PRISM 8, NO. 3 FEATURES | 37
Directed Energy Weapons
Are Real . . . And Disruptive
By Henry “Trey” Obering, III
I
n the 1951 science fiction film, “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” powerful ray guns are shown vaporizing
rifles and even tanks. In the Star Wars movies, a wide variety of directed energy weapons are depicted,
from handheld light sabers to massive, spaceship-mounted laser cannons.
What exactly is a directed energy weapon? Are these weapons still science fiction, lab experiments, or are
they real? How can they be used and how disruptive can they be? What are the challenges and next steps? This
article will examine answers to these questions.
What are Directed Energy Weapons?
According to DOD’s Joint Publication 3–13 Electronic Warfare, directed energy (DE) is described as an;
umbrella term covering technologies that produce a beam of concentrated electromagnetic energy
or atomic or subatomic particles. A DE weapon is a system using DE primarily as a direct means to
disable, damage or destroy adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel. DE warfare is military
action involving the use of DE weapons, devices, and countermeasures to either cause direct damage or
destruction of adversary equipment, facilities, and personnel, or to determine, exploit, reduce, or pre-
vent hostile use of the electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) through damage, destruction, and disruption.
1
DE weapons include high-energy lasers, high-power radio frequency or microwave devices, and charged
or neutral particle beam weapons.
2
Microwaves and lasers are both part of the electromagnetic spectrum,
which includes light energy and radio waves. The distinction between them is the wavelength/frequency of
the energy. While they are both part of the electromagnetic spectrum, laser and microwave weapons operate
very differently and have very different effects.
Think of the difference between a laser pointer and a flashlight. The laser light is coherent in a single
color, and the flashlight is broad-spectrum light. Because of its coherence, laser light can stay concentrated for
very long distances—even thousands of miles into space. But with laser weapons, instead of thinking in terms
Lieutenant General Henry “Trey” Obering, III, USAF (ret.), is an Executive Vice President and Directed Energy Lead at Booz
Allen Hamilton and the former director of the Missile Defense Agency.
