Green Railguns

     Even the U.S. Navy is going green.  With all the press that the Tesla is getting lately, it was easy to miss Uncle Sam’s latest foray into electric propulsion.  In an effort to preserve the world’s dwindling resources of gunpowder, the Air Warfare and Weapons department of the Office of Naval Research recently demonstrated their electromagnetic Railgun.  Like the all-electric Nissan Leaf automobile, the all-electric Railgun will require minimal maintenance.  The “range anxiety” that bothers owners of electric automobiles shouldn’t be an issue with the Railgun; it can send a 155 mm projectile on a 110 nautical mile ride, compared with about 8 nm for a conventional gun (or 80 nm/charge for the Leaf).  Its muzzle velocity of around 5000 mph is 3-4 times greater than that achieved with conventional fuel.  Here is yet another example of how Obama’s energy policy is achieving real, tangible results.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DWHMIz-wTa4

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