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The US military has been testing in-flight guidance for .50-caliber bullets, turning the projectiles into miniature homing missiles.
DARPA's Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance (EXACTO) bullets have the ability to manoeuvre in flight to hit targets that they're not precisely aimed at, compensating for factors like weather, wind, and target movement.
DARPA explains on its website: "For military snipers, acquiring moving targets in unfavorable conditions, such as high winds and dusty terrain commonly found in Afghanistan, is extremely challenging with current technology. It is critical that snipers be able to engage targets faster, and with better accuracy, since any shot that doesn't hit a target also risks the safety of troops by indicating their presence and potentially exposing their location."
The bullets are the size of a large pen and can be used in both sniper rifles and machine guns. The full EXACTO system comprises of both bullets and a real-time guidance system that tracks and delivers the projectile to the target.
(Score: 4, Informative) by tathra on Monday July 14 2014, @03:04AM
this is kind of cool, but has limited usefulness. .50 cal sniper rifles are intended to be used for ranges well over 1 km and up to like 5 km or more, so that gives a good bit of distance for adjusting the flight path. i highly doubt you'd be able to chase your target down with a round if they're running perpendicular to your shot, but this would be good for correcting in strong wind or sudden gusts or limited visibility.
all in all, it'll make sniping a bit easier, but there is far more to sniping than just putting rounds down range, so its not like this could make a sniper out of just anyone.
(Score: 2) by Nerdfest on Monday July 14 2014, @04:38AM
I think you actually could do it. The problem would be if they're moving erratically. Even then, based on the travel time I would imagine that you would have to move erratically and *quickly* to avoid one of these getting you.