OT: 10 megajoule Rail gun

[Fred Bloggs]

That tells you how fast the ship was going at the time not the max
speed it could do.

No, it was used to deduce maximum speed...apparently based on some kind
of assumptions about hull design and wave velocity about which I know
zip- but nonetheless I know a barge ain't built for speed-)

You are arguing "mere facts" in a situation where the facts aren't
what is important. Having something that sounded good for the
reporters was what mattered. Reporters don't like "I won't tell you".

You're talking about nearly 100 years ago, people were much more
accepting of government as absolute authority...

 

[Corbomite Carrie]

or a couple of jihadis in a rowboat filled with fertilizer and fuel
oil in the middle of the night. haven't forgotten the cole already,
have we?

You're a goddamned retard. Of course we haven't forgotten. Do you
think you can get within 1000 feet of a ship right now? Think again.

 

[MooseFET]

No, it was used to deduce maximum speed...apparently based on some kind
of assumptions about hull design and wave velocity about which I know
zip- but nonetheless I know a barge ain't built for speed-)

The works for "displacement" hulls. As a ship speeds up the bow wake
move back along the ship and the stern wake moves forwards. When the
bow wake and stern wake meet, there is a limit on speed. Basically no
matter how big of an engine you use, you can't go any faster without
planing.

You're talking about nearly 100 years ago, people were much more
accepting of government as absolute authority...

People still seem way to likely to take the government's word.

 

[MooseFET]

"Because the railgun uses electricity and not gunpowder to fire
projectiles, it eliminates the possibility of explosions on ships."

What do they use for power, then, that can match gunpowder? Middle of
a battle: "Captain, batteries are running low again. Time to
requisition the crew's Energizers?"

No they use Rayovacs to power the gun.

Look at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homopolar_generator

See the second picture. On a modern ship power isn't the problem.
The problem is mounting the disk so that the thing doesn't get loose
while going at a billion RPM.

 

[Fred Bloggs]

Yawn. More corporate welfare to keep the defense trough filled, and
keep the civilians appeased.

You do know that $1M is just $0.001B, right? So what is the problem with
picking on the isty-bitsy railgun when we're spending $T?

 

[Winfield]

You do know that $1M is just $0.001B, right? So what is the problem
with picking on the isty-bitsy railgun when we're spending $T?

M, B, T ... pretty soon we'll be learning the
financial alphabet here!

 

[Fred Bloggs]

M, B, T ... pretty soon we'll be learning the
financial alphabet here!

What is this either/or but not both mentality anyway? Anyone who thinks
the Navy has been neglecting CIWS (close in weapon system) defense needs
to check out this Millenium Gun, can we say lethal?
http://www.gizmag.com/go/4006/gallery/

 

[Tim Williams]

Look at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homopolar_generator

See the second picture. On a modern ship power isn't the problem.
The problem is mounting the disk so that the thing doesn't get loose
while going at a billion RPM.

The insane thing about railguns is, the amount of power they consume for a
substantial firing rate corresponds to about the complete shaft output of a
modern battleship. 60 rounds/minute demands 10MW for a 10MJ gun, or
somewhere around 10k HP, not counting losses (which might bring the total
to 100k HP or more, depending on where they're counting the "10MJ" from).
IIRC, an aircraft carrier is supposedly 300k SHP.

It's no wonder that, even so long after this technology was invented (say,
when was the first railgun as such built, anyway?), explosives are still of
prime importance: compact, extremely powerful on demand, does not depend on
other systems (like motive or electric power). Quite vulnerable to fire
though!

A railgun is attractive because, besides its distance and penetrating
power, it also has a potentially unlimited supply of power (naval nuclear
reactors are fueled once and generate however much power for their entire
life cycle). Slugs are a lot smaller than shells and powder. But it's
looking like disposable rails will fill in the rest of the empty space in
the powder magazine.

Tim

 

[Jim Yanik]

M, B, T ... pretty soon we'll be learning the
financial alphabet here!

Defense is the NUMBER ONE job of government.
Can't do anything else if your country has been overrun by invaders.

