Possibly already used in Iraq
with catastrphic results...
{Read an account here} The
DOD's Active Denial System
is being considered for use in
the U.S to "protect" DOE sites
that contain nuclear assets.
Of course once approved for
use in the United States on
civilians there is no telling
how widespread the
implementation will become.
Once operational ADT
systems are easily calibrated
to produce a fatal death ray
not unlike the one in the 50's
science fiction classic...
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Science fiction no longer. FRJ
with catastrphic results...
{Read an account here} The
DOD's Active Denial System
is being considered for use in
the U.S to "protect" DOE sites
that contain nuclear assets.
Of course once approved for
use in the United States on
civilians there is no telling
how widespread the
implementation will become.
Once operational ADT
systems are easily calibrated
to produce a fatal death ray
not unlike the one in the 50's
science fiction classic...
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Science fiction no longer. FRJ
FACT SHEET
UNITED STATES AIR FORCE
Air Force Research Laboratory
Office of Public Affairs
3550 Aberdeen Avenue S.E., Kirtland AFB NM 87117-5776
(505) 846-1911; Fax (505) 846-0423
INTERNET: http://www.de.afrl.af.mil/Factsheets/
EMAIL: afrl.public.affairs@kirtland.af.mil
ACTIVE DENIAL SYSTEM
Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration
The Active Denial System (ADS) is a non-lethal, counter-personnel directed energy weapon. It uses
breakthrough technologies to provide un-precedented, standoff, non-lethal capabilities at ranges beyond
effective small arms range.
ADS projects a focused, speed-of-light milli-meter-wave energy beam to induce an intolerable heating
sensation on an adversary’s skin and cause that individual to be repelled without injury. The picture on the
right depicts the prototype currently in development. ADS will enable U.S. forces to stop, deter and turn
back an advancing adversary without applying lethal force. This capability is expected to save countless
lives by providing a means to stop individuals without causing injury, before a deadly confrontation
develops.
The technology was originally developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and matured under the
sponsorship of the Department of Defense’s Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. Approximately $51
million has been invested over the past eleven years. The technology was developed in response to
Department of Defense needs for troops to have options short of deadly force. Non-lethal technologies can
be used for protection of defense resources, peacekeeping, humanitarian missions and other situations in
which the use of lethal force is undesirable. ADS will provide these capabilities close in as well as at longer
standoff ranges.
How It Works
Active Denial Technology uses a transmitter producing energy at a frequency of 95Ghz and an antenna to
direct a focused, invisible beam towards a designated subject. Traveling at the speed of light, the energy
reaches the subject and penetrates the skin to a depth of less than 1/64 of an inch. Almost instantaneously
it produces a heating sensation that within seconds becomes intolerable and forces the subject to flee. The
sensation immediately ceases when the individual moves out of the beam or when the system operator
turns it off.
Despite this sensation, the beam does not cause injury because of the shallow penetration depth of energy
at this wavelength and the low energy levels used. It exploits the body’s natural defense mechanism that
induces pain as a warning to help protect it from injury.
Human Effects Testing
A large portion of the investment, about $9 million, has been devoted to characterizing the effects of this
technology on the human body. This is to ensure the technology produces the desired response and is
militarily effective, while at the same time providing a large margin of safety against injury and long-term
effects. Animals and humans are being used in the test program, which is being conducted in strict
compliance with the procedures, laws and regulations governing animal and human experimentation. The
tests are reviewed and approved by a formal Institutional Review Board with oversight from the Air Force
Surgeon General’s Office. An independent panel of medical experts from outside the government also
periodically reviews and advises on the planning aspects and results of the research and test activities.
Their 2002 review of the program concluded there is low probability of serious injury from exposure to the
ADS beam. Additionally, the panel concludes that the probability of thermal eye injury is low and the
probability of long-term health effects such as cancer is extremely low.
Active Denial Technology Hardware Demonstrator
The Air Force Research Laboratory’s Human Effectiveness Directorate at Brooks City Base, Texas,
conducted several years of successful and safe laboratory testing with small spot sizes. In 2000, testing
began at Kirtland Air Force Base, south of Albuquerque, New Mexico, using the new, full-scale technology
hardware demonstration system shown at right. It enabled larger areas of a volunteer test subject’s body
to be exposed to the energy beam and pro-vided for more realistic, military field conditions.
System Evolution
The Active Denial technology hardware demonstration system shown above represents a rudimentary first
integration of the key technology elements such as the millimeter-wave source, cooling system, and planar
array antenna, among others. In 2001, it successfully demonstrated the hardware technology necessary to
achieve the desired effect at full weapon power and distance, and set the stage for the next evolution of the
system.
This next step is on-going and involves the integration and packaging of all the system’s components into
a mobile, nearly militarized system. The configuration chosen is the High Mobility Multi-purpose
Wheeled Vehicle, commonly referred to as a Humvee. This activity is being conducted under an Advanced
Concept Technology Demonstration program, which is the process used by the Department of Defense to
rapidly move mature technologies into the hands of the warfighter for military evaluation.
Under the Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration, the Air Force Research Laboratory will produce
a Humvee-mounted prototype and provide it to operational forces from all the services in late 2004. The
services will first develop concepts for employing the system and then evaluate its utility in representative
military environments and scenarios. Depending on the results of this evaluation, which is projected to be
completed at the end of 2005, a decision will be made to produce and operationally deploy the system.
Since this is the first time this leading edge technology will be evaluated for military utility, it is possible
that some of the services will find they need considerably different system configurations of the ADS
which would be tailored for specific missions and operating environments, such as on-board a ship or on
an aircraft. Planning for an airborne system prototype has already begun under a separate effort.
