In a fascinating display of futuristic weaponry, the U.S. Navy broke world records today with a railgun, a device that sent projectiles hurtling around a range at speeds of up to Mach 7 and up to 33 megajoules of energy transfered to the projectile.
This kind of weapon requires no explosion to get a projectile from point A to point B. Rather, a railgun uses an electromagnetic current to accomplish the task, and it does so at previously unimaginable velocities.
The projectile, which is conductive, travels along a pair of metal rails as an electric current is passing through the projectile. The rails generate a magnetic field, which interacts with the current to move the projectile at extremely high velocities.
In terms of military use, a railgun projectile is faster than a guided cruise missile, doesn’t require on-board explosives, is much cheaper to use and can hit targets substantially farther away. In fact, the Navy hopes to increase the railgun’s current 100-mile range to 200 miles in the future.
The Navy has been working on railgun technology since around 2005. In 2006, it tested an 8-megajoule firing; in 2008, a 10.64-megajoule firing was conducted. Today’s test, which was conducted at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division in Dahlgren, Virginia, broke all previous tests in a 33-megajoule firing.
Railgun technology is definitely still in the testing phase; we probably won’t see railgun aboard Navy ships for at least the next 10 to 15 years.
Cuando se solucionen "problemillas" como el desgaste y demás, el cañón de riel revolucionará la defensa de punto si se consigue el tiro rápido, y, si se alcanzan o superan esas distancias, ¿podrian volver las plataformas de artillería sin misiles?
Por España y el que quiera defenderla honrado muera; y el traidor que la abandone no tenga quien le perdone
ni en Tierra Santa cobijo, ni una cruz en sus despojos; ni las manos de un buen hijo para cerrarle los ojos.
Los cañones electromagneticos se enfrentan a un problema tremendo como defensa de punto: que los laseres van a ser mas baratos y mejores. Un railgun puede servir muy bien para lanzar cargas a distancias enormes, pero para disparos de cercania a la vista, las armas de energia dirigida van a ser mejores.
\\"Un cerdo que no vuela solo es un cerdo\\"
Marco Porcellino.
Tengo entendido que el gran problema de las armas de energía y las railgun es la inmensa cantidad de energía que deben producir para efectuar disparos.
The U.S. Navy cruiser Port Royal being refloated at Pearl Harbor in September 2009 after repairs from a grounding. The ship is back in the shipyard because of a new series of cracks in its superstructure. (Marshall Fukuki / U.S. Navy)
Barely a year after the U.S. Navy spent $40 million to fix the cruiser Port Royal after an embarrassing grounding, the ship is again out of action, back in a shipyard at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. But this time it's not a damaged hull that's the problem. Rather, it's an issue that is plaguing all 22 cruisers in service: cracks in the aluminum superstructure. The Port Royal was operating in the Pacific Northwest in September when sailors discovered new cracks in the superstructure, including an eight-foot crack on the 06 level, one of the highest decks in the ship. Most of the cracks that appear on the Ticonderoga-class cruisers are being repaired during regular overhauls, but in this case the damage was enough to send the ship home to Pearl Harbor for yet another extended repair period. So far, the Navy has awarded $14 million to BAE Systems in Pearl to fix the Port Royal. The work package will include repairs to the bulkheads and deck around two gas turbine intakes; fuel oil storage tank top repairs; superstructure crack repairs; and removal and replacement of aluminum decking and plating. The work is expected to be finished in February. "We are dealing with a class-wide issue of superstructure structural issues," said Cmdr. Jason Salata, a spokesman for Naval Surface Forces in San Diego. "These are things we're seeing on other ships of this class." The Port Royal situation might be the worst case to date. "Most of the issues are being dealt with when the ships come in for a regular availability," or overhaul, said one source familiar with the situation. "This