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in combination with the energy deposited in the target was thought to negate any realistic defense. Target hardening through shielding or materials selection was thought to be impractical or ineffective in 1984, especially if the beam could sustain full power and precise focus on the target. Neutral
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Charged particle beams naturally diverge because of mutual repulsion, and are deflected by the earth’s magnetic field. Neutral particle beams (NPBs) can remain better focused, and are not subject to deflection by the earth’s magnetic field. Neutral particle beams are ionized, accelerated while
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in July 1989 as part of the Beam
Experiments Aboard Rocket (BEAR) project. It reached a maximum altitude of over 200 km, and successfully operated autonomously in space for before returning to earth intact. In 2006, the BEAR accelerator was transferred from Los Alamos to the
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developed a neutral particle beam system to be used as a weapon or a detector of nuclear weapons in outer space. Neutral beam accelerator technology was developed at
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The concept of particle-beam weapons comes from sound scientific principles and experiments. One process is to simply
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30:"Ion cannon" redirects here. For the open-source network stress testing and denial-of-service attack application, see
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particle beams with much lower beam power could also be used to detect nuclear weapons in space non-destructively.
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used in nuclear research. A particle-beam weapon is a weaponized version of this technology. It accelerates
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ionized, then neutralized before leaving the device. Neutral beams also reduce spacecraft charging.
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or detection system. They have been known by several names: particle accelerator guns,
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Proceedings of the Linear
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in many twentieth-century televisions and computer monitors is a very simple type of
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can accelerate negatively charged hydrogen ions until their velocity approaches the
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nuclei) to near-light speed and then directs them towards a target. The particles'
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are quite large (sometimes on the order of kilometers in length, such as the
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effects that can destroy electronics. However, many accelerators used for
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atoms, but very advanced versions can accelerate other particles such as
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are a well-developed technology used in scientific research. They use
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a target until it is no longer operational. However, after decades of
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P. G. O'Shea; T. A. Butler; M. T. Lynch; K. F. McKenna; et al.
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588:"A Linear Accelerator in Space – The Beam Experiment Aboard Rocket"
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627:"Neutral Particle Beam Accelerator, Beam Experiment Aboard Rocket"
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13th IEEE Particle
Accelerator Conference, Chicago, IL, USA, 1989
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37:"Proton cannon" redirects here. For the fictional device in the
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structure. A particle-beam weapon is a type of space-based
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609:"'Star Wars' Beam Weapon Has Successful Space Test"
420:. Each ion has a kinetic energy range of 100-1000+
166:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
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326:system to focus these streams on a target. The
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374:at the surface, and when penetrating deeper,
82:Learn how and when to remove these messages
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554:, Federation of American Scientists, 2005
244:Learn how and when to remove this message
226:Learn how and when to remove this message
568:NEUTRAL PARTICLE BEAM POPUP APPLICATIONS
497:P. G. O'Shea; T. A. Butler; et al.
519:Roberds, Richard M (July–August 1984),
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266:to damage the target by disrupting its
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521:"Introducing the Particle-Beam Weapon"
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652:Beam Weapons Almost Ready for Battle
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629:. Smithsonian Air and Space Museum
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293:beams, lightning rays,
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877:Technological paradigm
850:Proactionary principle
726:Directed-energy weapon
499:"The Bear Accelerator"
316:electromagnetic fields
276:directed-energy weapon
175:"Particle-beam weapon"
808:Disruptive innovation
688:Emerging technologies
525:Air University Review
414:particle accelerators
312:Particle accelerators
855:Technological change
798:Collingridge dilemma
741:Particle-beam weapon
332:particle accelerator
260:particle-beam weapon
160:improve this article
32:Low Orbit Ion Cannon
18:Particle beam weapon
912:Technology scouting
887:Accelerating change
716:Caseless ammunition
468:in Washington, DC.
264:subatomic particles
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631:. Retrieved
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902:Moore's law
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43:Proton pack
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484:References
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376:ionization
340:cyclotrons
186:newspapers
68:improve it
823:Bioethics
448:The U.S.
429:gigajoule
352:positrons
348:electrons
289:cannons,
272:molecular
115:and help
74:talk page
703:Military
472:See also
302:overheat
763:Railgun
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444:History
364:mercury
360:ionized
356:protons
297:, etc.
295:rayguns
270:and/or
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478:Raygun
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268:atomic
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