Active Denial System by 2010

[Dr Mordrid]

Reuters article....

MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Georgia, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Defense Department on Wednesday unveiled what it called a revolutionary heat-beaming weapon that could be used to control mobs or repel foes in conflicts like Iraq and Afghanistan.

The so-called Active Denial System causes an intense burning sensation causing people to run for cover, but no lasting harm, officials said.

"This is a breakthrough technology that's going to give our forces a capability they don't now have," Theodore Barna, an assistant deputy undersecretary of defense for advanced systems and concepts, told Reuters. "We expect the services to add it to their tool kit. And that could happen as early as 2010."

The weapon, mounted on a Humvee, uses a large rectangular dish antenna to direct an invisible beam toward a target. It includes a high-voltage power unit and beam-generating equipment and is effective at more than 500 meters.
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The weapon was shown off publicly for the first time at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia, where it has been undergoing operational tests by the 820th Security Forces Group, which protects Air Force assets.

The directorate invited reporters to be zapped as part of what its spokeswoman, Marine Maj. Sarah Fullwood, called an effort to "demystify" the technology at issue.
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The burning sensation is achieved by high-power energy waves that heat the skin to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. The pain ended as soon as the target jumped from the line of fire.
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[the main lobe]

Rats, some good sunblock isn't going to help much. According to wikipedia they are using a frequency of 95 GHz. This means that the wavelength is 3mm. Sixty times longer wavelength than what the sunscreen is meant to protect against.

[DGhost]

i prefer supressive fire, but thats just me.

[Sasq]

I just want to know, why they couldn't make something that super cools things at 500m

It would be just the thing for cooling the tinnies after a hard day in the trenches.

[Dr Mordrid]

It works by directly heating the pain neurons in the skin.

To cool you'd have to use high intensity sound from at least 2 directions, a process patented by Ben & Jerry's ice cream co. for refrigeration units

[Fat Tone]

Isn't this really old? I thought it was on TV well over a decade ago.

[RedRed]

This was discussed over a year ago here - but it was a proposal at the time.

Supressive fire is sensible - even at 500 meters, a hummer is reasonably sized target. A big freaken dish on top makes it the one to go for. I would not want to be the driver

To repel talibhan, live rounds only....

Its OK to do it for crowd control where you dont expect people to start shooting at you (like perhaps civil unrest)

[Dr Mordrid]

A retired General was on the NEWS todsy talking about this. he said this is just the start. To come;

1. much smaller units. Typical size shrink associated with new tech.

2. units on UAV's with wide-area targeting.

3. units with "kill" settings.

4. units capable of blowing/disabling incoming warheads

Another source noted that the recent announcement of a power cell that has the capabilities of both an ultra-capacitor on steroids and the endurance of a battery;

http://www.technologyreview.com/Biztech/18086/

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the company's system claims a specific energy of about 280 watt hours per kilogram, compared with around 120 watt hours per kilogram for lithium-ion and 32 watt hours per kilogram for lead-acid gel batteries. This leads to new possibilities for electric vehicles and other applications, including for the military.

"It's really tuned to the electronics we attach to it," explains Weir. "We can go all the way down from pacemakers to locomotives and direct-energy weapons."

The trick is to modify the composition of the barium-titanate powders to allow for a thousandfold increase in ultracapacitor voltage--in the range of 1,200 to 3,500 volts, and possibly much higher.
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Apply this cell to a man-portable unit and....

Phasers anyone?

[MultimediaMan]

At that freqency, someone with an aluminized mylar suit should be relatively well-protected, I would think...probably won't you do much good as it melts the plastic to your body....but, given some time, a countermeasure could be devised.

A countermeasure might be as simple as directing the beam back at the projector.

[Wombat]

i prefer supressive fire, but thats just me.

Yeah, but so far, even Bush wouldn't use supressive fire at American demonstrations. However, I would not be surprised to see ADS aimed at protestors at the next WTO or RNC conventions.

[NetSnake]

A retired General was on the NEWS todsy talking about this. he said this is just the start. To come;

1. much smaller units. Typical size shrink associated with new tech.

2. units on UAV's with wide-area targeting.

3. units with "kill" settings.

4. units capable of blowing/disabling incoming warheads

Another source noted that the recent announcement of a power cell that has the capabilities of both an ultra-capacitor on steroids and the endurance of a battery;

http://www.technologyreview.com/Biztech/18086/

Apply this cell to a man-portable unit and....

Phasers anyone?

I wonder if they can make it small enough to become the next-gen of "pepper sprays" (Fry Spray?)

[Dr Mordrid]

Sure would work better.

One zap and the race to the doors would be on.

[az]

They should ask me! I can do lots of denial in a brain smaller than the size of my head!

[Wulfman]

people in a car would be protected if they stay out of sight ("behind metal"), right?

mfg
wulfman

[Dr Mordrid]

Not totally. The beam should pass through non-metallized glass & hit their upper bodies.

Saw another tech that can deliver a directed EMP that would fry a cars electronics.

Put 'em in one box & the cops might be interested.