Boeing's advanced tactical laser (ATL) tested

[Deleted member 651465]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/10/02/atl_test_vid/

Did a search and couldn't find anything, but this thing looks epic

 

[Dano]

epic? looks like it managed to burn the paint and that's it.

 

[Biohazard]

^ I'm sure they will get it to kick up a gear soon enough.

Great.

So we've got to look forward to law enforcement lasers from the skies in years to come!

That could be useful, but satellite would be better than a transport plane.

 

[Tefal]

That could be useful, but satellite would be better than a transport plane.

I think the beam diffusing and attenuation due to the atmosphere would scupper that.

 

[Vulcan]

That could be useful, but satellite would be better than a transport plane.

That would be illegal.

 

[Dj_Jestar]

Meh. I can see the next generation of armor already.. a mirror.

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Actually, if they fitted a speaker and played a "pew pew" sound when firing I couldn't care where they put it

 

[Tefal]

Frankly, I'm completely and utterly against the weaponisation of space. It's the last frontier we have and I'd hate any eventual colonization or exploration to be poisoned by weapons. It's screwed up enough down here.

GPS guides missiles.

Spy satellites find targets.

Space is already weaponised.

 

[markweatherill]

I hope it makes a suitably cool sound effect.

 

[meghatronic]

That would be illegal.

Not quite as clear cut. Only weapons of mass destruction are prohibited by the Outer Space Treaty and the SALT II treaty.

Lasers and kinetic bombardment are a current grey area.

 

[Le_Petit_Lapin]

Frankly, I'm completely and utterly against the weaponisation of space. It's the last frontier we have and I'd hate any eventual colonization or exploration to be poisoned by weapons. It's screwed up enough down here.

Fat chance of that happening.

 

[Rich_L]

Can you fit it to a shark?

If not back to the drawing board tbh

 

[Vulcan]

Not quite as clear cut. Only weapons of mass destruction are prohibited by the Outer Space Treaty and the SALT II treaty.

Lasers and kinetic bombardment are a current grey area.

Reading up, you're right.

Bring on the lasers!

 

[meghatronic]

Reading up, you're right.

Bring on the lasers!

Kinetic bombardment is interesting. There was a plan to just have tungsten rods aboard satellites that "dropped" to the Earth.

Plus I like the Nazi "sun god" (sun gun?) plan - which was basically a massive orbital mirror to burn cities to the ground.

 

[PapaLazaru]

Can you fit it to a shark?

Meh, beat me to it

 

[Cosimo]

Did a search and couldn't find anything, but this thing looks epic

Are you surprised, it's as epic as sticking a burning sparkler into a newspaper.

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Are you surprised, it's as epic as sticking a burning sparkler into a newspaper.

What are you talking about? Sparklers rule

 

[peetee]

never got the whole idea of this, planes wobble and what not, its going to be fairly useless at range in the air.
Same as the whole railgun on a destroyer in transformers 2.. what about the waves? meh.