The Daily Web Roundup is a collection of links to the news, commentary, and information I found interesting or useful today. If you want to read more of what is found in this post, find links to my favorite news, commentary, and information sites at Dennis L Hitzeman’s News Reading List.
News
Wired Blogs: Yes, Kids, This Is a Rail Gun
At long last, someone has finally gotten around to building an 8 megajoule rail gun capable of slinging projectiles 250 miles. Now that we’ve gotten that little problem out of the way, where is my 65 ton rail gun wielding battle mech? Anybody?
CNN: The Chinese Still Do Not Know How to Play Nice
On a more serious note, the US State Department confirms that China recently successfully launched an anti-satellite payload, destroying a defunct Chinese polar orbital weather satellite. To most people, this may seem like non-news, however it has been a standing agreement among the space capable powers to avoid the testing of such systems because of the provocative nature of being able to ‘shoot down’ other nations’ satellites.
The Chinese, however, seem to disregard such international understandings, instead provoking most of the world’s major powers. This event cannot help but evolve over the next weeks, months, and years, so stay tuned.
British MoD via BlackFive: Never Leave a Man Behind.
British Royal Commando Marines retrieve one of their own by flying into a hostile area strapped to the sides of Apache gunships. This story speaks for itself and for the bravery of all of the Coalition forces involved in the greater war against fundamentalist Islam.
Commentary
BlackFive: Blogs BlackFive Says We Should Be Paying Attention To
And he’s probably right.
DLH
what’s the difference between a rail gun and a gauss cannon?
Essentially, they are the same thing, though the way that the described rail gun and the fictional ‘gauss cannon’ function mechanically are slightly different.
Rail Gun
Gauss Cannon
DLH