The Rail Gun is at ISAS(JAXA) in Japan 2006.

[jrcgarry]

Marvellous - thank you tsukasaoishi.

I was at ISAS for a few months in 1997 - and the open days were a real delight.

Hordes of visitors of all ages - this was when Lunar-A was still going strong.

Great days.

Best wishes for the rail gun's future - presumably as a launch system.

ありがとう

[tsukasaoishi]

@jrcgarry I'm glad to receive your comment. I wish it too.

[jrcgarry]

@VinnieDain424

Ah, not quite. The projectile is a conductive bar that slides between two rails. A current passes through one rail, through the sliding bar, and back down the other rail. This creates a magnetic field which seeks to push apart the conductors in the circuit. The two rails are solidly and firmly fixed and unable to move - but the sliding *conductive* projectile is able to move and does so. Greater the current, stronger the field, and the more 'push' on the moving element.

[TeknikalyRite]

Taken from description: "This is NOT weapons. This rail gun has our dream."

Oh really? You know, a certain Dr. Oppenheimer believed he was working on a piece of technology that would end warfare. It was called the Atom Bomb. And this one guy, Alfred Nobel, well he invented this thing he thought would end warfare too, it was called T.N.T. Don't insult our intelligence by claiming it isn't a weapon. It has "gun" in the name for fucks sake.

[biggestfallout3fan]

does anyone mind telling me what exactly a rail gun is?

[stanrock0]

its the spark you are seeing

and if it ant a weapon its not a rail gun

and what dream?

to kill people from outer space?

i thinks it cooooooolllllllll

moar!!1!!!!

[ravenclawtom]

@stanrock0 rail guns, mass drivers, and gauss guns are also in development for space travel propulsion systems. by firing the projectile out the back of your ship, you will move in the other direction....

[ExRedux]

Great job, Tsukasaoishi. Hopefully the rail gun works out as planned.

[duododecahedron]

This is NOT weapons. lol wtf

[xtom1973]

he is japanese. please try to speak japanese and do a video of that.

[lookatme4]

i believe he means bullsh*t this isnt weapons

[spriggan969]

railguns are great but have inherent problems. From the type of 'ammo' u use to the rails themselves wearing and corroding extremely fast being put under such stress.

[radudman]

its actually the plasma that is formed when the current is applied that corrodes the rails. the very rails them selves become plasma because of the vast amount of heat and energy.

[mynamesmitchel]

so i thought, if i run a 1200 watt microwave for 200 seconds, thats 240,000 j of energy, if i put that into a kilo as kenitic energy, it would go 490 m/s, thats freaking fast. i just gotta find a way to build one of these thats more efficient.

[Hanswurst27278]

did it blow uP?

[ggabe1]

it doesn't have to be solid what if you gave the satilite a metal tail that you slide between the rails?

[usebah]

Heh those satelites youl be launching with this gun will have to be pretty 'solid' for space deployment.

[Physhi]

Not only will they have to be solid, they'll have to be shielded as well. The electronics will all be fried by the intense electromagnetic field that will be launching them.

[usebah]

Aye, your right there. I think a better space launch system is an Inductrack- launched scramjet/rocket hybrid. now go and google.

[usebah]

In short, this has only one use, guess, (clue: it isnt a space development) i mean explain how this could be used, not as a weapon?? author??

[sigmasquadleader]

It's going to be used as a reusable launching source, and while it makes an ideal weapon (Projectile going upwards of Mach 5, up to 10, delivering hundreds of thousands of pounds of force), it's going to be used to send satellites into space, and move things in space.

Think of a space station that could send a satellite at Mach 10 towards a certain 'once-planet'.

It'd reduce travel time by months.

And could be used as a weapon, which is one reason for observation.

[gthreesix]

If you read Halo the book this would be their orbital guns from planet shooting right into space. I am wondering does these guns push backwards when firing? eg push 2 magnets north north or south south together they push back but in this the projectile is not magnetic right? also would the projectile get a charge after fired? I have not studied physics for a long time (thanks in advance)

[sigmasquadleader]

Yes. They have to be secured to the ground/vessel before firing. It's the same thing with a firearm, just less mass of the bullets and less force of the projectile.

