See, the US Army is right. ICBMs are the fastest way to deploy ISR-Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance-spy bots. They only take minutes to launch and reach a target anywhere in the world. Loading them with spy bots will provide with access to real-time data about any conflict area, in virtually no time:

ISR platforms delivered from missiles can potentially provide battlefield information that is only seconds old when transmitted from long ranges. This information is particularly valuable since it is so current. It provides the potential for striking a very mobile enemy before he has time to alter his position.

But then, ICBMs usually carry a much dangerous load: Nuclear warheads. You can be sure that the the Russians—or the Chinese or the North Koreans—won't be happy about detecting an ICBM launch off Alaska. That's exactly the reason why other similar efforts pioneered by Darpa were scrapped. The US Army boffins, however, say they have a plan to avoid the confusion: Use a different kind of ICBM.

How different that missile could be? A ballistic missile is a ballistic missile. They follow a trajectory across oceans and continents to open and drop whatever load they have, being that nukes, spy bots, or cotton candy. Then, the Army also says that they want the spy bots to be fully armed, just in case they want to strike seconds after they find the enemy.

See, that still doesn't sound like a good idea to me. Like the old Russian proverb says: "If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, it's a nuclear missile." [Wired]

At least, that's what the theory is. Iran says that the missile can reach 2000km, which is enough to hit Israel, NATO-member Turkey, India, China, and some parts of Greece and the former Yugoslavia. According to Western military experts, however, the Shahab-3's range may be only 1300km. The same experts also say that there may be a 2500km range version, which could easily reach many countries in Europe.

The worrying part about all this is that the Iranians have now a working, solid-state, multi-stage missile. This means that even longer-range variants of the Shahab-3 are only a matter of time. Eventually, it will become a full Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles capable of hitting anywhere in the world. [BBC News]

Looking at the scale—compared to the tiny humans on the ground—and the strange external machinery attached to it, I thought this was part of some kind of huge experimental rocket. I was wrong, but kind of close.

It's the second interceptor silo for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense system. It's being installed now by Boeing and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency at the Vandenberg Air Force Base, in Santa Barbara County, California. You know, the missile defense system that is not going to save us from any nuclear mayhem, but maybe from some retards launching the occasional warhead. [Boeing]

According to Wikipedia, it depends. If they're using the short to medium range missiles, it's probably going to be the Musudan, which has an operational range of 2500-4000 kilometers. The darker red circle shows the maximum range of this. Nowhere close to US territories, but China, Russia and Japan should probably keep an eye open.

However, if they're going to use their Taepodong-2 long range three-stage missiles, there's a MAXIMUM possibility of 10,000 kilometers (the larger circle). However, a more likely scenario is somewhere around 4500 kilometers, which still isn't quite far enough to hit Alaska or Hawaii.

In the case that somehow it can reach the maximum 10,000 kilometers, it's still not quite there to the west coast of the US, so I can take my diapers off and stop worrying. [Guardian]

Update: Ah crap. There's a reason why I don't do this for a living. The Earth is round. Here's a better map. We're all screwed. Thanks commenters. Forget everything I wrote.

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.

In a recent briefing, the Department of Defense laid out its new plans: Smaller and far more precise UAVs with badass names like "Suburb Warrior" and "Sniper" that will hunt in groups, rather than just blowing suspected hideouts to pieces with Hellfire missiles. The Suburb Warrior, for example, is designed to fire volleys of mini-missiles in tight formation, which makes a nice change from previous missiles that often demolished entire city blocks.

Unfortunately, these new UAVs should see production in about five years, by which time who knows what kind of battles we'll need to fight—or who'll be leading the Pentagon. But it's a step in the right direction, that's for sure. [Esquire]

NORAD and USNORTHCOM monitor North Korean launch

April 05, 2009

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. - North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command officials acknowledged today that North Korea launched a Taepo Dong 2 missile at 10:30 p.m. EDT Saturday which passed over the Sea of Japan/East Sea and the nation of Japan.

Stage one of the missile fell into the Sea of Japan/East Sea. The remaining stages along with the payload itself landed in the Pacific Ocean.

No object entered orbit and no debris fell on Japan.