is the first one I know of where we specifically went in for repairs." The work is necessary, the source added, "to restore structural integrity of the ship." The problem, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), is the aluminum alloy used in the superstructure of the cruisers, which have steel hulls. "There have been various degrees of crack repair on every CG [guided-missile cruiser] in the past year," said Chris Johnson, a NAVSEA spokesman in Washington. "The decking is the most prevalent cracking area due to exposure to elevated temperatures caused by solar absorption and exhaust temperatures." More than 3,000 cracks have been found so far across the entire Ticonderoga class, which originally numbered 27 ships. Twenty-two of the ships remain in service, and Port Royal, commissioned in 1994, is the newest. Their superstructures are made of aluminum alloy 5456, a material used on numerous U.S. warships since 1958. The alloy, according to NAVSEA, relies on approximately 5 percent magnesium as an alloying element to develop strength. Over time, the magnesium leaches out of the material and forms a film, susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking in a marine environment. NAVSEA has developed more than 17 alterations to deal with the cracks. In late 2008, the service began evaluating a different welding technique called Ultrasonic Impact Treatment (UIT). The Port Royal was one of the test ships for the new technique, Johnson said, and the UIT procedure was applied to specific areas of the ship in 2009. "With the current state of the technology, it is only practical to use UIT in small areas," Johnson said in a written statement. "We believe it has potential, and are evaluating it as part of CG Aluminum Superstructure Task Force for future use." The task force was set up this year by NAVSEA - at the fleet's request - to develop and assess technically viable options, Johnson said. Results from the group's work are expected to appear next spring. Many sailors who have served on a Ticonderoga-class cruiser have stories to tell about the cracks, ranging from descriptions of cracked masts to leaking fuel tanks next to high-wattage electrical equipment. Solving the issue is a key element in making sure the ships remain effective and safe to operate to the end of their planned 35- to 40-year service lives. NAVSEA noted that the aluminum alloys used on the cruisers are not on the new littoral combat ships, which are built with commercial alloys 5083 and 6082. "While the Navy has no current experience with this alloy, it is in wide use on commercial craft," Johnson said. The Port Royal has seen little service since returning from its last deployment in June 2008. On Feb. 5, 2009, just after completing a three-month overhaul, the ship ran up on a reef just off the Honolulu airport, in clear sight of every aircraft taking off and landing at the airport, and visible from the beaches at Waikiki. The cruiser was refloated after three-and-a-half days on the reef and towed back to Pearl Harbor, where the commanding officer was relieved of his duties. The Port Royal's hull, propellers and sonar dome received severe damage, and shipyard repairs continued into this year. After visiting Seattle in early August for Seafair, the cruiser caused a public relations stir when its wake washed up oysters on shore while operating near the Hood Canal. Despite these problems, the ship apparently has not missed a deployment. "Port Royal has not missed a scheduled deployment as a result of these repairs," Salata said. "She will continue her training and deploy in 2011."
No sabía yo que tuviesen tántos problemas los Tico´s...., y hay que reconocer que ya tienen unos años encima estos barcos, pero justo el Port Royal ...., la unidad mas joven de esta clase habiendo sido activado en el 94.
Saludos
"That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important lesson history has to tell."
Aldous Huxley 1894-1963
galix escribió:Tengo entendido que el gran problema de las armas de energía y las railgun es la inmensa cantidad de energía que deben producir para efectuar disparos.
Saludos
Sumado al consumo de los radares... esa era una de las grandes pegas del DD(X) y hay un lobby fuerte en el Congreso para hacer que los CG(X) sean buques nucleares.
