Multiple Kill Vehicle - Cool Video

[Moose1978]

Would not want to be in the room when this thing popped up - http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/08/the-hovering-mu...

[mybrainhurts]

I want one of those...

Burglars...Do you feel lucky...?

[Kurtblythman]

mybrainhurts said:

I want one of those...

Burglars...Do you feel lucky...?

Your house would be fked after that sprung up, might aswell let em take it all.

[Jimbeaux]

Damn. They should fill one with blanks and toss it into a global warming protest crowd and see how fast they track their carbon footprints in four directions.

[RemaL]

I like. would be handy in the garage if someone wanted to nic my bike

[tonyvid]

That's cool!

[tegwin]

Thats exceedingly clever..... its getting quite scary what we are able to do now....

[THX138]

Well it missed the light bulbs and the camera filming it

[Jimbeaux]

THX138 said:

Well it missed the light bulbs and the camera filming it

It is designed to chase certain type targets; therefore, that is a sign it is working well IMO.

[Fetchez la vache]

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at? You'd at least expect any targets to be moving, yes?

[CommanderJameson]

Fetchez la vache said:

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at? You'd at least expect any targets to be moving, yes?

You want the moon on a stick, you do.

[Fetchez la vache]

CommanderJameson said:

Fetchez la vache said:

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at? You'd at least expect any targets to be moving, yes?

You want the moon on a stick, you do.

I ordered one from amazon but there seems to be a manufacturers delay

[FourWheelDrift]

Fetchez la vache said:

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at?

I don't think it was shooting at anything, I think they were all control jets to maintain height and position, something that small on it's first flight wouldn't be firing they would just be testing the flight of it. As the article said.

Plus I think the big hint that it wasn't firing anything was the un-bulletproof rope netting used.

[Fetchez la vache]

FourWheelDrift said:

Fetchez la vache said:

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at?

I don't think it was shooting at anything, I think they were all control jets to maintain height and position, something that small on it's first flight wouldn't be firing they would just be testing the flight of it. As the article said.

Plus I think the big hint that it wasn't firing anything was the un-bulletproof rope netting used.

So they might as well have used a helium balloon tied to a brick if that was al it was meant to do?

[OJ]

I'm guessing it fell back to the ground because it ran out of propellent... That might be an issue.

Incredible piece of control engineering though

[Sheepy]

FourWheelDrift said:

Fetchez la vache said:

Doesn't look real to me. Vertical height was too steady and horizontal movement too linear. If it's supposed to only shoot at certain targets then what in hells name was it shooting at?

I don't think it was shooting at anything, I think they were all control jets to maintain height and position, something that small on it's first flight wouldn't be firing they would just be testing the flight of it. As the article said.

Plus I think the big hint that it wasn't firing anything was the un-bulletproof rope netting used.

It was a test of the platform for tracking and firing from. The system works using pulse jets with a binary (ie on/off) control rather than analogue (variable thrust) because this is easier to do with small thrusters. Despite the date of the video, I don't think this is new, just that the stability of the platform has improved somewhat.

[tonyvid]

The report said...


"Objectives of the test included having the MKV-L hover under its own power and prove its capability to recognize and track a surrogate target in a flight environment. During the test, the MKV-L's propulsion system demonstrated maneuverability while tracking a target. The MKV-L transmitted video and flight telemetry to the ground.

The MKV-L mission is to destroy medium through intercontinental-range ballistic missiles equipped with multiple warheads or countermeasures by using a single interceptor missile. During an actual hostile ballistic missile attack, the carrier vehicle with its cargo of small kill vehicles will maneuver into the path of an enemy missile. Using tracking data from the Ballistic Missile Defense System and its own seeker, the carrier vehicle will dispense and guide the kill vehicles to destroy any warheads or countermeasures"