Naval Electromagnetic Railgun Development

Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13639_3-9863174-42.html

Rail gun uses kinetic energy to deliver Mach 5 wallop

The U.S. Navy is installing an electro-magnetic laboratory rail gun at its Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va., bringing it one step closer to developing a ship-mounted version of this futuristic cannon.

The 32-megajoule weapon appears to be the largest rail gun ever built, according to defense contractor BAE Systems. A joule is what's needed to produce one watt of energy for one second.

It uses a magnetic "rail" instead of a chemical propellant like gunpowder to heave projectiles at Mach 7 for what could be up to 220 miles down range--that's 10 times farther than what contemporary naval guns. The projectile hits at Mach 5, destroying the target with kinetic energy instead of conventional explosives.

Ship building and design are expected to benefit should the new gun prove feasible, mainly because new vessels won't be forced to haul tons of explosives. But while the rail gun uses no gunpowder, it can hardly be called energy efficient. A planned 64-megajoule system would suck around 6 million amps.

In addition to developing new onboard capacitors or pulsed alternators to power the weapon, the Navy must come up with new materials to secure the gun, firing it can dislodge the conducting rails--or even rip the gun barrel apart, according to some reports. The Navy, which has already tested smaller versions, as seen in the video, wants a rail gun onboard a ship as early as 2020.
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
Frequently Asked Questions: Electromagnetic Railgun

http://www.onr.navy.mil/emrg/faqs-electromagnetic-railgun.asp

Frequently Asked Questions: Electromagnetic Railgun

Q1. What is a railgun and how does it work?
A1. An electromagnetic railgun uses electrical energy to accelerate projectiles to extreme velocities. Railguns do not require chemical propellants to fire the round or explosives to create an explosive effect on impact -- thereby freeing magazine space for other mission areas or additional projectiles. The high-velocity kinetic impact of the round is so great that even a solid metal round can have an explosive effect. In addition, electromagnetic guns provide a highly consistent and uniform propulsion that allows for much greater accuracy.

Q2. Why is this technology being pursued by the Navy?
A2. The system has the potential to provide responsive, long-range, accurate, high-volume naval surface fire support to U.S. Marine Corps units. It also is envisioned that railguns will also be able to engage surface targets in direct-fire mode. It is estimated that a railgun will be able to fire 6 to 10 rounds per minute. The railgun will offer numerous advantages over conventional naval gunfire systems. Most important is an extremely long range, which could extend more than 200 nautical miles. The current Mk 45 5-inch/54 naval gunfire system currently used for naval surface fire support has a maximum range of slightly more than 13 nautical miles.

Q3. At what stage is the Navy’s railgun program in development?
A3. The Navy’s railgun program is currently in the science and technology phase of development. The Office of Naval Research (ONR) has program lead at this stage of development.

Q4. Are there any prototypes in development?
A4. BAE Systems and General Atomics are currently under contract with ONR as part of the Innovative Naval Prototype Program. Under this 30-month phase, BAE Systems and General Atoms are taking the state-of-the-art electromagnetic railgun technologies through technology maturation and developing a 32-MJ railgun. Thirty-two megajules is equivalent to a firing speed in the range of Mach 7 or seven times the speed of sound. This will be an intermediate step on the road to a 64-MJ Tactical System capable of deployment on board naval surface combatant ships. Delivery of the BAE system was in September 2007.

Q5. How long before a weapon system is fielded in the fleet?
A5. It is estimated that is would take at least another 15 years to field a viable railgun weapon system in the fleet.

Q6. What are some of the advantages of railguns?
A6. Railguns offer numerous advantages over conventional naval artillery:

* Extended range – Railguns ultimately will be capable of engaging targets at distances in excess of 200 nautical miles. Currently, the Mk 45 5-inch/45 naval gunfire system has a range of slightly more than 13 nautical miles.
* Higher velocity – Railgun rounds will achieve hypersonic speeds in excess of mach 7 (5,550 miles per hour). Railguns can provide more responsive fires than current naval gunfire systems, cruise missiles, or aircraft on strip alert.
* Safer ammunition handling – Without the need for explosive propellants or warheads, there is no danger of accidental explosions during ammunition loading and magazine storage.
* More rounds aboard ship – Because railguns eliminate the need for explosive propellants, logistics for the weapons system is greatly simplified. The additional space can be used for additional rounds or for other uses in the ship. This means a ship can stay on station longer, providing fire support for ground forces ashore.
* High angle of trajectory - Because railguns can fire into the stratosphere, they have a high angle of fire that allows them to engage targets on the reverse slopes of hills and mountains along the gun target line. This is an advantage over current naval surface support systems, which have relatively flat fire trajectories and consequently have a very limited capability to engage targets on reverse slopes in defilade.

