Although the United States failed to realize the electromagnetic cannon, the concept of this advanced science fiction weapon pioneered by the United States, because of its highly complex structure, China has risen to the challenge and successfully designed this weapon, and has applied it to the military field, demonstrating the mainland's outstanding strength and innovation ability in the field of science and technology.
Recently, when everyone was still immersed in the super carrying capacity of SpaceX's Starship rocket, some media broke out that Chinese scientists were actually building a giant electromagnetically launched railgun.
It is understood that China is going all out to use electromagnetic railgun technology to send a manned spacecraft weighing 50 tons and comparable in size to a Boeing 737 aircraft into space orbit. This ambitious project is actually bigger and more far-reaching than it seems.
Whether it's a railgun, a catapult or a mass drive, the idea of replacing conventional rockets with electromagnetic accelerators is extremely appealing. Compared to chemical rockets, which have to carry large quantities of fuel when they are lifted off and additional fuel for lifting and lowering, the electromagnetic accelerator scheme is more efficient.
According to relevant experts, the railgun is more meaningful in that it leaves most of the launch system on the ground, making the vehicle itself as lightweight as possible, which undoubtedly opens a new chapter for space exploration.
How strong is the electromagnetic launch orbit?
Behind the seemingly simple principle on the surface, there are incomparably complex details, and the numerical calculations involved are so large that they are jaw-dropping. If China can successfully use this system to launch the space shuttle in the "Tengyun" program launched in 2016, it will undoubtedly be a big leap in the history of human spaceflight and a milestone achievement.
According to Chinese state media, China is ambitiously planning to build an electromagnetic launch orbit with the potential to accelerate the shuttle to a staggering Mach 1.6 and possibly even Mach 5. Once the shuttle breaks through the atmosphere, its on-board rocket engines ignite and continue to propel it to orbital velocity and travel through space.
This ambitious goal requires not only the creation of a spacecraft that fits perfectly with the railgun, but also the development of a launcher that can precisely control gravity, vibration, and various other variables to ensure the absolute safety of passengers.
In fact, NASA has conducted in-depth research on similar systems, but these studies have focused on dud and robotic payloads that can withstand huge impacts, and China is undoubtedly at the forefront of this exploration in the field of manned spaceflight.
It is reported that the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) Aircraft Technology Research Institute has built a two-kilometer (about 1.2 miles) test track in Datong City, Shanxi Province, which is comparable in size to the Hyperloop test track outside Las Vegas, Nevada, and is also housed in a vacuum pipe. The track is already capable of speeds of up to 1,000 km/h, and plans are to increase the speed by as much as five times in the future.
However, the enormity of the task of developing this system into a full-fledged space launch system is self-evident. This is not only a simple expansion of the scale of technology, but also requires revolutionary breakthroughs in many core areas such as the railgun body, control system, power supply mode, and railgun component manufacturing.
In particular, for the railgun to reach speeds of Mach 1.6 with passengers on board, the length of the track needs to be extended to at least 5 miles (about 8 kilometers). In order to achieve an even more impressive Mach 5 speed, the length of the track needs to increase exponentially.
Not only did it require a large number of electromagnets (and possibly even cryogenic cooling), but it also required the construction of the largest vacuum chamber in human history, equipped with efficient pumps to maintain the vacuum. In addition, the huge tubular vacuum chamber needs to be equipped with a specially designed airlock to ensure that the aircraft can leave safely and stably at supersonic speeds. Failure in any one link could lead to catastrophic consequences, and its potential power is large enough to be compared to that of tactical nuclear weapons.
In addition, the issue of power was also a challenge that could not be ignored in the project. Take, for example, the railgun that launched a fighter jet from the USS Gerald R. Ford, which requires only 121 megajoules of energy to accelerate the aircraft to 150 mph (about 241 km/h). However, to accelerate a vehicle of similar mass to Mach 5, the energy required for China's railgun would skyrocket to a staggering 50,000 megajoules.
Considering that the proposed spaceplane weighs at least 10 times that value, the challenge of power requirements is even more unimaginable. In the face of these difficulties, Chinese astronauts are forging ahead with unprecedented determination and perseverance to explore the endless mysteries of space.
How does an electromagnetic railgun work and how does it work?
The working principle of the electromagnetic railgun is indeed a complex and delicate process, which makes full use of the power of electromagnetic fields to achieve the high-speed launch of artillery shells. So how does it work?
First of all, the core components of the electromagnetic railgun are two parallel metal tracks, which form the "runway" for the acceleration of the shells. The shells were placed between these two tracks and were connected to the power supply, forming a closed circuit.
When the power supply is energized, a large current passes through these two tracks instantaneously. According to Ampere's law, a magnetic field is created when an electric current flows through a conductor. As a result, a strong electromagnetic field is formed around these two orbits.
At the same time, the shell itself carries an electric current, so it can also be considered as an electromagnet. According to Lorentz's law of force, when an electric current passes through a conductor, it is subjected to a force in the magnetic field. Therefore, when the shell is in this electromagnetic field, it receives a strong thrust, and this thrust follows the direction of the trajectory, pushing the shell forward rapidly.
In fact, there is a clear relationship between the magnitude of the thrust, and the main factors include the strength of the current, the strength of the magnetic field, and the interaction between the shell and the orbit. By precisely controlling these factors, the electromagnetic railgun can achieve high-speed firing of shells.
In the process of accelerating the shell, the electromagnetic railgun also needs to ensure the stability and accuracy of the shell. This is usually achieved by precisely controlling the change in the current and the shape of the track. For example, by adjusting the intensity of the current, the acceleration of the shell can be controlled, and by designing a special orbit shape, the projectile can be guided along a predetermined trajectory.
When the shell reaches a predetermined speed and position, the electromagnetic railgun triggers the firing mechanism, which releases the shell from the track. By this time, the shell had already acquired an extremely high speed and could fly in a straight line and hit the target.
The working principle of the electromagnetic railgun involves the knowledge of electromagnetism, mechanics, materials science and other disciplines. As a result, the design and manufacturing process is very complex, requiring a high level of technology and precision craftsmanship.
At last
Electromagnetic railguns achieve high-speed, long-range, and precise strike capabilities by using the power of electromagnetic fields to accelerate artillery shells. Although its technical difficulty is relatively large, with the continuous progress of science and technology, electromagnetic railguns are expected to become one of the important weapons in the military field in the future.