#Military technology

[youzicha]

It's cute to say that stealth aircraft got rounder for the same reason that video game characters did: because the computers got more powerful. But it's not the completely story. More accurately, it was specifically Lockheed's stealth aircraft that evolved that way.

Famously, a Lockheed employee noticed a paper describing how to calculate electromagnetic scattering from a polyhedron. They implemented it in software and used it to design the Have Blue demonstrator, which evolved into the F-117.

But at the same time, Northrop developed the Tacit Blue demonstrator, which was not designed using the edge diffraction software, and did not consist of only flat polygons.

Tacit Blue was the first aircraft to use "edge convolution" (a.k.a. "Gaussian stealth"). This smoothes out the edges by convolving them with a gaussian function. In particular, the convolution makes the edge of the wing sharper than if it was just a wedge between two polygons (with an ideal gaussian function it would extend out infinitely, so the acute angle would approach 0 degrees). This means that the edge of the wing will reflect less radar waves if it is illuminated directly from the side (from the horizon), which is the typical case if the plane is flying straight and the enemy radar is far away.

All stealth aircraft now use the gaussian smoothing idea, and you can clearly see the commonalities between Tacit Blue and the Northrop B-2.

Actually, when it came time to design the ATF (which evolved into the F-22), Lockheed also had to abandon their edge diffraction software. The ATF chief engineer commented:

We did not know how to analyze a curved stealthy shape in those days. The software wasn't sophisticated enough, and we didn't have the computational capacity we needed. We had our hands tied by the analytical problems. Lockheed had become convinced that, if we could not analyze a design as a stealthy shape, then it could not be stealthy. We would not break through that barrier until 1984. [...] We simply started drawing curved shapes even though we could not run the designs through our analytical software models. When we went to curved airplanes, we began to get more acceptable supersonic and maneuver performance. Instead of relying on software models, we built curved shapes and tested them on the company's radar range. The curved shapes performed quite well in the radar tests.

So in the end, I think the "smooth stealth planes" (B-2, F-22) were mainly designed heuristically and evaluated by building actual model airplanes; having fast computers to simulate them was not the bottle neck.

[capybaracorn]

A general background on Israel's AI warfare.

A discussion on the ethics of the use of AI in warfare.

[awesome-casuallyfamouscollector]

Ukraine tried for the first time to use uncrewed surface vessels against Russian vessels in Sevastopol Bay in September 2022, but 70 kilometres from the target, the connection with billionaire Elon Musk's Starlinks was lost. It was not possible to persuade Musk to turn back on the connection, so Ukraine modified the drones(..) [and restored capability to hit Russian targets despite the sabotage]...

P.S. Another reminder that the countries of Eastern Europe must develop their OWN MILITARY INDUSTRY and high-tech weapons, including nuclear weapons, because they can no longer fully rely on Western security guarantees...

[ophilosoraptoro]

Something Very EVIL Is Going on In Maui | We Have The Proof...

[jcmarchi]

US Developing New Version of Scary Abrams Main Battle Tank - Technology Org

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/us-developing-new-version-of-scary-abrams-main-battle-tank-technology-org/

US Developing New Version of Scary Abrams Main Battle Tank - Technology Org

The M1 Abrams has been in service since 1980. It is still one of the most capable main battle tanks in the world, but even the most common versions the M1A1 and M1A2 are starting to show signs of their design ageing. So, this tank needs to be upgraded, but how?

M1A1 Abrams – one of the most common versions of the American main battle tank. Image credit: Cpl. Paul S. Martinez via Wikimedia (Public Domain)

While the standard M1 Abrams has been in service since 1980, the most common versions are slightly younger. The M1A1 was produced from 1985 to 1992, and the M1A2 – from 1992. In general, the Abrams platform has proven its advantages in battles and so far surpasses the technology of potential enemies. However, it is clear that the Abrams must be developed further, but there are limitations to this.