[sigmasquadleader]

Yes. They have to be secured to the ground/vessel before firing. It's the same thing with a firearm, just less mass of the bullets and less force of the projectile.

[gthreesix]

Thanks for answering, so about the projectile being charged eg into a magnet will that happen? By the way does this work by suddenly releasing the charge or slowly adding?

[sigmasquadleader]

It works with both. The energy released is massive, and the projectile builds speed as long as it contacts the rails, up to a certain point.

[gthreesix]

coool thanks for answering1!!!!!!1 now the final question@!!!! if the projectile is metal will it get a charge?

[sigmasquadleader]

That's the whole reason it moves. It's being forced away by a charge.

It's possible to use polycarbonate or PVC but the heat would probably cause problems.

[gthreesix]

What I mean is if the projectile is metal will it turn into a magnet???

[rez3]

It would depend on the type of metal used

you could use pure magnet slug. But wouldn't get any benefit. a uranium core, tungsten, an then Titanium shell would be what I would use.

If you make it big an fast enough it could kill with just the shock wave.

Really comes in handy for killing those Covenant ships LOL

[gthreesix]

thanks for the answer, the first part looks believable but the covenant part I am not so sure, they've got pretty tough shields XD

[XxRetroGamerxX]

Kill with just the shock wave? Do you think forensics would be able to find the killer if some one used that? Haha.

[Ashuiegi]

@XxRetroGamerxX he means that the pressure wave would ripe you in pieces , so i think they would figure it

[WolYou]

Hm, right. I can't find another application than weaponry. Killing other people is still the top of all businesses.

[ARM02]

What sounds like laughter at the end is actually moans of fear...the video cuts outs out just before the tentacles burst out of the box and proceed to force all the women present.

Japan, eh?

[Samuris27]

Lmao that would be absolutely insane but japan seriously is a cool place (they have some tech used publicly that is 4 years ahead of the U.S.). BUT the tentacles would be kinda scary and amazing at the same time.

[Pwnzor95]

im replying to stormlord86

[davethoven]

you think the israelis are the real terrorists???!!! haha what ignorance.

[spartanholdrio]

yea I agree!

[aleksandrhall]

@davethoven Oh hardy har har you sure don't sound ignorant at all.

[spartanholdrio]

Scheiss nazi!

[grcoanabolic]

damn!! you must be american!!

[Pwnzor95]

fuck you, you cock sucking,dick licking MOTHERFUCKER! Go back to your bomb-brothers and their car bombs! BTW, PUSSY!

[AirSquirrel1]

imagine a terroist getting killed with that

[Klimpenkens]

I've seen prelim reports that they'll have these on prototype Destroyers by 2010. I cant see them being viable on anything that doesn't have a necular generator.

[Gokas1746]

how the hell is this a railgun?

[Helge129]

by being one.

[elminz]

lol brilliant reply

[Rageon666]

You do know what a rail gun is, right? Basically, a conductive projectile is placed between two rails. One is charged with a positive current, the other with a negative one. The projectile completes the circuit, which creates a magnetic field that propels the projectile forwards. Due to the limits of current technology, working models can only be fired a couple times at best, so a working military application is still a ways off. P.S. Yes I know I'm a nerd.

[ozibuna]

So wait, i know there's this clip bout that nasa world record rail gun. Why does it leave a trail behind it, smoke and stuff like that? Considering it's a electromagnetic field there should be none of that right?

[stbfilms]

I'm not expert...but I think they are using a light weight metal that vaporizes, metal vapor arcing(so no "weld" occurs), and creates the connection between the two rails to generate the magnetic forces...this vapor then hits the air and looses its energy. I haven't been able to find a document about the impact...my only guess is...when you have 5kj of energy...and it hits something...you get lots of small pieces...and lots of heat...

[mimic58]

Because its moving at Mach 8 , The friction at that speed is kind of like the shuttle re entering ... Though some of the energy from the rails is also converted into plasma (Arking due to the monstrus currents) which also causes some heat but the main tail is a result of friction from the air.

[Volksgrenadier2006]

Actually it isnt the magnatic field that propels the projectile, and the magnatic field isnt generated by the current. Its the combination of A magnatic field and A current, TOGETHER they generate the Lorenz force.

And no you aren't a nerd this is Highschool fysics lol.