Imperialista entregado a las Fuerzas Capitalistas del Mal
The U.S. Navy cruiser Port Royal being refloated at Pearl Harbor in September 2009 after repairs from a grounding. The ship is back in the shipyard because of a new series of cracks in its superstructure. (Marshall Fukuki / U.S. Navy)
Barely a year after the U.S. Navy spent $40 million to fix the cruiser Port Royal after an embarrassing grounding, the ship is again out of action, back in a shipyard at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. But this time it's not a damaged hull that's the problem. Rather, it's an issue that is plaguing all 22 cruisers in service: cracks in the aluminum superstructure. The Port Royal was operating in the Pacific Northwest in September when sailors discovered new cracks in the superstructure, including an eight-foot crack on the 06 level, one of the highest decks in the ship. Most of the cracks that appear on the Ticonderoga-class cruisers are being repaired during regular overhauls, but in this case the damage was enough to send the ship home to Pearl Harbor for yet another extended repair period. So far, the Navy has awarded $14 million to BAE Systems in Pearl to fix the Port Royal. The work package will include repairs to the bulkheads and deck around two gas turbine intakes; fuel oil storage tank top repairs; superstructure crack repairs; and removal and replacement of aluminum decking and plating. The work is expected to be finished in February. "We are dealing with a class-wide issue of superstructure structural issues," said Cmdr. Jason Salata, a spokesman for Naval Surface Forces in San Diego. "These are things we're seeing on other ships of this class." The Port Royal situation might be the worst case to date. "Most of the issues are being dealt with when the ships come in for a regular availability," or overhaul, said one source familiar with the situation. "This is the first one I know of where we specifically went in for repairs." The work is necessary, the source added, "to restore structural integrity of the ship." The problem, according to the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), is the aluminum alloy used in the superstructure of the cruisers, which have steel hulls. "There have been various degrees of crack repair on every CG [guided-missile cruiser] in the past year," said Chris Johnson, a NAVSEA spokesman in Washington. "The decking is the most prevalent cracking area due to exposure to elevated temperatures caused by solar absorption and exhaust temperatures." More than 3,000 cracks have been found so far across the entire Ticonderoga class, which originally numbered 27 ships. Twenty-two of the ships remain in service, and Port Royal, commissioned in 1994, is the newest. Their superstructures are made of aluminum alloy 5456, a material used on numerous U.S. warships since 1958. The alloy, according to NAVSEA, relies on approximately 5 percent magnesium as an alloying element to develop strength. Over time, the magnesium leaches out of the material and forms a film, susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking in a marine environment. NAVSEA has developed more than 17 alterations to deal with the cracks. In late 2008, the service began evaluating a different welding technique called Ultrasonic Impact Treatment (UIT). The Port Royal was one of the test ships for the new technique, Johnson said, and the UIT procedure was applied to specific areas of the ship in 2009. "With the current state of the technology, it is only practical to use UIT in small areas," Johnson said in a written statement. "We believe it has potential, and are evaluating it as part of CG Aluminum Superstructure Task Force for future use." The task force was set up this year by NAVSEA - at the fleet's request - to develop and assess technically viable options, Johnson said. Results from the group's work are expected to appear next spring. Many sailors who have served on a Ticonderoga-class cruiser have stories to tell about the cracks, ranging from descriptions of cracked masts to leaking fuel tanks next to high-wattage electrical equipment. Solving the issue is a key element in making sure the ships remain effective and safe to operate to the end of their planned 35- to 40-year service lives. NAVSEA noted that the aluminum alloys used on the cruisers are not on the new littoral combat ships, which are built with commercial alloys 5083 and 6082. "While the Navy has no current experience with this alloy, it is in wide use on commercial craft," Johnson said. The Port Royal has seen little service since returning from its last deployment in June 2008. On Feb. 5, 2009, just after completing a three-month overhaul, the ship ran up on a reef just off the Honolulu airport, in clear sight of every aircraft taking off and landing at the airport, and visible from the beaches at Waikiki. The cruiser was refloated after three-and-a-half days on the reef and towed back to Pearl Harbor, where the commanding officer was relieved of his duties. The Port Royal's hull, propellers and sonar dome received severe damage, and shipyard repairs continued into this year. After visiting Seattle in early August for Seafair, the cruiser caused a public relations stir when its wake washed up oysters on shore while operating near the Hood Canal. Despite these problems, the ship apparently has not missed a deployment. "Port Royal has not missed a scheduled deployment as a result of these repairs," Salata said. "She will continue her training and deploy in 2011."
No sabía yo que tuviesen tántos problemas los Tico´s...., y hay que reconocer que ya tienen unos años encima estos barcos, pero justo el Port Royal ...., la unidad mas joven de esta clase habiendo sido activado en el 94.
Saludos
Buena noticia, pero el problema viene de lejos, basicamente se resume en que es demasiado barco para tan poco casco.
Pero eso de grietas de 8 pies es nuevo!
"Pobres desgraciados, otra vez nos tienen rodeados"
NO me había fijado del nuevo uniforme de trabajo de la armada, me llega.
When I open my eyes
I see soldiers in the fields
Dead bodies on the ground
There are children inbetween
Explosions shock the land
And the evil shows its face
The one called Hister rises
This is the fall of grace...
By CHRISTOPHER P. CAVAS Published: 20 Dec 2010 13:33
The U.S. Navy's new electro-magnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) - perhaps the most critical unproven element in the first new aircraft carrier design in four decades - launched its first aircraft Dec. 18, manufacturer General Atomics has confirmed.
