The US Navy is turning its attention away from a decade-long, electromagnetic railgun program, opting instead, for a less expensive alternative that uses the projectiles as ammunition in existing guns, rather than a next-generation weapon. <\/p>\n
Last week, the Congressional Research Service released a report<\/a>, which said the Pentagon is looking to divert from a decade-long electromagnetic railgun (EMRG) program, but are planning to use the projectiles developed in the program, which are compatible with its current powder artillery gun systems.<\/p>\n Instead of relying on traditional explosive propellants like gunpowder, EMRG uses electrical currents to fire a projectile at speeds of up to 5,600 mph, or more than seven times the speed of sound.<\/p>\n The Navy has been developing the EMRG since 2005 in conjunction with defense contractors General Atomics and BAE Systems. Testing the weapon has cost an estimated $500 million, according to Popular Mechanics<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Office of Naval Research (ONR), which is focused on developing new technologies for the service, broke the world record for muzzle energy with an EMRG prototype in 2010. Researchers fired a 23-pound projectile at 32 megajoules, enough to propel a projectile up to 100 nautical miles away.<\/p>\n