Technology
2Comments
Warfare and technology have a complicated and regrettable relationship. A casual glance at history shows that the former has often led to the advancement of the latter, usually at a significant cost to human life. This is as true today as it was in the past. Russia’s ongoing war on Ukraine and that between Israel and Hamas have both seen new technologies being developed and deployed for both offensive and defensive purposes.
In many ways, the war in Ukraine has become the world’s first full-scale drone war and the first AI war. Technology is playing a central role in this particular theatre; even Ukrainian citizens are using it to aid the armed forces by recording the position of Russian vehicles in apps. But in Israel, a different order of technology is now being developed – laser missile defense systems.
It may sound like something from science fiction, but this new system is expected to become the first operational example in its class at a time when nations across the world are trying to develop their own versions for military purposes. As laser technologies advance, it is therefore worth understanding how these systems work and what they are used for.
Iron Beam
The new defense system is officially known as “Shield of Light” but is often referred to as "Iron Beam". It is a 100-kilowatt class High Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS) that was first unveiled by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, an Israeli defense technology company, in 2014, and may be operationally deployed next year.
According to the company's website, Iron Beam is designed to quickly and effectively engage and neutralize “a wide array of threats from a range of hundreds of meters to several kilometers.” It is essentially a missile defense laser, with a practically “unlimited” magazine. Although an infinite magazine is impossible, as parts and energy supplies will eventually run out, Iron Beam has an extremely deep magazine when compared to traditional systems that rely on missiles to intercept incoming attacks.
Iron Beam has been designed to work as part of Israel’s existing Iron Dome multilevel missile defense system.
War is HEL, among other things
Israel’s new system is an example of a directed energy system, a type of weapon that uses directed beams of electromagnetic radiation to achieve some military objective (in this case, shooting missiles from the sky). Generally speaking, this can be achieved through a number of ways, including the use of particle beams, high-power microwaves, or high-energy lasers (HEL). The latter two are more often desired for their potential strategic use, while HEL systems (like Iron Beam) seem to be the most common type receiving military applications.
HEL systems are based on solid-state lasers that use crystals to convert electrical energy into photons. These high-powered solid-state lasers produce photons that are in the infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, so they are invisible to human eyes.
But how are they used in warfare? Well, it depends on the power of the laser’s photon wavelength, the beam’s power, and the surface it is striking. For instance, low-power lasers, like the ones used as pointers or as light displays at public events, create photons that are part of the visible spectrum. They are pretty weak, so they tend to bounce off surfaces without causing any harm.
High-power lasers, on the other hand, are used to cut through flesh in medical procedures or can burn, melt, or vaporize materials in industrial settings. In a military context, such as with Iron Beam, the system could potentially blind, cut, or burn incoming missiles or drones in a way that disrupts their trajectories.
But while HEL systems may well become a common feature of military systems in the future, they have their limitations. In particular, they require a significant power source to keep them in operation. To inflict damage on incoming targets that are at a distance requires tens of hundreds of kilowatts of power. In most existing system designs, the source for this power is deployed with the vehicle carrying the weapons, which means the laser can only be fired for a short period of time before it needs to be recharged.
Lasers are also pretty sensitive to weather conditions. Rain, fog, and smoke can all limit the beam’s power as they can cause it to scatter.
One among many
Across the world, militaries are seeking to develop laser systems for their own purposes. Although directed energy weapons have long been sought after, there are few types of weapons that have had so many disappointments attached to them. However, advances in laser technologies in the last decade have made these systems more appealing.
The US currently has 31 Laser programmes running, but so far it has struggled to make reliable systems that can operate in the field.
For instance, in February this year, the US military deployed four truck-based HEL systems for battlefield testing in the Middle East. They use 50-kilowatt lasers that are mounted on Stryker armored fighting vehicles. The US Navy has also developed ship-based HEL systems that target drones, mortar shells, and missiles, as well as helicopters. The USS Preble was equipped with the High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance system (HELIOS) in 2022.
The US Air Force is also interested in this technology to be deployed on their aircraft for both defensive and offensive purposes. At the same time, Russia is developing a ground-based HEL system that may be designed to target and “blind” enemy satellites.
As such, if Iron Beam is successfully deployed by Israel next year, then it will likely soon be joined by other operational systems elsewhere, especially as more conflicts weaponize drones. Once it has been deployed, it will provide real-world data concerning its experiences in the field, which will inform future developments.
On the one hand, such systems may be valuable tools for defending civilian populations from potential drone-based attacks, but on the other, as with all new weapons, they also highlight the evolving nature of warfare more generally.
