The Navy ushered in the railgun future way back in 2012 with the first shots of its electromagnetic cannon. But although the concept has been proven and the cannon is functional, its road to deployment has been a bit rocky. Between enormous energy requirements, and non-explosive shells that offer limited in-air guidance, electromagnetic weapons are proving a bit unpractical compared to some of the conventional alternatives. At least for now.

But that hasn't stopped the Navy from pressing on with the research, and this recently released video of a test fire from November 2016 shows cannon just blasting away with astonishing ferocity, and from any angle you could ever want:

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The railgun was originally scheduled for testing at sea on the USNS Trenton this year, but that seems to have been delayed until 2017 at the earliest. Meanwhile, the USS Zumwalt—which boasts the robust power plant necessary to actually take one of these weapons into service—is having some trouble with its conventional guns and their wildly expensive ammo. Only time will tell if the two will actually pair up any time in the near future, but in the meantime it sure is clear that the electromagnetic cannon isn't kidding around.

Source: usnavyresearch

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