U.S. Rushes New Detection Device to Iraq

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon is rushing to Iraq a new device that creates a "virtual microphone" in the air to help detect the origin of sniper gunfire.

Tony Tether, director of the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency, said Wednesday that the Pentagon also will use in Iraq a new electronic-detection device that could help pinpoint cell phones or pagers, which sometimes are used to detonate homemade bombs aimed at U.S. troops.

snip>

"One of the problems we seem to be having is that people in Iraq can almost do anything they want and get away with it," Tether said. "We don't really have a good way to respond. So what we're trying to do is come up with technology that will at least make someone hesitate."

Tether said the "virtual microphone" is created by a laser fired from the ground. It detects motion of air particles, enabling technicians to calculate the origin of the gunfire.

The ground-based laser will be tested soon at Camp Pendleton, Calif., and probably will be available for use in Iraq within four months, Tether said.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/wire/sns-ap-iraq-us-technology,0,2771401.story?coll=sns-ap-nationworld-headlines

Snappy new war toys! Someone's making money. What about the obsolete flack jackets? And won't sand have something to say about a system that detects air particles?

[soothsayer]

1. great, they'll shoot anyone with a cellphone or pager

bye bye, more innocent civilians

and of course reporters

"oops"

[Nottingham]

2. Hopefully this will help our troops but I am very skeptical

:bounce:

[wtmusic]

3. They can defend their country and get away with it

Da Noiv!

[bif]

4. They can spend all the money they want

They still can't fix the problems over there. The Iraqi still hate us. Wouldn't diplomacy be a whole lot cheaper?

[ConcernedCanuk]

5. " IRAQ, the new testing ground for the BFEE's weapons of destruction"

. . It WAS an amazing display firing missiles from the Mediterranean into a target zone of a few meters (also sorta chickenshit - fighting bows and arrows with guns - oh yah, they already DID that - - )

BUT - heck - I thot the title meant they had a new way of detecting WMD's !!

and how do they tell the difference from sniper fire, and other dicharges ?

Remember the wedding party they wiped out in Afgabustan?

AND, I see more "friendly-fire" shootings coming up

Heck they are testing EVERYTHING over in Iraq,

including how many drugs they can pump into their own youth

sick, Sick, SICK Administration y'all got down there !

Just My Humble Canuk Opinion

[tlcandie]

6. Yes, even testing those vaccines and such on our own soldiers..

the world is a testing ground, lab, toy, ummmmm er :shrug:

[Wickerman]

7. I thought this was going to be something to find WMD

Remember those? Weapons of Mass Destruction? the resaon why our kids are being shot at anyway?

[xJlM]

8. They've forgotten about those

Those WMDs are yesterday's news, don't you know...

It amazes me how my fellow countrymen* can be so stupid as to not see what this has all been about. There were no WMDs from the start, that's the only reason why we invaded. Why didn't we invade North Korea? Because they DO have weapons of mass destruction. Not to mention their neighbor China.





*Present company excluded, of course.