And stbfilms actually the US railgun operates on 8 mJ energy.

[Akula04]

Are you sure it's 8? I heard that it fires a 3kg projectile at 2.5 km/s

Ek=.5mv^2 =((.5*3)2500^2) = 9.375 MJ

[betin0022]

i like metal storm guns better, but i can see this develop in the next 50 yrs.

[memoka15]

the boom was so late

[lexmark2300]

it suscks

[Nationist]

Just 'cause it's not in any of your video games doesnt mean it "suscks." It can launch a projectile up to 300 miles away at a speed of 5000 feet per second.

Go read a book.

[BrokenButterfly0069]

actually ive seen railguns in a couple video games. but yeah, youre right. those things kick ass

[purple2020]

projectile means something that explodes right? because at 5000 ft/sec and 300 miles away ~ it would take at least 5 minutes to reach the target, a stationary target.

[gishikin]

projectile means something that projects, forward, like a bullet, a cat, a small dog, you get the idea. And as far as hitting stationary objects, wouldn't this be the outcome? why would you fire a weapon like this at a moving object? sure, the target has just under 5 minutes to move the objective, if they know what it is.

[purple2020]

ok something that projects. obviously this is for long distance target and it has to be fired straight across, so either the target is up in the sky or across the vast ocean, cause it does not fire like a cannon. then what's the use of hitting one single object 300 miles away? i mean how much damage can it inflict on the target if it doesn't explode? the point is how useful is this thing militarily? share me some more of your knowledge!

[karmacappa]

Kinetic energy is related to velocity squared, so increasing the speed of a projectile exponentially increases damage it can impart when it hits a target. The kinetic energy involved in a solid projectile going 1.6 miles per second (which is the US Navy's goal for a railgun) would be devastating. Remember that bullets from a gun are not generally explosives, nor are the depleted uranium penetrators (M829A1-M829A3 rounds) that the US military uses against enemy armor.

[cha0sx]

we are talking about enough kinetic energy to turn a tank upside down, punching a hole through it.

[purple2020]

but not from 300 or 100 or even 50 miles away, cause you cannot see the target from that distance with your naked eye, given that you have to aim the gun straight at the target, right?

[aradvanced]

With today's military weapon algorithms and surveillance equipment and the fact they are continuously receiving upgrades, hitting a pinpoint target within a bounds of error is too easy. So hitting that 50, 100, 300 or even a target that is even farther is definitely achievable. We throw billions of dollars into the military. What's the point if we didn't get these kinds of results?

[aradvanced]

With today's military weapon algorithms and surveillance equipment and the fact they are continuously receiving upgrades, hitting a pinpoint target within a bounds of error is too easy. So hitting that 50, 100, 300 or even a target that is even farther is definitely achievable. We throw billions of dollars into the military. What's the point if we didn't get these kinds of results?

[CaptainCarthex]

I think first they'll make sniper rifles with them... for Obvious reasons.

[bobbio122]

What obvious reasons would those be? It wouldn't make any sense at all.

[IPleeDaFif]

Gee some Quake, Man.

[aznricejp]

well, first they gotta make a really good battery to support that.

[MysticWhizz]

Well the rifle would require lots of energy to fire with, and it would be extremely complicated, they say simple ideas work best, so maybe we should stick with what we got.

[therobotcheeseman]

rail guns aren't complicated. some electromagnets, a lotta capacitors and a whole lotta juice. Zero moving parts (unless you count the slug). However you're right, it isn't feasible at all to use it as a rifle. It would probably be mounted to a friggin tank or ship or something big that can carry a lot of batteries.

[MysticWhizz]

Yeah, sometime in the future, when they can condesnse cells , then it would work much better lol.

[exugoareo]

qbvious reasons? they COULDENT be sniper rifles for obvious reasons, there LARGE, heavy, and require batteries and computers to work,

and being a sniper, u have to stay secluded for long periods of time, during which the batteries' would be losing there charge.

[Nationist]

do you not see the size of that? its fuckin HUGE. It requres a lot of energy....and that thing needs to be cooled off after ONE shot. I dont see one of these getting any smaller than an AA gun on a ship. the US navy is working on one right now, it just needs a more efficient way to be cooled off.

