Albuquerque: Figuring out how to pack a processor and other electronics into a machine gun bullet has been a challenge for engineers at Sandia National Laboratories, so weapons experts say the miniature guidance system the lab has developed is a breakthrough.
Three years in the making, the bullet prototype represents another step toward a next-generation battlefield that scientists and experts expect to be saturated with technology and information.
"In the laboratory, I'm to make machines so incredibly small it kind of boggles my mind," said Red Jones, one of the Sandia researchers who helped develop the laser-guided .50-caliber bullet. "Where we're headed, we're going to be limited only by our imagination."
Developing more precise weaponry has been a mission for government and industry scientists for decades. Most recently, the research arm of the US Department of Defence has awarded tens of millions of dollars in contracts to companies to develop guided ammunition for snipers and special scopes that account for crosswinds and other environmental variables....
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12:28 PM, Feb 03, 2012
