The U.S. Navy shattered its record for firing velocity today when it demonstrated the force of the electromagnetic railgun during at test exhibition in Dahlgren, Va. The futuristic weapon fired at a phenomenal 33-megajoules, more than tripling the Navy's previous record set in 2008.
What on earth is a railgun, you might ask?
Firing at more than two to three times the velocity of a conventional weapon, the railgun employs an electromagnetic current to "accelerate a nonexplosive bullet at several times the speed of sound." Shots fired by the weapon can destroy a target more than a 100 miles away with minutes.
Although electromagnetic weaponry has actually been around since 1901, innovations on the technology continue to excite military aficionados. The Navy has spent more than $200 million in developing the railgun since 2005, and officials expect the weapon to be fully functional on U.S. ship decks by 2025. By that point, engineers expect the weapon to have a 200-mile-plus range.
Of course, how could anything less than a video do the railgun justice. Check out this clip of the futuristic weapon in action: