Watch a Japanese military ship fire a railgun

On October 17, Japan’s military announced it had successfully test-fired a railgun on board a ship. The test was conducted by the Acquisition Technology and Logistics Agency, Japan’s rough DARPA analog, and it was carried out in conjunction with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The railgun is framed specifically as a protective measure: by firing high-speed bullets, the railgun is designed to stop incoming attacks through the air or on the sea.

Most bullets are fired by a chemical propellant—a sparked reaction that ignites the dense gunpowder of a shot, which rapidly…