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Boeing's CHAMP Missile Uses Radio Waves To Remotely Disable PCs
Dupple writes "During last week's test, a CHAMP (Counter-electronics High-powered Microwave Advanced Missile Project) missile successfully disabled its target by firing high power microwaves into a building filled with computers and other electronics. 'On Oct. 16th at 10:32 a.m. MST a Boeing Phantom Works team along with members from the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Directed Energy Directorate team, and Raytheon Ktech, suppliers of the High Power Microwave source, huddled in a conference room at Hill Air Force Base and watched the history making test unfold on a television monitor. CHAMP approached its first target and fired a burst of High Power Microwaves at a two story building built on the test range. Inside rows of personal computers and electrical systems were turned on to gauge the effects of the powerful radio waves. Seconds later the PC monitors went dark and cheers erupted in the conference room. CHAMP had successfully knocked out the computer and electrical systems in the target building. Even the television cameras set up to record the test were knocked off line without collateral damage.'"
What now?
I need a tinfoil house!
Will take care of that issue.
On the one hand I love reading about science stories. On the other, I am frankly tired of spending billions of dollars to prove the US has the biggest penis. Please cut our military spending 50 percent, focus on diplomacy and better targeted aid. Fund alternative energy to reduce our reliance on dictatorships.
See my journal for slashdot ID's by year. Mine created in 2005. http://slashdot.org/journal/289875/slashdot-ids-by-year
Welcome to the age of industrial terrorism.
I don't know the meaning of the word 'don't' - J
You're gonna need them.
So, the bad guys (junior grade) have to go out and buy aluminum foil to shield their gear.
The bad guys, senior grade, are worried about Tempest and already have shielding. (Note - if a missile can knock your monitor out, and that is a worry to you, you should also assume that a drone can pick up what the monitor is displaying.)
I don't suppose they are particularly concerned about the effects of the high-powered microwave radiation on the animated bags of water that are likely to be at the computers.
So what happened to the missile? Did it land in the yard in front of the building to be taken apart and sold on the black market?
"Even the television cameras set up to record the test were knocked off line without collateral damage."
That _IS_ collateral damage.
- http://www.milkme.co.uk
still alive.
I hope that will suffice as protection from this. Surely the drones are protected from it in some way. If not, them I see no problem of placing such a weapon on the roof of every building, shooting skyward.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
is this one of those headslappers: attempting using electronics to monitor the EMP destruction of electronics?
you can't shield them: assuming it is a garden variety CCD camera, how are you supposed to record electromagnetic radiation when you are shielding against electromagnetic radiation? (optical filters and/or faraday cage?)
benefit of the doubt: they used good old fashioned film cameras. perhaps this is why they are surprised that the EMP killed those too, perhaps because the film cameras were still dependent on something electromechanical that was also serendipitously killed
intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
...with antennas to remotely disable machines. I've known people make them. However the issue was that 2.4GHz* would cause people to go blind if you hit them with it (due to the clear liquid in your eyes turning milky). As such I don't think this will ever be used in anything other than a war setting, and even then, if you're going to cook the occupants to death, you might as well hit them with a conventional explosive, probably a nicer way to go.
TFA doesn't mention which microwaves they use, perhaps they other other ones which do not affect humans so much.
So what they've basically done is created a missile that does the same thing as my cat -- disables computer systems. Though since my cat is not available for deployment in a combat zone, I think the missile is the way to go.
[Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.
New-and-improved ways to destroy stuff!
Now, hopefully, history will proceed as it usually does, and other countries won't in response take the unprecedented step of developing their own improved ways to destroy our stuff.
Live by the sword... well, you know the rest.
~ Whence do you come, slayer of men, or where are you going, conqueror of space?
It's a bit like saying taking down a building has no collateral damage if it doesn't cause other buildings to collapse.
Can this thing be used to take out the "Dancing With the Stars" and "American Idol" studios? Oh, please God.
Can I borrow this to disable my neighbor's tv and stereo?
The whole test was most likley setup to allow a maximum chance the missle would suceed. Reminds me of other tests of Star Wars tech that were rigged to explode. Circuit breakers loaded to near tripping point, etc.
Yeah, we do this to "them" but they'll never do the same thing to us.
I believe this would qualify as 'collateral damage', if they ended up burned instead of warmed and ready.
WARNING: Smartphones have side effects--most of them undocumented.
Another Great Invention that's going to make our lives A LOT better !!!
Sweet !!!
We REALLY needed that !!!!!
I really wonder how we could have lived without that being available up to now !!!
Do I have to mention that this is pure sarcasm or not ?
On Oct. 16th at 10:32 a.m. MST
Mountain Daylight Time!
That faint buzzing? That's the sound of Freedom (being utterly destroyed by the Military-Fatherland-Industrial Complex)!
