First industry railgun prototype launcher gets all fired up

[wino]

Been watching this gun for a while now and finally they have released footage of one being fired.



The electromagnetic (EM) railgun prototype launcher that was recently installed at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) in Dahlgren, Virginia, has commenced firing, kicking off a two-month-long series of full-energy tests. Predictably, the first full energy shots make for some pretty impressive video.
Following its delivery by BAE Systems on January 30, the first prototype demonstrator was installed and outfitted with a suite of sensors, high-speed cameras and measuring devices to allow for evaluation of the 32-megajoule weapon.
Following a series of low-energy test shots, evaluation of the launcher is now underway and will see tests conducted at 20 megajoules to 32 megajoules - one megajoule is equivalent to a 1-ton object being thrust at 100 mph (161 km/h). Test projectiles similar to those previously fired from NSWC Dahlgren's laboratory launcher will be fired at speeds of 4,500 to 5,600 mph (7,242 to 9,012 km/h) using electricity instead of chemical propellants.
The U.S. Navy hopes the evaluation will help it reach its near-term goal of a 20- to 32-megajoule weapon for surface ships capable of shooting a distance of 50 to 100 nautical miles (57 to 115 miles/93 to 185 km).
A second launcher being built by General Atomics is scheduled for delivery in April.
The video below shows what those high-speed cameras caught on the first full-energy test firings.
Source: U.S. Navy

 

[deadpuppet]

If it's electric then what's all the fire from? Just the heat generated?

 

[Torque Button]

plasma

 

[D.O.A.]

fucking awesome, I could mount that bitch on the roof of the house and take out cyclists riding along the yarra and other roads they pollute. I'm counting on this baby passing through a lot of shit, like about 4 suburbs worth of housing & industry on the way there cause I don't exactly have a clear line of site. How much will this add to my power bill?

 

[wino]

If it's electric then what's all the fire from? Just the heat generated?

seriously ?

lol welocme to what you dont know about 4th, 5th generation war.

your world just got smaller didn't it

 

[sickfuck]

video related

 

[Blaine]

If it's electric then what's all the fire from? Just the heat generated?

Railguns operate by discharging capacitors (devices that store electrical energy) or compulsators (alternators optimized to deliver high-amperage pulses of electricity) into the conductive rails of the device, generating a great deal of heat — along with the Lorentz force, which is what propels the projectile. The projectile exits the railgun at thousands of miles per hour; this creates friction between the projectile and the rails, and thus a great deal of heat.

To sum up: Electrical energy and projectile friction create the heat.

 

[Decent60]

Older, but still gives a better idea of how powerful those things are