Q7. What are the specific technological applications or material that allow railguns to work?
A7. We cannot discuss specific technical details for reasons of national security and classification.

Q8. How do railgun projectiles destroy their targets?
A8. Railgun projectiles destroy targets by kinetic energy only. The tremendous velocity of the round on impact releases enough kinetic energy that explosive rounds are not necessary. This prevents the danger of dud rounds being left in place after a battle that would endanger civilian population after the conflict has ended.

Q9. What is the Navy’s budget for railgun development? How much has it cost already?
A9. The total budget for ONR’s Innovative Naval Prototype railgun program currently is $237 million from FY 06-FY-11.

Q10. What types of targets can the EMRG be deployed against?
A10. Currently, plans call for developing three different rounds for the EMRG: a unitary round for engaging “hard” targets such as prepared positions, bunkers, and buildings; a rod-dispensing round for vehicle targets; and a pellet-dispensing round for personnel targets.

Q11: What are the Navy’s partners on this project?
A11. The primary partners are:

* BAE
* Boeing
* Charles Stark Draper Lab, Inc.
* General Atomics
* Department of Energy (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory)
* U.S. Naval Academy
* Naval Postgraduate School
* Naval Sea Systems Command (PMS 500)
* NAWC -- Rhode Island
* NSWC -- Carderock
* NSWC -- Dahlgren
* The United Kingdom

Q12: Is this system being developed for any specific future naval platform?
A12. No. With the planned timeframe of having a deployable weapon system by 2020-2025, we are working on understanding railgun system impacts for ships of different sizes. Integration could occur on new vessels or by retrofitting on existing platforms.

Q13. What are the major scientific hurdles to making such a weapon possible?
A13. The most important developments that will take place during the lifetime of the railgun Innovative Naval Prototype program fall into four key categories: the materials that will comprise the bore and containment system of the launcher; the projectiles; the pulsed-power network; and ship integration.

Q14. Will the projectile have any internal guidance system?
A14. Yes, the projectile will have a guidance system.

Q15. How does the gun’s power (range/velocity) compare with common weapons used for the same general purpose?
A15. See diagram showing comparison with current and historical naval guns. Compare with SR-71 (mach 3.5 maximum -- 2,500 mph) and launch of the Space Shuttle (two minutes into the ascent, the space shuttle is about 45 kilometers [28 miles] above the earth's surface and is traveling nearly 5000 kilometers per hour [3,000 mph]).

Q16. If, when a railgun fires, an electromagnetic pulse is emitted, how will that affect people and equipment around it?
A16. All DoD and industry-standard safety procedures for electromagnetic radiation are currently in place at our test facilities to protect personnel and equipment. Although it is likely that an operational shipboard system would be unmanned, we are closely monitoring electromagnetic emissions and will continue to do so throughout the life of the program to understand better the effects in a future shipboard environment.

Q17. Without any kind of warhead, how will a non-explosive projectile cause any real damage?
A17. With an impact speed of Mach 5, a projectile will use kinetic energy alone to destroy a target. In essence, damage is caused by the thousands of fragments -- each one of them traveling at lethal velocities -- created by the impact of each projectile.
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
http://www.pennwellblogs.com/mae/2008/01/electromagnetic-railguns-and-high-power.html


Electromagnetic railguns and high-power electronics: you ain't seen nothin' yet

Monday, January 28, 2008

Posted by John Keller

There's just no way to understate the military's future need for high-power electronics. Electric-drive vehicles, all-electric aircraft, and aircraft carrier catapults are just some of the potential applications.

Yet the emergence of electromagnetic railguns has raised the bar dramatically for high-power electronics. The U.S. Navy plans to use these weapons aboard future surface warships to shoot non-explosive shells at a speed of Mach 8 -- eight times the speed of sound, or roughly 6,000 miles per hour.

At that speed you don't need explosives; the kinetic energy alone is enough to make vehicle-size objects disappear in balls of fire. Forget artillery shells and missiles. Fire an electromagnetic railgun at a target 10 miles away and the projectile gets there in less than six seconds. That's not much time to react. You'd never hear it coming; you'd be lucky even to see it.

Now get this: the Navy wants electromagnetic railguns with ranges of hundreds of miles. Shot a target 200 miles away and the projectile gets there in about two minutes. A Harpoon anti-ship missile would take about 22 minutes to fly that far. It's not hard to see how batteries of electromagnetic railguns -- especially those that could fire rapidly -- might be able to overwhelm enemy air defenses very quickly.

Believe this is science fiction? Think again. The Office of Naval Research has taken delivery of a functional, 32-megajoule Electro-Magnetic Laboratory Rail Gun from BAE Systems, and the gun will be demonstrated this week at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va. The Navy envisions 64-megajoule electromagnetic railguns for future shipboard use.