The employment of Active Denial Technology has successfully undergone a preliminary weapons legal
review. A interim, comprehensive legal review, including treaty compliance, is in process and is projected
to be completed this year.
Organizations Involved
The ADS Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration program is being sponsored by the Office of the
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Advanced Systems and Concepts, the Department of Defense Joint
Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate and U.S. Joint Forces Command.
The Air Force Research Laboratory’s Directed Energy Directorate at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico,
is the technical manager and responsible for the ADS prototype development. The Laboratory’s Human
Effectiveness Directorate at Brooks City Base manages the human effects characterization research and
test program.
Air Combat Command at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, is the operational manager and is leading the
military services in developing the concepts of operation and managing the formal military utility
assessment.
The Air Force’s Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, is the transition
manager, charged with leading the planning activities necessary to transition the system into the formal
Department of Defense acquisition process, should the decision be made to equip U.S. forces with ADS.
The Raytheon Company is the lead integrator of the prototype.
- AFRL -
Air Force Research Laboratory
Current as of February 2003
The Active Denial System
Atmospheric particulate conditions greatly increase the effectiveness of the Active Denial
System, {Up to 3.2 Miles} these are deployed in the standard {CT} fashion. Can be used on
an airborne platform as well as stationary installations, the power level is adjustable, you
can draw your own conclusions. This and many other "mind and body control" speed of
light weapons are currently deployed on Earth. "AC"
Back to Eyepod Front Page
Scroll down the page to read about Sandia National Labs latest tests.
To read more from others please continue...
From Global Security.Org
Vehicle-Mounted Active Denial System (V-MADS)
Active Denial Technology is a breakthrough non-lethal technology that uses millimeter-wave
electromagnetic energy to stop, deter and turn back an advancing adversary from relatively long range. It
is expected to save countless lives by providing a way to stop individuals without causing injury, before a
deadly confrontation develops.
The technology was developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Department of Defense's Joint
Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. Approximately $40 million has been spent on this technology over the
past ten years.
In July 2005 it was reported that the Active Denial System would be deployed to Iraq before the end of the
year. Under an initiative called Project Sheriff, troops will receive a total of 15 vehicles.
This non-lethal technology was developed in response to Department of Defense needs for field
commanders to have options short of the use of deadly force. Non-lethal technologies can be used for
protection of Defense resources, peacekeeping, humanitarian missions and other situations in which the use
of lethal force is undesirable. The system is intended to protect military personnel against small-arms fire,
which is generally taken to mean a range of 1,000 meters. The system is described as having a range of 700
yards.
{The actual range of this weapon is 3.2 miles at this time}
Countermeasures against the weapon could be quite straightforward — for example covering up the body
with thick clothes or carrying a metallic sheet — or even a trash can lid — as a shield or reflector. Also
unclear is how the active-denial technology would work in rainy, foggy or sea-spray conditions where the
beam's energy could be absorbed by water in the atmosphere.
Active Denial Technology uses a transmitter to send a narrow beam of 95-GHz millimeter waves towards
an identified subject. Traveling at the speed of light, the energy reaches the subject and penetrates less than
1/64 of an inch into the skin, quickly heating up the skin's surface. The 95-GHz energy penetrates 1/64 inch
into the skin and produces an intense burning sensation that stops when the transmitter is switched off or
when the individual moves out of the beam. Within seconds, an individual feels an intense heating
sensation that stops when the transmitter is shut off or when the individual moves out of the beam.
According to reports, a 2-second burst from the system can heat the skin to a temperature of 130° F. At 50 °
C, the pain reflex makes people pull away automatically in less than a second. Someone would have to stay
in the beam for 250 seconds before it burnt the skin,
Despite the sensation, the technology does not cause injury because of the low energy levels used. It exploits
a natural defense mechanism that helps to protect the human body from damage. The heat-induced
sensation caused by this technology, is nearly identical to the sensation experienced by briefly touching an
ordinary light bulb that has been left on for a while. Unlike a light bulb, however, active denial technology
will not cause rapid burning, because of the shallow penetration of the beam and the low levels of energy
used. The transmitter needs only to be on for a few seconds to cause the sensation.
Air Force scientists helped set the present skin safety threshold of 10 milliwatts per square centimetre in the
early 1990s, when little data was available. That limit covers exposure to steady fields for several minutes to
an hour - but heating a layer of skin 0.3 mm thick to 50 °C in just one second requires much higher power
and may pose risks to the cornea, which is more sensitive than skin. A study published last year in the
journal Health Physics showed that exposure to 2 watts per square centimeter for three seconds could
damage the corneas of rhesus monkeys.
Testing
Humans and animals are being used in the test program. All testing is being conducted with strict
observance of the procedures, laws and regulations governing animal and human experimentation. The
tests have been reviewed and approved by a formal Institutional Review Board with oversight from the Air
Force Surgeon General's Office. The testing is being conducted by the Air Force Research Laboratory's
Human Effectiveness Directorate.
Military and civilian employees have volunteered for these tests. Prior to participating in the program, all
volunteers are fully informed of the purpose and nature of the tests and of any reasonably foreseeable risks
or discomforts expected from the research. Other than minor skin tenderness due to repeated exposure to
the beam, there are no lasting effects. An institutional review board has determined that the risk level is
minimal. No pay is received for participation, and volunteers may withdraw at any time with no negative
personal or professional ramifications. Many of the project scientists are volunteers for the study. These
tests, which are being conducted at Kirtland Air Force Base south of Albuquerque, New Mexico, employ
more realistic military field conditions, following several years of successful and safe laboratory testing.
