774
8 Modern Weapons: Possibilities and Limitations
demonstrated that the ADS unit is a powerful weapon. The idea to create thins weapon
emerged in mid 1990s, when the Americans were forced to leave Somali under the
pressure from locals. The main problem of the Somali campaign consisted in the fact
that, in addition to militia, the American soldiers were constantly attacked by natives,
angered but armed only with sticks and stones. No one wanted to shoot at them back
then, America still paid attention to the opinion of the international community
and didn’t want to spoil its peacemaking image. Therefore, they decided to creating
something non-lethal but extremely painful. The invention was based on the principle
of a microwave oven, which heats up breakfast with a high-frequency electromagnetic
field. But the field of the military microwave is extremely powerful and directional; it
has the shape of a wide beam with an effective range of about 1 km. The properties of
the electromagnetic field have been used for military purposes (to disable electronic
devices of the enemy) for a long time. The effect of the electromagnetic pulse (EMP),
which caused many problems to creators of military equipment and military facilities,
was discovered as early as during the first tests of nuclear weapons.
Later on, scientists learned how to create EMP without a nuclear explosion.
During the Operation Desert Storm and NATO bombings of Yugoslavia, electromagnetic missiles and bombs were used. Their design is not that difficult: an inductance coil and an explosive. After explosion, frequency and current power of the
coil increase sharply, and a powerful magnetic field appears within the radius of
action of the charge, which destroys enemy devices and equipment. In the 1980s,
portable microwave generators were produced. These are plants with directional
antenna transmitters, which are designed for precise attacks on single and group
targets. Over time, it became possible to minimize their size, which initially reached
the size of a railroad car—the emitter with a capacity of one gigawatt now weighs
only 20 kg, and the apparatus with a capacity of 20 gigawatt has weight of about
180 kg. It was planned to use them to destroy enemy missiles, planes, and ground
equipment.
In April 2001, these weapons were tested at the Kirtland airbase (New Mexico).
The beam of electromagnetic waves was directed at a van from a distance of several
hundred meters; the ignition system of the van was immediately disabled. However,
people suffered together with the equipment, experiencing a wide range of unpleasant
feelings or losing consciousness. As we know, an electronic device placed in a
microwave oven gets out of order, to put it softly. In 2001, the tests of the Active
Denial System designed for humane struggle with living persons were performed at
the same Kirtland airbase on several volunteers. They ultimately had to regret their
bravery: under the effect of the high-frequency (96 GHz) field, the water in skin
cells started to boil, the tissues heated up to 45°–50°, and the subject experienced
unbearable pain. However, as soon as the person escaped the area of effect of the
installation, the pain was gone, and there were no apparent damages.
Experiments on volunteers performed with these weapons demonstrated that
microwave weapons affect work of the brain and the central nervous system, and
the victim hears non-existent noise and hiss (Fig. 8.10).
8 Modern Weapons: Possibilities and Limitations
demonstrated that the ADS unit is a powerful weapon. The idea to create thins weapon
emerged in mid 1990s, when the Americans were forced to leave Somali under the
pressure from locals. The main problem of the Somali campaign consisted in the fact
that, in addition to militia, the American soldiers were constantly attacked by natives,
angered but armed only with sticks and stones. No one wanted to shoot at them back
then, America still paid attention to the opinion of the international community
and didn’t want to spoil its peacemaking image. Therefore, they decided to creating
something non-lethal but extremely painful. The invention was based on the principle
of a microwave oven, which heats up breakfast with a high-frequency electromagnetic
field. But the field of the military microwave is extremely powerful and directional; it
has the shape of a wide beam with an effective range of about 1 km. The properties of
the electromagnetic field have been used for military purposes (to disable electronic
devices of the enemy) for a long time. The effect of the electromagnetic pulse (EMP),
which caused many problems to creators of military equipment and military facilities,
was discovered as early as during the first tests of nuclear weapons.
Later on, scientists learned how to create EMP without a nuclear explosion.
During the Operation Desert Storm and NATO bombings of Yugoslavia, electromagnetic missiles and bombs were used. Their design is not that difficult: an inductance coil and an explosive. After explosion, frequency and current power of the
coil increase sharply, and a powerful magnetic field appears within the radius of
action of the charge, which destroys enemy devices and equipment. In the 1980s,
portable microwave generators were produced. These are plants with directional
antenna transmitters, which are designed for precise attacks on single and group
targets. Over time, it became possible to minimize their size, which initially reached
the size of a railroad car—the emitter with a capacity of one gigawatt now weighs
only 20 kg, and the apparatus with a capacity of 20 gigawatt has weight of about
180 kg. It was planned to use them to destroy enemy missiles, planes, and ground
equipment.
In April 2001, these weapons were tested at the Kirtland airbase (New Mexico).
The beam of electromagnetic waves was directed at a van from a distance of several
hundred meters; the ignition system of the van was immediately disabled. However,
people suffered together with the equipment, experiencing a wide range of unpleasant
feelings or losing consciousness. As we know, an electronic device placed in a
microwave oven gets out of order, to put it softly. In 2001, the tests of the Active
Denial System designed for humane struggle with living persons were performed at
the same Kirtland airbase on several volunteers. They ultimately had to regret their
bravery: under the effect of the high-frequency (96 GHz) field, the water in skin
cells started to boil, the tissues heated up to 45°–50°, and the subject experienced
unbearable pain. However, as soon as the person escaped the area of effect of the
installation, the pain was gone, and there were no apparent damages.
Experiments on volunteers performed with these weapons demonstrated that
microwave weapons affect work of the brain and the central nervous system, and
the victim hears non-existent noise and hiss (Fig. 8.10).