 

[Jim Yanik]

You're a goddamned retard. Of course we haven't forgotten. Do you
think you can get within 1000 feet of a ship right now? Think again.

most US ships going to the ME have had MK-38 25mm autocannon installed,the
same Bushmaster dual-feed cannon used in the Bradley Fighting Vehicles.
Uses AP or HEI rounds,selectable.

they also have several M-2 .50BMG machine guns for "light work".

 

[Richard The Dreaded Libertarian]

Defense is the NUMBER ONE job of government.
Can't do anything else if your country has been overrun by invaders.

If we did, in fact, adhere to the Constitution, any invasion by a
foreign power would be crushed before it could start, by a well-armed
citizenry, AKA, the Militia.

And really, who cares what language the bureaucrats in Washington
speak? No matter who they are, their goal is to A: take away all of
your money to line their pockets and B: take away as much of your
Freedom as possible, to give themselves a feeling of power.

Not necessarily in that order.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[MooseFET]

M, B, T ... pretty soon we'll be learning the
financial alphabet here!

Their is a risk that so much will be spent today that it leaves the
country weak tomorrow. In some future war, China may be on the other
side and thus unwilling to lend the money to buy and make the parts
for the weapons needed.

People often spend a lot of time thinking about the weapons needed in
the last war and not enough on the weapons needed in the next one. A
well educated populace and industry that can make what is needed on
short notice may turn out to be more important than a new aircraft
carrier.

 

[Clifford Heath]

Their is a risk that so much will be spent today that it leaves the
country weak tomorrow.

Reagan's already done that. That's why you're in Iraq now.
The long-term value of the $US was so undermined by Reagan
squandering a century's savings that Saddam started selling
oil in $Euro, and the US couldn't afford to take that
currency risk, so they invented crap about WMD and invaded.

It's excessive willingness to wage war for economic reasons
that the rest of the world hates. It's unbelievable how much
of your population has been hoodwinked into believing there's
some altruism involved. Still, at least the population believes
in altruism. That makes the US a better place than most!

Clifford Heath.

 

[Jim Thompson]

Reagan's already done that. That's why you're in Iraq now.
The long-term value of the $US was so undermined by Reagan
squandering a century's savings that Saddam started selling
oil in $Euro, and the US couldn't afford to take that
currency risk, so they invented crap about WMD and invaded.

It's excessive willingness to wage war for economic reasons
that the rest of the world hates. It's unbelievable how much
of your population has been hoodwinked into believing there's
some altruism involved. Still, at least the population believes
in altruism. That makes the US a better place than most!

Clifford Heath.

Thus speaks another ignoramus from the criminal colony ;-)

...Jim Thompson

 

[Clifford Heath]

Thus speaks another ignoramus from the criminal colony ;-)

Just the kind of lucid, well-reasoned response I expected from you, Jim.
Too close to the truth to actually deal with, was it?

 

[Jim Thompson]

Just the kind of lucid, well-reasoned response I expected from you, Jim.
Too close to the truth to actually deal with, was it?

Indeed, I spoke the truth ;-)

...Jim Thompson

 

[Vladimir Vassilevsky]

It's excessive willingness to wage war for economic reasons
that the rest of the world hates. It's unbelievable how much
of your population has been hoodwinked into believing there's
some altruism involved.

I can understand and agree with the economic reasons for the war. After
all, it is supposed to make my life better. Nothing changed since the
times of the Roman Empire. I can also understand the reasoning behind
the idea of building a pro-western state in the Middle East. That could
bring the advantages in the long term (however the idea of the arab
democratic state looks like the sheer nonsense to anyone familiar with
their mentality and the way of life).

But the results are the opposite! There is a black hole sucking money
and efforts with no sign of conclusion.

Still, at least the population believes
in altruism.

What is worse, the government seems to believe in their own hype and
keeps wasting time and money instead of either pulling out or building
the concentration camps and raising a bloody dictator from the natives.

There is another problem: the US army is the most advanced, and the most
expensive, too. It turns out to be so expensive that even the capture of
the country which is very rich in oil doesn't recoup the costs. The
army of occupation should be cheap as the hordes of tatars.

That makes the US a better place than most!

I am seriously concerned about the possibility of the USA break up like
the USSR did. There are the symptoms of the same disease. The idiots
don't seem to understand how much of suffering it would cause.

Clifford Heath.

Vladimir Vassilevsky
DSP and Mixed Signal Design Consultant
http://www.abvolt.com