These field tests are the first to expose an entire test subject to the energy beam.
These tests demonstrate the technology, gather additional data on effects in realistic conditions, and allow
the military benefits to be assessed.
Louis Slesin, editor of Microwave News, a leading newsletter on non-ionizing radiation, calls VMADS a
"significant development" in directed energy weapons. However, he says that possible injuries, particularly
to the eye, could lead to stopping further development and actual deployment of the device-as the
Pentagon did in the mid-1990s when it was trying to develop blinding lasers. "The real question is whether
it will go the way of the lasers," Slesin says. Like laser, exposure to the microwave beam could cause eye
damage. "People will get out of the beam, but [injury to the eyes] depends on how much exposure they
get," Slesin says. Slesin also notes that "the only people who are doing health research on the effects of
electromagnetic radiation are the people who are developing this weapon-the Air Force Lab. . . . They're the
only people who have any money in the United States to do research on the health effects, and they're in
firm control of the [safety] standard-setting process. . . . That's a clear conflict."
FY 2002 Implementation Document (ID) signed establishing management oversight and overall program
structure to place ADS on one hybrid electric HMMWV. Concept of operation meeting conducted by
Operational manager. Transition meeting conducted by transition manager to define requirements for full
system development. ADS effects testing ongoing with frontal exposures of human subjects at full weapons
parameters scheduled.
FY 2002 continued: ADS source optimization started and possible integration of high-temperature
superconducting coils investigated.
FY 2003 - Concept of operation, transition strategy development, and effects testing continuing. System
integration (battle management system, HMMWV, and beam director) started. Field demonstration in 4th
quarter.
FY 2004 - Concept of operations finalized. Source optimization, effects testing, system integration
continuing. Field Test in 3rd quarter. Military Utility Assessment (MUA) begun.
FY 2005 - Effects testing and MUA finalized. Final optimization of Battle Management System and
HMMWV completed. Residual handed over to transition manager.
Operational System
Officials have begun examining appropriate platforms on which to deploy the technology. Currently,
planning is underway for a vehicle-mounted version. Future versions might also be used onboard planes
and ships. The vehicle-mounted version will be designed to be packaged on a vehicle such as a High
Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, more commonly referred to as a Humvee). Power
would be provided by a turbo-alternator and battery system. Researches say they have made technological
break through on power supplies to run such weapons even when mounted on vehicles or aircraft.
This technology and its proposed use in an operational system have been given a preliminary weapons
legal review as required by Department of Defense Directive 3000.3 "Policy for Non-Lethal Weapons," and
the United States' treaty - obligations. This preliminary review found that further research, development,
and testing of this technology is permissible. As required by law, a final, comprehensive legal review will be
completed prior to entering the acquisition cycle.
Photograph of the demonstration hardware
Organizations involved
Two primary organizations are executing this program: the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate at
Quantico Marine Corps Base, Virginia, and the Air Force Research Laboratory, headquartered at Wright-
Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The Air Force Research Laboratory is developing the technology with
funding from both the Air Force and the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate.
From the Air Force Research Laboratory, two directorates are involved: the Directed Energy Directorate at
Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, and the Human Effectiveness Directorate at Brooks Air Force Base,
Texas. The former works technology development and testing; the latter is in charge of biological effects
research.
There are three primary contractors: Raytheon AET in Rancho Cucamonga, California, is the systems
integrator, CPI (Communications and Power Industries) in Palo Alto, California, is the source developer,
and Veridian Engineering in San Antonio, Texas, is performing biological effects research.
Other organizations and agencies that are involved in the this project include the Air Force Force Protection
Battlelab at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas; the Marine Warfighting Laboratory at Quantico, Virginia; the
Air Force Special Operations Command at Hurlburt Field, Florida; and the U.S. Special Operations
Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.
The Air Force's Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, will manage
acquisition of the Vehicle-Mounted Active Denial System based on this technology
Back to Eyepod Front Page
Vehicle-Mounted Active Denial System (V-MADS)
Active Denial Technology is a breakthrough non-lethal technology that uses millimeter-wave
electromagnetic energy to stop, deter and turn back an advancing adversary from relatively long range. It
is expected to save countless lives by providing a way to stop individuals without causing injury, before a
deadly confrontation develops.
The technology was developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Department of Defense's Joint
Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate. Approximately $40 million has been spent on this technology over the
past ten years.
In July 2005 it was reported that the Active Denial System would be deployed to Iraq before the end of the
year. Under an initiative called Project Sheriff, troops will receive a total of 15 vehicles.
This non-lethal technology was developed in response to Department of Defense needs for field
commanders to have options short of the use of deadly force. Non-lethal technologies can be used for
protection of Defense resources, peacekeeping, humanitarian missions and other situations in which the use
of lethal force is undesirable. The system is intended to protect military personnel against small-arms fire,
which is generally taken to mean a range of 1,000 meters. The system is described as having a range of 700
yards.
{The actual range of this weapon is 3.2 miles at this time}
Countermeasures against the weapon could be quite straightforward — for example covering up the body
with thick clothes or carrying a metallic sheet — or even a trash can lid — as a shield or reflector. Also
unclear is how the active-denial technology would work in rainy, foggy or sea-spray conditions where the
beam's energy could be absorbed by water in the atmosphere.