The difficulty of deploying future electromagnetic railguns might not lie in the technology necessary to build these weapons, but in producing the incredibly large amounts of electricity necessary to operate them.

Think of the kind of electromagnetic railgun the Navy wants for future warships. It takes 64 megajoules to shoot it. That's equal to about 18 kilowatt hours, or about the same amount of power an average American household uses in an entire day. Those future warships carrying these kinds of weapons are going to need amazing power plants.

Think of the generators that will be necessary to operate the electromagnetic railgun. This requirement for electricity production is likely to have a profound influence over future ship design.

It looks like the designers of high-power electronics and components have their work cut out for them. Ready or not, industry, the Navy is going to need a lot of electrical power, and very soon. We wouldn't want those electromagnetic rail guns to be all dressed up and have nowhere to plug them in. video

Post a Comment
1 Comments:

Blogger Jim Essig said...
This rail gun is a defense paradigm changing technology.

In theory, the absolute limiting value of electromagnetically launched projectiles is the speed of light or C. Obviously, according to special relativity, attainment of C for a projectile of finite rest mass would require infinite energy input. However given the absolute limits of C and infinite kinetic energy, there is lots of room for electromagnetic gun technology to improve.

Some theories that hold that there are absolute limits to the intensity of electric and magnetic field hold that such fields can achieve a maximum strength of about 10 EXP 55 Volts/meter and about 10 EXP 55 Tesla respectively. At these field levels, one cubic meter of space occupied by such a field would contain an electrical or magnetic energy 10 EXP 30 times greater than the entire mass energy content within the visible universe. Field levels greater than these in a pure vacuum might accordingly cause the vacuum to break down into single magnetic pole particles such as monopoles and perhaps other bazaar entities.

On a much more practical note, electromagnetic guns that would use solenoid highly conducting carbon nanotube materials with tensile strengths exceeding mild grade construction steel by a factor of 60 might enable magnetically propelled hardened steel projectile to reach tens of kilometers per second. The extreme tensile strength of these carbon nanotube materials might permit magnetic field strengths into the hundreds of Teslas in a repeatable manner.

In short, electromagnetic guns are an awesome technology. In a world where enemies of freedom would like to take down the U.S. and its allies, I see no problem morally with developing such systems, improving them, and deploying them. The horrible news about how Alqueda probably conned two innocent mentally retarded Iraqi women to carry bomb vests packed with dynamite and ball bearings which were detonated remotely to kill scores or market goers only reinforces my opinion for our need to keep a technological edge on our ruthless adversaries. We can aim for the ultimate goal of disarmament but even the late great Pope John Paul II said it is not practical nor feasible for the U.S. to disarm unilaterally. Our enemies certainly will not
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
Electromagnetic Railgun | Popular Science

Electromagnetic Railgun
A kinetic missile that flies at mach 7
By Eric Adams Posted 06.01.2004 at 3:25 pm 3 Comments





by John Macneill: Projectiles fired from an electromagnetic railgun will travel up to 290 miles in less than six minutes, exiting the atmosphere before hurling into their target at a velocity of 5,000 feet per second. The force of the impact will obliterate targets without an explosive aid. John Macneill
View Photo Gallery

Picture this: A massive destroyer receives the location coordinates of an enemy headquarters more than 200 miles away. Instead of launching a million-dollar Tomahawk cruise missile, it points a gun barrel in the direction of the target, diverts electric power from the ship’s engine to the gun turret, and launches a 3-foot-long, 40-pound projectile up a set of superconducting rails. The projectile leaves the barrel at hypersonic velocity—Mach 7-plus—exits the Earth’s atmosphere, re-enters under satellite guidance, and lands on the building less than six minutes later; its incredible velocity vaporizes the target with kinetic energy alone.


The U.S. Navy is developing an electromagnetic railgun that will turn destroyers into super-long-range machine guns—able to fire up to a dozen relatively inexpensive projectiles every minute. The Navy is collaborating with the British Ministry of Defence, which has a similar effort under way. In 2003, its facility in Kirkcudbright, Scotland, hosted a 1/8-scale test of an electromagnetic railgun that produced stable flight in a projectile fired out of the barrel at Mach 6. But Capt. Roger McGinnis, program manager for directed energy weapons at Naval Sea Systems Command in Washington, D.C., estimates the U.S. version won’t be “deliverable” until 2015 at the earliest.


The technology behind the electromagnetic railgun has been around for more than 20 years, but early efforts wilted because of the huge power requirements: No ship could generate or store enough electricity to fire the gun. The concept was revived a few years ago when the Navy announced plans for its next-generation battleship, the all-electric DD(X). “In the past, destroyers had 90 percent of their power tied to propulsion,” explains McGinnis. “But with DD(X), you can divert the power to whatever you need. We can stop the ship and fire the railgun as many times as we need, then divert the power back to the screws.”

