unconventional weapons
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Sonic and ultrasonic weapons (USW) are weapons of various types that use sound to injure, incapacitate, or kill an opponent. Some sonic weapons are currently in limited use or in research and development by military and police forces. Others exist only in the realm of science fiction. Some of these weapons have been described as sonic bullets, sonic grenades, sonic mines, or sonic cannons. Some make a focused beam of sound or ultrasound; some make an area field of sound. Although many real sonic and ultrasonic weapons are described as "non-lethal", they can still kill under certain conditions.
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[hide][edit] Designed to emit sound as an irritant
Extremely high-power sound waves can break the eardrums of a target and cause severe pain or disorientation. This is usually sufficient to incapacitate a person. Less powerful sound waves can cause humans to experience nausea or discomfort. The use of these frequencies to incapacitate persons has occurred both in counter-terrorist and crowd control settings.
The possibility of a device that produces frequency that causes vibration of the eyeballs — and therefore distortion of vision — was apparently confirmed by the work of engineer Vic Tandy[1][2] while attempting to demystify a “haunting” in his laboratory in Coventry. This “spook” was characterised by a feeling of unease and vague glimpses of a grey apparition. Some detective work implicated a newly installed extractor fan that, Tandy found, was generating infrasound of 18.9 Hz, 0.3 Hz, and 9 Hz.
In 2005 CNN reported that the crew of the cruise ship Seabourn Spirit used a long range acoustic device (LRAD) to deter pirates who chased and attacked the ship [4]. Its actual efficacy, however, has not been established. A similar system is called a "magnetic acoustic device".[3]
The BBC reported in Oct 2006 on a 'mobile' sonic device which is being used in Grimsby, Hull and Lancashire and is designed to deter teenagers from lingering around shops in target areas. The device works by emitting an ultra-high frequency blast (around 19–20 kHz) that teenagers or people under approximately 20 are susceptible to and find uncomfortable. Age-related hearing loss apparently prevents the ultra-high pitch sound from causing a nuisance to those in their late twenties and above, though this is wholly dependent on a young person's exposure to high sound pressure levels.
During the 2009 G20 summit in Pittsburgh, police used sound cannons against protestors.[4]
[edit] Demonstrated infrasonic weapon
The U.S. DOD has demonstrated phased arrays of infrasonic emitters. The weapon usually consists of a device that generates sound at about 7 Hz. The output from the device is routed (by pipes) to an array of open emitters. At this frequency, armor and concrete walls and other common building materials allow sound waves to pass through, providing little defense.[5]
[edit] Research
Some common bio-effects of electromagnetic or other non-lethal weapons include effects to the human central nervous system resulting in physical pain, difficulty breathing, vertigo, nausea, disorientation, or other systemic discomfort. Interference with breathing poses the most significant, potentially lethal results. Light and repetitive visual signals can induce epileptic seizures (see Bucha effect). Vection and motion sickness can also occur. Cavitation, which affects gas nuclei in human tissue, and heating can result from exposure to ultrasound and can cause damage to tissue and organs.
Studies have found that exposure to high intensity ultrasound at frequencies from 700 kHz to 3.6 MHz can cause lung and intestinal damage in mice. Heart rate patterns following vibroacoustic stimulation has resulted in serious negative consequences such as atrial flutter and bradycardia. [6] [7]
Researchers have concluded that generating pain through the auditory system using high intensity sound resulted in a high risk of permanent hearing damage. Organizations in a research program which included the Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory (Groton, Connecticut), Navy Experimental Diving Unit (Panama City, Florida), SCC San Diego, Navy Medical Research and Development Command (Bethesda, Maryland), Underwater Sound Reference Detachment of Naval Undersea Warfare Center (Orlando, Florida), Applied Research Laboratories: University of Texas at Austin, Applied Physics Laboratory: University of Washington, Institute for Sensory Research: Syracuse University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Boston University, University of Vermont, Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, University of Rochester, University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, Loyola University,[disambiguation needed] and the State University of New York at Buffalo, involved high intensity audible sound experiments on human subjects.[citation needed]
The extra-aural (unrelated to hearing) bioeffects on various internal organs and the central nervous system included auditory shifts, vibrotactile sensitivity change, muscle contraction, cardiovascular function change, central nervous system effects, vestibular (inner ear) effects, and chest wall/lung tissue effects. Researchers found that low frequency sonar exposure could result in significant cavitations, hypothermia, and tissue shearing. No follow on experiments were recommended. Tests performed on mice show the threshold for both lung and liver damage occurs at about 184 dB. Damage increases rapidly as intensity is increased.
