Particle-beam weapon

<h2 id="beam-generation">Beam generation</h2>
<p>Charged particle beams naturally diverge because of mutual repulsion, and are deflected by the earth’s magnetic field. Neutral particle beams (NPBs) can remain better focused and are not subject to deflection by the earth’s magnetic field. Neutral particle beams are ionized, accelerated while ionized, then neutralized before leaving the device. Neutral beams also reduce <a href="/facts/Spacecraft_charging/cG6t55jL">spacecraft charging</a>. 
</p><p><a href="/facts/Particle_accelerators/Pkuc08xC">Particle accelerators</a> can accelerate negatively charged hydrogen ions to velocities approaching the <a href="/facts/Speed_of_light/sKSQwdNx">speed of light</a>. Each ion has a kinetic energy range of 100-1000+ <a href="/facts/MeV/YMT1fqX9">MeV</a>. The resulting high-energy negative hydrogen ions can be electrically neutralized by stripping one electron per ion in a neutralizer cell.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:1" href="#fn:1"><sup>1</sup></a> This creates an electrically neutral beam of high-energy hydrogen atoms, that can proceed in a straight line at near the speed of light to hit the target.
</p><p>The beam emitted may contain 1+ <a href="/facts/Gigajoule/9ndq9jD2">gigajoule</a> of <a href="/facts/Kinetic_energy/aJRxUd4p">kinetic energy</a>. The speed of a beam approaching <a href="/facts/Speed_of_light/sKSQwdNx">that of light</a> in combination with the energy deposited in the target was thought to negate any realistic defense. Target hardening through shielding or materials selection was thought to be impractical or ineffective in 1984,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a> especially if the beam could sustain full power and precise focus on the target.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> Neutral particle beams with much lower beam power could also be used to detect nuclear weapons in space non-destructively.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a>
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<h2 id="history">History</h2>
<p>The U.S. <a href="/facts/Strategic_Defense_Initiative/qM0jrPXe">Strategic Defense Initiative</a> developed a neutral particle beam system to be used as a weapon or a detector of nuclear weapons in outer space.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> Neutral beam accelerator technology was developed at <a href="/facts/Los_Alamos_National_Laboratory/tlrLkV7r">Los Alamos National Laboratory</a>. A prototype NPB linear accelerator was launched aboard a <a href="/facts/Sub-orbital_spaceflight/NdLRlGIq">suborbital</a> <a href="/facts/Aries_(rocket)/0qLXxheP">Aries (rocket)</a> in July 1989 as part of the Beam Experiments Aboard Rocket (BEAR) project.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> It reached a maximum altitude of over 200 km, and successfully operated autonomously in space before returning to earth intact. In 2006, the BEAR accelerator was transferred from Los Alamos to the <a href="/facts/National_Air_and_Space_Museum/CSDNqoSA">Smithsonian Air and Space Museum</a> in Washington, DC.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a>
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<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Raygun/meFEBwVj">Raygun</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="external-links">External links</h2>
<ul><li><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna10805240">Beam Weapons Almost Ready for Battle</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1"><p>P. G. O'Shea; T. A. Butler; et al. "The Bear Accelerator" (PDF). 13th IEEE Particle Accelerator Conference, Chicago, IL, USA, 1989. <a href="https://accelconf.web.cern.ch/p89/PDF/PAC1989_1462.PDF" target="_blank">https://accelconf.web.cern.ch/p89/PDF/PAC1989_1462.PDF</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:2"><p>Roberds, Richard M (July–August 1984), "Introducing the Particle-Beam Weapon", Air University Review, USA: Air Force, archived from the original on 2012-04-17, retrieved 2006-05-17. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120417021903/http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1984/jul-aug/roberds.html" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20120417021903/http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1984/jul-aug/roberds.html</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:3"><p>Neutral Particle Beam (NPB), Federation of American Scientists, 2005. <a href="https://fas.org/spp/starwars/program/npb.htm" target="_blank">https://fas.org/spp/starwars/program/npb.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:4"><p>NEUTRAL PARTICLE BEAM POPUP APPLICATIONS (PDF), Los Alamos National Laboratory, 1991. <a href="https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA344829.pdf" target="_blank">https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA344829.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:5"><p>P. G. O'Shea; T. A. Butler; M. T. Lynch; K. F. McKenna; et al. "A Linear Accelerator in Space – The Beam Experiment Aboard Rocket" (PDF). Proceedings of the Linear Accelerator Conference 1990, los Alamos National Laboratory. <a href="https://accelconf.web.cern.ch/l90/papers/th454.pdf" target="_blank">https://accelconf.web.cern.ch/l90/papers/th454.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:6"><p>"'Star Wars' Beam Weapon Has Successful Space Test". Los Angeles Times. July 18, 1989. <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-07-18-mn-4091-story.html" target="_blank">https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-07-18-mn-4091-story.html</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:7"><p>"Neutral Particle Beam Accelerator, Beam Experiment Aboard Rocket". Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Retrieved 15 May 2021. <a href="https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/neutral-particle-beam-accelerator-beam-experiment-aboard-rocket/nasm_A20070004000" target="_blank">https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/neutral-particle-beam-accelerator-beam-experiment-aboard-rocket/nasm_A20070004000</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
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Particle-beam weapon open-in-new

Particle-beam weapon