The DARPA “One Shot” program at the Pentagon was originally aimed to give snipers the power to hit a target from 2000 meters away in winds as high as 40 miles per hour. In the first phases of the 3-year-old program, shooters used prototype rifles dressed with lasers and fancy computer hardware to do damage from 1,100 meters away in 18-mile-an-hour winds. The scope-mounted lasers can “see” wind turbulence in the path of the bullet and feed the data to computers, enabling real-time calculation of — and compensation for — the wind-blown trajectory. The agency is looking for 15 ultra precise sniper scopes to put in shooters’ hands by next year.
Full Story – Wired
More info at DARPA – HERE
I wonder when this will be coming to the consumer market? :P On second thought, hitting the target every time with no effort would completely take the fun out of shooting.
The article in Wired mentions the cost at $7 million…. that seems like a steal of a deal if they can actually get this type of system to work for that amount of money. A lot of lives potentially will be saved.
Comments
8 responses to “DARPA Advanced Sighting System – One Shot Sniper”
This seems like a slippery slope towards removing the human element completely.
Fully agreed. Lets see, lasers, computer hardware, computer software, battieries, etc, etc. All mounted on a system that experiences extreme shock while firing and just plain ole abuse being packed around outdoors. Mmmmm..nothing could go wrong there. Not in Arctic, desert, jungle conditions etc.
I would hope at least the system has the ability to allow the shooter to go manual. The system is spooled up for a 1000 yard shot in 40 mph cross when when it goes down. Hopefully it would leave the shooter with an idea of where it was at and the ability to quickly adjust and reset the works manually.
I agree moi. As great as technology is, you still can’t beat mechanical backups operated by a human when the unexpected happens.
eeeek SKYNET!
Honestly I have to wonder if this will produce very much benefit for the cost.
The movie “Hurt Locker” would have me believe it would :P
In all seriousness, I think it would probably be the most effective to take out counter snipers. If it saves some lives, I think its $7million well spent.
I think that the purpose of this is not intended for the average soldier. There are situations where one well placed shot will make a difference. Even if it takes us out many meters where we can get setup in relative safety without alarming others. I see this as technoogy that others will eventually have anyway. We have a history of exploiting the most cutting edge technology before an opponent can. It doesn’t kill the enjoyment of finding the right load in a black powder musket for me.
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