Noise-induced neurologic disturbances in humans exposed to continuous low frequency tones for durations longer than 15 minutes has involved in some cases the development of immediate and long term problems affecting brain tissue. The symptoms resembled those of individuals who had suffered minor head injuries. One theory for a causal mechanism is that the prolonged sound exposure resulted in enough mechanical strain to brain tissue to induce an encephalopathy.[8] “Project Pandora” conducted by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, WRAIR, included externally induced auditory input from pulsed microwave audiograms of words or oral sounds which create the effect of hearing voices that are not a part of the recipients own thought processes.[citation needed]
[edit] See also
- Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD)
- Brown note
- Sone (a unit of loudness of sound)
- Sound pressure
- Sound energy flux
- Sound power
- Sound intensity
- Infrasound
- Ultrasound
- LED Incapacitator
[edit] References
- ^ skepdic.com. infrasound
- ^ "The ghost in the machine". Journal of the Society for Psychical Research (62): 360–364. 1998.
- ^ http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4857417
- ^ Weaver, Matthew (2009-09-25). "G20 protesters blasted by sonic cannon". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2009/sep/25/sonic-cannon-g20-pittsburgh. Retrieved 2010-05-23.
- ^ Low Frequency Noise Report 2003
- ^ Exploiting Technical Opportunities to Capture Advanced Capabilities for Our Soldiers; Army AL&T; 2007 Oct-Dec; Dr. Reed Skaggs [1]
- ^ Air University Research Template: "NON-LETHAL WEAPONS: SETTING OUR PHASERS ON STUN? Potential Strategic Blessings and Curses of Non-Lethal Weapons on the Battlefield"; Erik L. Nutley, Lieutenant Colonel, USAF; August 2003; Occasional Paper No. 34; Center for Strategy and Technology; Air War College; Air University; Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama; PG12 [2]
- ^ “Non-Lethal Swimmer Neutralization Study”; Applied Research Laboratories; The University of Texas at Austin; G2 Software Systems, Inc., San Diego; TECHNICAL DOCUMENT 3138; May 2002 [3]
[edit] External links
- USA Today report on cruise ship attack — Data on device used by cruise ship (PDF)
- Information about a pioneer in infrasonic applications such as weaponry.
- Jack Sargeant, with David Sutton. Sonic weapons. ForteanTimes, December 2001
- Sonic Devastator by Future Horizons, described in Weird Technology at HOPE Number Six
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MIND CONTROL WEAPONS:
"It's all in your head." You've heard that before, haven't you? Maybe someone was scoffing at a ghost story or downplaying the symptoms of depression, paranoia or madness. The message is simple: Your obsession, whatever it may be, has no basis outside your thoughts.
Yet with sufficient scientific understanding, it becomes obvious that everything is "all in your head." We don't mean that the world is one great big illusion, but rather that each individual's pool of consciousness and memory exists solely within the electrochemical processes of the brain. Self is a chemical cocktail imbued with a neurological spark, and consciousness is a peculiar parlor trick stirred up by evolution.
Up NextThat person you think you are? Well, it's the product of a constantly changing equation made up of 95 to 100 billion neurons, along with synapses, neurotransmitters, genetic coding and a string of memories tailing back to the murky depths of childhood [source: Williams]. Alter any factor in this equation just a little, and you change the final sum. In fact, you do a little self tinkering every time you so much as make a simple observation or drink a cup of coffee. Each successive you is at least a slight variant on the previous incarnation. The mind is also subject to the severe alterations of emotional trauma, brain injury and disease, all capable of drastically changing the outcome of the neurological equation.
Our tools for addressing brain conditions have ranged from the sublime to the barbaric. We've treated mental illness on the therapist's couch, as well as with scalpels and electric shock. Fortunately, scientific breakthroughs continue to refine our methods.
For instance, there's neurostimulation, or electrically stimulating nerves to relieve pain or suppress tremors. Doctors accomplish these feats with the aid of tiny neurostimulators implanted near the spinal cord or a major nerve. Deep brain stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation take this concept even further and may effectively manage various psychiatric disorders and neurological diseases. The only catch is they too require painstaking surgery to position implants in the appropriate locations -- in the neck for vagus nerve stimulation and inside the brain for deep brain stimulation.
What if there were a way to stimulate nerves and portions of the human brain without drilling through skulls and implanting electrical devices? What if there were a way to remotely tinker with the neurological equation?
