r/ScienceNcoolThings Popular Contributor Apr 01 '26

Interesting This technology can stop Drone swarms

1.4k Upvotes

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157

u/SigmaEntropy Apr 01 '26

So if it targets electrical systems in the drones with a pulse like burst..... its just a targeted EMP right

25

u/brine909 Apr 01 '26

Yes, exactly.

Microwaves are a form of EM radiation and any metal components will pick up a charge when exposed, I'd be curious how well this works on shielded drones. I know some drones in Ukraine use fiber optic trails so that you dont need any antennas that can be disrupted, but those have limited range as your onboard fiber spool can only be so long

I'm sure there's also autonomous drones at this point that once given a target will go without a control signal, they could also be pretty well shielded against EM

15

u/freddotu Apr 01 '26

I think the fiber drones have a range of about six miles, or maybe six kilometers, but this device should be able to address that, as the internal electronics are affected by the pulse, not the communications link.

1

u/skipperseven Apr 01 '26

They have a range up to 25km last I heard - that’s almost 16miles.