The barrel of the electromagnetic railgun will contain two parallel conducting rails about 20 feet long, bridged by a sliding armature. In the current design, electric current travels up one rail, crosses the armature, and heads down the second rail. The loop induces a magnetic field that pushes the armature, and the projectile aboard it, up the rails.


The challenges that remain include ensuring that the gun can target enemy sites with precision, and creating equipment that can withstand the gargantuan pressures the gun will create. “Right now, guns are only as accurate as the targeting of the bore, and now we’re talking about 200-plus-mile ranges, so there has to be aerodynamic correction,” says Fred Beach, the assistant program manager for the electromagnetic railgun at Naval Sea Systems Command. The projectile, he says, will receive course correction information from satellites and will steer itself with movable control surfaces. And because the projectile will be subjected to up to 45,000 Gs during firing, the onboard electronics must be strengthened to withstand the acceleration. Forces inside the gun itself—particularly getting the armature to move easily within the system—are also challenging the designers. “Getting two pieces of metal to slide past each other is pretty hard—we’re getting a lot of damage to the rails,” Beach says.


The electromagnetic railgun’s projectiles will cover 290 miles in six minutes—initially traveling 8,200 feet per second and hitting their target at 5,000 feet per second. Current Navy guns, which shoot powder-ignited explosive shells, have a maximum range of 12 miles and, because they are unguided, are difficult to aim. Though guided missiles, the current long-range alternative for destroyers, can achieve ranges comparable to that of the electromagnetic railgun, their cost and storage problems are what’s driving the efforts to find an alternative. Ships can only carry up to 70 guided missiles and must return to port to restock because the missiles cannot be loaded at sea, whereas railgun projectiles can easily be loaded at sea, and by the hundreds. Also appealing is that the electromagnetic railgun’s missiles do not contain volatile explosives; the weapon does its work with kinetic energy.
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
EETimes.com - Navy demos railgun to fire projectiles 250 miles

Navy demos railgun to fire projectiles 250 miles


R. Colin Johnson
EE Times
(02/04/2008 1:48 PM EST)

PORTLAND, Ore. — An electromagnetic catapult, or railgun, is on track for deployment on U.S. warships around 2012, according to the Office of Naval Research (ONR).

A railgun, which uses electricity to magnetically accelerate munitions down a track, shoots metal projectiles that hit targets at supersonic speed. They can also cause more damage than a high-explosive without collateral destruction. With GPS-enabled targeting accuracy of 15 feet, when shot from warships up to 275 miles away, the non-explosive railgun projectiles could also protect Navy personnel without requiring dangerous explosives onboard.

In the Navy's latest test made history with the world's fastest muzzle velocity of 5,637 miles per hour--generating a record 10.6 megajoules of energy (1 joule = 1 watt-second). The test was performed at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (Dahlgren Va.).

In 2009, ONR will decide whether to award contracts for deployment to BAE Systems PLC (Farnborough, U.K.) or General Atomics Technologies Inc. (San Diego) for the railgun. Boeing Co. (Chicago) and Charles Stark Draper Laboratory (Cambridge, Mass.) are vying for the projectile contract.

If the Navy decides to deploy the railgun, it plans to have a final design in place for approval by 2012. Initial prototypes will probably shoot a single projectile, but plans for rapid-fire versions are already on the drawing board.

The final design specification calls for a muzzle velocity of 5,760 mph for a weapon that is capable of launching a projectile in a parabolic ballistic path 94 miles high. It must strike targets within six minutes at 3,840 mph.

Initial tests showed that targets can be obliterated by the kinetic force of the impact with pinpoint accuracy without shrapnel, which is the most common cause of collateral damage when using high-explosive munitions.
 

bengalraider

DFI Technocrat
Ambassador
Joined
Oct 10, 2009
Messages
3,779
Likes
2,666
Country flag
U.S Military forges ahead with railgun program


General Atomics’ Blitzer™ Electromagnetic Railgun Completes Successful First Firing

San Diego, Calif., October 22, 2009. General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems division (GA-EMS) has successfully fired multiple rounds for the first time in a prototype of its new Blitzer™ electromagnetic railgun air defense prototype system. These tests were performed at the US Army Dugway Proving Grounds under a contract with the Office of Naval Research. Testing is scheduled to continue through spring of 2010 and will culminate with the launch of tactically relevant aerodynamic rounds.

Blitzer will provide transformational, leap-ahead air defense capability against a number of threats for both naval and land-based applications. With a muzzle velocity of more than twice that of conventional systems, Blitzer provides significant increases in standoff and lethality at lower cost without the need for propellant or high explosives.