[Agouti]

Military wise it's more likely to be used in a large caliber long range anti material role, because it isn't limited by the length of the projectile (long thin projectiles are better for amour piercing) plus you can have a great deal of control over the exact muzzle velocity.

[anon7320]

Well at least it'll help us blast the damn commies (communists, not comets) outta space!

[Nationist]

hahah!

[strangesniper]

I wonder if in the near future they will be able to make smaller rail guns like a assult rifle =/

[aznricejp]

Probably not anytime soon, a rail gun needs too much power to be put into a rifle, maybe a tank though.

[MrHoppyX]

Nice. I wonder how long before they can launch payloads into space with stuff like this.

[Nerusai]

One of the best things railguns are for! You're still going to have to use rockets partially though (at least for a while).

And I think it's hard to get everything out of the contraption without breaking it either.

But if we can realize it, I'm sure it will be one of the bigger achievements of the century.

[MuayThai2000]

Has anyone seen 'Erasor'?

[zacdrury]

yes lol EM guns lol

[Gundam1link2naruto]

Just using the force from the speed would kill someone, let only the impact

[zahnib]

That was shit!!

[Piscivorus]

Tanks have lots of jagged surfaces inside them and they are operated by crews of squishy people. You don't have punch through the tank, just bump it hard enough and the tank will do the job.

[MrHoppyX]

If that were the case, they'd put padding on the inside. A tank is very heavy, so the momentum transfer isn't that significant. Railgun projectiles are very fast. For the same kinetic energy as a slower projectile, they have less momentum.

[xeronicus]

One dime sized piece of metal and a tipped over tank, the kinetic force of even a small projectile would theoreticlly tip an abrams onto its topside.

[roidroid]

it would be a problem getting that energy into the tank. The projectile will prefer to punch straight through the tank.

[drdapoo]

The flash you see is the plasma produced when extremly high voltage is passed through the rails.

[mvogt]

Its extremely high current, the voltage isnt that high.

[Microman171]

I have had expeirence here. IT is high voltage and small current. Say you ahd a car battery, you wouldn't be able to make it anywhere near as powerful as on that used maybe a camera flash.

[mvogt]

A railgun produces a high magnetic field to accelerate projectiles. High current is needed to create a high magnetic field.

B=my * I / (pi * r) | B field in the center of the projetile.

a=B * I * l / m = my * I² * l / (m * pi * r)

-> a ~ I²

[johnnyrocketcbr929]

I agree. whether incuded or back-current (Lorenz) effect.. EMC (key word being "current") is generated (or induced) with the only varaible in the equation.... CURRENT. The magnets used don't change their Tesla value right? P.s.. looks like you have a particle accelerator equation posted??

[unseelieturtle]

if that is a true rail gun, why is there muzzel flash? from what i understand of rail guns, there isn't supposed to be ANY chemical propellant of any sort. all magnetic.

[tsukasaoishi]

Of course. This video was taken when open day of ISAS. If the rail gun really shoots when people is looking at it very near, it's very dangerous.

When this video was taken, the rails gun was showing its energy. To be concrete, then the rail gun vaporize aluminum by using the energy.

[unseelieturtle]

ahh. ok. i understand now. thank you.

[deusprogrammer]

@unseelieturtle Even without propellant, if a projectile goes fast enough it will literally cause the oxygen around it to ignite, so your statement isn't entirely true.

[orlock20]

@unseelieturtle , it's from ionized gas. It gets so hot that the projectile has to be moving before the railgun kicks in so the projectile doesn't get welded to the gun.

[coilgunner2]

lol yea it may have been going faster then sound but utubefweek lol that ad nothing to do with that major lag in the recording.

[fjlj480]

the sound is out of sync dumb asses

[tsukasaoishi]

The bullets travel at 15km/s(33750mph) in theory.

The rail gun has record that the bullet travel at 7.8km/s(17550mph).

[utubefweek]

the bullets are going to supposedly travel at 5,000 mph

[M4sk3dC4sp3r]

haha....

[mrpotato0]

wow broke the sound barrier thats 4 sure

[MysticExile111]

Wow that thing moved so fast it took the sound an whole second to catch up.

[red3yz]

that thing looks intense! sure scared the cameraman :p