General Atomics to help Navy create 'super gun'

Written by Gary Robbins
7 a.m., Nov. 3, 2011
Updated 8:32 a.m.

On Oct. 31, the U.S Office of Naval Research conducted the 1,000th firing of the electromagnetic railgun. ONR describes the gun as "a long-range weapon that launches projectiles using electricity instead of chemical propellants. Under development by the Department of the Navy (DON) for use aboard ships, the system will provide Sailors with multi-mission capability, allowing them to conduct precise naval surface fire support, or land strikes; cruise missile and ballistic missile defense; and surface warfare to deter enemy vessels." Office of Naval Research

The Defense Department has awarded General Atomics in San Diego $12.2 million to continue research and development on "pulse power" systems that are expected to include the Navy's revolutionary electromagnetic railgun, as well as possible radar and laser systems for warships.

The award is part of a long term effort to create a ship-borne gun that uses electricity instead of chemicals to fire high impact projectiles. The railgun being developed through the Office of Naval Research was designed to fire projectiles up to 200 miles. The projectiles would travel up to 5,600 mph, allowing for rapid attack against targets on land and at sea. The "super gun" also could reduce the need to store expensive and dangerous explosives aboard ships.

On Monday, ONR test-fired an experimental version of the railgun for the 1,000th time at a research facility in Virginia.

Roger Ellis, who manages the railgun program for ONR, said in a statement after the test, “We’ve really explored a lot of territory. When you couple what we’re seeing in testing with what we’re seeing in modeling and simulation, it results in some interesting barrel shapes that you wouldn’t intuitively think about. Railgun barrels don’t necessarily have to be round as in most conventional gun designs.â€