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The ADS works by firing a high-powered beam of electromagnetic radiation in the form of high-frequency millimeter waves at 95 GHz[8] (a wavelength of 3.2 mm). Similar to the same way that a microwave oven heats food, the millimeter waves excite the water and fat molecules in the body, instantly heating it and causing intense pain. (Note that while microwaves will penetrate human tissue and remove the water to "cook" the flesh, the millimeter waves used in ADS are blocked by cell density and only penetrate the top layers of skin, so it will not damage human flesh.) Such is the nature of dielectric heating that the temperature of a target will continue to rise so long as the beam is applied, at a rate dictated by the target's material and distance, along with the beam's frequency and power level set by the operator. Like all focused energy, the beam will irradiate all matter in the targeted area, including everything beyond/behind it that is not shielded, with no possible discrimination between individuals, objects or materials, although highly conductive materials such as aluminium cooking foil should reflect this radiation and could be used to make clothing that would be protective against this radiation.[9] As demonstrated on Discovery Channel's "Future Weapons", all living things in the target area receive a similar dosage of radiation.
A spokesman for the Air Force Research Laboratory described his experience as a test subject for the system:
"For the first millisecond, it just felt like the skin was warming up. Then it got warmer and warmer and you felt like it was on fire.... As soon as you're away from that beam your skin returns to normal and there is no pain."
Many aspects of the research are classified, but AFRL has taken care to include independent evaluation of the maker's claims in the formal test program. According to public releases, there have been over 10,700 "shots" by ADS,[10] and has been deemed safe for use. A Penn State Human Effects Advisory Panel (HEAP) has published findings of research showing
- no significant effects for wearers of contacts or other eyewear (including night vision goggles)
- normal skin applications, such as cosmetics, have little effect on ADSʼs interaction with skin
- no age-related differences in response to ADS exposures
- no effect on the male reproduction system
- developing cancer from exposure is "very unlikely"
- no deleterious effect on birth defects
- the limit of damage was the occurrence of pea-sized blisters in less than one tenth of one percent of the exposures.
The HEAP has concluded that ADS is a non-lethal weapon that has a high probability of effectiveness with a low probability of injury.[11]
The ADS is currently only a vehicle-mounted weapon, though U.S. Marines and police are both working on portable versions.[12]
[edit] History
[edit] Contracts
On September 22, 2004, Raytheon was granted an FCC license to demonstrate the technology to "law enforcement, military and security organizations."[13]
On October 4, 2004, the United States Department of Defense published the following contract information:
Communications and Power Industries (CPI), Palto Alto [sic], Calif., is being awarded a $6,377,762 costs-reimbursement, cost-plus fixed-price contract. The contractor shall design, build, test, and deliver a two to 2.5 megawatt, high efficiency, continuous wave (CW) 95 gigahertz millimeter wave source system. The contractor shall perform extensive modeling, simulation, experiments, and testing to the maximum capabilities of their facilities (which shall no less than one megawatt peak RF output) that will ascertain the final CW capabilities of the source. The contractor also shall provide input for the requirements for the government's test stand, which will serve as a full power facility in the future. At this time, $900,000 of the funds has been obliged. This work will be complete by January 2009. Negotiations were completed September 2004. The Air Force Research Laboratory, Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, is the contracting activity (FA9451-04-C-0298).[14][edit] Demonstration
A fully operational and mounted version of the system was demonstrated on January 24, 2007, at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, United States. A Reuters correspondent who volunteered to be shot with the beam during the demonstration described it as "similar to a blast from a very hot oven – too painful to bear without diving for cover."[15]
[edit] Afghanistan Deployment
On June 21, 2010, Lt. Col. John Dorrian, a spokesman for then NATO forces commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal, confirmed in an e-mail to Wired Magazine reporter Noah Shachtman that the ADS was deployed in Afghanistan. The spokesman added however that the system has not yet been used operationally.[15]
The ADS has been removed from service in Afghanistan as of July 25, 2010. A spokesperson for the United States Department of Defense said "The decision to recall the weapons back to the US was made by commanders on the ground in Afghanistan."[16]
[edit] Concepts for Use
ADS has been designed as non-lethal, non-persistent method of crowd control and perimeter defense, "the gap between shouting and shooting." Other crowd control methods - including tear gas, water cannons slippery foam and rubber bullets - carry implicit dangers of injury or accidental death, and often leave residue or residual materiel. ADS can be used to disperse a crowd or to move them from an area; a mob can be dispersed or induced to leave the street without damage to personnel or the environment.
[edit] Controversy
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Closeup of a "Desk top" millimeter wave projector. This simulates the feeling of the ADS beam in a small dime-sized region.