It’s hard to believe, but the first Abrams weighed 55.7 tonnes. They were equipped with a 105 mm rifled gun and had slightly weaker armour. The M1A1 initially retained this weight, but the M1A1SA grew to 61.3 tonnes and the M1A2 – to 62 tonnes. And that weight gain continued little by little.

The M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams weighs about 67 tonnes. One can look at the tank’s mobility, maintained maximum speed and other dynamic characteristics, but one cannot ignore the fact that, being so heavy, the Abrams is a huge weight on the specialists of military logistics. The US wants to be able to operate globally, but moving such heavy tanks quickly is very difficult.

The General Dynamics M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams tank. Image credit: GDLS

What is the path of modernization then? Well, upgraded tanks usually get heavier. Additional armour is attached to them because anti-tank weapons, including drones, are being developed faster than tanks. In the past, kilograms were saved by keeping relatively thinner armour on top, but now you can’t even do that – anti-tank drones are cheap and everywhere.

On 2023 September 6 The US Army announced that it had cancelled the planned M1A2 SEPv4 variant and would instead focus resources on the new M1E3 Abrams. The new model will have a modular architecture and will be lighter but with even better protection.

“The Abrams Tank can no longer grow its capabilities without adding weight, and we need to reduce its logistical footprint,” said Maj. Gen. Glenn Dean, Program Executive Officer for Ground Combat Systems. He said that the war in Ukraine showed that crews need to be protected better, but not with added armour.

The M1E3 Abrams is likely to rely heavily on active protection, which is lighter than conventional armour. The US Army promises that the Abrams will remain the most capable main battle tank in the world. The M1E3 version is planned to start service around 2030 and it will continue working well into the next decade.

Written by Povilas M.

Sources: Army.mil, Wikipedia

[uncleclaudius]

Crosscut of the quinquereme, the warship that was ubiquitous in ancient navies. It had a set of three oars on each side, handled by five rowers, hence the name.

Contrary to the popular image of slaves rowing these ships, the majority of the rowers were free albeit poor citizens as it required skill and experience.

This particular quinquereme is equipped with the so-called "Corvus", a boarding device invented and employed by Romans to great effect in the First Punic War.

(Image Source: Ancient Warfare Magazine)

[mtd2productions]

kortac team

KORTAC Tactical Team by MTD2PRODUCTIONS on DeviantArt

[theownerofsich]

War is the hardest thing people can go through.

World War 1 observation trees.

[covenawhite66]

Q* — the age of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)?

The possibility of AI general intelligence (AGI). AGI could potentially perform particular jobs better than most people, scientists have said. It could also be weaponized and used, for example, to create enhanced pathogens, launch massive cyber attacks, or orchestrate mass manipulation.

Election-rigging hyperrealistic deepfakes

One of the most pressing cyber threats is that of deepfakes — entirely fabricated images or videos of people that might misrepresent them, incriminate them or bully them. AI deepfake technology hasn't yet been good enough to be a significant threat, but that might be about to change.

This would make it practically impossible for people to distinguish Real News from deep Fakeswith the naked eye

Mainstream AI-powered killer robots

Governments around the world are increasingly incorporating AI into tools for warfare. For example, AI drones allegedly hunting down soldiers in Libya with no human input.

AI can recognize patterns, self-learn, make predictions or generate recommendations in military contexts, and an AI arms race is already underway. In 2024, it's likely we'll not only see AI used in weapons systems but also in logistics and decision support systems

[ironwoodatl01]

Greek(Medieval) Warfare;

Everyone is debating on whether the Greeks fought in a phalanx of bronze;

No one is wondering if the Greeks could afford to fight in a phalanx of bronze.

[youzicha]

Interesting twitter thread about intercontinental missile warheads getting more aerodynamic. They enter the atmosphere at the same speed (since that's determined by the range), but the first generation Minuteman reentry vehicles slowed to subsonic (800 ft/s = 0.24 km/s = Mach 0.74) while the current ones hit at 9000 ft/s = 2.7 km/s = Mach 7.9.

