Weapon Systems

Nanotube paint could make invisible aircraft a reality

Nanotubes can be configured to create the blackest black, rendering an object invisible to radar or vision at night, researchers say. You wouldn't even be able to see Wonder Woman sitting inside.

  • By John Breeden II

Counterfeit electronics put troops at risk

Counterfeit parts, mostly made in China, have found their way into the U.S. military's supply chain, and now members of the Senate Armed Services Committee want to hold contractors more responsible.

  • By Amber Corrin

Need an explosives detector? Just print one out.

Georgia Tech researchers have developed a way to print nanotube-based explosives sensors from an inkjet printer.

  • By John Breeden II

MIT team's radar array can see through walls, for real

A team at MIT's Lincoln Lab has developed a phased array that delivers a real-time view of what's on the other side of a wall 20 to 60 feet away.

  • By Greg Crowe

What's in your closet: The electronic clutter that surrounds us

While moving to a new office, the Lab uncovers long-forgotten, even mysterious, devices. Don't you have them in your office, too?

  • By John Breeden II

DARPA at work on satellite-free navigation system

The DOD's research arm is working on a variety of new systems that would allow troops and weapons to be located even when their navigation systems are being jammed.

  • By Henry Kenyon

Where will you be when the lights go out?

The Product of the Month for August is the SSGKRP-1 Uninterrupted Power Supply from Falcon Electric, a UPS with brains and brawn.

  • By John Breeden II

Team cracks chips used in military, aerospace systems

Researchers describing the attack on Field Programmable Gate Array chips say it is a practical technique with “real-world impact on the security of embedded systems.”

  • By William Jackson

Air Force wants to get in your face with 3-D tracking

The service takes a step toward Big Brother with the idea to develop a camera that records visible-light and infrared images, along with a person’s unique facial movements.

  • By Greg Crowe

Readying Patriot missiles for launch? There's an iPhone app for that, too

Pressing the keys on the mobile device won't actually launch the missile, but it will start a 3-D application to teach Patriot Missile crews about positioning and readying the Patriot system in order to launch and fire.

  • By Alysha Sideman

Onward and upward to new Reaper

The new Reaper model must be able to face emerging threats such as cyber warfare and surface-to-air missiles better than the current MQ-9 drone, says Col. James Gear, director of the Air Force's Remotely Piloted Aircraft Task Force.

  • By Alysha Sideman

DARPA wants to blow up military design process, start over

The government's blue-sky R&D agency launches a new effort to reinvent the design and manufacture of defense equipment using computer aid and crowdsourcing.

  • By Henry Kenyon

Wind power blows military in different directions

The Army is working on a wind-power project, while elsewhere wind turbines cause havoc with radar.

  • By Michael Hardy

Army accepts first air defense battery operations center

The Army has accepted delivery of the first mobile battery engagement operations center for integrated air and missile defense from Northrop Grumman Corp., company officials said Aug. 17.

  • By William Welsh
Featured eBooks

Can DARPA get a flying car off the ground?

GCN Lab director John Breeden is glad to see that DARPA is putting serious research into developing a flying car, like we were promised by futurists decades ago.

  • By John Breeden II

Leaner defense budget aims for realistic reform

The Defense Department's $708 billion fiscal 2011 budget request closely adheres to priorities set forth in the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review.

  • By Amber Corrin

DOD budget forecast threatens new technology deployments

Personnel and equipment costs might cut deeply into key defense acquisition programs over the next several years, reports Michael Bruno at Aviation Week.

  • By William Welsh

Army demos electronic jammer for helicopters

The Army demonstrated during the C4ISR On-the-Move 2009 event held in September a new electronic jammer that can be installed on rotary-wing aircraft and used to disrupt signals from enemy forces.

  • By Sean Gallagher

Control systems cited in unmanned aerial vehicle crashes

A series of mishaps involving unmanned aerial systems operating in Southwest Asia has Army and Air Force officials revisiting key operational procedures.

  • By Sean Gallagher

New DOD memo looks to the horizon after FCS

A memorandum issued June 23 confirms the recommendations made earlier this year by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to replace the single, giant Future Combat System with a number of smaller modernization efforts.

  • By Brian Robinson

Advanced sensor technology sharpens battlefield picture

The latest advances in battlefield sensors are paying dividends for vehicle-mounted warfighters.

  • By David Perera