Defense

World War II resistance fighters used government-developed stench as a weapon

It was the early 1940s. A war stretched across the globe. Times were desperate, and there was no method people were too proud to use – including a stink bomb. There are plenty of books, shows, and movies about the French resistance movement during World War II. Other countries are quick to point out that…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Apr 13

In roiling seas, Navy laser sets a ship on fire

A Navy laser set fire to a small ship bobbing in unruly seas this week, the first at-sea demonstration of one of the Navy’s ray guns. Check out the Navy’s video of a fire slowly consuming the inflatable boat’s outboard motors. At times, the turbulent waters seemed ready to swallow the small craft, a testament…

io9 Rebecca Boyle - Popular Science Apr 9

Security expert predicts a future pirate war off the coast of Somalia

Somalian pirate raids, though deadly, are often amateurish. Security guards can usually shake them off with a few carefully-aimed shots, but one expert says that soon this won’t be enough. Get ready for the modern world’s first pirate war. Casey Christie, who works with maritime security consultancy Concept Tactical Worldwide, predicted: Pirates trying to board…

io9 Annalee Newitz Mar 30

Naval sonar drives whales from feeding grounds

The first detailed study of the effects of naval sonar on whales shows that whales flee from prime feeding sites when navy tests begin – leaving them famished when they finally return. Blainville’s beaked whales, Mesoplodon densirostris, use echolocation clicks to track down prey in the lightless depths they hunt in, a kilometre or more…

io9 John Cannon - New Scientist Mar 26

5 haunting subterranean structures from around the globe

Even if you’ve been to the Catacombs of Paris or have gone spelunking in Brooklyn’s abandoned subway lines, there’s still a wealth of underground places to be explored. Here are some of the world’s less welcoming manmade tunnels and grottos. Fort Zverv In the 1970s, this munitions store in Kronstadt, Russia caught on fire. The…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Feb 26

Watch a declassified Air Force movie about the end of the world

Yesterday we featured the equal parts horrific and boring US government job application for “nuclear war survivor.” Today we’re taking a look at the United States Air Force film “The Power of Decision,” perhaps the only American military training movie to depict global nuclear annihilation. Cheerful stuff! https://gizmodo.com/a-job-application-for-restarting-the-human-race-after-t-5766500 In the film, none of the military…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Feb 22

Robotic hummingbird is right out of a James Bond film

Here’s footage of AeroVironment’s Nano Hummingbird, which was built with DARPA funding. This robot bird was built to be a spy ornithopter, can fly at a speed of 11 miles per hour, and weighs as much as a AA battery. Here are the traits DARPA required of this mechanical bird: 1. Demonstrate precision hover flight…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Feb 19

On its way to ultradestructive megawatt power, Navy’s death ray laser breaks another record

The Navy’s death ray weapon keeps burning through laser records, on its way to the ultimate goal of searing through 2,000 feet of steel per second. The Free Electron Laser’s latest milestone involved running its electron injection system for eight hours at 500 kilovolts. That will help the laser become more powerful and more deadly,…

io9 Rebecca Boyle - Popular Science Feb 19

Meet the CIA’s robotic animal agents: Charlie the spy fish and the robo-dragonfly

The CIA recently created accounts on Flickr and YouTube. Most of what’s been uploaded is underwhelming and weirdly mundane — for example, you can learn about a satisfying career as a K-9 bomb-sniffing dog — but there are some oddly intriguing mechanical animals on display, namely the robo-fish Charlie and a “dragonfly insectothopter,” which the…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Feb 9

Meet the Land Battleship, the biggest $#@?! tank that never existed

This absurdly oversized vehicle is the Land Battleship, a juggernaut that supposedly ran over Nazis in World War II. This 1941 illustration from Mechanix Illustrated is, as commenters over at Modern Mechanix astutely point out, an artistic embellishment of real Soviet tanks such as the KV. From now on, I’m just going to refer to…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Feb 8

One in 50 Troops in Afghanistan Is a Robot

There are more than 2,000 ground robots fighting alongside flesh-and-blood forces in Afghanistan, according to Lt. Col. Dave Thompson, the Marine Corps’ top robot-handler. If his figures are right, it means one in 50 U.S. troops in Afghanistan isn’t even a human being. And America’s swelling ranks of groundbot warriors are being used in new,…

Tech News David Axe - Wired Feb 8

What is the X-RHex? A bizarre spy robot who conquers the Mojave Desert

Experimental robots can have some fairly jarring means of locomotion, but wait until you see the X-RHex, a half-wheeled, half-legged robot who scoffs at hills, grass, and other terrain. Watch this “legged laboratory” flail its way through the Mojave. X-RHex comes to us from UPenn’s Kod*Lab — the DARPA-funded bot was designed to navigate rough…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Jan 25

