Weapon systems, part 0001

[Kuciwalker]

The two are not mutually exclusive. We Americans get very far on wishful thinking

[targon]

Caseless ammo is good, but in fact, it's such a big improvement. By any means possible, theoretical limit for chemical gunpoweder powered barrel guns lies somewhere below 3.000 m/s and you can't accelerate all these lead to higher velocities.
But, "fossil" fuel in fact may propel our cute copperhead using more novel, indirect process. The main problem with energy weapons is power source. Power must be pulsed and BIG, several GWt or more, but not for long. In order to kill someone with projectile, least kill treshold is around 200 J, so even nowdays bullets are simply overkill (they need all these energy in order to be precise and pierce occational kevlar layer). So you may use two-stage process: 1st is "generator" powered by chemical reaction, 2nd is projectile accelerator (or beam weapon, laser etc).
In later game, this hassle may be replaced by pure sci-fi stuff, like beloved by some people phasers and so on.

[targon]

American "Star Wars project", or SDI, was economical rather than any other weapon. They simulated some activity and fooled USSR began to _really_ develop its own SDI. This was its last mistake, as country already spent something around 30% of budget on military. If Americans in fact created something other than disinformation and new work places, why their nowdays SDI launches miss regulary? SDI slogans are simple buzzwords, in great tradition of Star Trek.

[targon]

OK, here are also some wierd ideas about future weapon systems.
Planetary deflagrator. This device creates immensive shock wave with length as big so it may use planetary foilage, woods and seafloor methane as its fuel. It stops only if there is't free oxygen available.
This is somewhat too sci-fi (in fact, I picked its idea from sci-fi book, but aurhor was unaware of some aspects of shock wave physics), but in fact it's known that actual shock wave propelling thru wood on fire increases in magnitude (not a much, BTW). This research was made in order to find more ways to extinguish fires, but that guys got reverse effect. It's still possible that _long_ shockwave may use slow-firing fuel like tree creating vast firestorm.
Planetquake. Strong electric pulses (I mean _really_ strong) may be theoreticaly used for control of seismic activity. Possible terraforming or doomsday weapon.

[Martin the Dane]

I was just thinking about this discussion while walking from the bus. What hit me was that lately it has been about what is possible, and what will be possible in the near future.

My question for tonight is: what weaponds could be possible in a distant future? and how do we get there?

An example: (I know this is not a novel idea, it's just an example of what I'm asking)

If we could find a way of producing, containing, and controling anti-matter on a large scale matter-anti-matter weaponds like the Star Trek anti-matter torpedo would be possible.

[targon]

OK, several kg of AM will surely obliterate entire world. I would recommend use it from very high orbit so it can sear planetary surface not much disturbed with air; sure death of 50% of population in several seconds
Or you may accelerate AM to high speed in strong capsule, so it will detonate deep inside planetary crust creating planetquake of immense magnitude. Boom!
OK, I'll think about far future. But that depends on darned tech tree, so I need to know something about that future wonders...

[targon]

Yet another way of sending good thing to hell:
Sonic blaster, void version
You think you're safe form dreaded sonic waves disrupting hulls and killing crewmen by horror, dear void runner? Defenitley, you are not.
Energy beams are capable not only of creating immense shockwaves spalling even hardest armor into pieces; this kind of stuff may also generate very loud sound (if fact, very faint shock wave). Here we go!
No need to pierce enemy armor layers. Simply create long length, high amplitude sonic waves in the hull; resonance will do the rest, crumpling fragile parts, mangling work of precise equipment and making crew insane (and eventualy dead).

[Kuciwalker]

A real-world idea I had that could work here, using lasers to generate sound waves - covert active sonar. You point a laser at the water and have it generate a sonar ping. Your submarine (or surface ship) picks up the echo, knowing where the ping came from. It can target an enemy vessel while remaining totally covert.