from artillery shells to demolition munitions could be on its way out. The Army has approved a safer, more stable alternative to replace the TNT in 155-millimeter artillery shells, and engineers at Picatinny Arsenal where it was tested say it could completely replace TNT in Army and Marine munitions within a decade.

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Seven Sci-Fi Weapons From Tomorrow Are Here Today

Seven Sci-Fi Weapons from Tomorrow Are Here Today -- Tech News Daily

Life has been imitating art with a vengeance lately in the field of weaponry. A number of weapons and weapons systems now on active duty or in the prototype stage seem to have been ripped straight out of the overwrought imagination of a sci-fi writer. Here's a trip back to the future to look at some of the latest military and law enforcement hardware.

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How Soldiers Will Soon See Around Corners With New Gun Sights

Super Vision Inventor Matthew Hagerty's SmartSight allows soldiers to accurately shoot around corners. "Fifty percent of kills happen on the corners," he says. John B. Carnett

Invention Awards: A Video Gun Sight That Keeps Soldiers Out of Danger -- Popular Science

A gun sight that lets a shooter hit his target while staying out of harm's way.

Today's featured Invention Award winner is SmartSight, a gun-cam system that lets soldiers see around corners and shoot targets without entering the line of fire.

The Rolling Green hills of Sonora, California, no longer lure prospectors with the promise of gold, but for Matthew Hagerty the draw is just as powerful: They’re a secluded hideaway ideal for perfecting his military invention, called SmartSight. Ten years in the making, SmartSight is a gun-cam system that allows a soldier to see around corners and shoot targets without putting himself in the line of fire.

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My Comment: I would love to test one on a firing range.

Why Conventionally Armed ICBMs Are A Dangerous Development

Non-Nuclear US ICBM Can Strike Iran In 30 Minutes -- Gizmodo

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has made an startling revelation today: The US has long-range missiles armed with high-power-but-non-nuclear explosives ready for a global strike. The (big) problem: China and Russia won't be able to distinguish between nuclear and non-nuclear ICBMs.

This is what Gates said, talking on NBC's Meet the Press:

We have, in addition to the nuclear deterrent today, a couple of things we didn't have in the Soviet days… And we have prompt global strike affording us some conventional alternatives on long-range missiles that we didn't have before.

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My Comment: I made the same observation a week ago .... both Russia and China do not have the capability to ascertain the difference between a nuclear armed ICBM or a non-nuclear one.

As far as they are concerned .... an ICBM is an ICBM, and if launched it would probably be armed with a nuclear warhead. How they would react after such a launch is anyone's guess.

The Mad Scientist Future Technology Seminar Reveals The Weapons For Tomorrow

Image from Front Page

Army Tech Seminar Shows Warfare's Future -- Washington Times

Electromagnetic pulse guns, genetically designed killer diseases and swarms of miniature self-guided missiles — if these sound like the products of a mad scientist, they should. They are among the threats predicted during the U.S. Army's 11th annual Mad Scientist Future Technology Seminar (no, really) in Newport News, Va.

The event, held at the end of January, brought together scientists, science-fiction writers, futurists, academics, students and U.S. officials to brainstorm on ways science and technology might combine in unexpected fashion to challenge U.S. military pre-eminence.

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My comment: The Danger Room has more news on this "seminar" .... Army ‘Mad Scientists’ Study Swarming Mines, Facebook Attacks.

James Carafano also has a good commentary on "when mad science goes to war".

Army's Future Weapon