Active Denial Technology uses a transmitter to send a narrow beam of 95-GHz millimeter waves towards
an identified subject. Traveling at the speed of light, the energy reaches the subject and penetrates less than
1/64 of an inch into the skin, quickly heating up the skin's surface. The 95-GHz energy penetrates 1/64 inch
into the skin and produces an intense burning sensation that stops when the transmitter is switched off or
when the individual moves out of the beam. Within seconds, an individual feels an intense heating
sensation that stops when the transmitter is shut off or when the individual moves out of the beam.
According to reports, a 2-second burst from the system can heat the skin to a temperature of 130° F. At 50 °
C, the pain reflex makes people pull away automatically in less than a second. Someone would have to stay
in the beam for 250 seconds before it burnt the skin,
Despite the sensation, the technology does not cause injury because of the low energy levels used. It exploits
a natural defense mechanism that helps to protect the human body from damage. The heat-induced
sensation caused by this technology, is nearly identical to the sensation experienced by briefly touching an
ordinary light bulb that has been left on for a while. Unlike a light bulb, however, active denial technology
will not cause rapid burning, because of the shallow penetration of the beam and the low levels of energy
used. The transmitter needs only to be on for a few seconds to cause the sensation.
Air Force scientists helped set the present skin safety threshold of 10 milliwatts per square centimetre in the
early 1990s, when little data was available. That limit covers exposure to steady fields for several minutes to
an hour - but heating a layer of skin 0.3 mm thick to 50 °C in just one second requires much higher power
and may pose risks to the cornea, which is more sensitive than skin. A study published last year in the
journal Health Physics showed that exposure to 2 watts per square centimeter for three seconds could
damage the corneas of rhesus monkeys.
Testing
Humans and animals are being used in the test program. All testing is being conducted with strict
observance of the procedures, laws and regulations governing animal and human experimentation. The
tests have been reviewed and approved by a formal Institutional Review Board with oversight from the Air
Force Surgeon General's Office. The testing is being conducted by the Air Force Research Laboratory's
Human Effectiveness Directorate.
Military and civilian employees have volunteered for these tests. Prior to participating in the program, all
volunteers are fully informed of the purpose and nature of the tests and of any reasonably foreseeable risks
or discomforts expected from the research. Other than minor skin tenderness due to repeated exposure to
the beam, there are no lasting effects. An institutional review board has determined that the risk level is
minimal. No pay is received for participation, and volunteers may withdraw at any time with no negative
personal or professional ramifications. Many of the project scientists are volunteers for the study. These
tests, which are being conducted at Kirtland Air Force Base south of Albuquerque, New Mexico, employ
more realistic military field conditions, following several years of successful and safe laboratory testing.
These field tests are the first to expose an entire test subject to the energy beam.
These tests demonstrate the technology, gather additional data on effects in realistic conditions, and allow
the military benefits to be assessed.
Louis Slesin, editor of Microwave News, a leading newsletter on non-ionizing radiation, calls VMADS a
"significant development" in directed energy weapons. However, he says that possible injuries, particularly
to the eye, could lead to stopping further development and actual deployment of the device-as the
Pentagon did in the mid-1990s when it was trying to develop blinding lasers. "The real question is whether
it will go the way of the lasers," Slesin says. Like laser, exposure to the microwave beam could cause eye
damage. "People will get out of the beam, but [injury to the eyes] depends on how much exposure they
get," Slesin says. Slesin also notes that "the only people who are doing health research on the effects of
electromagnetic radiation are the people who are developing this weapon-the Air Force Lab. . . . They're the
only people who have any money in the United States to do research on the health effects, and they're in
firm control of the [safety] standard-setting process. . . . That's a clear conflict."
FY 2002 Implementation Document (ID) signed establishing management oversight and overall program
structure to place ADS on one hybrid electric HMMWV. Concept of operation meeting conducted by
Operational manager. Transition meeting conducted by transition manager to define requirements for full
system development. ADS effects testing ongoing with frontal exposures of human subjects at full weapons
parameters scheduled.
FY 2002 continued: ADS source optimization started and possible integration of high-temperature
superconducting coils investigated.
FY 2003 - Concept of operation, transition strategy development, and effects testing continuing. System
integration (battle management system, HMMWV, and beam director) started. Field demonstration in 4th
quarter.
FY 2004 - Concept of operations finalized. Source optimization, effects testing, system integration
continuing. Field Test in 3rd quarter. Military Utility Assessment (MUA) begun.
FY 2005 - Effects testing and MUA finalized. Final optimization of Battle Management System and
HMMWV completed. Residual handed over to transition manager.
Operational System
Officials have begun examining appropriate platforms on which to deploy the technology. Currently,
planning is underway for a vehicle-mounted version. Future versions might also be used onboard planes
and ships. The vehicle-mounted version will be designed to be packaged on a vehicle such as a High
Mobility Multi-purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, more commonly referred to as a Humvee). Power
would be provided by a turbo-alternator and battery system. Researches say they have made technological
break through on power supplies to run such weapons even when mounted on vehicles or aircraft.
This technology and its proposed use in an operational system have been given a preliminary weapons
legal review as required by Department of Defense Directive 3000.3 "Policy for Non-Lethal Weapons," and
the United States' treaty - obligations. This preliminary review found that further research, development,
and testing of this technology is permissible. As required by law, a final, comprehensive legal review will be
completed prior to entering the acquisition cycle.
Photograph of the demonstration hardware
Organizations involved
Two primary organizations are executing this program: the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate at
Quantico Marine Corps Base, Virginia, and the Air Force Research Laboratory, headquartered at Wright-
Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The Air Force Research Laboratory is developing the technology with
funding from both the Air Force and the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate.