“These tests are an important first step toward demonstrating the viability of a revolutionary technology that will significantly improve the safety and protection of our warfighters at sea and on land,” says GA-EMS Division Vice President R. Scott Forney III. “GA’s internal investment in prototype development of both the energy pulse power system and Blitzer™ electromagnetic railgun continues to demonstrate our commitment to complement our customer’s efforts with transformational electric platform technologies. Confirmation of the electromagnetic design increases confidence in related launcher and all-electric technologies.”

General Atomics is a San Diego-based innovation firm with a 50-year history of successful solutions for environmental, energy, and defense challenges. Affiliated manufacturing and commercial service companies include General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., which produces the Predator® family of unmanned aircraft systems.

For further information, contact:

Tom Hurn
Director, Advanced Weapon Launcher Programs
Electromagnetic System Division
(858) 676-7233
[email protected]

Joel Patton
Director, Advanced Programs and Strategic Development
Electromagnetic Systems Division
(703) 682-6838
[email protected]

Doug Fouquet
Public Relations
(858) 455-2173
[email protected]

For high resolution photo, contact:
Nancy Hitchcox
Marketing Communications Manager
Advanced Technologies Group
(858) 455-3951
[email protected]
 

bengalraider

DFI Technocrat
Ambassador
Joined
Oct 10, 2009
Messages
3,779
Likes
2,666
Country flag
The Bae gun




World's Most Powerful Rail Gun Delivered to Navy
Popular Mechanics | Erik Sofge | January 25, 2008
For true sci-fi fans, any mention of a real-world rail gun will draw an instant, slightly audible gasp. Instead of relying on chemical propellants -- such as gunpowder -- a rail gun uses magnetic "rails" to launch a solid, nonexplosive projectile at incredible speed. Theoretically, rail guns would be able to precisely strike targets at extreme ranges, and would negate the risks associated with carrying around tons of explosive ammo. More to the point, they're cool-sounding, just like lasers.
Which is why the news that BAE Systems has delivered a functional, 32-megajoule Electro-Magnetic Laboratory Rail Gun (32-MJ LRG) to the U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren, Va., is exciting. Installation of the laboratory launcher is currently under way, and according to BAE, this is the first step toward the Navy's goal of developing a tactical 64-megajoule ship-mounted weapon.

The lab version doesn't look particularly menacing -- more like a long, belt-fed airport screening device than like a futuristic cannon -- but the system will fire rounds at up to Mach 8, drawing on tremendous amounts of electricity to generate the current for each test shot. That, of course, is the problem with rail guns: Like lasers, they're out of step with modern-day generators and capacitors. Eight and 9-megajoule rail guns have been fired before, but providing 3 million amps of power per shot has been a limitation. At 32 megajoules, this new system appears to be the most powerful rail gun ever built, and the Office of Naval Research is installing additional capacitors at the Dahlgren facility to support it. The planned 64-megajoule weapon, if it's ever built, could require even more power -- a staggering 6 million amps.

According to Dr. Amir Chaboki, the program manager for Electro-Magnetic Rail Guns at BAE Systems, "The power is available. The challenge is how you use it." The Navy’s electrically propelled DDG 100 Destroyer, Chaboki says, is a prime candidate for the final 64-megajoule system. Around 72 megawatts (MW) of the vessel's power can be used for propulsion. But during combat, the destroyer's speed could be brought down, freeing up energy for a rail gun. Chaboki calculates that firing the 64-megajoule weapon six times per minute would require 16 MW of power, which would be supplied by either onboard capacitors or pulsed alternators. The more daunting challenge is the force of the rail gun itself: A few shots can dislodge the conducting rails -- or even damage the barrel of the gun.

While the 32-MJ LRG should start firing soon, it could take another 13 years for a 64-megajoule system to be built and deployed on a ship. The Marines, in particular, are interested in the potential for rail guns to deliver supporting fire from up to 220 miles away -- around 10 times further than standard ship-mounted cannons -- with rounds landing more quickly and with less advance warning than a volley of Tomahawk cruise missiles.

Effective rail guns will require a major breakthrough in materials between now and 2020, to keep the guns themselves from being shredded by each high-velocity barrage. Which means that for now, rail guns are precisely like lasers in one crucial way: They're Holy Grails, irresistible precisely because they're out of reach.
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
http://www.geekologie.com/2011/04/new-aerodynamic-rail-gun-proje.php

New Aerodynamic Rail Gun Projectile Blows Through Steel Plate, Continues For 4-Miles




Seen here looking suspiciously like my favorite buttplug *checking sock drawer* whew, a General Atomics employee showcases the latest aerodynamic projectile to be shot by their 'Blitzer' railgun. And speaking of Blitzers -- get me one with the ground up Heath bar and Oreos on your way over. "Dammit GW -- Blitzer, NOT Blizzard". SONOFA! Well at least pick up some fro-yo.
GA's got a new, super aerodynamic dart for it that can travel four miles downrange after being fired at zero elevation and blowing through a 1/8" steel plate.


