A US heat-ray weapon has been approved for testing, Golem reports. The system falls into the category of directed-energy weapons that use millimeter waves to heat the surface of the skin, producing an intense burning sensation intended to make people leave an area without causing lasting injury.
The best-known example is the Active Denial System, developed for the US military and demonstrated on vehicles and fixed installations for more than a decade. It was trialed but never brought into routine service, and work on the technology subsequently slowed.
Clearing a heat-ray weapon for evaluation suggests the Pentagon is again willing to spend on non-lethal directed energy for crowd control — an area that has regained interest as drones and asymmetric threats push funding toward novel effectors. Testing approval is not the same as fielding: systems in this class still have to prove reliability, beam control and compliance with rules of engagement before anything is deployed.