No one noticed the disc flying out of the optical drive around 0:42?
Wouldn't a plane (or drone) do this job better?
It's interesting that it can disable multiple targets, I wonder what the power requirements are. I figured the missile would detonate near the target and use the energy of the explosion to somehow how generate targeted microwaves like a shaped charge energy weapon more or less. It's on a missile because missiles are fast but I bet we see the same setup installed on drones in the near future.
I came to the datacenter drunk with a fake ID, don't you want to be just like me?
2. Creates a new PC industry designed to be withstand microwave blasts.
Now everything the government owns will have to be protected from microwave attacks. Round and round it goes...
how do they know what happened to the other electronics- the TARGET?
...with antennas to remotely disable machines. I've known people make them. However the issue was that 2.4GHz* would cause people to go blind if you hit them with it (due to the clear liquid in your eyes turning milky). As such I don't think this will ever be used in anything other than a war setting, and even then, if you're going to cook the occupants to death, you might as well hit them with a conventional explosive, probably a nicer way to go.
TFA doesn't mention which microwaves they use, perhaps they other other ones which do not affect humans so much.
The burden placed on the enemy of caring for the suddenly disabled is considered part of warfare and is in fact more damaging to the enemy than simply killing them. War is ugly.
"Microsoft uses software to slow down PCs"
Glad to see the military finally looking at Maser as a weapon.
Why shoot a hole in some one when you can just cook them to death.
Three strikes then we remove your ability to use the Internet.... With force!
Regards,
RIAA.
If you want to disable the electronics without collateral damage, why use a missile? Why not use an innocent-looking white van?
Therefore you could also say that with an explosive bomb (or nuke) that as long as you define "required action" as "everything in the blast radius", that too becomes "no collateral damage".
Getting EMP-style weapons to fire continually at different targets will take to much power.
One missile delivering an EMP warhead on the other hand is possible.
Maybe they are cheating and targeting the auto shutdown safety procedure in a modern computer PSU.
Or go bigger and target the power transformer safety procedures.
The Internet.
Mind the frickin' laser...
Does anyone know exactly what is fried in the monitors and in the PC's? I would have thought that the metal cases found on most PC's would have provided some amount of protection.
Competition Good, Monopoly Bad.
We already have some materials that route around an object radio waves, and some frequencies of light. Could we just paint our buildings with such a material and so this "missile" would then go around our equipment? Or is their technology more fundamental than that? Would I have to paint my electrical wiring with this too? There has to be a way around this, I'm sure.
It should be noted that the Geneva Convention's bit about blinding seems to be specific to lasers. Thus would not apply... (as far as I understand it, and I'm no expert on the matter)
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Where does the missile go after it passes its target? What if the thing is being fired into New York or Moscow or Beijing? I can't imagine the thing would be able to find a "safe" landing spot, or even be concerned about it.
When I think "missile," I think "something going really really fast. That kinetic energy has to go somewhere.
time to start allocating defense budget to buy horses and chariots
If they were, I suspect the electromagnetic pulse would be reduced by the shielding. Controlling emissions also controls ingression. See Emission Equipment Selection Process for an overview of how NATO buys hardware.
Ethics II Axiom 2. "Man thinks." B. Spinoza
:
eine kleine Volierendraht should take care of it!
Capital Letters Are Important. (that period is also capitalized)
I work right near the test facility, and let me assure your PC is perfectly safe. This thing cannot shu
From the photo in TFA, all I see is old school tower type PCs. In other words, no laptops with batteries. So yeah, if you turn off the power you "knock out" the PCs.
Reminds me of the humorous IT support call, the punch line of which is, "Do you still have the box that the PC came in?"
Have gnu, will travel.
Great, so the monitors went blank. What about the computers?
I would hardly call a building-sized focus "focussed", would you?
And I bet the building wasn't in a built-up area.
Can I please Please PLEASE get these delivered with the optional shark's head mounting kit?
Oh, I'm sorry sir, I thought you were referring to me, Mr. Wensleydale.
instead of disrupting me, I can get a Free charge!
Wow, this weapon will kill many people who have no life without their Facebook account. =P
I'm sure they're hoping analog turntables will make a comeback...
WWJD -- What Would Jimi Do?
(Smash amp, burn guitar, take home the groupies)
Computers cost practically nothing these days. Put the servers and routers in the basement behind metal. If attacked, replace PC's.
I guarantee the missile costs *many* times more than the PC's it took out.
So, they could also black out the entire building full of computers if they just used explosives? right?
It’s like standing in front of the world’s most powerful set of microwaves, and turning them on with open doors.
No collateral damage MY ASS.
Just redefine the action required as "And everyone under the fallout" and you again have no collateral damage!