[kneedeepincynade]

The idea that socialism doesn't innovate is honestly the most ludicrous to me, there was innovation while we were in the caves and you want to tell me there is no innovation in a nation because of a political system? Ludicrous.

The post is machine translated

Translation is at the bottom

The collective is on telegram

⚠️ LA REPUBBLICA POPOLARE CINESE È IL PAESE TECNOLOGICAMENTE PIÙ AVANZATO AL MONDO ⚠️

😂 Per la serie "finalmente se ne sono accorti" 😵

🔍 Secondo uno studio, finanziato dal Governo Statunitense, la Repubblica Popolare Cinese supera gli Stati Uniti in 37 Settori-Chiave per il Futuro su 44. In alcuni di questi settori, oltretutto, la Cina possiede quasi un "monopolio", e da qui lo slogan degli imperialisti statunitensi: «tutte le democrazie devono unirsi per competere» 🤡

❔ Ma come, gli imperialisti statunitensi non dicevano che il Socialismo era incapace di portare innovazione? Ricordo, per gli smemorati, questi tre articoli:

🤡 "Perché il Socialismo non funzionerà - il Capitalismo è ancora il modo migliore per gestire il rischio e aumentare l'innovazione e la produttività", di Foreign Policy 😱

🤡 "Perché la Cina non sa innovare", di Harvard Business Review 😱

😂 Poi, però, a furia di crogiolarsi nella propaganda anti-Comunista e nel putridume neo-liberista tipico dei Bocconiani, si arriva - finalmente - alla verità: la Cina è il paese più avanzato a livello tecnologico al mondo, e allora vengono scritti articoli come questo:

😂 "Gli Stati Uniti devono collaborare con l’Europa per rallentare il tasso di innovazione della Cina", di CNBC 😂

🤔 Dunque, la ridicola "Teoria del Collasso della Cina" è ormai stata praticamente abbandonata, anche se ogni tanto torna alla ribalta su YouTube, e - oltretutto - sembra che ci lasceremo alle spalle anche quella del "Sozyaliszmo non innova!1!1!" 😘

🇺🇸 Gli USA - come scritto nell'articolo, sono rimasti impressionati dal livello delle Forze Missilistiche dell'Esercito Popolare di Liberazione, ma le preoccupazioni non risiedono soltanto nel Settore Militare, ma anche in quello Civile 😱

💬 "Il nostro Studio rivela che la Cina ha gettato le basi per posizionarsi come la prima superpotenza scientifica e tecnologica al mondo, ponendosi in testa, in alcuni casi anche in modo clamoroso, per quanto riguarda la ricerca nella maggior parte dei domini tecnologici critici ed emergenti" 📄

🇨🇳 I 10 Istituti di Ricerca più importanti al Mondo - scrivono gli autori del Report - si trovano in Cina, e producono Studi di Ricerca nove volte più importanti del Paese che si posiziona al 2° posto, ovvero - in diversi settori - gli USA 🇺🇸

🏆 La Cina, attualmente, mantiene il primato nella Scienza dei Materiali, nell'Ingegneria delle Telecomunicazioni, nell'Energia Pulita, nella Sostenibilità Ambientale, nella Biotecnologia, nell'Ingegneria della Difesa, nel Settore Spaziale, nell'Intelligenza Artificiale, nella Robotica 🥰

💕 Chi segue il Collettivo Shaoshan da tempo, sa bene che questi temi trattati fin dalla nascita del Canale: rigore nel metodo, scientificità nella ricerca e "实事求是" sono i Principi Fondanti del Collettivo Shaoshan, e ogni post presentato su questi argomenti ha sempre avuto fonti ben precise 📄

🔍 Per chi volesse approfondire, può rifarsi a questi post del Collettivo Shaoshan e a questi link:

🔺15/08/2022 - "La Cina punta all'innovazione tecnico-scientifica nel Settore della Robotica, definito strategico nel 14° Piano Quinquennale"