In previous tests, the railgun had been using rounds shaped kinda like bricks. And ultimately, the rounds behaved like bricks too, tumbling out of control at Mach 6. The new round from Boeing is streamlined and mean looking, and if it can make it seven kilometers when fired at zero elevation, it's easy to imagine a 150 mile range in operation.
Shooting projectiles shaped like bricks -- WTF?! That sounds like the worst idea ever. Unless you're trying to build a house from like five miles away, in which case it doesn't sound like the worst idea, it just sounds like you hired the world's laziest contractor. What the...THERE'S A FIREPLACE WHERE THE DOOR'S SUPPOSED TO BE!
Hit the jump for a video demonstration of the 1-mile per second projectile








 

W.G.Ewald

Defence Professionals/ DFI member of 2
Professional
Joined
Sep 28, 2011
Messages
14,139
Likes
8,594
Navy's Electric Gun Could Hit Targets More Than 100 Miles Away
The Navy has begun firing a weapon that uses electricity instead of gunpowder to launch projectiles faster and farther than ever before.

The electromagnetic railgun now being tested comes from BAE Systems. Another prototype from General Atomics will be delivered later this month, officials said.

BAE's demonstrator is a 32-megajoule gun. Each megajoule is equal to the kinetic energy of a 1-ton car moving at 100 mph.

Testers have fired BAE's gun six times using a brick-like projectile. Future projectiles will be long, slender and aerodynamic. They will contain electronics that will allow them to withstand the temperature and force that goes along with being blasted out of a railgun, officials said.

Magnetic fields created by high electric currents drive a sliding metal conductor between two rails to send projectiles soaring through the air at up to 5,600 mph. A 40-pound projectile fired from the weapon would be able to travel 100 nautical miles in five seconds.

A fully developed electromagnetic railgun will allow sailors to support Marines landing on shore with precise, long-range fire support; defend ships against cruise and ballistic missiles; and target enemy boats and warships, said Roger Ellis, a program manager at the Office of Naval Research. The Navy's goal is to develop a 20- to 32-megajoule weapon that can shoot up to 100 nautical miles. The standard five-inch gun currently being used on ships has a range of 13 nautical miles.
 

Kunal Biswas

Member of the Year 2011
Ambassador
Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
31,122
Likes
41,042
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb. 6, 2012
By Grace Jean, Office of Naval Research


ARLINGTON, Va.—The Office of Naval Research (ONR)'s Electromagnetic (EM) Railgun program will take an important step forward in the coming weeks when the first industry railgun prototype launcher is tested at a facility in Dahlgren, Va., officials said Feb. 6.

"This is the next step toward a future tactical system that will be placed on board a ship some day," said Roger Ellis, program manager of EM Railgun.

The EM Railgun launcher is a long-range weapon that fires projectiles using electricity instead of chemical propellants. Magnetic fields created by high electrical currents accelerate a sliding metal conductor, or armature, between two rails to launch projectiles at 4,500 mph to 5,600 mph.

With its increased velocity and extended range, the EM Railgun will give Sailors a multi-mission capability, allowing them to conduct precise naval surface fire support, or land strikes; cruise missile and ballistic missile defense; and surface warfare to deter enemy vessels. Navy planners are targeting a 50- to 100-nautical mile initial capability with expansion up to 220 nautical miles.

The EM Railgun program, part of ONR's Naval Air Warfare and Weapons Department, previously relied upon government laboratory-based launchers for testing and advancing railgun technology. The first industry-built launcher, a 32-megajoule prototype demonstrator made by BAE Systems, arrived at Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren Jan. 30. One megajoule of energy is equivalent to a 1-ton car traveling at 100 miles per hour.

"This industry prototype represents a step beyond our previous successful demonstrations of the laboratory launcher," Ellis said.

The prototype demonstrator incorporates advanced composites and improved barrel life performance resulting from development efforts on the laboratory systems located at the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and NSWC-Dahlgren. The EM Railgun laboratory demonstrator based at NSWC-Dahlgren fired a world record setting 33-megajoule shot in December 2010.

The industry demonstrator will begin test firing this month as the EM Railgun program prepares for delivery of a second prototype launcher built by General Atomics.

In the meantime, the Navy is pushing ahead with the next phase of the EM Railgun program to develop automatic projectile loading systems and thermal management systems to facilitate increased firing rates of the weapon.

"The next phase of the development effort is to demonstrate the ability to operate at a firing rate of significant military utility," Ellis said.

ONR recently awarded $10 million contracts through Naval Sea Systems Command to Raytheon Corp., BAE Systems and General Atomics to develop a pulsed power system for launching projectiles in rapid succession. These new contracts kick off a five-year effort to achieve a firing rate of six to 10 rounds per minute.

