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‘Military’ Stories

The Air Force is Aiming for Pilot-less Next Generation Fighter Planes

Evan Selleck, Nov 8th 2010 Discuss [2]

There are a countless number of drones out there, being controlled remotely, and having no use for a pilot. So, the next logical step, at least for the Air Force, would be to translate that pilot-less effectiveness, and move it to something a bit bigger. In this sense, the United States Air Force has made it known that, when the next generation of fighter planes makes their debut, they want them to be able to be piloted remotely. Read The Full Story

Z Backscatter Van Used to Scan for Car Bombs, Drugs and People in Hiding

Evan Selleck, Oct 26th 2010 Discuss [2]

X-ray machines are finding their way into a lot of different areas. While it used to be that you'd expect to be scanned by a machine at your doctor's office or the airport, that's not the case anymore. Not surprising, considering the way we embrace being mobile. The Z Backscatter Van (ZBV) is the creation of American Science & Engineering (AS&E), and it's designed specifically to be able to scan things out in the real world. But, questions are already being raised. Read The Full Story

Lockheed & DARPA’s Integrated Spotter Scope Gives Snipers a Real Aimbot

Evan Selleck, Oct 12th 2010 Discuss [0]

As far as technology goes, and the gadgets that we love, the military tends to get the best of the best. Prototypes come and go out of the military on a daily basis, and unfortunately a lot of them don't make it to the battlefield. But, when one looks, and potentially works, as good as this one from Lockheed, it would be a surprise to not find that it gets fully tested and pushed out onto the field in record time. The Integrated Spotter Scope (ISS), is a working model of a scope that automatically adjusts for the elements of nature, as well as the range from the target. Read The Full Story

DARPA’s Transformer Project One Step Closer to Reality

Evan Selleck, Sep 29th 2010 Discuss [0]

Back in April, a project that was originally found in some government documents a year before, broke cover thanks to a PDF document that had been made public. That project was known as the Transformer project, and the idea was to make an amalgamation of the military's Humvee (or any armored truck, for that matter), and a helicopter. Pipe dreams for those at DARPA was the general consensus, but it seems the government agency was very serious about their efforts, and now thanks to an aerospace defense company, the Transformer project is one step closer to becoming a reality. Read The Full Story

Raytheon XOS 2 Exoskeleton Development Complete, Reduces Energy Consumption [Video]

Evan Selleck, Sep 27th 2010 Discuss [1]

Raytheon, having just announced that the development of their second-generation Exoskeleton have just completed, called the first iteration of the XOS system a proof of concept. As many would have already guessed, this new version of the Exoskeleton is faster, stronger, and lighter than its predecessor, and designed to use less energy while still offering better maneuverability, and adding more power. Read The Full Story

BPG Werks unveils Shredder will beat up your Segway

Shane McGlaun, Sep 13th 2010 Discuss [1]

A company called BPG Werks has unveiled a cool new treaded vehicle that is a cross between a tank and a skateboard aimed at getting soldiers around quickly on just about any terrain. The vehicle is called the Shredder and it looks like the macho version of a Segway. Read The Full Story

University of California Berkeley Researchers Create Portable Laser Backpack, Used to Map 3D Interiors

Evan Selleck, Sep 9th 2010 Discuss [0]

While Google is busy mapping out the exterior world, where all our streets and buildings are, there hasn't been much work on the interior part of the whole thing. But, considering the amount of security issues that may be red flagged in any kind of effort, it will probably be a few years before something like this portable laser backpack, which is used to create 3D maps of internal spaces, sees the light of day in the private market. But, that doesn't mean the Air Force can't get their hands on it. Read The Full Story

University of Michigan researchers develop laser to fool missiles fired at helicopters

Shane McGlaun, Sep 7th 2010 Discuss [0]

Dr. Evil may want sharks with frickin' laser beams, but the US military wants lasers on all manner of aircraft and other combat vehicles. Typically, when we hear of lasers being used by the military they are to destroy missiles and attack targets on the ground. Read The Full Story

Air Force Believes Drones Can be As Adaptable as Human Pilots

Evan Selleck, Jul 23rd 2010 Discuss [0]

Unmanned aircraft are getting quite a bit of attention lately, but that's not a bad thing. Even if they are, essentially, a pretty basic and straight forward, they've still got the potential to be some of the most advanced pieces of technology running around in the world at any given moment. Flying your robot around is great if you want it to listen to everything you say, but if you want it to start thinking for yourself, well, that's when things get tricky. But that's not stopping the Air Force from exploring their options, and obviously free-thinking drones are high on the priority list. Read The Full Story

Lockheed Martin HULC Exoskeleton Given Go-Ahead for Testing

Evan Selleck, Jul 19th 2010 Discuss [0]

As we look at the stage of war, we're forced to accept that while soldiers will always be needed on the ground, that doesn't mean that the technology on their bodies doesn't need to improve. Whether that has to do with helping them on the battlefield, or just making it easier for them to blow things up, the means are the same. Better technology is a must in today's world. So, here we are with an exoskeleton that's been given the green light for testing here in the United States. And yes, it's called HULC. Read The Full Story

BAE Systems’ Unmanned Stealth Bomber Taranis Still in Testing, Can Think for Itself

Evan Selleck, Jul 12th 2010 Discuss [3]

As much as the technology industry evolves every day, so is the battlefield. As the United States military spends time and money on trying to figure out ways to get our soldiers off the battlefield, but keep our country secure, we get new projects like BAE Systems' Taranis. Not only is this definitely one of the most frightening images we've ever seen of a vehicle (of any type), it only gets worse when you put the picture with the details Read The Full Story

US detonated a nuclear bomb in space in 1962

Shane McGlaun, Jul 5th 2010 Discuss [1]

Sleeping last night was a bit hard with all the fireworks exploding around my house for the holiday. All those blasts paled in comparison to one the U.S. government set off about this time way back in 1962. Scientists sent a massive hydrogen bomb into space about 250 miles above the surface of the Earth and blew it up. Read The Full Story