Laser gun fired from US navy ship

[go west young man]

Source: BBC

The US Navy has fired a laser gun from one of its ships for the first time.

Researchers used the high-energy laser (HEL) to disable a boat by setting fire to its engines off the coast of California.

Similar systems had previously been tested on land, however moist sea air presented an extra challenge as it reduces a beam's power.

The navy said that ship-borne lasers could eventually be used to protect vessels from small attack boats.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13033437

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This video is newsworthy to me because it actually shows how ridiculous our military is.
They release a video showing the test which shows a small twin engine boat with two Mercury
200 outboard motors being set alight by the laser. Couldn't they have taken one of the motors
off and conducted the same test? They essentially just flushed at least ten grand down the toilet.
Link here to motor price. http://www.boats.net/outboard_motor/Mercury/200HP/parts.html
We have great technology yet we are still fucking idiots