Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Shoots at 7 Times the Speed of Sound

Written by Fabio Lucas Carvalho

Published on 11/09/2025 at 23:26

Updated on 11/09/2025 at 23:27

Japão testa canhão eletromagnético de 20 megajoules a bordo do navio JS Asuka, atingindo Mach 7 e avançando no desenvolvimento de armas de energia direcionada.

8 pessoas reagiram a isso.

Experimental Firing of Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Reaches Mach 7 and Marks Advance in Energy Weapons for Maritime Defense.

Official images of the electromagnetic cannon mounted on a ship were released by Japan, with firing conducted from the test ship JS Asuka on September 10.

The record was presented as a milestone in national efforts for directed energy weapons intended for the Japan Self-Defense Forces.

The Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA), linked to the Ministry of Defense, reported that the test of the electromagnetic cannon onboard took place from June to early July, with support from the Maritime Self-Defense Force. This was the first demonstration of the system in action installed on an actual ship.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

The Technical Agenda and the Fair in the City of Macaé Should Boost Discussions on Investments, Energy Transition, and Development of the Oil, Gas, and Energy Chain in the National...

Paulo Nogueira

Institutional Structure and Industry

The Fleet Research and Development Command operates the Asuka as a technological demonstrator. ATLA oversees the program with industrial support from Japan Steel Works, a manufacturer of naval weapons. The electromagnetic cannon project was formally launched in 2016, with live-fire testing starting in 2022.

Initial research prioritized two obstacles: stabilization of projectiles at hypersonic speeds and mitigation of barrel wear under extreme stresses. These fronts were defined as critical factors for the maturity of the electromagnetic cannon.

External and Comparative Learnings

The U.S. Navy terminated its publicly recognized electromagnetic cannon project in 2021, after spending over US$ 500 million. According to Defense News, severe barrel degradation was recorded with fewer than 30 shots, redirecting emphasis to solid-state lasers.

Field reports indicated inconsistent performance and limited operational readiness of laser systems. The Japanese development aims to overcome these limitations through the electromagnetic cannon.

Technical Parameters and Performance

The prototype of the electromagnetic cannon on the Asuka is said to weigh approximately eight metric tons (nine US tons) and have a six-meter barrel. Open-source analysis cited by Shephard Media indicates 40-millimeter steel projectiles weighing around 320 grams (0.7 pounds).

In previous tests, the initial speed reached about 2,230 meters per second, corresponding to Mach 6.5. The stated plan aims to raise the energy load from 5 megajoules to 20 megajoules, a level associated with firing at Mach 7.

Ammunition, Effect, and Employment Cost

Unlike explosive ammunition, the electromagnetic cannon employs pure kinetic energy through inert projectiles at hypersonic speeds. This architecture has been pointed out as a cost-effective alternative for specific functions when compared to guided missiles.

Conceptual diagrams suggest multi-mission configurations, including anti-air fragmentation. The ability to store a larger quantity of ammunition and the potentially lower cost per shot have been indicated as impactful factors in logistics and sustainment.

Conditions of Use and Integration in Air Defense

Atmospheric attenuation and line-of-sight limitations affecting lasers do not apply in the same way to the electromagnetic cannon, enabling its use in any weather conditions and engaging beyond the horizon in the maritime environment.

Integration of the electromagnetic cannon with long-range interceptors is being studied to form layered air defense against hypersonic glide vehicles and swarms of drones. Conflicts in the Red Sea illustrated the economic challenges of missile-based defenses against low-cost threats.

Program Status and Outlook

ATLA reported that from June to early July, a Firing Test with Electric Cannon Aboard Ships took place with support from the Maritime Self-Defense Force.

This was indicated as the first occasion when an electric cannon mounted on a ship was successfully fired at an actual ship.

The 20 megajoule electromagnetic cannon was qualified as a significant advancement in the area of energy weaponry, historically marked by unfulfilled promises. The assessment presented supports that readiness for real use is closer in the current stage of the program.

0 Comentários

Mais recente

Mais antigos Mais votado

Feedbacks

Visualizar todos comentários

Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Shoots at 7 Times the Speed of Sound

Experimental Firing of Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Reaches Mach 7 and Marks Advance in Energy Weapons for Maritime Defense.

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

Institutional Structure and Industry

External and Comparative Learnings

Technical Parameters and Performance

Ammunition, Effect, and Employment Cost

Conditions of Use and Integration in Air Defense

Program Status and Outlook

At just 14 years old, a boy creates a system without energy, using steel pipes buried in the ground, that irrigates seedlings with moisture from the air, to combat the water scarcity threatening reforestation in northern China.

Where there was only sand and wind at 40 degrees, China built a megacity of 500,000 inhabitants with farms, wineries, and universities in the middle of the desert using melted glacier water from hundreds of kilometers away.

At over 8,800 meters above sea level, the summit of Mount Everest is made up of rocks that originated at the bottom of an ocean about 500 million years ago and were pushed to the highest point on Earth by the collision of tectonic plates.

350-year mystery may have been solved: remains of a soldier who inspired the hero of The Three Musketeers found beneath a church in the Netherlands.