The effects of this radio frequency on humans have been studied by the military for years, and much, but not all of the research has been published openly in peer-reviewed journals.[17]
Some critics[who?] believe the development of such an expensive and complicated system for a single purpose does not seem plausible, as the water cannon has proven to be an effective (though occasionally unsafe) riot control tool.[citation needed] Another news article criticized the sheer amount of time it is taking to field this system, citing the potential it had to avert a great deal of pain and suffering in volatile areas around the world.[18]
Although the effects are described as simply 'unpleasant', the device has the ‘Potential for Death’.[19] The beam is claimed to only affect one individual for a short moment, but safety presets and features can be overridden by the operator.[20]
While it is claimed not to cause burns under 'ordinary use',[20][21] it is also described as being similar to that of an incandescent light bulb being pressed against the skin,[8] which can cause severe burns in just a few seconds. The beam can be focused up to 700 meters away, and is said to penetrate thick clothing although not walls.[22] At 95 GHz, the frequency is much higher than the 2.45 GHz of a microwave oven. This frequency was chosen because it penetrates less than 1/64 of an inch (0.4 mm),[23] which - in most humans, except for eyelids and babies - avoids the second skin layer (the dermis) where critical structures are found such as nerve endings and blood vessels.
The early methodology of testing, in which volunteers were asked to remove glasses, contact lenses and metallic objects that could cause hot spots, raised concerns as to whether the device would remain true to its purpose of non-lethal temporary incapacitation if used in the field where safety precautions would not be taken. However, these tests were early in the program and part of a thorough and methodical process to demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of the technology, which has now involved more than 600 volunteer subjects and some 10,200 exposures. As safety was demonstrated in each step of the process, restrictions were removed, and now, according to ADS proponents, there are no restrictions or precautions necessary for volunteers experiencing the effect.[24] Long-term exposure to the beam may cause more serious damage, especially to sensitive tissues, such as those of the eyes. Two people have received second degree burns after exposure to the device.[21][25] (The actual number of injuries, according to Dr. Stephanie Miller of AFRL/RDHR, is a total of eight—the two previously mentioned, and six others, who healed without medical intervention.)[citation needed]
In addition, some claim that subjects who have body piercings, jewelry or tattoos are likely to have serious skin damage. Tattooed people can suffer from serious injuries and become seriously ill due to high amounts of toxic waste released from heated/melted tattoo pigment.[citation needed] Human effects testing on the large-scale version of ADT included more than 11,000 exposures on over 700 volunteers. Both laboratory research and full- scale test results demonstrated that there is only a 0.1% chance of injury from a System 1 or System 2 exposure.[26]
Critics cite that, although the stated intent of the ADS is to be a non-lethal device designed to temporarily incapacitate, modifications or incorrect use by the operator could turn the ADS into a more damaging weapon that could violate international conventions on warfare (although at this time, ADS has gone through numerous treaty compliance reviews and legal reviews by AF/JAO, and in all cases complies with every treaty and law).[27]
Some have focused on the lower threshold of use which may lead those who use them (especially civilian police) to become "trigger-happy", especially in dealing with peaceful protesters. Others have focused on concerns that weapons whose operative principle is that of inflicting pain (though "non-lethal") might be useful for such purposes as torture, as they leave no evidence of use, but undoubtedly have the capacity to inflict horrific pain on a restrained subject. According to Wired Magazine, the Active Denial System has been rejected for fielding in Iraq due to Pentagon fears that it would be regarded as an "instrument of torture".[28]
A "table top" ADS being tested[edit] Silent Guardian
Defense contractor Raytheon has developed a smaller version of the ADS, the Silent Guardian. This stripped-down model is primarily marketed for use by law enforcement agencies, the military and other security providers. The system is operated and aimed with a joystick and aiming screen. The device can be used for targets up to 550 m away.[8]
LA County jail is now installing the smaller-sized unit on the ceiling of their jail. http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local-beat/New-Laser-Weapon-Debuts-in-LA-County-Jail-101230974.html
Michael Hanlon — who volunteered to experience its effects — described it as "a bit like touching a red-hot wire, but there is no heat, only the sensation of heat." Raytheon says that pain ceases instantly upon removal of the ray; still, Hanlon reported that the finger he subjected "was tingling hours later."[29]
[edit] See also
- Heat Ray
- Directed-energy weapons
- Radiation
- Long range acoustic device
- Area denial weapons, to prevent an adversary from occupying or traversing an area
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what about dropping WATERY shit and/or vomit from planes.............?
and FART grenades...............?
or using BODY ODOUR of sweaty Indians and Banglas.................?
can work also, right ? after all, how can soldiers fight when kana this kind of smell.........?
