China overtook the US. It’s about lasers for the military
China may have overtaken the US in the arms race. The local military announced a breakthrough in modern laser technology. Energy weapons will have the ability to fire indefinitely, which may worry the United States.
The Middle Kingdom was supposed to achieve a breakthrough in the construction of laser weapons. The biggest novelty here is the construction of an advanced cooling system. Thanks to it, a huge combat laser could shoot “infinitely”.
China boasts of laser weapons – it can shoot indefinitely
The technology of military lasers has been known for a long time. Its main problem, however, is … the temperature. A powerful laser beam can only be held on a target for a short time, after which the device overheats quite quickly. This may include reduce the power of the attack, distort the beam, and the weapon can even turn itself off.
It was this problem that Chinese scientists were supposed to solve. According to the South China Morning Post, researchers at the National University of Defense Technology boasted of developing a new cooling system for combat lasers. The advanced gas cooler is to allow high-energy laser attacks “indefinitely”, without the need to shut down the unit.
As the Chinese say, laser weapons can replace traditional rockets in the future – they do not need ammunition, but only access to electricity. What’s more, sufficiently powerful lasers can even be used to shoot down satellites in orbit, scientists from China point out.
The US Army has abandoned lasers
Interestingly, the latest achievement may mean that China has surpassed the US in this arm of the arms race. The US military has already tried to introduce and improve laser weapons for its own army or navy. However, these projects remained only curiosities, because apparently they were not destructive enough for the needs of the Americans.
“If Chinese scientists have overcome the heating and distortion issues, that’s a major breakthrough given the US’s failures in this area,” said British military expert Steve Weaver.
It is worth remembering, however, that the Middle Kingdom likes to announce successes without cover for propaganda purposes. Until the operation of the laser is shown live, specialists advise taking reports with a bit of distance.
