Most Americans are familiar with nuclear weapons; it is not necessary for the news to constantly explain what a nuclear weapon is or its dangers.
But there is another type of weapon that might be even more of a threat than nuclear weapons, which is unfortunately less known about, and, due to comedic representations of the technologies in movies and the tabloidization and general untrustworthiness of mainstream media, is going to require a significant effort to educate others about.
The type of technology is sometimes described as “Directed Energy,” “Directed Energy Weapons,” and “Directed Energy Systems.” It is worth providing multiple descriptions of Directed Energy and the weapons and systems which use directed energy. Directed energy (DE) is an
umbrella term covering technologies that produce a beam of concentrated electromagnetic energy or atomic or subatomic particles. A DE weapon is a system using DE primarily as a direct means to disable, damage or destroy adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel. DE warfare is military action involving the use of DE weapons, devices, and countermeasures to either cause direct damage or destruction of adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel, or to determine, exploit, reduce, or prevent hostile use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) through damage, destruction, and disruption.
An Office of Naval Research publication describes Directed Energy Weapons in this way:
Directed energy weapons (DEWs) are defined as electromagnetic systems capable of converting chemical or electrical energy to radiated energy and focusing it on a target, resulting in physical damage that degrades, neutralizes, defeats, or destroys an adversarial capability. Navy DEWs include systems that use High Energy Lasers (HEL) that emit photons, and High Power Microwaves (HPM) that release radiofrequency waves. The U.S. Navy uses DEWs for power projection and integrated defense missions. The ability to focus the radiated energy reliably and repeatedly at range, with precision and controllable effects, while producing measured physical damage and/or mission defeat, is the measure of DEW system effectiveness.
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