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Solid state laser death ray. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

The solid-state laser system from Northrop Grumman, that produced the most powerful beam ever from a continuous wave electric laser last year, is joining other pioneering speed-of-light weapons demonstrators for field tests at the Army's High Energy Laser System Test Facility (HELSTF), N.M. In cooperation with the U.S. Army's Space and Missile Defense Command/Army Forces Strategic Command, which operates the test range at White Sands Missile Range in southeastern New Mexico, BAE Systems has contracted with Northrop Grumman to relocate the Joint High Power Solid State Laser (JHPSSL) Phase 3 system from the company's laser factory in Redondo Beach, Calif.,...

Star Wars-style laser weapons have taken another step closer to reality with Northrop Grumman reporting that it has produced a 105 kilowatt (kW) light ray from an electric laser in the final demonstration milestone of Phase 3 of the U.S. military's Joint High Power Solid State Laser (JHPSSL) program. At this energy level such a "weapons grade" laser would be capable of taking out cruise missiles, rockets and artillery from land, sea and airborne platforms, but Han Solo won't be slipping this still hefty device into his side holster anytime soon. Northrop Grumman's scalable modular system uses "laser amplifier chains"...

Science fiction fans and generals alike have long fantasized about what it'd be like to have a laser weapon at their command. Now at last such dreams are nearing reality. After years of steady milestone progress, military contractor Northrop Grumman has reached a significant mark -- the first 100 kW steady-state laser. The laser is part of the Joint High-Powered Solid State Laser Phase 3 Program, which combines 8 lasers in chain fashion to create a "superlaser" of sorts. Each laser can deliver up to 15.3 kW individually and is about the size of a large briefcase. Together they form...

Laser weapons may be a battlefield reality by the end of 2008 Laser weapons are an interesting subject that has been a staple of science fiction and movies for decades. Laser weapons will become a reality on the battlefield at some point -- though exactly when that point will be is a subject of debate. When it comes to laser weapons there are two basic types: chemical and solid-state. The chemical lasers are powered by chemicals that would make them hazardous on most battlefields to the soldiers deploying the weapon systems. That makes the solid-state laser a more viable option...

In late September 2007, Boeing successfully tested a 1kw solid state laser weapon mounted on a converted Avenger anti aircraft vehicle in Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. The laser successfully destroyed several unexploded mortar shells from a safe distance and was also able to destroy two unmanned aerial vehicles (which were on the ground). Boeing hopes to introduce the first operational laser-based weapon systems in the not too distant future, helping soldiers to fight road side bombs and to defend themselves from possible aerial threats. In 1960, after an all-out race between scientists, Theodore Maiman developed and tested the first laser device...

WASHINGTON, July 3 (UPI) -- Northrop Grumman announced it had surpassed "all demonstration requirements" for the first building block of the Joint High Power Solid State Laser, or JHPSSL, Phase 3 program. The JHPSSL program would now begin its "integration and test phase ... after exceeding all demonstration requirements for the first gain module, or building block, that forms the core of its 100 kW solid-state laser system," the company said in a statement June 25. "The achievement came as the company successfully completed a Critical Design Review conducted by Department of Defense representatives at the company's new Directed Energy...

DOWN THIS tiled corridor, light does muscular, noisy work. Lasers dig dirt and weld metal. They pound aircraft parts into shape. In Bob Yamamoto's lab, light devours. He straps on emerald green goggles. A technician stabs a fire button and calls out the computer countdown. "Three ... two ... one ..." Then ... nothing. Just a buzz of electronics and an ephemeral glow in this darkened room at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. But inside Yamamato's target chamber, a block of steel spits flame and molten metal. In those two seconds, 400 blasts of light poured into slabs of clear, manmade garnet....

General says he'll come up with $150 million if scientists produce mobile device within 18 months.A two-star Army general threw down a challenge last week to Lawrence Livermore scientists: He will beat the bushes for more than $150 million if scientists can build the world's first mobile battle laser for test firing in 18 months. Livermore laser engineer Bob Yamamoto had been begging for this chance. But Livermore, specializing in nuclear explosives, never has built a full-up, firing weapons system for the battlefield. "Eighteen months is very aggressive, and I'm saying that very politely," said Yamamoto. On Tuesday, Major Gen....

The missile was approaching fast and gathering speed on a column of flame. Inside a trailer, miles away, it appeared on the radar screen of a soldier on-watch. From its radar signature, he realized it was a Katyusha, a ten-foot long missile launched from a truck and capable of delivering a powerful explosive charge or chemical weapon. Acting quickly, he commanded a device resembling a large spotlight mounted on the roof of the trailer to whir into motion. After panning for a few moments, the device locked onto the distant rocket arching overhead. It shot an invisible high-energy laser beam...