From the Air Force Research Laboratory, two directorates are involved: the Directed Energy Directorate at
Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, and the Human Effectiveness Directorate at Brooks Air Force Base,
Texas. The former works technology development and testing; the latter is in charge of biological effects
research.
There are three primary contractors: Raytheon AET in Rancho Cucamonga, California, is the systems
integrator, CPI (Communications and Power Industries) in Palo Alto, California, is the source developer,
and Veridian Engineering in San Antonio, Texas, is performing biological effects research.
Other organizations and agencies that are involved in the this project include the Air Force Force Protection
Battlelab at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas; the Marine Warfighting Laboratory at Quantico, Virginia; the
Air Force Special Operations Command at Hurlburt Field, Florida; and the U.S. Special Operations
Command at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida.
The Air Force's Electronic Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, will manage
acquisition of the Vehicle-Mounted Active Denial System based on this technology
Back to Eyepod Front Page
Or you can read more from the good people at Defense Tech .Org...
But what choice did the American gunner have? When U.S. soldiers are faced with a hostile crowd, they
only have, broadly speaking, two options for breaking it up: the bullhorn or the machine gun. Words or
bullets. Deadly force, or no force at all.
What's need instead is a weapon that falls somewhere in between. That shoots to hurt, not to kill. That
drives away looters, without driving up casualty counts.
A microwave-like pain ray, let's say.
Fortunately, such a weapon is already deep into development. It's called the Active Denial System, or ADS.
And, by firing electro-magnetic waves that penetrate just a 64th of inch beneath the skin, ADS creates a
burning sensation that tends to make people run the other way, fast.
A Humvee-mounted ADS prototype is expected to be ready by the end of the year, with budget decisions
made in 2005.
{This weapon is in use as you are reading this now}
But, whether ADS is accepted or not, attitudes about non-lethal weapons have to change. Right now, the
Pentagon's division devoted to such weapons gets about $44 million a year – out of a $400 billion budget.
That's to support the development of new weapons, and not build up stockpiles of existing ones, like stun
grenades and rubber-ball-packed claymores.
These weapons often stay in warehouses, rather than get used in the field, however. As a combat zone
grows increasingly hostile, commanders often become reluctant to use the weapons. It's like bringing a
knife to a gun fight, they argue.
But that kind of attitude can play right into the hands of insurgents, generating the kind of ugly reports we
are all reading today. Sometimes, in the middle of a gun fight, a knife is exactly what's needed.
THERE'S MORE: "You seem to assume that weapons such as the microwave device you describe will be
used only for the purposes intended, and that their effects will generally be less harmful than more directly
lethal devices," writes World Without Secrets author Richard Hunter.
But what happens if the people faced with such a weapon can't just run away? What happens if they're
trapped in a crowd, and the crowd can't move? How much pain must that crowd endure? How long can
any member of the crowd be exposed to that weapon before his or her skin -- or their eyes -- simply cook
off?
What happens if the devices are used deliberately in a manner designed to cause maximum harm -- say,
by training the device on prisoners trapped in prison cells until they literally go mad with pain?
What happens if the system operator turns up the power? A little bit works well, why not try a lot?
What happens if the scientists didn't test the devices thoroughly, and they turn out to render anyone
touched by them blind, or impotent, or sterile?
I need a lot of convincing before I believe that weapons designed expressly to cause pain are humane.
Fair points, all. A system like Active Denial certainly would have the potential for abuse. But at least there
would be the possibility of using the weapon non-lethally -- a possibility which doesn't really exist today
with an M-16.
AND MORE: "Killing is in our intentions, not our weapons," says Defense Tech reader JMW. When faced
with an adversary, "the individual soldier has to decide whether to kill or to take a prisoner. This has
nothing to do with armament." Aim a pistol at the knees, and it's just about as non-lethal as a pain ray.
There are NO "nonlethal" weapons when in the hands of military personnel. Weapons which disable or
confuse enemy troops are those used to prepare subsequent removal of threats by lethal force. This was the
classical use of poison gas during WWI and in the Iran-Iraq War. When nonlethal arms are available, one
prevents enemy weapon use nonlethally, and then applies the lethal force. Of course, whatever the
weaponry, if capture is feasible, it will be carried out; it doesn't matter whether nonlethal alternatives are
available -- and they load down our combatants with ineffective equipment.
This differs from police use, where the objective is law enforcement, not killing, threat removal, or capture
of facilities (we hope).
AND MORE: "Whatever happened to good old-fashioned tear gas?" asks Defense Tech reader RR. A few
rounds of tear gas into a crowd does a great job of changing the crowd's priorities. Safe, cheap, and
effective."
Released September 13, 2004 10:00 AM
Top of Page
But what choice did the American gunner have? When U.S. soldiers are faced with a hostile crowd, they
only have, broadly speaking, two options for breaking it up: the bullhorn or the machine gun. Words or
bullets. Deadly force, or no force at all.
What's need instead is a weapon that falls somewhere in between. That shoots to hurt, not to kill. That
drives away looters, without driving up casualty counts.
A microwave-like pain ray, let's say.
Fortunately, such a weapon is already deep into development. It's called the Active Denial System, or ADS.
And, by firing electro-magnetic waves that penetrate just a 64th of inch beneath the skin, ADS creates a
burning sensation that tends to make people run the other way, fast.
A Humvee-mounted ADS prototype is expected to be ready by the end of the year, with budget decisions
made in 2005.