BAE Systems and General Atomics also are commencing concept development work on the next-generation prototype EM Railgun capable of the desired firing rate.

News: Navy to Begin Tests on Electromagentic Railgun Prototype Launcher - Office of Naval Research
 

Kunal Biswas

Member of the Year 2011
Ambassador
Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
31,122
Likes
41,042
Here's a trio of pictures of BAE's Railgun prototype being delivered to NSWC Dahlgren:







Those are capacitor banks in the background.
 

Kunal Biswas

Member of the Year 2011
Ambassador
Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
31,122
Likes
41,042
Look Out, Pyongyang? Rail Gun in the Works

One of the big selling points of the Navy's new destroyer is that it can rain a whole lot of hell — 20 rocket-propelled artillery shells, in less than a minute — on targets up to 63 nautical miles away. Fully armed, two DDG1000s should have the firepower of an entire, 640-man artillery battalion, the Navy promises.



But really, that's the start. The ship's real power will come when it moves away from chemical powders to shoot its projectiles — and starts relying on electromagnetic fields to shoot projectiles almost six kilometers/second, instead. With an electromagnetic rail gun pushing the rounds out so quickly, the number of rounds fired per ship would jump from 232 to 5000, Navy planners believe. (Military"‹.com has a great primer on how it works.) Because they travel so fast — nearly Mach 7 — the destructive force those rounds deliver would more than double, from 6.6 megajoules to 17. And they would fly almost five times farther — up to 300 nautical miles. That's enough to put 100% of targets in North Korea "at Risk" from a single battleship, a Navy briefing notes (right, sorry for the crappy scan).
No wonder the Office of Naval Research just handed General Atomics Aeronautical Systems a $9.6-million, 30-month contract for the preliminary design of an electromagnetic launcher, Defense Daily reports.
But don't expect to see a rail gun around North Korea any time soon. The destroyer program is in flux. And the Navy isn't looking for a "full-scale demonstration" of the rail gun until "around 2014," DD notes. "If the acquisition community decides to place it on a ship it could be done around the 2019 time frame."

Read more: http://defensetech.org/2006/06/20/look-out-pyongyang-rail-gun-in-the-works/#ixzz1s6alMyt8
Defense.org
 

Kunal Biswas

Member of the Year 2011
Ambassador
Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
31,122
Likes
41,042
Look Out, Pyongyang? Rail Gun in the Works

One of the big selling points of the Navy's new destroyer is that it can rain a whole lot of hell — 20 rocket-propelled artillery shells, in less than a minute — on targets up to 63 nautical miles away. Fully armed, two DDG1000s should have the firepower of an entire, 640-man artillery battalion, the Navy promises.



But really, that's the start. The ship's real power will come when it moves away from chemical powders to shoot its projectiles — and starts relying on electromagnetic fields to shoot projectiles almost six kilometers/second, instead. With an electromagnetic rail gun pushing the rounds out so quickly, the number of rounds fired per ship would jump from 232 to 5000, Navy planners believe. (Military"‹.com has a great primer on how it works.) Because they travel so fast — nearly Mach 7 — the destructive force those rounds deliver would more than double, from 6.6 megajoules to 17. And they would fly almost five times farther — up to 300 nautical miles. That's enough to put 100% of targets in North Korea "at Risk" from a single battleship, a Navy briefing notes (right, sorry for the crappy scan).
No wonder the Office of Naval Research just handed General Atomics Aeronautical Systems a $9.6-million, 30-month contract for the preliminary design of an electromagnetic launcher, Defense Daily reports.
But don't expect to see a rail gun around North Korea any time soon. The destroyer program is in flux. And the Navy isn't looking for a "full-scale demonstration" of the rail gun until "around 2014," DD notes. "If the acquisition community decides to place it on a ship it could be done around the 2019 time frame."

Read more: http://defensetech.org/2006/06/20/look-out-pyongyang-rail-gun-in-the-works/#ixzz1s6alMyt8
Defense.org
 

sferrin

New Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2012
Messages
8
Likes
6
This isn't a Royal Navy project. The Office of Naval Research (ONR) is a US Navy organization. BAE is the BAE US division (US company). It's a US Navy program with BAE America and General Atomics in competition.
 

Payeng

Daku Mongol Singh
Senior Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2009
Messages
2,522
Likes
777
Re: Electro Magnetic Rail Gun

Electromagnetic Railgun Prototype

Engineers at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division, prepare to test the Office of Naval Research-funded electromagnetic railgun prototype launcher that was recently installed at a test facility in Dahlgren, Va. The test shots began a monthlong series of full-energy tests to evaluate the first of two industry-built launchers and help bring the Navy a step closer to producing a next-generation, long-range weapon for surface ships. The new launcher brings advanced material and high-power technologies in a system that now resembles a large-caliber gun. Railguns and other weapons considered exotic today may provide powerful new capabilities for surface ships, possibly equipping them for new missions. U.S. Navy photo by John F. Williams

Electromagnetic Railgun Prototype | Defense Media Network
 

Kunal Biswas

Member of the Year 2011
Ambassador
Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
31,122
Likes
41,042
Re: Zumwalt-class Destroyer Updates and Dicussion

LRLAP Successfully Completes Guided Flight Tests
Story Number: NNS120810-11Release Date: 8/10/2012 7:36:00 AM



The Navy successfully completed its latest round of long-range, land-attack projectile (LRLAP) guided-flight tests, Aug. 3, at White Sands Missile Range, N.M.