As a side effect everyone’s "personal" piercings started to arc like foil in a microwave and small lightning flashes were seen emanating from people's junk ;-D
Maybe the platters would be fine ... but wouldn't this destroy any (increasingly computerized) intelligence, too? If so, that makes it less likely to be used in a raid, but rather as the van of an attack.
Maybe the platters would be fine ... but wouldn't this destroy any (increasingly computerized) intelligence [which they hope to gather], too? If so, that makes it less likely to be used in a raid, but rather as the van[guard] of an attack.
Oh, how fucking simple! No sir, we didn't use sarin to kill people. We used much lower, target specific delivery systems just strong enough to turn them into vegetables. No siree, that ain't a warcrime!
It is going to hold up in court as "Oh, I wasn't texting. That is illegal!! I was checking in to foursquares and updating my facebook status, judge!"
When I was an engineer with the local power company, we had a lineman working for us that could take out power for the entire county.
Delivery time was somewhat problematic, as he'd always stop for coffee on his way to a job.
Have gnu, will travel.
This is an excellent example of the type of device that the US needs to assure minimal casualties, both hostile and friendly. Proper usage would allow safe ingress/ egress from a target site for both strike aircraft and assault teams. The days of non-electronic warfare are over, and the new battlefield is the transistor junctions. Combined with surgical strike weaponry and proper intelligence, "collateral damage" can be kept to a minimum. For those that think this is a bad thing, study war through the ages and see what collateral damage really amounted to in past wars.
What, me worry?
To hell with all these weapons and the people who produce them.
Back in the 90's I used to work for Raytheon (the big killing machine company involved in this piece of kit) as a design engineer. I saw with my own eyes that people were totally brainwashed into believing that new forms of weapons and "more effective and precise killing machines" were good things and that producing them was going to save the world. Thousands of employees chanting the same words. It made me physically sick when I attended meetings about improving the surveillance and killing capabilities of their products. I came to my senses and just never went back in one day. I hang my head in shame every day because I was involved in this charade
As usual, the PR doesn't spin that this will fuck up critical life support systems for people and medical implants on a large scale. Basically this is a weapon to kill the sick and wounded.
Seriously i hate this fucking planet sometimes.
great, now if only they could fry backup data on harddrives
My understanding - and I am not an expert either - is that it prohibits weapons that are *intended* to cause blindness. It doesn't prohibit weapons which may cause blindness incidentially to their intended purpose, and this has come up in the past with regards to laser-guided missiles where the very high-powered targeting laser can be easily pointed into the enemy eyes to disable them while the missile closes.
now i can make a new way to ddos your corporate idiot mentallity
In all likelihood this is intended for use in domestic situations. Knock out the 'terrorist' C&C, take the blinded opponents out without a single shot, and the neighbors are never the wiser.
it boils and pops the people in the building.
Haven't seen that many CRT monitors operating in one place in many years. Whereas such a destructive test is a perfect application for whatever old junk monitors they might have had laying around, the history of weapons system tests being rigged to provide good PR makes me wonder if there was something else going on here...
Remember "News for Nerds, Stuff that Matters"? Help make it a reality again! http://soylentnews.org
But what do we use it for, how does this help us in the fields of war where we are not already the clear technical victors?
Because I really don't see this as good for anything other than a blitz against large highly technical installations of questionable utility, disguised command buildings or ballistic missile sites, where we can fire one of these off and still say "oops" afterwards and write a cheque if we were wrong.
Who would we shoot one of these at beyond MAYBE North Korea, Iran or Pakistan? Shooting anything at Russia or China is just the end of the world, in the Middle East everything is guerrilla tactics and cellphones no need for big missiles there and using these in the war on drugs is just more money down that particular toilet.
This is like when I was 25 and had no M:tG group, I kept buying the cards but had nobody to play with and eventually I had to ask "Why am I still doing this?"
Who fired the first shot in the war between the machines and humans that led to the creation of the Matrix.
Are they from the Department of Redundancy Department?
No brain, no pain.
Considering that the computers are all inside of grounded metal boxes how does this work?
I'm encasing my house in a quarter wave Faraday Cage. Take that, Tony Stark!!!
Advice for Arabian Micro Devices. 1. Buy few of these and send one (or dozen) to Santa Clara (Intel, nVidia) and one to each Intel fab (Israel, etc...). 2. Profit
I love how the U.S. military keeps inventing weapon systems that are far more effectively used against us than against the sorts of enemies we face these days. Sure, we get a few year's worth of lead time where we're the only one in possession of the new toys but once it's been invented, it's just a matter of time until everyone has it. Tell, me, who has more to lose from the wide availability of this sort of missile system? The people with the heaviest reliance on computers, of course. Same goes for Stuxnet, of course, except that was even worse because that weapon system delivers its own blueprint. Thanks, guys.
