Who among us hasn’t hoped for a day when airborne laser cannons could be in place to easily eliminate any nuclear or similar threat with a quick zap? Ok, maybe not the folks who didn't grow up on Star Trek.
Short of having the Enterprise sitting in orbit to take out such threats, we would have cast our hopes on the new Missile Defense Agency’s Airborne Laser Test Bed (ALTB).
Housed in the nose of a Boeing 747, the powerful beam failed its September first test to shoot down a dummy ICBM from 100 miles. Unfortunately, although the beam struck the missile on target, it cut out shy of actually disabling the dud warhead.
This test doesn’t bode well for the new weapon, and after spending $146 million this year alone, it’s uncertain what the future will be.
Via Wired (http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/09/missile-beats-flying-lightsaber-in-crucial-test/?utm_source=co2hog)
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