🔺07/09/2022 - "La chiave del Progetto della Cina è il raggiungimento dell'auto-sufficienza nei Settori della Scienza e della Tecnica"

🔺09/09/2022 - "La Cina e i «Piccoli Giganti», Aziende che operano in settori strategici della Scienza e della Tecnica"

🔺 La Cina mantiene il Primato nell'Energia Solare, Eolica e Idroelettrica 🌞

🔺05/02/2023 - "La Cina sta sconfiggendo la desertificazione ha aumentato la sua copertura forestale del 40% negli ultimi trent'anni"

🔺13/12/2022 - "Il Governo Cinese investirà 143 Miliardi di Dollari nell'Industria Nazionale dei Semiconduttori"

🔺 Gli Scienziati Cinesi pubblicano più paper scientifici di qualsiasi altro paese al Mondo

🌸 Iscriviti 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

⚠️ THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA IS THE MOST TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD ⚠️

😂 For the series "they finally noticed" 😵

🔍 According to a study, funded by the US Government, the People's Republic of China surpasses the United States in 37 out of 44 Key Future Sectors. In some of these sectors, moreover, China has almost a "monopoly", and hence the slogan of US imperialists: «all democracies must unite to compete» 🤡

❔ Didn't the US imperialists say that Socialism was incapable of bringing innovation? I remember, for the forgetful, these three articles:

🤡 "Why Socialism Won't Work - Capitalism Is Still the Best Way to Manage Risk and Increase Innovation and Productivity", by Foreign Policy 😱

🤡 "Why China Can't Innovate", by Harvard Business Review 😱

😂 But then, by dint of wallowing in anti-Communist propaganda and in the neo-liberal filth typical of Bocconi students, we finally arrive at the truth: China is the most technologically advanced country in the world, and so articles are written like this:

😂 "US must work with Europe to slow China's rate of innovation," by CNBC 😂

🤔 So, the ridiculous "China Collapse Theory" has now been practically abandoned, even if it occasionally makes a comeback on YouTube, and - moreover - it seems that we will also leave behind that of "Sozyaliszmo does not innovate!1!1! " 😘

🇺🇸 The USA - as written in the article, was impressed by the level of the People's Liberation Army's Missile Forces, but the concerns are not only in the Military Sector, but also in the Civil Sector 😱

💬 "Our study reveals that China has laid the foundations for positioning itself as the first scientific and technological superpower in the world, taking the lead, in some cases even sensationally, in terms of research in most of the critical technological domains and emerging" 📄

🇨🇳 The 10 most important Research Institutes in the World - write the authors of the Report - are located in China, and produce Research Studies nine times more important than the country which ranks 2nd, or - in various sectors - the USA 🇺🇸

🏆 China currently holds the lead in Materials Science, Telecommunications Engineering, Clean Energy, Environmental Sustainability, Biotechnology, Defense Engineering, Space Sector, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics 🥰

💕 Anyone who has been following the Shaoshan Collective for some time knows that these topics have been dealt with since the birth of the Channel: rigor in the method, scientific research and "实事求是" are the Founding Principles of the Shaoshan Collective, and every post presented on these topics has always had very precise sources 📄

🔍 For those who want to learn more, you can refer to these posts from the Shaoshan Collective and to these links:

🔺15/08/2022 - "China aims at technical-scientific innovation in the Robotics Sector, defined as strategic in the 14th Five-Year Plan"

🔺07/09/2022 - "The key to China's Project is the achievement of self-sufficiency in the fields of science and technology"

🔺09/09/2022 - "China and the «Little Giants», Companies operating in strategic sectors of Science and Technology"

🔺 China Maintains Leadership in Solar, Wind and Hydroelectric Energy 🌞

🔺05/02/2023 - "China is defeating desertification has increased its forest cover by 40% in the last thirty years"

🔺13/12/2022 - "The Chinese government will invest 143 billion dollars in the national semiconductor industry"

🔺 Chinese Scientists publish more scientific papers than any other country in the world