"The Pinch."
When they set it off, most all of them had their hands over their groins with their bodies 75% turned away from the direction of the blast.
Good movie, BTW.
http://www.faqs.org/espionage/Lo-Mo/Microwave-Weaponry-High-Power-HPM.html
To avoid corruption, one must remain dishonest.
"you can do this using microwaves with antennas to remotely disable machines"
I don't think microwaves can interfere with internal combustion engines. You must be thinking of EMP.
" 2.4GHz* would cause people to go blind if you hit them with it (due to the clear liquid in your eyes turning milky). "
Guess what frequency 802.11b/g/n routers, Bluetooth or amateur radio work at?
Are you one of those "special" people who can "feel" cellphone towers?
True about the rhyming, and "Nachtmusik" didn't rhyme either. And I don't think we want to be pahking any coops in Hahvahd Yahd, though maybe you could put the coops in/near the Hahvahd Coop.
In the video when the microwaves hit, one of the computers ejects it's CD tray and something falls out. What was it? What could cause that to happen? Did something trigger the eject functionality, or was it caused by overheating pieces inside somehow?
"you can do this using microwaves with antennas to remotely disable machines" I don't think microwaves can interfere with internal combustion engines. You must be thinking of EMP.
Both EMP and microwaves will fry electronic circuits. the engine itself will be fine mechanically, but without the ECU it will not function. Very old engines (pre 1980's) will still work no matter what hits them.
If you have a piece of electronic equipment you no longer want to use, you can try this. Go stick it in a microwave and run it for a bit. It will come out with all its chips fried.
" 2.4GHz* would cause people to go blind if you hit them with it (due to the clear liquid in your eyes turning milky). " Guess what frequency 802.11b/g/n routers, Bluetooth or amateur radio work at?
802.11b/g/n routers are limited to what, 100mW? Perhaps a max of 300mW, most ham operators don't go beyond a few tens of watts (top tier licenced HAM's can go to a couple hundred watts), and even then don't go sticking their heads in front of high gain antennas at full power.
Your average household microwave can belt out 800W of power, and you can get even more powerful ones. That is why microwaves have kill switches so that they cannot function while the door (with the shield built in) is open. You must have seen how cooked meat comes out of microwaves?
Trust me, you stick your head in a microwave and turn it on, you will at least go blind, if not have some worse problems.
Back in the early eighties, I worked for a military contractor. At that time there was a chip on the market that would detect an EMP. Theoretically it would allow a circuit to do some remedial action before the electronics were destroyed by the pulse. Didn't seem very practical to me, but it led to a lot of theorizing about how it could be used. Launch all rockets? Turn on a light indicating that the computer probably didn't work anymore? Do the computer equivalent of bend over and kiss your behind goodbye? Someone at the time opined that every chip in our systems was a potential EMP detector. In some ways I miss those times.
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
Ditch transistors for vacuum tubes, cooled by alcohol evaporation. The MiG-25 used this method to emit 1MW radar impulses, strong enough to cut through any jamming. Furthermore, denaturated alcohol can be filtered with swab and charcoal into fine vodka, to keep the pilots and mechanics happy during their service at remote siberian airbases. Win-win!
More seriously, there is talk about manufacturing micro-miniaturized vacuum tubes, using the existing silicon transistor IC technology and thus a possible future return to analogue computing instead of digital. That would mostly neutralize EMP attacks, since EMP strong enough to bother analogue circuits can only be created by nuclear explosions, which would lead to WW3.
Note that a single missile fired on 7 targets. This implies a number of things.
1. This is a multishot HPM DEW weapon. That means that the HPM is probably not generated by a single use explosive flux compression generator (which had been proposed for EMP warhead 2000lbs bombs). Raytheon Ktech apparently made the pulsed power supply for this, and it is implied that it is a derivative of systems intended for communications applications that they had been developing before Ktech got gobbled up by Raytheon.
2. Multishot likely means an expectation of some loiter/cruise capability in the mounted platform. This means this is suitable for standoff weapons and cruise missiles, and probably as well as aircraft (can't have HPM sidelobes screwing up the flight computers of the platform to be multishot, so integration with an aircraft is possible in theory, though in practice, the need to locate the weapon in the nose of an aircraft under/ahead of the nosecone radar may make this difficult)
3. Boeing makes cruise missiles and drones and aircraft. Expect this tech to possibly start showing up in defensive suites as the next step after DIRCM. A dual purpose defensive/offensive turret is also attractive, especially as retrofits onto other platforms, though is competing against laser turrets. Certainly the B-2 is hurting for defensive upgrades, and there is work to provide a drop in replacement module laser turret for the lift fan in the F-35B.
The question is...
Does the Hahvid Coop have chickens?
--
BMO