Dazzler (weapon)

Dazzler (weapon)
Glare Mout dazzler made by B.E. Meyers

A dazzler is a directed-energy weapon intended to temporarily blind or disorient its target with intense directed radiation. Targets can include sensors or human vision. Dazzlers emit infrared or visible light against various electronic sensors, and visible light against humans, when they are intended to cause no long-term damage to eyes. The emitters are usually lasers, making what is termed a laser dazzler. Most of the contemporary systems are man-portable, and operate in either the red (a laser diode) or green (a diode-pumped solid-state laser, DPSS) areas of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Initially developed for military use, non-military products are becoming available for use in law enforcement and security.[1][2]

Weapons designed to cause permanent blindness are banned by the 1995 United Nations Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons. The dazzler is a non-lethal weapon intended to cause temporary blindness or disorientation and therefore falls outside this protocol.

Contents

History

Origins

Some searchlights are bright enough to cause permanent or temporary blindness, and they were used to dazzle the crews of bombers during World War II. Whirling Spray was a system of search lights fitted with rotating mirrors which was used to dazzle and confuse pilots attacking the Suez canal.[3] This was developed into the Canal Defence Light, a small mobile tank mounted system intended for use in the Rhine crossings. However, the system was mainly used as conventional searchlights.

Handgun or rifle-mounted lights may also be used to temporarily blind an opponent and are sometimes marketed for that purpose. In both cases the primary purpose is to illuminate the target and their use to disorient is secondary.

First use in Falklands

The first reported use of laser dazzlers in combat was possibly by the British, during the Falklands War of 1982, when they were reputedly fitted to various Royal Navy warships to hinder low-level Argentinian air attacks.[4][5]

Use by United States forces in Iraq

At the end of Operation Desert Storm, F-15E crews observing the Iraqi military's massacre of Kurdish civilians at Chamchamal were forbidden from firing on the attackers, but instead used their lasers as a dazzler weapon. This ultimately proved ineffective in crashing any attack helicopters.[6]

On 18 May 2006, the U.S. military announced it would issue dazzling lasers designed to be attached to M-4 rifles to troops in Iraq. This weapon is intended to provide a non-lethal way to stop drivers who fail to stop at checkpoints manned by American soldiers.[citation needed]

Manufacturers and models

  • LE Systems, under the sponsorship of DARPA, developed a dazzler based on a DPSS laser, with green light output at 532 nm, essentially a higher-intensity version of a green laser pointer. The advantage of 532 nm wavelength lies in its ability to interact with human eyes in daylight and reduced light conditions.
  • The Glare Mout and Glare LA-9/P, developed by B.E. Meyers,[7] provide a non-lethal deterrent weapon which temporarily interferes with a subject's vision while causing no eye damage. Unlike simple laser pointers that are engineered to emit a tight beam, these lasers are designed to emit a slightly diverging green beam that is less of an eye hazard but retain the desired effect on the viewer. The diverging output also results in a larger spot at the intended target, making aiming the device at long distances, or at multiple subjects, much easier. The Glare Mout's effective range is 150m-2 km. The LA-9/P effective range is 300m-4 km, and it has a further safety feature that neutralizes the possibility of eye injury even at close ranges.
  • The Dazer Laser Defender and Dazer Laser Guardian by Laser Energetics, Inc (www.dazerlaser.com) are "Non-Lethal - Less Violent" eye distraction and interruption devices which temporarily impairs human vision from 1-2400 meters. Independent 3rd party eye studies have verified that the Dazer can effectively and safely visually impair from 1 meter and beyond. Unlike all other dazzler systems which use a fixed focus system, the Dazer uses its patented variable range and variable focus system to allow for an adjustable range setting and eye safe operation without making the device useless at short distances. With this, the beam divergence of the green laser emitted from the device can also have a large beam spot on the selected targets which makes aiming the device and engaging more than one subject much easier. At the following ranges (in meters) the beam is 39 inches in diameter; 5, 10, 15, 25, 50, 100, 200, 300, 400, 600, 800, 1200, 1600 and 2400 meters. The Dazer has a built-in security code for 8, 12, and 24 hour activation which prevents unauthorized use of the device if it is lost or stolen. As a secondary ability, the Dazer operates as a long range search light via halving laser power and allows long range searching and targeting when visual impairment is unneeded.
  • The Saber 203 dazzler or Saber 203 Grenade Shell Laser Intruder Countermeasure System, uses a 250 mW red laser diode, mounted in a hard plastic capsule in the shape of a standard 40 mm grenade, suitable for being loaded into a M203 grenade launcher. It has an effective range of 300 meters. It is controlled via a box snapped under the launcher, with the batteries and firing switch housed in this box. In emergency it can be quickly ejected and replaced with a grenade. It is similar to the LANL-developed optical munition, Project Perseus. The U.S. Marine Corps brought Saber 203 dazzlers to Somalia in January 1995 during Operation United Shield, but senior U.S. Department of Defense officials reportedly halted its experimental use in Somalia at the last minute for "humane reasons".[8][9] According to the Air Force, the Saber 203 system is also usable for law enforcement purposes.
  • The JD-3 laser dazzler is mounted on the Chinese Type 98 main battle tank. It is coupled with a laser radiation detector, and automatically aims for the enemy's illuminating laser designator, attempting to overwhelm its optical systems or blind the operator.
  • The ZM-87 Portable Laser Disturber is a Chinese electro-optic countermeasure laser device. It can blind enemy troops at up to 2 to 3 km range and temporarily blind them at up to 10 km range. See ZM-87 for more information.
  • The Photonic Disruptor, classified as a threat assessment laser (TALI), was developed and manufactured by Wicked Lasers in cooperation with Xtreme Alternative Defense Systems. This tactical laser is equipped with a versatile focus-adjustable collimating lens to compensate for range and power intensity when used at close range to incapacitate an attacker, at a distance to safely identify threats. The Photonic Disruptor has been featured on Discovery Channel's "Future Weapons." It was also reportedly used by Sea Shepherd Conservation Society during their operations with the Ady Gil in the Southern Ocean against Japanese whaling.[10]
PHaSR, a United States dazzler style weapon.
  • StunRay is a less-lethal optical incapacitation effector developed by Genesis Illumination Inc. It uses collimated incoherent (non-laser) broad spectrum visible and near infrared light from a short-arc lamp to safely and temporarily impair vision, disorient and incapacitate aggressors for 5 seconds to 3 minutes without causing physical harm. Full recover generally occurs in 10–20 minutes. The hand-held model is designed for a range of 10m to 100m. Stun-Ray can be scaled up for ranges from 100m to 1000m for vehicle mounting, checkpoints, secure facilities, patrol boats, and ship protection.[14]

