US Investing in Laser-Bearing Drone to Protect Against Missile Attacks
Drones will dominate the future of warfare, and the US recognizes their potential. This is the reason it has invested so heavily in the development of advanced drones that are years ahead of their rival nations. The latest in this line are drones that are fitted with lasers which can obliterate enemy missiles.
The Changing Face of Warfare
The US Missile Defense Agency is set to receive $66 million in funding from the government to continue the project which is set to start testing in 2020. The project is known as Low Power Laser Demonstrator and aims to develop lasers that can be attached to drones and which will have the ability to take down a missile in a launch pad. When enough of these laser drones commit, they can even take down a missile shortly after launch.
The project has been under development for quite some time now and the reality of a future in which all fighting shall be done via drones and machines is inching closer by the day. Solid state fiber lasers have made this recent development possible as they can generate a lot of energy to destroy potential threats.
Massive Investment in Drone Research
The Pentagon has invested heavily over the last decade in drone technology. The solid state fiber lasers program has already been contracted out to three major defense companies to come up with their own unique solutions which will then be presented to the Pentagon. The companies are Lockheed Martin, General Atomics and Boeing and whoever is selected will be tasked with coming up with a program that’s ready for testing by 2020.
The Department of Defense has also launched a competition that seeks to come up with new drones. The competition which was launched in January is among many efforts by the government to prepare itself for the future and to be able to protect its citizens and its allies from possible attacks. The end goal is to design autonomous drones that can operate efficiently with little or no assistance from human pilots.
The competition is specifically targeting the design of an autonomous drone that can make quick decisions so as to change directions and avoid obstacles. It seeks to develop platforms that are highly maneuverable which will enable the drones to make fast unaided decisions about their flights. A breakthrough in this technology could help the US military to protect places like Japan and Hawaii from looming North Korean attacks.
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