Navy tests rail gun

I have been hearing about rail guns for years - so its a little surprising to me that the projectiles still cost 25k and they don't expect them to be on ships till the end of the decade.

There isn't any immediate need for this, and so it isn't rushed. If all of a sudden things changed, and they needed the tech, it'd get rushed through. But why run when you can walk and still make it?

This is the type of ship that it will be mounted on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spearhead-class_Joint_High_Spee...

I always assumed it would be put on a Littoral class ship. I'm guessing that the ship is going to be dedicated to this weapon and that's why it wasn't put on a carrier or LCS for testing.

How is it going to be powered? Will it have it's own dedicated nuclear reactor and a huge array of capacitors? I wonder what the time between shots will be.

Here are some nice pictures of the latest version, still amazing that it has become compact enough for a ship in such a short time. http://www.gizmag.com/first-industry-railgun-prototype-launc...

I would not be surprised if "the enemy" already have the capability to create something similar.

If I recall, one of the huge challenges was handling just that. Specifically, I remember something written on it a few years ago that the device was functional, but due to the overwhelming amperage, each shot fused the system up. And now I'll believe it, given that the video shows the casing partially vaporizing as the projectile is exiting.

There's something incredibly shocking about something exploding without traditional explosive chemistry. Just a monumental arc flash (or something - I don't know if it's the same mechanism).