Research into the military applications of high-energy pulsed power systems is conducted in the 34,261-square-foot Air Force Research Laboratory’s Directed Energy Directorate, High Power Systems Facility. The facility houses Shiva Star, the Air Force’s largest pulsed-power system. Shiva Star stores nearly 10 million joules of energy (equal to 5 pounds of TNT). It produces a pulse of 120,000 volts and 10 million amps in one-millionth of a second to produce a power flow equivalent to a terawatt. Shiva Star has evolved from a 1 megajoule system in 1975, a 2 megajoule system in 1979, to its final
Research into the military applications of high-energy pulsed power systems is conducted in the 34,261-square-foot Air Force Research Laboratory’s Directed Energy Directorate, High Power Systems Facility. The facility houses Shiva Star, the Air Force’s largest pulsed-power system. Shiva Star stores nearly 10 million joules of energy (equal to 5 pounds of TNT). It produces a pulse of 120,000 volts and 10 million amps in one-millionth of a second to produce a power flow equivalent to a terawatt. Shiva Star has evolved from a 1 megajoule system in 1975, a 2 megajoule system in 1979, to its final form as a 10 megajoule system in 1982. Shiva Star has been used over the years for many different types of experiments such as pulse compression to increase energy in the pulse, plasma liner implosion for production of x-rays, solid liner implosions to compress matter to high density and pressure, compact toroids for generating high-energy plasmas, and simulation of explosive pulsed-power generators. Air Force photo
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Keywords: air, airforce, force, military, states, united, usa
