…I’ve been expecting this any day – since I was a little Czar reading science fiction novels.
A rifle capable of firing explosive bullets that can detonate within a metre of a target could let soldiers fire on snipers hiding in trenches, behind walls or inside buildings.
The US army has developed the XM25 rifle to give its troops an alternative to calling in artillery fire or air strikes when an enemy has taken cover and can’t be targeted by direct fire.
* * *
The rifle’s gunsight uses a laser rangefinder to calculate the exact distance to the obstruction. The soldier can then add or subtract up to 3 metres from that distance to enable the bullets to clear the barrier and explode above or beside the target.
“Radio-controlled bullets leave no place to hide” – tech – 04 June 2009 – New Scientist
Comments 16
Me want.
August 20th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
Czar…Since I’m a lousy shot, this would be perfect for that 12 point bull elk that’s hanging out in the woods behind my pasture. I’ve tried to get the Blackwater guys to waste him but have had no success.
Steven from Indiana
August 20th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
Steven, you give an impression of knowing something about firearms. I don’t, so advise please. I read the New Scientist article linked to in CK’s post (did you?). The article says that the bullets are 25 mm (very close to ⅛-in.). That’s smaller than the ammo for a bee-bee gun, isn’t it? That seems like an awfully small slug to begin with. Considering that there’s already a chip inside, not to mention an explosive, if an ⅛-in. slug fragments, what kind of damage might the smaller fragments be expected to do? How deadly is it?
I guess my question comes down to my ignorance, unsurprisingly. When it comes to ordnance, what does 25 mm actually mean? It doesn’t seem to mean the bore, not unless the drawing in the article is completely misleading: it appears to be a wide-barreled gun. Can a 25-mm bullet be an inch long, say?
Help me here.
August 20th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
@Joe NS – I don’t know anything about firearms, but 25 millimeters is just about one inch.
August 20th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Whoops, cancel that request! This seems to be my day for publishing errata. Twenty-five millimeters is closer to one inch. My bad.
Anyway, Steve, I’d still like to hear your opinion on its lethality. Anybody’s actually.
August 20th, 2009 at 6:14 pm
@JoeNS If only we had all paid attention in school when they were discussing the metric system ….
August 20th, 2009 at 6:31 pm
nokarma, I paid attention in school alright. I’m a physicist for pete’s sake.
No, it was my arrogance in attempting to calculate the reciprocal of 2.54 cm/in. in my head, instead of just looking at the damn ruler beside me, that deservedly fouled me up.
August 20th, 2009 at 7:03 pm
This is so yesterday, and anyway it is as best a transitional technology.
The ultimate solution to the sniper in the window or the trench is a little UAV with the intelligence of a bee and the venom of one of those little purple Australian octopuses – or it could have a quarter ounce of explosive in its butt if folks are squeamish about the poison.
August 20th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Joe, just move the decimal place: 1 inch = 2.54 centimeters = 25.4 millimeters.
August 20th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Peter #9, you’re right, of course, but it’s too obvious for a deep thinker like me.
August 20th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
@Sully – As long as it doesn’t make the sniper feel as if he’s drowning.
August 20th, 2009 at 8:22 pm
@Sully – No, Sully, let’s stick to reusables, no blowing up the bee with the sniper. Flechettes?
August 20th, 2009 at 8:39 pm
Sully… kamikaze bees? Why limit them to anti-sniper duty?. Mass produce them in China, dust the Taliban with electronic pollen, and turn ‘em loose. There are a lot of possibilities, here. Why not make UAV fleas? They’d naturally seek out congresspersons?
Steven from Indiana
August 20th, 2009 at 8:51 pm
Steven – “Why limit them to anti-sniper duty?. Mass produce them in China, dust the Taliban with electronic pollen, and turn ‘em loose. There are a lot of possibilities, here. Why not make UAV fleas? They’d naturally seek out congresspersons?”
That’s the second generation; but it will probably be obviated by genetic manipulation of bees or wasps. They already know how to reproduce, so they would be lots cheaper than manufactured articles.
And Steven, is that a horse you’re petting in your new avatar, or are you cozying up to a democratic party mascot?
August 20th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
@Sully – Or is the horse?
August 20th, 2009 at 9:16 pm
Sully…Old English proverb: “You can tell everything you need to know about a man by looking at his horse.”
My “horse” is a very large red mule with a blonde mane. Nuff said? LOL.
Steven from Indiana
August 20th, 2009 at 9:19 pm