LRLAP is a 155mm rocket-assisted guided projectile designed to support land-attack operations in conjunction with the Advanced Gun System (AGS) on DDG 1000 Zumwalt class destroyers.

The four flight tests flew accurately to a designated impact point and met test objectives for successful gun launch, rocket motor ignition and operation, GPS acquisition, and terminal guidance.

"This test marks a significant progress in development of the tactical LRLAP hardware, including a first-time demonstration of LRLAP's point detonation warhead fusing mode, one of the last remaining capabilities to be proven in a flight test environment," said Capt. Timothy Batzler, Navy Surface Ship Weapons major program manager, Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems.

"We also successfully demonstrated our tactical solution to propulsion challenges that have been a key program focus for the last few years. These are important steps in maturation of the LRLAP design as we approach shipboard testing in FY (Fiscal Year) 15."

The munition employs a GPS-based guidance system, unitary warhead with a selectable height-of-burst or point-detonation fuze, and is launched using a unique propelling charge developed specifically for this application.

The AGS system will be capable of firing LRLAP rounds in excess of 10 rounds per minute from each of the DDG 1000's two gun mounts.



"These LRLAP tests are instrumental in demonstrating the robust land-attack capability on DDG 1000 destroyers," said Capt. James Downey, DDG 1000 program manager in Program Executive Officer Ships.

A series of LRLAP guided flight tests will be executed in the next 14 months to demonstrate LRLAP's performance and reliability in various conditions prior to initial production. Currently, the program is scheduled to proceed with low rate initial production and ship integration during FY 2014, prior to initial operational capability in FY 2016.



LRLAP Successfully Completes Guided Flight Tests
 
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
29,798
Likes
48,278
Country flag
Re: Electro Magnetic Rail Gun

World's most powerful electromagnetic rail gun

World's most powerful electromagnetic rail gun

Electromagnetic (EM) railguns represent a revolutionary, war fighting capability with the potential to deliver lethal firepower at ranges in excess of 200 nautical miles. An EM gun uses an extremely high current flow to create an electromagnetic force that will propel projectiles at speeds greater than Mach 7.0. On 10 December 2010, at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren, Viriginia, USA, an electromagnetic railgun set a new world record with a 33 megajoule (33 million joules) shot. A single megajoule is approximately the equivalent of a one-ton vehicle travelling at 100 mph. Hence a 33 megajoule shot represents enormous force that is sufficient to destroy targets at extreme ranges without the use of explosive. The same principle has been used in the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System designed for the launch catapaults of the new US Gerald R Ford class of aircraft carrier.
 

H.A.

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 24, 2011
Messages
1,445
Likes
687
The Office of Naval Research has begun evaluating the second of two Railgun prototypes. This second launcher was designed by General Atomics, while the first, which began testing in February, was designed by BAE systems.

Railguns fire a projectile by using electricity instead of normal weapon propellants such as explosive chemicals. A railgun uses a pair of parallel conducting rails and a sliding armature that is accelerated by the electromagnetic effects of the current when it flows down one rail, into the armature, and then back along the other rail. Railguns have already been tested, with a world record 33-megajoule shot having been done in December 2010.

While these weapons are not yet combat ready, work has already begun on next-generation prototypes that will be capable of increased firing rates.

Electromagnetic Railgun program was started in 2005 with a goal of creating a weapon that can launch a projectile 100 nautical miles. Phase One saw the creation of launcher technology with adequare service life, reliable pulsed power technology and component risk reduction for the projectile. Phase Two of the program began in 2012, and is concentrating on acheiving a 10 rounds per-minute firing rate, which will involve thermal management techniques for both the launcher and the pulsed power system.

The railgun stands to change naval warfare and even costal bombardment. With such massive range and devastating power, one megajoule is equivalent to a one-ton vehicle moving at 100 miles per hour, railguns are devastating weapons that also save money by not relying on chemical propellants. The program has made enormous strides in technology, and with the second prototype delivered it's only a matter of time before we see ships outfitted with railgun technology.

http://www.militaryaerospace.com/ar...aseii-advances.html?cmpid=EnlMAENovember72012
 

Latest Replies

Global Defence

New threads

Articles

Top