NORAD and USNORTHCOM assessed the space launch vehicle as not a threat to North America or Hawaii and took no action in response to this launch.

This is all of the information that will be provided by NORAD and USNORTHCOM pertaining to the launch.

Apparently, their rocket technology is not really there yet, and the second stage never separated or ignited, according to Defense Tech's analysis. And that's yet another pathetic failure by the North Korean clowns, boys and girls. Maybe Kim Yong-il and the rest of his gang should develop pork buns for their starving population, rather ICBMs. [Northern Command via Defense Tech]

According to the video description, "the Israeli arms firm Rafael displayed this Bollywood dance number-based marketing video at the recently held Aero India 2009 in Bangalore." Our friends at Flight Global say that the Israeli company thought it was a good way to "build familiarity between India and Israel and Rafael."

They can do whatever they want to sell their weapons to any morons who want to buy them, but please SOMEONE GET THAT MUSIC OFF MY HEAD NOW! [Flight Global]

Imagine this: You are Chinese MiG pilot chasing a Royal Australian Air Force F/A-18 fighter jet. All of the sudden, you see the flash of a fired missile under its wing, which leaves you scratching your head. After all, you are the one chasing the guy ahead and he doesn't have anything in front. So for a brief moment you wonder until you see the missile turning around towards you, which is probably the last thing you are going to see in your life, seconds before getting engulfed in flames. Good bye, sucker.

That's exactly what the Australians did the other day for the first time ever, without grilling a Chinese pilot: One of their new ASRAAM (Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile) was fired at a target behind the wing-line of one of their F/A-18 Hornets. The chasing plane was located at more than three miles behind the Hornet, resulting in a direct kill.

What does this mean? Basically, that you don't need to be Maverick to survive up there as long as you have a full load of these missiles. According to the company, the new ASRAAMs give full-around protection. But then again, all these fighters are going to be irrelevant soon. [Defense Tech]

These images were taken at various locations across the United States over a three year period—and I suppose they make a statement about our mentality during that time. Although, cold war or not—playing on rocketship monkey bars is always awesome. Hit the artist's website for the full gallery. [Lauren Orchowski via Boing Boing Gadgets]

AP brings us Iran's state television footage:

Named Omid, or hope, the satellite weighs around 60 pounds and is primarily a "data-processing satellite" according to IRNA, the state news agency. Last summer, Iran said they successfully put a dummy satellite in space, but this appears to be the first time a working piece of hardware was put into orbit.

As we all know, space programs aren't all for planting flags in far-off rocks in the name of fellowship, exploration and the triumph of the human spirit—they're primarily for figuring out how to toss warheads at your far-flung enemies around the world. The differences between a rocket and an intercontinental ballistic missile are very few, and that's clearly one of the many messages Iran is hoping to send home with this launch.

The NYTimes is quoting David Washington, a proliferation expert at the Institute for Science and International Security, who says the Safir 2 rockets do not pose a serious threat:

“It’s not a very capable missile. The payload and diameter aren’t that great,” he said. “It doesn’t say much, if anything, about their ability to deliver a nuclear weapon. But part of the concern here is that Iran is continuing its steady drip-drip-drip toward a nuclear weapons capability.”

White house spokesman Robert Gibbs said the US will use "all elements of our national power" to deal with any potential threat posed by these new developments. [NYTimes, Breitbart]

While the laser has been tested before, this was the first time they actually operated the whole thing as if they were shooting down a real target. This test fired the laser from the back-mounted generator thought the beam control system, exiting the aircraft through the nose-mounted turret and hitting a simulated ballistic missile target.

The next test—to be executed next year—will be firing and shooting down a real airborne ballistic missile.

Boeing Airborne Laser Team Fires High-Energy Laser Through Beam Control System

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Dec. 01, 2008 — The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA], industry teammates and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency last week fired a high-energy laser through the Airborne Laser's (ABL) beam control/fire control system, completing the first ground test of the entire weapon system integrated aboard the aircraft.

During the test at Edwards Air Force Base, the laser beam traveled through the beam control/fire control system before exiting the aircraft through the nose-mounted turret. The beam control/fire control system steered and focused the beam onto a simulated ballistic-missile target.