{This weapon is in use as you are reading this now}
But, whether ADS is accepted or not, attitudes about non-lethal weapons have to change. Right now, the
Pentagon's division devoted to such weapons gets about $44 million a year – out of a $400 billion budget.
That's to support the development of new weapons, and not build up stockpiles of existing ones, like stun
grenades and rubber-ball-packed claymores.
These weapons often stay in warehouses, rather than get used in the field, however. As a combat zone
grows increasingly hostile, commanders often become reluctant to use the weapons. It's like bringing a
knife to a gun fight, they argue.
But that kind of attitude can play right into the hands of insurgents, generating the kind of ugly reports we
are all reading today. Sometimes, in the middle of a gun fight, a knife is exactly what's needed.
THERE'S MORE: "You seem to assume that weapons such as the microwave device you describe will be
used only for the purposes intended, and that their effects will generally be less harmful than more directly
lethal devices," writes World Without Secrets author Richard Hunter.
But what happens if the people faced with such a weapon can't just run away? What happens if they're
trapped in a crowd, and the crowd can't move? How much pain must that crowd endure? How long can
any member of the crowd be exposed to that weapon before his or her skin -- or their eyes -- simply cook
off?
What happens if the devices are used deliberately in a manner designed to cause maximum harm -- say,
by training the device on prisoners trapped in prison cells until they literally go mad with pain?
What happens if the system operator turns up the power? A little bit works well, why not try a lot?
What happens if the scientists didn't test the devices thoroughly, and they turn out to render anyone
touched by them blind, or impotent, or sterile?
I need a lot of convincing before I believe that weapons designed expressly to cause pain are humane.
Fair points, all. A system like Active Denial certainly would have the potential for abuse. But at least there
would be the possibility of using the weapon non-lethally -- a possibility which doesn't really exist today
with an M-16.
AND MORE: "Killing is in our intentions, not our weapons," says Defense Tech reader JMW. When faced
with an adversary, "the individual soldier has to decide whether to kill or to take a prisoner. This has
nothing to do with armament." Aim a pistol at the knees, and it's just about as non-lethal as a pain ray.
There are NO "nonlethal" weapons when in the hands of military personnel. Weapons which disable or
confuse enemy troops are those used to prepare subsequent removal of threats by lethal force. This was the
classical use of poison gas during WWI and in the Iran-Iraq War. When nonlethal arms are available, one
prevents enemy weapon use nonlethally, and then applies the lethal force. Of course, whatever the
weaponry, if capture is feasible, it will be carried out; it doesn't matter whether nonlethal alternatives are
available -- and they load down our combatants with ineffective equipment.
This differs from police use, where the objective is law enforcement, not killing, threat removal, or capture
of facilities (we hope).
AND MORE: "Whatever happened to good old-fashioned tear gas?" asks Defense Tech reader RR. A few
rounds of tear gas into a crowd does a great job of changing the crowd's priorities. Safe, cheap, and
effective."
Released September 13, 2004 10:00 AM
Top of Page
Critical developments, this from...
NEWS RELEASES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 30, 2005
Team investigates Active Denial System for security applications
Millimeter-wave device puts the ‘heat’ on adversaries
Nonlethal weaponry. A multi-organizational team is adapting for DOE use a technology that can help
keep security adversaries out of DOE sites that contain nuclear assets.
The DOE Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance (SSA) is exploring the potential to use
directed energy weapons technology sponsored by the Department of Defense (DoD), named Active
Denial Technology (ADT), to help protect DOE nuclear assets.
{And other sensitive areas of course.}
SSA is sponsoring Sandia National Laboratories, a National Nuclear Security Administration lab, to
investigate how the technology can be used on adversaries by developing a new small-sized Active Denial
System (ADS) to meet the unique and rapidly evolving security needs of DOE.
To help solve the many technical issues associated with this challenge, Sandia has partnered with
Raytheon and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), because both organizations have significant
experience with earlier ADS system developments.
ADS systems are a new class of nonlethal weaponry using 95 GHz-millimeter-wave directed energy. This
technology is capable of rapidly heating a person’s skin to achieve a pain threshold that has been
demonstrated by AFRL human subject testing to be very effective at repelling people, without burning the
skin or causing other secondary effects.
The device is an alternative to lethal force.
{But can be and has been tested and used at lethal levels}
In the mid 1990s the Air Force funded development of an ADT system demonstrator that was led by
AFRL and built by Raytheon in partnership with Communications & Power Inc. (CPI) and Malibu
Research. The success of this demonstration system has resulted in several ongoing DoD-sponsored
projects, such as the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate’s Vehicle Mounted Active Denial System
(VMADS) and the Office of Force Transformation’s (OFT’s) project SHERIFF.
ADS — The new class of nonlethal weaponry uses 95 GHz-millimeter-wave directed energy. (Photo by
Randy Montoya)
Download 300dpi JPEG image, “directed-energy.jpg,” 644K (Media are welcome to download/publish
this image with related news stories.)Steve Scott, manager of Sandia’s Access Delay Technology
Department, says, “DOE and Sandia have been closely tracking ADT developments and have recognized
its potential to enhance the protection of DOE nuclear facilities. This has been confirmed by conducting a
feasibility study in 2002, under the supervision of researcher Jim Pacheco.”
Acting on the feasibility study’s conclusions, SSA’s Carl Pocratsky (SO-20) initiated an effort at Sandia to
explore and develop a small Active Denial System (ADS) that is more suitable for DOE fixed-site
applications. To date, DoD efforts have focused on larger systems, considered by many to be better suited
for military applications at extended ranges.