Countermeasures

One defense against laser dazzlers are narrowband optical filters tuned to the frequency of the laser. To counter such defense, dazzlers can employ emitters using more than one wavelength, or tunable lasers with wider range of output. Another defense is photochromic materials able to become opaque under high light energy densities. Non-linear optics techniques are being investigated: e.g. vanadium-doped zinc telluride (ZnTe:V) can be used to form electro-optic power limiters able to selectively block the intense dazzler beam without affecting weaker light from an observed scene.

See also

  • Flashbang
  • Flashlight, sometimes used as an improvised weapon in a manner similar to a dazzler
  • Terra-3, alleged Soviet use of a dazzler against a Space Shuttle in 1984

References

  1. ^ Mark Harris (27 May 2009). "US cops and military to get laser guns". Techradar.com. http://www.techradar.com/news/world-of-tech/us-cops-and-military-to-get-laser-guns-602983. Retrieved 28 July 2010. 
  2. ^ Chris Matyszczyk (23 July 2010). "Police to experiment with blinding 'Dazer Laser'?". CNET.com. http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-20011548-71.html. Retrieved 28 July 2010. 
  3. ^ "Real Lives: Magic at War". Channel 4. http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/R/real_lives/jasper.html. 
  4. ^ "Type 22 frigates". Haze Gray & Underway website. http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/rn/frigates/t22/. Retrieved 22 February 2010. 
  5. ^ "The Buzz 27 January 2003 - Man-made Bolts of Lightning". ABC Radio National. Abc.net.au. 27 January 2003. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/buzz/stories/s773141.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-26. 
  6. ^ Davies (2005). "2". Desert Shield and Desert Storm. pp. 30–31. 
  7. ^ "B.E. Meyers & Co., Inc". http://www.bemeyers.com. Retrieved 22 September 2011. 
  8. ^ "Now, to the Shores of Somalia with Beanbag Guns and Goo". New York Times. February 15, 1995. http://www.nytimes.com/1995/02/15/world/now-to-the-shores-of-somalia-with-beanbag-guns-and-goo.html. 
  9. ^ a b "U.S. Blinding Laser Weapons". Human Rights Watch Report. May 1995. http://www.hrw.org/reports/1995/Us2.htm. , Vol. 7, No. 5
  10. ^ "Whaling Protesters Pioneer Non-Lethal Warfare". Wired, Danger Room. http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/01/whaling-protesters-pioneer-non-lethal-warfare/. 
  11. ^ "Company Search: Irwin Desman". Parasitic Protocol Portfolio. http://www.testdept.org.uk/PPP-9.html. 
  12. ^ "dead link". http://www.aeronautics.ru/nws001/abl/abl011.htm. 
  13. ^ "dead link". http://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/eo/eo12338.htm. 
  14. ^ "StunRay Non-Lethal & Less Lethal Incapacitator". Genesis-illumination.com. http://www.genesis-illumination.com/StunRay.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-26. 
  • Lisa A. Small, Blinding Laser Weapons: It is Time for the International Community to Take Off Its Blinders, online ICLTD INC.
  • Louise Doswald-Beck, 30.06.1996, New Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons, International Review of the Red Cross Nr. 312, S.272–299, online International Review of the Red Cross
  • Burrus M. Carnahan, Marjorie Robertson, The American Journal of International Law, The Protocol on "Blinding Laser Weapons": A New Direction for International Humanitarian Law, Vol. 90, Nr. 3 (Juli 1996), Pages 484–490.
  • Bradford Non-Lethal Weapons Research Project, December 2006 Occasional Paper, No.1: The Early History of "Non-Lethal" Weapons, online University of Bradford (PDF)

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