🌸 Subscribe 👉 @collettivoshaoshan

[scienceswitch]

Self-Destructing Military Robots Can Carry Out Recon And Then Dissolve Into Nothing

Engineers have developed soft, rubbery robots that carry out functions as usual but then liquefy on demand when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light. This new technology enables flexible machines with programmable lifespans and could lead to self-destructing robots that protect sensitive data. The researchers, as per the paper published in the journal Science Advances, fabricated stretchable robots…

[ophilosoraptoro]

Defeating Microwave Weapons! - Part 1

Part 2

For self defense purposes

[warsofasoiaf]

Considering the sucess that Ukraine has had in challenging the Russian Black Sea fleet with drones will it be necessary for countries like the USA to begin to implement systems that can deal with such threats at close range? (I know that the Russian navy has mostly old and gutted ships, but modern navy assets like the aircraft carrier and long range ships still have a issue close range and undetected naval drones).

I believe the US has been designing directed energy weapons for anti-drone activity.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[jcmarchi]

Defenders of Ukraine Showed How They Use Czech Howitzers DANA - Technology Org

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/defenders-of-ukraine-showed-how-they-use-czech-howitzers-dana-technology-org/

Defenders of Ukraine Showed How They Use Czech Howitzers DANA - Technology Org

Artillery is still a very important part of modern warfare. Especially self-propelled howitzers that can quickly react to the movement of enemy forces. The defenders of Ukraine showed how they successfully attacked a column of Russian armoured vehicles with Czech self-propelled howitzers DANA.

DANA howitzer in Ukraine. Ukraine got a large number of these howitzers in 2022. Image credit: АрміяInform via Wikimedia (CC BY 4.0)

A short video showing the actions of the defenders of Ukraine was released by the Commander of the Ground Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Pavlyuk. He did not reveal where the operation took place or when the video was taken but it involved the 21st and 56th Mechanised Brigades of Ukraine.

“Enemy infantry, TOS-1A Solntsepyok, a tank and a BMP with soldiers were destroyed,” Pavlyuk wrote. The TOS-1A is a multiple launch rocket system, sometimes called a heavy flamethrower due to its thermobaric rounds. It is a particularly hated weapon by the Ukrainians and the most expensive weapon mentioned by Pavlyuk.

This attack was carried out by drones and Czech howitzers DANA. If you want to be precise, the DANA is not a Czech, but a Czechoslovakian howitzer, which is reflected in its 152.4 mm calibre, typical of Eastern Bloc countries. However, Ukraine received these howitzers from the Czech Republic, which is one of Ukraine’s strongest military supporters.

The DANA howitzer was created around 1976 and entered service in 1981. It is a large artillery piece mounted on a Tatra 8×8 chassis. Weighing around 30 tonnes, this weapon is said to be capable of reaching speeds of up to 80 km/h and performs very well off-road. This is important because howitzers like the DANA are often on a quick-fire mission and retreat so that the enemy can’t calculate their location using counter-battery radars. DANA howitzers usually participate in shoot-and-scoot operations.

DANA’s internal ammunition compartment holds 60 rounds. More can be delivered using other machines. This howitzer destroys targets at a distance of up to 20 km and its rate of fire is 2-5 shots per minute. In addition to the main gun, the DANA also has a 12.7 mm machine gun, mainly needed for self-defence in case it is ambushed while on the move from one position to another. The crew of the DANA howitzer consists of 5 soldiers.

In 2021, a modernized version of DANA M2 with improved fire control and communication systems was introduced. DANA actually became the basis of several modern self-propelled howitzers. For example, the 155 mm Zuzana and DITA are close relatives of the DANA howitzer. Ukraine is still waiting for its DITAs, but soon it will be operating pretty much all versions of DANA.

The DANA is a quick and reliable howitzer. It can deliver quick blows to the advancing Russian forces and then retreat. Ukraine will need more of these kinds of weapons in the near future and it’s good to know that they are coming.

Written by Povilas M.

Sources: Tech.wp.pl, Wikipedia