The launch of an F/A-18E Super Hornet supersonic strike fighter took place at Naval Air System Command's facility at the Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst, N. J., Navy officials confirmed. One launch was conducted on Dec. 18, while several more launches took place the following day.
Related Topics Americas Air Warfare A lot is riding on the successful development of the new launch system. EMALS is a critical piece of technology that will be installed in the new Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers, the first of which is now under construction. If the system isn't ready in time, the Navy would have to revert to older steam catapults to launch aircraft from the ships, a move which would mean costly delays and re-designs.
An official announcement by the Navy confirming the launches is expected to be released Dec. 20.
More than 722 launches of test loads have been made at the Lakehurst facility this year, at speeds up to 180 knots, the highest end-speed requirement for the system.
Other Navy carrier aircraft, including C-2 carrier-on-board-delivery (COD) and T-45 Goshawk jet trainers, will be part of the EMALS test program in 2011, said Rob Koon, a spokesman for NAVAIR.
felicidades a la USN... hace poco cumplieron un siglo de uso de aviones desde navíos, y a partir de ahora se abre un nuevo mundo a la aviación embarcada... si Frank “Spig” Wead y Marc Andrew "Pete" Mitscher pudieran verlo...
Congress wants the U.S. Navy to submit a report by March 31 to show how the service plans to incorporate its ship-based ballistic missile defense requirements with its force structure needs, according to the recently passed defense authorization legislation.
The report should include :
• An analysis of whether the requirement for sea-based missile defense can be accommodated by upgrading Aegis ships that exist as of the date of the report or by procuring additional combatant surface vessels.
• A discussion of whether such sea-based missile defense will require increasing the overall number of combatant surface vessels beyond the requirement of 88 cruisers and destroyers in the Navy’s 313-ship fleet plan.
• A discussion of the process for determining the number of Aegis ships needed by each commander of the combatant commands to fulfill ballistic missile defense requirements, including the number of such ships required to support the “phased, adaptive approach” to ballistic missile defense in Europe.
• A discussion of the impact of Aegis Ashore missile defense deployments, as well as deployment of other elements of the ballistic missile defense system, on Aegis ballistic missile defense ship force structure requirements.
• A discussion of the potential effect of ballistic missile defense operations on the ability of the Navy to meet surface fleet demands in each geographic area and for each mission set.
• An evaluation of how the Aegis ballistic missile defense program can succeed as part of a balanced fleet of adequate size and strength to meet the security needs of the U.S.
• A description of both the shortfalls and the benefits of expected technological advancements in the sea-based missile defense program.
• A description of the anticipated plan for deployment of Aegis ballistic missile defense ships within the context of the fleet-response plan.
Parece que quieren disponer de los LCS cuanto antes...
Navy authorized to buy two littoral ship versions
By Erik Slavin Stars and Stripes Published: December 23, 2010
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy’s leadership got its wish on one of its top priorities Wednesday, when President Barack Obama signed a bill that lets the service spend roughly $9.8 billion on two versions of the Littoral Combat Ship.
Congress has authorized the Navy to purchase up to 20 ships as part of a larger bill to keep the government running through March 4 at 2010 spending levels, according to Reuters.
Without that addition, the Navy would have been forced to choose between Lockheed Martin’s monohull design and Austal USA’s trimaran for its initial order of ships. Advertisement
One of each design, the USS Freedom and the USS Independence, have already joined the fleet. The ships are envisioned as a fast, coastal force with the ability to fight submarines, defeat mines and launch small boats in rough seas. The Navy plans on buying 55 Littoral Combat Ships through 2035, according to government reports.
However, the LCS program was criticized for technical snags and budget overruns in a September 2010 General Accountability Office report, then attacked again during a Dec. 14 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
Sen. John McCain, the most vociferous critic of the program’s overspending, questioned whether buying dual seaframes would result in higher long-term costs.
Navy officials countered that the competitive bids, which they could not entirely disclose because of bidding rules, offered $2.9 billion in savings over the previous plan to select only one seaframe.
“I believe we have arrived at an opportunity to realize significant real savings within our shipbuilding program, and we have done so by following congressional guidance,” Navy Secretary Ray Mabus told the committee in support of the dual-build strategy Dec. 14.
...., la unidad mas joven de esta clase habiendo sido activado en el 94.