At over 80° south latitude on Mars, a formation called “Inca City” reveals a network of kilometer-scale ridges that forms an impressive geometric grid visible from space, created by deep fractures and sculpted by ice in one of the most extreme environments on the red planet.

Goodbye expensive retaining wall: builder teaches how to create an ecological structure with recycled tires that holds the soil, reduces costs, and repurposes materials that would go to waste.

A couple builds a system to bring water from the spring to their land, climbs a hill with materials on their backs, and creates a simple, cheap, and sustainable solution to ensure their own water supply.

Marine fossils found at over 8,800 meters altitude on Everest and in large mountain ranges have proven that entire continents move, oceans disappear, and tectonic plates collide over millions of years, revolutionizing science in the 20th century.

Tourists on Everest were poisoned by guides who mixed substances in food to provoke false symptoms of altitude sickness while helicopter operators and hospitals charged inflated rescue fees to insurance companies.

Few people know this, but Neil Armstrong, one of the most famous NASA astronauts in history, survived the Korean War after jumping from the plane during his seventh combat mission aboard the USS Essex aircraft carrier of the United States.

The first commercial hydrogen-powered ferry enters operation in the U.S., eliminates the use of diesel, uses fuel cells to generate clean energy on board, and transforms San Francisco Bay into a landmark of the new era of emission-free navigation.

Diving with a camera in Lake Furnas reveals a submerged city with an entire street, almost intact houses, a preserved bridge, a wood stove, a Kombi, and even a bus at the bottom of the largest lake in the Southeast.

Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Shoots at 7 Times the Speed of Sound

Experimental Firing of Japanese Electromagnetic Cannon Reaches Mach 7 and Marks Advance in Energy Weapons for Maritime Defense.

Major Oil, Gas, and Energy Event Will Take Place in Brazil: Macaé Energy Will Gather Petrobras, Equinor, Prio, Among Other Suppliers and Energy Executives for Business, Networking, and Employment Opportunities

Institutional Structure and Industry

External and Comparative Learnings

Technical Parameters and Performance

Ammunition, Effect, and Employment Cost

Conditions of Use and Integration in Air Defense

Program Status and Outlook

At just 14 years old, a boy creates a system without energy, using steel pipes buried in the ground, that irrigates seedlings with moisture from the air, to combat the water scarcity threatening reforestation in northern China.

Where there was only sand and wind at 40 degrees, China built a megacity of 500,000 inhabitants with farms, wineries, and universities in the middle of the desert using melted glacier water from hundreds of kilometers away.

At over 8,800 meters above sea level, the summit of Mount Everest is made up of rocks that originated at the bottom of an ocean about 500 million years ago and were pushed to the highest point on Earth by the collision of tectonic plates.

350-year mystery may have been solved: remains of a soldier who inspired the hero of The Three Musketeers found beneath a church in the Netherlands.

At over 80° south latitude on Mars, a formation called “Inca City” reveals a network of kilometer-scale ridges that forms an impressive geometric grid visible from space, created by deep fractures and sculpted by ice in one of the most extreme environments on the red planet.

Goodbye expensive retaining wall: builder teaches how to create an ecological structure with recycled tires that holds the soil, reduces costs, and repurposes materials that would go to waste.

A couple builds a system to bring water from the spring to their land, climbs a hill with materials on their backs, and creates a simple, cheap, and sustainable solution to ensure their own water supply.

Marine fossils found at over 8,800 meters altitude on Everest and in large mountain ranges have proven that entire continents move, oceans disappear, and tectonic plates collide over millions of years, revolutionizing science in the 20th century.

What if the Sun disappeared suddenly? Simulation shows Earth in darkness within minutes, extreme cold, and rapid collapse of life on the planet.

A 2,400-year-old iron foundry has been discovered in Senegal with 100 tons of slag, 35 furnace bases, and signs of nearly eight centuries of continuous metallurgical activity.

Four humans are flying towards the Moon inside the Orion capsule launched by the SLS rocket, and on April 6, Artemis II will disappear behind the far side of the Moon without communication with Earth for nearly an hour.

Worlds covered by water, atmospheres filled with hydrogen, and the possibility of life beyond Earth: ocean planets are rewriting the map of cosmic search and forcing scientists to rethink where to look.

Marine fossils found at over 8,800 meters altitude on Everest and in large mountain ranges have proven that entire continents move, oceans disappear, and tectonic plates collide over millions of years, revolutionizing science in the 20th century.

Tourists on Everest were poisoned by guides who mixed substances in food to provoke false symptoms of altitude sickness while helicopter operators and hospitals charged inflated rescue fees to insurance companies.

Few people know this, but Neil Armstrong, one of the most famous NASA astronauts in history, survived the Korean War after jumping from the plane during his seventh combat mission aboard the USS Essex aircraft carrier of the United States.

The first commercial hydrogen-powered ferry enters operation in the U.S., eliminates the use of diesel, uses fuel cells to generate clean energy on board, and transforms San Francisco Bay into a landmark of the new era of emission-free navigation.

Diving with a camera in Lake Furnas reveals a submerged city with an entire street, almost intact houses, a preserved bridge, a wood stove, a Kombi, and even a bus at the bottom of the largest lake in the Southeast.