The U.S. Air Force sets out to create a simulated spectrum warfare battlefield

According to media reports, U.S. Air Force researchers are creating a battlefield that simulates spectrum warfare to test new electronic warfare and electro-optical countermeasures systems to help the U.S. Air Force control the electromagnetic spectrum in future conflicts. The Air Force Research Laboratory has announced that it has awarded two contracts worth $49 million to two U.S. defense technology companies. However, for most people, spectrum warfare itself is still an unfamiliar concept.

Although the US Air Force has proposed spectrum warfare since 2013. However, this is just a general term. Spectrum warfare includes electronic warfare, network warfare, optoelectronic countermeasures, and navigation warfare. By engaging in spectrum warfare, the U.S. military seeks to control every aspect of radio communications, radar, electro-optical sensors, GPS satellite navigation, precision timing, data networks and the electromagnetic spectrum while preventing adversaries from possessing these capabilities.

Spectrum warfare combines electronic warfare, network warfare, optoelectronic countermeasures and other technologies that can sense the environment, communicate, navigate, and target targeting. Among them, electronic warfare is the most famous. signal blocker

Electronic warfare is primarily conducted by manipulating the radio frequency spectrum to allow the U.S. military and its allies to freely operate radio frequency systems, including radar and radio communications, while interfering with adversaries to prevent them from using this method of warfare.

Cyber ​​warfare includes computer hacking, introduction of malicious computer viruses that are not recognized by the recipient, theft of computer passwords, etc. In addition, cyber warfare also involves information security, such as cyber security for protecting government and corporate computer networks with sensitive information from hacker attacks technology.

Optoelectronic countermeasures are similar to electronic warfare, but the medium of confrontation is light waves instead of electromagnetic waves. It mainly includes visible light cameras, infrared sensors, target laser irradiators, using lasers to counter infrared guided weapons, high-energy laser weapons to intercept rockets, mortars, and artillery barrages.

Navigation warfare is carried out by controlling satellite navigation technologies such as global positioning and navigation systems. During the war, the United States and its allies can use the global positioning system to control the entire whereabouts of enemy ships, vehicles, and aircraft within their coverage at any time from departure to arrival at the destination. They can use satellite navigation technology to guide them at any time. Use guided bombs to strike these targets. .

Today, the lines between these previously independent forms of warfare are increasingly blurred. For example, the next-generation jammer developed by Raytheon can not only interfere with the enemy's radar, but also inject malicious viruses into the enemy's digital radar system. This also prompted the US military to speed up research on spectrum warfare.

According to reports, the U.S. military is currently accelerating a variety of spectrum warfare programs, and researchers at the laboratory say they seek to develop adaptive spectrum warfare technologies to maintain operational capabilities in contested and denied environments.

With these plans and other projects underway, it is reasonable to believe that we will hear more about spectrum warfare in the future.