Project Iceworm: the nuclear city hidden under Greenland’s glaciers

Camp Century-aka “Project Iceworm”-was a “city under ice,” according to the U.S. Army, a “nuclear-powered research center built by the Army Corps of Engineers under the icy surface of Greenland,” as Frank J. Leskovitz more specifically explains. A fully-functioning “underground city,” Camp Century even had its own mobile nuclear reactor-an “Alco PM-2A”-that kept the whole…

io9 Geoff Manaugh -- BLDGBLOG Jan 22

The Miami police department recruits flying robocop

The Miami-Dade PD has added a Honeywell RQ-16 T-hawk drone to their roster. This drone, which can hit altitudes of 10,000 feet for 40+ minutes, would be used in SWAT and search-and-rescue operations, not spying on jaywalkers. The Miami-Dade police department is waiting for FAA approval to use the drone in domestic airspace. Here’s a…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Jan 15

New laser to dazzle pirates on the high seas

Marauding pirates could soon find themselves up against a new long-range laser weapon, designed to leave them blinded, bewildered and all at sea. Although the laser will not necessarily repel determined aggressors, it should let them know that they have been spotted while still at a distance and that their quarry is ready for them.…

io9 Duncan Graham-Rowe -- New Scientist Jan 9

An experimental tank design inspired by The Dark Knight’s Batmobile

This transport right here is BAE Systems’ Raider, an experimental tank inspired by the Tumbler in The Dark Knight. Its designers based its wheel configuration on Wayne Industries’ cushiest ride. In a discussion with The Engineer BAE Systems Future Protected Vehicles project leader Hisham Awad openly admitted that the Raider’s design took cues from the…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Dec 26

Abandoned chemical weapons plant is overrun with fluffy bunnies

In the early 20th century, Okunoshima Island was top-secret facility that produced poison gas for the Japanese military. Nowadays the tiny island has become the home to 300 rabbits, who tourists come to visit amongst the industrial ruins. Since the 1970s, Okunoshima Island has become a veritable bunny Eden. From Mainichi: The small island of…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Dec 26

The strangest ways Christmas has been used for psychological warfare

For decades, militaries have weaponized Christmas songs, symbols, and sentimentality for psychological warfare and propaganda purposes. Here are some bizarre tales about ersatz Christmas cards during World War II, controversial Christmas trees, and decking the halls in the Colombian jungle. 1.) The Korean DMZ Christmas Tree This week, South Korea lit up a 95-foot-tall metal…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar Dec 25

Pentagon Wants to Give Troops Terminator Vision

No more will soldiers’ vision be limited to the socket-embedded spheres that God intended. The Pentagon wants troops to see dangers behind them, as well as figure out whether an object a kilometer away is a walking stick or AK-47. In a solicitation released today, Darpa, the Pentagon’s far-out research branch, unveiled the Soldier Centric…

io9 Spencer Ackerman - Danger Room Dec 22

Non-Newtonian fluids: For when you want a liquid that’s also a solid

The harder they’re hit, the stronger they are. They stop bullets and let people walk on custard. They’re non-newtonian fluids. Here’s a tip for obsessive lovers, smothering parents, and over-friendly friends; If anyone tells you that if you love something you should set it free, show them a non-newtonian fluid. Hold it lightly, and it…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Dec 20

World War II resistance fighters used government-developed stench as a weapon

In roiling seas, Navy laser sets a ship on fire

Security expert predicts a future pirate war off the coast of Somalia

Naval sonar drives whales from feeding grounds

5 haunting subterranean structures from around the globe

Watch a declassified Air Force movie about the end of the world

Robotic hummingbird is right out of a James Bond film

On its way to ultradestructive megawatt power, Navy’s death ray laser breaks another record

Meet the CIA’s robotic animal agents: Charlie the spy fish and the robo-dragonfly

Meet the Land Battleship, the biggest $#@?! tank that never existed

One in 50 Troops in Afghanistan Is a Robot

What is the X-RHex? A bizarre spy robot who conquers the Mojave Desert

Project Iceworm: the nuclear city hidden under Greenland’s glaciers

The Miami police department recruits flying robocop

New laser to dazzle pirates on the high seas

An experimental tank design inspired by The Dark Knight’s Batmobile

Abandoned chemical weapons plant is overrun with fluffy bunnies

The strangest ways Christmas has been used for psychological warfare

Pentagon Wants to Give Troops Terminator Vision

Non-Newtonian fluids: For when you want a liquid that’s also a solid

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