Three new weapons that could improve the ability of Navy surface ships to defend themselves against enemy missiles—solid state lasers (SSLs), the electromagnetic railgun (EMRG), and the hypervelocity projectile (HVP). Any one of these new weapon technologies, if successfully developed and deployed, might be regarded as a “game changer” for defending Navy surface ships against enemy missiles. If two or three of them are successfully developed and deployed, the result might be considered not just a game changer, but a revolution.
SSLs are being developed by multiple parts of the Department of Defense (DOD), not just the
Navy. SSLs, EMRG, and HVP, moreover, have potential application to military aircraft and
ground forces equipment, not just surface ships. And SSLs, EMRG, and HVP can be used for
missions other than defending against ASCMs and ASBMs.
SSLs, EMRG, and HVP offer a potential for dramatically improving depth of magazine and the
cost exchange ratio:
* Depth of magazine. SSLs are electrically powered, drawing their power from the ship’s overall electrical supply, and can be fired over and over, indefinitely, as long as the SSL continues to work and the ship has fuel to generate electricity. The EMRG’s projectile and the HVP (which are one and the same—see next section) can be stored by the hundreds in a Navy surface ship’s weapon magazine.
* Cost exchange ratio. An SSL can be fired for a marginal cost of less than one dollar per shot (which is the cost of the fuel needed to generate the electricity used in the shot), while the EMRG’s projectile/HVP has an estimated unit procurement cost of about $25,000.
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The laser on the USS Ponce has a reported beam power of 30 kilowatts (kW), which is strong enough to counter small boats and UAVs. As a follow-on effort to LaWS and MLD, the Navy initiated the SSL Technology Maturation (SSL-TM) program, in which industry teams led by BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon are competing to develop a shipboard laser with a beam power of 100 kW to 150 kW, which would provide increased effectiveness against small boats and UAVs. Boosting beam power further—to something like 200 kW or 300 kW—could permit
a laser to counter at least some ASCMs. Improving to several hundred kW, if not one megawatt (MW) or more—could improve a laser’s effectiveness against ASCMs and enable it to counter ASBMs.
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SSLs are being developed by multiple parts of the Department of Defense (DOD), not just the
Navy. SSLs, EMRG, and HVP, moreover, have potential application to military aircraft and
ground forces equipment, not just surface ships. And SSLs, EMRG, and HVP can be used for
missions other than defending against ASCMs and ASBMs.
SSLs, EMRG, and HVP offer a potential for dramatically improving depth of magazine and the
cost exchange ratio:
* Depth of magazine. SSLs are electrically powered, drawing their power from the ship’s overall electrical supply, and can be fired over and over, indefinitely, as long as the SSL continues to work and the ship has fuel to generate electricity. The EMRG’s projectile and the HVP (which are one and the same—see next section) can be stored by the hundreds in a Navy surface ship’s weapon magazine.
* Cost exchange ratio. An SSL can be fired for a marginal cost of less than one dollar per shot (which is the cost of the fuel needed to generate the electricity used in the shot), while the EMRG’s projectile/HVP has an estimated unit procurement cost of about $25,000.
The laser on the USS Ponce has a reported beam power of 30 kilowatts (kW), which is strong enough to counter small boats and UAVs. As a follow-on effort to LaWS and MLD, the Navy initiated the SSL Technology Maturation (SSL-TM) program, in which industry teams led by BAE Systems, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon are competing to develop a shipboard laser with a beam power of 100 kW to 150 kW, which would provide increased effectiveness against small boats and UAVs. Boosting beam power further—to something like 200 kW or 300 kW—could permit
a laser to counter at least some ASCMs. Improving to several hundred kW, if not one megawatt (MW) or more—could improve a laser’s effectiveness against ASCMs and enable it to counter ASBMs.
Read more »
