China’s smog a perfect defense against US laser: expert

China’s crippling pollution problem could be its biggest defense against the US Navy’s Laser Weapon System, according to a Chinese expert.

Source: www.wantchinatimes.com

Zhang Zhaozhong, a military theorist at the PLA National Defense University in Beijing, said in an interview with state broadcaster CCTV that the “fatal weakness” of laser weapons is hazy conditions. The range of a laser that can hit a target 10 kilometers away will be reduced to just one kilometer under hazy conditions, Zhang said in response to questions regarding the US Navy’s plans to deploy its first laser weapon on a ship later this year.

If that is the case, China has little to be concerned about as its infamous PM2.5 ratings — measuring airborne particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers — is often so high that its air would be almost impenetrable to laser. Various major cities across the country such as Beijing recorded PM2.5 levels exceeding 115 micrograms per cubic meter as recently as this month, far above the 25 micrograms level considered safe by the World Health Organization. At such levels, the air quality index of these cities will also often hit the maximum of 500, which is considered “extremely hazardous.”

A weapon that can only attack under clear weather conditions is useless, Zhang said, adding that extremely foggy conditions at sea are also inevitable.

Notwithstanding the criticisms, the US Navy is pushing on with its Laser Weapon System, which will be deployed aboard the USS Ponce this summer amid plans to test an electromagnetic rail gun prototype on a vessel within two years, according to the Voice of Russia, the Russian government’s international radio broadcasting service.

Laser weapons are said to be particularly valuable to the US Navy because unlike traditional weapons they can continuously attack targets like drones and speed boats at hypersonic speeds without fear of running out of ammunition. Financially, laser weapons are at a huge advantage, costing just a few dollars each time a laser cannon is fired compared to as much as US$1.5 million for a single interceptor missile.

Lowering costs of technical parts have also made the research into these sophisticated weapons more feasible from an economic perspective, even though the technology is still believed to be about a decade away from being fully operational.

However, given that lasers can only hit targets that are visible to the naked eye from the place it is fired, many experts believe they are not practical weapons in actual combat. Some have also expressed skepticism regarding the alleged low costs of such weapons, saying that the Pentagon must be withholding details of the “real version” from the public.

The real purpose of deploying a laser weapon, according to the Voice of Russia report, is to boost America’s image as a military superpower at the cutting edge of the latest technological developments. For a country like the US, image is more important than money, the report said.