In 2004, the AFRL’s Human Effectiveness Directorate (HEDR) completed a study that analyzed pre-
existing test data to estimate the potential effectiveness of an ADS that has a smaller beam. Also in 2004,
Sandia conducted simulations of how the smaller ADS might be used and how it would perform against
adversary attack scenarios within a DOE facility using the Joint Conflict and Tactical Simulation (JCATS)
software modeling tool.
“The results of the AFRL small beam ADS effectiveness study and the JCATS study were very
encouraging and provided a strong basis for continuing the development of a comparitively small ADS for
DOE fixed-site applications,” says Pacheco.
“Recently there has been significant progress with this project,” says Willy Morse, Sandia’s principal
investigator. “On May 5 we took acceptance of the SSA ADS prototype system built by Raytheon’s
Advanced Electromagnetic Technologies (AET) Center in partnership with CPI and Malibu Research.
Initial characterization and performance tests were completed at the end of May.”
On May 19 a memorandum of understanding was completed between DOE-SSA, Sandia, DoD-OFT, and
AFRL. This memorandum establishes a formal partnership between the DoD and DOE in developing
small-sized ADSs. During the next six months the AFRL’s Human Effectiveness Directorate, Brooks City-
Base, is being funded by the OFT to complete human effects testing. This testing will use the SSA ADS
system to determine its effectiveness for DOD applications and validate the conclusions of the 2004 small-
beam-size effectiveness study sponsored by SSA.
Testing results from Sandia, AFRL, and OFT will guide the operational concept and design of a second-
generation small-size ADS system expected to be fielded at several DOE nuclear facilities as early as 2008.
DOE-SSA and Sandia will continue to actively seek opportunities to collaborate with other government
agencies on technical issues associated with developing and deploying ADS systems.
System uses beam of electromagnetic energy to heat human
Active Denial Technology (ADT) provides an effective nonlethal active-response mechanism to disperse,
disturb, distract, and establish the intent of intruders.
ADT emits a 95 GHz non-ionizing electromagnetic beam of energy that penetrates approximately 1/64 of
an inch into human skin tissue, where nerve receptors are concentrated. Within seconds, the beam will
heat the exposed skin tissue to a level where intolerable pain is experienced and natural defense
mechanisms take over.
This intense heating sensation stops only if the individual moves out of the beam’s path or the beam is
turned off. The sensation caused by the system has been described by test subjects as feeling like touching
a hot frying pan or the intense radiant heat from a fire. Burn injury is prevented by limiting the beam’s
intensity and duration.
DoD-sponsored millimeter-wave human effectiveness testing, initiated in 2001, has demonstrated ADT as
both effective and safe without any long-term effects. It is expected that the DoD-funded human
effectiveness testing of the small-beam ADS by the AFRL HEDR during the next six to eight months will
validate its effectiveness and safety as a nonlethal weapon system.
{The mass-beam ADS is the deadly counterpart to the small-beam ADS.} "AC"
Alien technology? Just say this is "The Day the Earth Stood Still".
"We Are the Eyes of the Universe Looking into the Future"
Eyepod.Org Front Page
NEWS RELEASES
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 30, 2005
Team investigates Active Denial System for security applications
Millimeter-wave device puts the ‘heat’ on adversaries
Nonlethal weaponry. A multi-organizational team is adapting for DOE use a technology that can help
keep security adversaries out of DOE sites that contain nuclear assets.
The DOE Office of Security and Safety Performance Assurance (SSA) is exploring the potential to use
directed energy weapons technology sponsored by the Department of Defense (DoD), named Active
Denial Technology (ADT), to help protect DOE nuclear assets.
{And other sensitive areas of course.}
SSA is sponsoring Sandia National Laboratories, a National Nuclear Security Administration lab, to
investigate how the technology can be used on adversaries by developing a new small-sized Active Denial
System (ADS) to meet the unique and rapidly evolving security needs of DOE.
To help solve the many technical issues associated with this challenge, Sandia has partnered with
Raytheon and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), because both organizations have significant
experience with earlier ADS system developments.
ADS systems are a new class of nonlethal weaponry using 95 GHz-millimeter-wave directed energy. This
technology is capable of rapidly heating a person’s skin to achieve a pain threshold that has been
demonstrated by AFRL human subject testing to be very effective at repelling people, without burning the
skin or causing other secondary effects.
The device is an alternative to lethal force.
{But can be and has been tested and used at lethal levels}
In the mid 1990s the Air Force funded development of an ADT system demonstrator that was led by
AFRL and built by Raytheon in partnership with Communications & Power Inc. (CPI) and Malibu
Research. The success of this demonstration system has resulted in several ongoing DoD-sponsored
projects, such as the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate’s Vehicle Mounted Active Denial System
(VMADS) and the Office of Force Transformation’s (OFT’s) project SHERIFF.
ADS — The new class of nonlethal weaponry uses 95 GHz-millimeter-wave directed energy. (Photo by
Randy Montoya)
Download 300dpi JPEG image, “directed-energy.jpg,” 644K (Media are welcome to download/publish
this image with related news stories.)Steve Scott, manager of Sandia’s Access Delay Technology
Department, says, “DOE and Sandia have been closely tracking ADT developments and have recognized
its potential to enhance the protection of DOE nuclear facilities. This has been confirmed by conducting a
feasibility study in 2002, under the supervision of researcher Jim Pacheco.”
Acting on the feasibility study’s conclusions, SSA’s Carl Pocratsky (SO-20) initiated an effort at Sandia to
explore and develop a small Active Denial System (ADS) that is more suitable for DOE fixed-site
applications. To date, DoD efforts have focused on larger systems, considered by many to be better suited
for military applications at extended ranges.
