US Navy Cancels Development of High-Tech Railgun Weapon
2021-07-08
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1The U.S. Navy is halting development of a high-tech weapon designed to fire projectiles at up to seven times the speed of sound.
2The Navy spent more than 10 years developing the weapon, called an electromagnetic railgun.
3The cannon-like railgun uses electricity instead of chemical substances to fire projectiles.
4A report released earlier this year by the Congressional Research Service stated that the Navy had been developing the railgun as a firing weapon to support U.S. Marines operations.
5The report said the development also centered on possible use of the railgun as a missile defense system.
6The move to cancel railgun development comes as the U.S. Department of Defense turns its attention to the development of hypersonic missiles, The Associated Press reports.
7Hypersonic is a term that relates to speeds of more than five times the speed of sound,
8also known as Mach 5.
9 In addition to flying at extremely high speeds, hypersonic weapons are designed to move in ways that make them difficult to find and destroy in flight.
10The U.S. military has been putting money into the development of hypersonic weapons in recent years in an effort to keep up with hypersonic military programs in China and Russia.
11Matthew Caris is a defense expert with the private advisory company Avascent Group.
12He told the AP that "the railgun is, for the moment, dead."
13The halt in railgun development, Caris said, suggests that the Navy saw difficulties in implementing the technology.
14In addition, the Navy likely recognized that hypersonic missiles have higher performing abilities than the railgun, he added.
15Lieutenant Courtney Callaghan is a Navy spokesperson.
16She told the AP that the Navy's decision will free up resources for hypersonic missiles, as well as lasers and other electronic warfare systems.
17The Navy spent about $500 million on research and development of the railgun, said Bryan Clark, a defense expert at the Hudson Institute.
18The railgun held the possibility of providing an effective weapon at a much lower cost than smart bombs and missiles.
19Using electricity, a railgun can fire a projectile at six or seven times the speed of sound, creating enough energy to destroy targets.
20But Clark said the program experienced a number of problems, including the limited range of the railgun in testing.
21In addition, its usefulness for missile defense was also limited by range and rate of fire, Clark added.
22Another big question was whether the gun could stay together during continuous firing, said defense analyst Norman Friedman.
23A normal gun can be fired about 600 times before the barrel has to be refurbished.
24But the barrel on tested railguns, Clark said, had to be replaced after about 12 to 24 shots were fired.
25A few years ago, the Navy was talking about putting the gun on the future USS Lyndon B. Johnson, the last of three stealthy destroyers.
26But now, the Navy is developing what it calls a "hypervelocity projectile," which is designed to be fired from existing gun systems.
27I'm Bryan Lynn.
1The U.S. Navy is halting development of a high-tech weapon designed to fire projectiles at up to seven times the speed of sound. 2The Navy spent more than 10 years developing the weapon, called an electromagnetic railgun. The cannon-like railgun uses electricity instead of chemical substances to fire projectiles. 3A report released earlier this year by the Congressional Research Service stated that the Navy had been developing the railgun as a firing weapon to support U.S. Marines operations. The report said the development also centered on possible use of the railgun as a missile defense system. 4The move to cancel railgun development comes as the U.S. Department of Defense turns its attention to the development of hypersonic missiles, The Associated Press reports. 5Hypersonic is a term that relates to speeds of more than five times the speed of sound, also known as Mach 5. In addition to flying at extremely high speeds, hypersonic weapons are designed to move in ways that make them difficult to find and destroy in flight. 6The U.S. military has been putting money into the development of hypersonic weapons in recent years in an effort to keep up with hypersonic military programs in China and Russia. 7Matthew Caris is a defense expert with the private advisory company Avascent Group. He told the AP that "the railgun is, for the moment, dead." 8The halt in railgun development, Caris said, suggests that the Navy saw difficulties in implementing the technology. In addition, the Navy likely recognized that hypersonic missiles have higher performing abilities than the railgun, he added. 9Lieutenant Courtney Callaghan is a Navy spokesperson. She told the AP that the Navy's decision will free up resources for hypersonic missiles, as well as lasers and other electronic warfare systems. 10The Navy spent about $500 million on research and development of the railgun, said Bryan Clark, a defense expert at the Hudson Institute. 11The railgun held the possibility of providing an effective weapon at a much lower cost than smart bombs and missiles. Using electricity, a railgun can fire a projectile at six or seven times the speed of sound, creating enough energy to destroy targets. 12But Clark said the program experienced a number of problems, including the limited range of the railgun in testing. In addition, its usefulness for missile defense was also limited by range and rate of fire, Clark added. 13Another big question was whether the gun could stay together during continuous firing, said defense analyst Norman Friedman. 14A normal gun can be fired about 600 times before the barrel has to be refurbished. But the barrel on tested railguns, Clark said, had to be replaced after about 12 to 24 shots were fired. 15A few years ago, the Navy was talking about putting the gun on the future USS Lyndon B. Johnson, the last of three stealthy destroyers. But now, the Navy is developing what it calls a "hypervelocity projectile," which is designed to be fired from existing gun systems. 16I'm Bryan Lynn. 17The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 18We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. 19__________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21projectile - n. an object that is thrown or shot forward with force 22cannon - n. a large, powerful gun, usually attached to two or four wheels, that was used in the past to fire heavy balls 23implement - v. to start using a plan or system 24barrel - n. the long part of a gun that is shaped like a tube 25refurbish - v. to improve or restore something to working order 26stealthy - adj. quiet and careful in order not to be seen or heard