New Atlas:
Having taken out drones with a laser, Lockheed Martin is setting its sights on missiles. The US Missile Defense Agency has awarded the company a nine-month, US$9.4 million contract intended to produce a Low Power Laser Demonstrator (LPLD) missile interceptor concept capable of taking out an ICBM shortly after it lifts off.
Since the V-2 was deployed during the Second World War, the ICBM has been the bugbear of strategic planners. Once an Intercontinental missile has left its silo and gone hypersonic, intercepting one is a matter of hitting a bullet with a bullet. Ideally, the time to take out a missile is right after ignition while it’s lumbering skyward lifting not only the warheads, but the vehicle and its tons of fuel.