In 2004, the AFRL’s Human Effectiveness Directorate (HEDR) completed a study that analyzed pre-
existing test data to estimate the potential effectiveness of an ADS that has a smaller beam. Also in 2004,
Sandia conducted simulations of how the smaller ADS might be used and how it would perform against
adversary attack scenarios within a DOE facility using the Joint Conflict and Tactical Simulation (JCATS)
software modeling tool.
“The results of the AFRL small beam ADS effectiveness study and the JCATS study were very
encouraging and provided a strong basis for continuing the development of a comparitively small ADS for
DOE fixed-site applications,” says Pacheco.
“Recently there has been significant progress with this project,” says Willy Morse, Sandia’s principal
investigator. “On May 5 we took acceptance of the SSA ADS prototype system built by Raytheon’s
Advanced Electromagnetic Technologies (AET) Center in partnership with CPI and Malibu Research.
Initial characterization and performance tests were completed at the end of May.”
On May 19 a memorandum of understanding was completed between DOE-SSA, Sandia, DoD-OFT, and
AFRL. This memorandum establishes a formal partnership between the DoD and DOE in developing
small-sized ADSs. During the next six months the AFRL’s Human Effectiveness Directorate, Brooks City-
Base, is being funded by the OFT to complete human effects testing. This testing will use the SSA ADS
system to determine its effectiveness for DOD applications and validate the conclusions of the 2004 small-
beam-size effectiveness study sponsored by SSA.
Testing results from Sandia, AFRL, and OFT will guide the operational concept and design of a second-
generation small-size ADS system expected to be fielded at several DOE nuclear facilities as early as 2008.
DOE-SSA and Sandia will continue to actively seek opportunities to collaborate with other government
agencies on technical issues associated with developing and deploying ADS systems.
System uses beam of electromagnetic energy to heat human
Active Denial Technology (ADT) provides an effective nonlethal active-response mechanism to disperse,
disturb, distract, and establish the intent of intruders.
ADT emits a 95 GHz non-ionizing electromagnetic beam of energy that penetrates approximately 1/64 of
an inch into human skin tissue, where nerve receptors are concentrated. Within seconds, the beam will
heat the exposed skin tissue to a level where intolerable pain is experienced and natural defense
mechanisms take over.
This intense heating sensation stops only if the individual moves out of the beam’s path or the beam is
turned off. The sensation caused by the system has been described by test subjects as feeling like touching
a hot frying pan or the intense radiant heat from a fire. Burn injury is prevented by limiting the beam’s
intensity and duration.
DoD-sponsored millimeter-wave human effectiveness testing, initiated in 2001, has demonstrated ADT as
both effective and safe without any long-term effects. It is expected that the DoD-funded human
effectiveness testing of the small-beam ADS by the AFRL HEDR during the next six to eight months will
validate its effectiveness and safety as a nonlethal weapon system.
{The mass-beam ADS is the deadly counterpart to the small-beam ADS.} "AC"
Alien technology? Just say this is "The Day the Earth Stood Still".
"We Are the Eyes of the Universe Looking into the Future"
Eyepod.Org Front Page
| The Active Denial System... High Tech Weaponry... DOD Death Ray... Martian movie prop from War of the Worlds? No it's Not Science Fiction! |
| The Implications are obvious, developed by the USAF for deployment on an aerial platform... Can anyone say Aurora or ISIS or a dozen more? The technology is active and in use, deployed in Iraq on hybrid Humvees at the very least. ADS is a focused, speed-of-light milli-meter-wave energy beam that creates intense heat. Where did it come from, and why is it here and moving into approval for use in the private sector? The name of this weapon could be a clue, we present for your examination the... Active Denial System |
BRING THE PAIN
Can we have our pain ray now, please?
Yesterday, Iraqi insurgents got a big wish fulfilled, when an
American military helicopter firing into a crowd of civilians,
killing a dozen or more.
Some say the Iraqis, who were looting an abandoned Bradley
Fighting Vehicle, fired on the copter first. Some say otherwise. It
doesn't matter, really; either way, the U.S. winds up looking
more brutal – and less legitimate -- in Iraq eyes.
Can we have our pain ray now, please?
Yesterday, Iraqi insurgents got a big wish fulfilled, when an
American military helicopter firing into a crowd of civilians,
killing a dozen or more.
Some say the Iraqis, who were looting an abandoned Bradley
Fighting Vehicle, fired on the copter first. Some say otherwise. It
doesn't matter, really; either way, the U.S. winds up looking
more brutal – and less legitimate -- in Iraq eyes.
The most recent
developments are as
follows... Team
investigates Active Denial
System for security
applications
Millimeter-wave device
puts the ‘heat’ on
adversaries
Nonlethal weaponry. A
multi-organizational team
is adapting for DOE use a
technology that can help
keep security adversaries
out of DOE sites that
contain nuclear assets.
Scroll down to see Sandia
National Laboratories
recent work with ADS.
developments are as
follows... Team
investigates Active Denial
System for security
applications
Millimeter-wave device
puts the ‘heat’ on
adversaries
Nonlethal weaponry. A
multi-organizational team
is adapting for DOE use a
technology that can help
keep security adversaries
out of DOE sites that
contain nuclear assets.
Scroll down to see Sandia
National Laboratories
recent work with ADS.
Mass Beam Effects on
test targets is
impressive. FRJ
test targets is
impressive. FRJ
