Soldiers pinned down by sniper fire might one day be able to pinpoint where
their attacker is hiding, using a new detector invented by BBN Technologies in
Cambridge, Massachusetts. The “crack” as the shot leaves the muzzle can be
masked by background noise, so the detector’s helmet-mounted microphones instead
track the bullet’s supersonic shock wave. If two or more soldiers wearing the
equipment are either side of the shot, “the system gives a very good estimate of
the bullet’s trajectory”, says Gregory Duckworth of BBN Technologies. “From
there, it works back to where the sniper is likely to be,” he…
To continue reading, today with our introductory offers
Advertisement
More from New Scientist
Explore the latest news, articles and features

ÎçÒ¹¸£Àû1000¼¯ºÏ
You should turn off fans when it's too hot – but how hot is too hot?
News

Humans
Elite Maya people had teeth placed in a cave far from their tombs
News

Mind
Parenting may permanently improve brain health for mums and dads
Features

Space
SpaceX's secretive plans to deliver cargo to Earth from space
News
Popular articles
Trending New Scientist articles
1
Woman with Alzheimer's starts conversing again after taking psilocybin
2
New-to-science spider builds trap that flings ants into the air
3
SpaceX's secretive plans to deliver cargo to Earth from space
4
How menopause radically changes the brain – and what happens after
5
We've found a mysterious substance on Titan and Pluto
6
The surprising ways your brain changes from your 20s to your 40s
7
Faecal transplant makes the brains of old mice act young again
8
How some people's brains make an extraordinary recovery from stroke
9
‘Fusogenic’ neurosurgery let paralysed pigs walk again – are we next?
10
Has the answer to life's origins been hiding in our cells all along?