Air Force Research Lab’s Directed Energy Directorate at Kirtland AFB, N.M., in concert with Boeing, has demonstrated that a dual-mirror system can redirect a laser to a target, extending the laser’s range. Using a prototype called the Aerospace Relay Mirror System, researchers successfully tested a non-lethal laser beam by firing it a one of two mirrors from several miles away and then using the second mirror to relay the beam to a ground-based target another two miles away. In this test, a crane hoisted the two mirrors up about 100 feet. In a real application, a high-altitude airship could loft the mirrors to some 70,000 feet, where there would be little atmospheric turbulence to affect beam quality.
DOD Strategy Paves New Path for Electronic Warfare
Oct. 29, 2020
The Pentagon on Oct. 29 released a strategy for military use of the electromagnetic spectrum that could ultimately spur the creation of a new combatant command to oversee those operations. The Defense Department has waged war via the electromagnetic spectrum for decades, using aircraft like the E/A-18G Growler and the…