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Drones armed with a small microwave weapon can shoot down other drones

A compact weapon that generates a beam of microwaves can knock out electronic devices without causing harm to people

By David Hambling

14 February 2022

New Scientist. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine.

Artist’s impression of drones carrying the Leonidas Pod

Epirus

A microwave weapon that can be carried by a drone is powerful enough to shoot down other drones and can also knock out other electronic devices.

The Leonidas Pod, produced by start-up Epirus based in Los Angeles, generates a beam of microwaves to overload a target’s electronics, causing drones to drop out of the sky, but doesn’t affect people.

Other counter-drone microwave weapons are based on magnetrons, the technology found in microwave ovens, and are the size of a shipping container. Instead, Epirus uses compact solid state emitters and last year…

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