"This test is significant because it demonstrated that the Airborne Laser missile defense program has successfully integrated the entire weapon system aboard the ABL aircraft," said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of Boeing Missile Defense Systems. "With the achievement of the first firing of the laser aboard the aircraft in September, the team has now completed the two major milestones it hoped to accomplish in 2008, keeping ABL on track to conduct the missile shootdown demonstration planned for next year."

Michael Rinn, Boeing vice president and ABL program director, said the next step for the program is a series of longer-duration laser firings through the beam control/fire control system.

"Once we complete those tests, we will begin demonstrating the entire weapon system in flight," Rinn said. "The team is meeting its commitment to deliver this transformational directed-energy weapon system in the near term."

The program has logged many accomplishments over the past several years. In 2005, the high-energy laser demonstrated lethal levels of duration and power in the System Integration Laboratory at Edwards. In 2007, ABL completed numerous flight tests that demonstrated its ability to track an airborne target, measure and compensate for atmospheric conditions, and deliver a surrogate high-energy laser's simulated lethal beam on the target. In September 2008, the team achieved "first light" by firing the high-energy laser into a calorimeter aboard the aircraft.

Boeing is the prime contractor for ABL, which will provide speed-of-light capability to destroy all classes of ballistic missiles in their boost phase of flight.

The ABL aircraft is a modified Boeing 747-400F whose back half holds the high-energy laser, designed and built by Northrop Grumman. The front section of the aircraft contains the beam control/fire control system, developed by Lockheed Martin, and the battle management system, provided by Boeing.

The three-stage solid propellant engine of the M51 is derived from the Ariane 5 rocket, weights 57 tons and has a range of 4,970 miles, guided by inertial and star position systems. It would be delivered in 2010 to their Triomphant class submarines and, hopefully, they will get rusty in there. Or maybe not.

That's the disclaimer on the BALLS Experimental Rocket Launch website. Their 17th annual meeting just concluded in Nevada's Black Rock Desert where at least one rocket cracked 70,000 feet. Many others had successful flights. And some just blew up. Photography by Erik Charlton. See more of his fantastic shots from the event here. [via MAKE]

At this point it's little more than wishful saber rattling, of course, but if there's one way to prove your mettle as a nation, it's to blast something big into space. But it would take a fool to think that space program could somehow help develop long-range ICBM systems, I mean, come on guys. Our space race with the Soviets was totally about the science. Right? [Reuters, Image: Giz's Iran Photoshop Contest Winner]

Nice work with the Photoshopping, Iran. You guys should enter one of our contests sometime. [NY Times]

[Wired]

Yes, with each missile costing around $10 million and two or three shots possibly necessary, this isn't a cheap process. So why is the Pentagon dropping this much money on something that, in all likelihood, would mostly burn up on reentry and land in the middle of the ocean?

Well, for one, this thing has 1,000 pounds of Hydrazine rocket fuel on board, which isn't anything you'd want landing in your front yard. According to the EPA, "exposure to high levels of hydrazine may [induce] irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, dizziness, headache, nausea, pulmonary edema, seizures, and coma in humans." Hilariously enough, Hydrazine is also found in second-hand cigarette smoke, just not quite as much as would explode in your face if you were in the wrong place at the wrong time when this satellite fell.

But wouldn't all that rocket fuel burn up on reentry? You'd think it'd be the first to go, right? I mean, I'm certainly no rocket scientist, but that makes sense to me. So what other reasons could there be for spending so much coin on this operation?

Well, this is actually a pretty sweet opportunity for the military to test out its sea-based strategic missile defense system. Popular Science does a great job breaking down exactly what this test is going to entail. So essentially, this whole thing is either a way to save our environment from 1,000 pounds of toxic rocket fuel or an excuse to test out the militaries blowing-stuff-up program.

In any case, there will be explosions, and we will find video of said explosions right when it happens. Our priorities are straight. Stay tuned.

– Louis Ramirez
Missile-Proofing Runways [via PopSci]

You control the launcher through fully mod-ready PC software. But why no Mac support? We're not all pacifist, granola-eating, black mock turtle-wearing hippies. Oh wait. – Mark Wilson
Thanks GP!

Product Page [ninjagizmos]