Lockheed Martin Adam

Lockheed Martin’s new 30-kilowatt fiber laser called Athena managed to burn through a truck manifold in seconds, despite being fired by a team from Lockheed Martin positioned more than a mile away. The system uses a technique known as spectral beam combining to blend multiple laser modules to create a single, powerful, high-quality beam. This is done for greater ‘efficiency and lethality’ than the multiple individual 10-kilowatt lasers used in other systems. Continue reading for two videos and more information.

“Athena is based on the firm’s Area Defense Anti-Munitions (Adam) laser weapon system. In tests off the California coast in May, Adam was used to successfully disable two boats at a range of approximately one mile (1.6km). Lockheed Martin said at the time that it developed the ground-based system ‘to demonstrate a practical, affordable defense against short-range threats,” reports The Daily Mail.