The interesting part about this laser is obviously its purpose - i mean, what damage can this laser do, that a air to ground missile can't? The keyword is "Plausible Deniability"
There are three parts who wants to know about an attack: The attacker, the attacked and the public.
When you use a big fucking laser at something, I'm pretty sure both the attacker and the attacker notices it - no denying there. That leaves the public as the only ones you can plausibly deny it happened to.
...wonderful... a weapon US can use whenever they don't want the public to know they did it. Just when did the US military forget they're the good guys?
Missiles can't travel at the speed of light. The answer to your questions isn't only what can lasers do missiles can't, but, most importantly, WHEN.
The attacked do not notice they've been targeted by a laser because they don't see it. The movies propagate the mistake that lasers are visible to those as straight lines of light. You acutally only see the "dot" of the laser on the target; just like your laser pointer. Plus, some lasers operate in the non-visible spectrum, so, even the dot's invisible. The attacked don't see the laser, they just blow up instantaneously.
Those developing and operating these energy systems ARE the good guys, and they know it. Too many of our enemies kill civilians in their attack. We spend our hard earned dollars mitigating such collateral damage. The enemies do not. In fact, their very goal is to kill innocents.
Believe me, when this becomes operational in the theater of engagement, we will want it to be known we can do this. A good defense is a great offense.
A laser of such intensity will make a visible plasma along its path you know, this isn't a $2 laserpointer, and in fact even then, if a simple laserpointer is powerful enough, or it's one of those green ones, you can see the line because of the dust and water particles in the air.
The Triumph proved to be one of the better looking and performing pre-paid handsets we'd had the pleasure of holding in our sweaty mitts, but we had one major hangup: the name.
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The interesting part about this laser is obviously its purpose - i mean, what damage can this laser do, that a air to ground missile can't? The keyword is "Plausible Deniability"
Just take a look at page 7 of this briefing:
http://www.nmoia.org/images/NMOPTICS_Briefing_a.ppt
There are three parts who wants to know about an attack:
The attacker, the attacked and the public.
When you use a big fucking laser at something, I'm pretty sure both the attacker and the attacker notices it - no denying there. That leaves the public as the only ones you can plausibly deny it happened to.
...wonderful... a weapon US can use whenever they don't want the public to know they did it. Just when did the US military forget they're the good guys?
Yessss!!! now the US military can go attack all those schools and playgrounds without the damn international media finding out.
Hmmm, what can a LASER do that conventional EXPLOSIVE ordnance can't ... I wonder ... Maybe not BLOW UP limiting collateral damage?
Fair, a laser has uses - but that's still besides the point that an offical paper states that the "problems solved" are:
Technology wins wars
Precision
Speed of Light
Collateral Damage
Plausible Deniability
Lethal to Non-lethal
Reduce Manpower Density
Plausible Deniability... "problem solved, guys."
Wait, how could the US deny it was them that used the laser on the target?
I mean who else has a laser attached to an airplane?
Missiles can't travel at the speed of light. The answer to your questions isn't only what can lasers do missiles can't, but, most importantly, WHEN.
The attacked do not notice they've been targeted by a laser because they don't see it. The movies propagate the mistake that lasers are visible to those as straight lines of light. You acutally only see the "dot" of the laser on the target; just like your laser pointer. Plus, some lasers operate in the non-visible spectrum, so, even the dot's invisible. The attacked don't see the laser, they just blow up instantaneously.
Those developing and operating these energy systems ARE the good guys, and they know it. Too many of our enemies kill civilians in their attack. We spend our hard earned dollars mitigating such collateral damage. The enemies do not. In fact, their very goal is to kill innocents.
Believe me, when this becomes operational in the theater of engagement, we will want it to be known we can do this. A good defense is a great offense.
A laser of such intensity will make a visible plasma along its path you know, this isn't a $2 laserpointer, and in fact even then, if a simple laserpointer is powerful enough, or it's one of those green ones, you can see the line because of the dust and water particles in the air.
@dcavalie
Who are you to say they are the good guys? NO ONE holding a weapon is a good guy.