Prepared to be used in battle: USA got a laser weapon of Phantom -sized with a refrigerator

In this case, the installation is strong enough so that it can be safely used in the field. Northrop Grumman promises that it integrates new equipment with other systems and will soon put it to the military for testing. According to New Atlas journalists, Phantom is not a complete laser weapon, but a laser generator.

This is more a component, and in order to turn it into a full -fledged weapons system, it must be connected to the power source, as well as to the aiming and focusing optics that directs the ray to the target. Now engineers need to make small strong lasers more powerful, and huge and destructive installations - smaller. When they manage to reach the balance, then the military will have a full laser weapon.

"Miniaturizing the advanced opportunities, we expand the scope of our technology and continue to lead in the field of high energy lasers, Northrop Grumman uses its experience in the field of directional energy to create an extremely compact, lightweight and effective laser for fighters," Vice president commented on Strategic Space Systems Northrop Grumman Robert Fleming.

According to The Debrief, laser technologies are based on the production of coherent light - a beam of photons of the same frequency that is not dissipated. Laser waves are identical and synchronized, which allows you to create a managed ray. The US Army has long been seeking laser weapons, but since the first use during the Vietnam War has faced many problems in the use of laser in practical combat situations, in particular with insufficient high power, high cost of development and deployment.

According to the US Authority Accounting Report (GAO), published earlier in 2023, the Pentagon spends about $ 1 billion annually on the development of directional energy weapons, including laser, capable of protecting against unmanned aircraft, shells and other threats.

"However, the Ministry of Defense has problems with the withdrawal of these technologies from the laboratory in field conditions for several reasons," - says in a brief statement of the GAO report, and it is stressed that one of the problems faced by the Ministry of Defense is how to use how to use. Such equipment for military purposes.

In an effort to help the military overcome the problems that arise in the introduction of energy -weapons, Northrop Grumman has already developed several very complex high -energy lasers in the past, which are now used by the US Armed Forces. These include the SILL strategic laser, as well as a 300 kW high -energy laser weapon system, specifically designed to counteract UAVs and other objects capable of flying quickly. Recently, China has declared the creation of an "endless" combat laser.