The kind of military technology only imagined in sci-fi movies like Iron Man and Star Wars could be coming to an international conflict near you sometime in the very near future. As if missiles and nuclear bombs weren’t enough, militaries around the world are currently developing a terrifying range of deadly weapons as well as aircraft that could take warfare into space. Some of it is unconfirmed – like Russia’s supposed mind control guns, which impair the higher cognitive functions of crowds – while some is already in early stages of deployment, like the puke-inducing ‘thunder generators’ now in use against protesters by local police.

Hypersonic Projectiles

Hypersonic weapons fly over five times the speed of sound to not only make them a hell of a lot more powerful, but also evade detection, tracking and attempts to destroy them. Among them is the Electromagnetic Railgun under development by the Office of Naval Research – essentially a flying hypersonic strike that whizzes through the air at around 5,600 miles per hour. It’s capable of traveling up to 100 miles, arrives with virtually zero warning and tears things up about as much as you’d expect. Oh, and it’s also guided. It uses magnetic fields generated by huge amounts of energy to travel.

Though it has cost the Pentagon about $500 million since they first began working on it in 2005, there’s some question as to whether it will ever be implemented due to the sheer expense of it. The military now appears to be more interested in the spiked projectiles than the weapon that fires them, investigating their use in available powder weapons before moving forward on testing the railgun.

Thunder Generators

Thunder generators were first tested as a way to ‘humanely’ scatter birds away from crop fields and other areas, like the landfill seen in the video above. But of course, if it’s capable of generating shock waves that scare birds, it could also be leveled up for crowd control usage on humans. While stunning people from a range of 30 to 100 meters will only create the kind of sonic blast that either makes people run in panic or knocks them off their feet, get closer and it kills. It looks pretty nondescript – just a single barrel that can be mounted on a mobile base – but you can put several of them together for a more powerful effect, and a curved barrel will allow the sonic waves to turn 90-degree corners. The similar LRAD Sound Cannon (Long Range Acoustical Device) looks a like a speaker.

Developed in Israel, it’s now being marketed for military and security applications, and it’s equipped with enough gas to produce around five thousand blasts. It’s just one of many acoustic weapons in use and development by military and police forces, often deployed against protesters like those at the Dakota Access Pipeline in South Dakota. Just a short blast from a typical sonic weapon can make everyone in a crowd spontaneously puke. Unsurprisingly, their use can also lead to health problems like hearing loss and traumatic brain injuries.

‘Smart’ Tracking Bullets

The phrase ‘dodging a bullet’ may seem quaint very soon thanks to tracking technologies that make sure bullets don’t miss their targets. So-called ‘smart bullets’ contain optical sensors to hit moving and evading targets, and even a novice shooter using the system for the first time will almost certainly hit the mark. This DARPA project achieves extreme accuracy at sniper ranges that can’t be achieved with traditional rounds, and the .50 caliber bullets travel at hundreds of miles per hour.

Powered Exoskeletons

Iron Man-style powered exoskeleton suits have plenty of possibilities that aren’t nefarious, like helping medical professionals lift and carry patients more easily, or allowing paralyzed people to walk. But in addition to mobility, they bestow the wearer with an uncanny strength, and several different models are being developed for use by soldiers. One is Lockheed Martin’s FORTIS knee-stress-release device, which uses independent actuators and motors along with a lithium ion battery to let soldiers carry 180 pounds up five flights of stairs without tiring while also preventing knee injuries. DARPA is testing a battery-powered exoskeleton as well, and China and Russia have their own versions, “turning soldiers into Stormtroopers.”

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Future War 8 Terrifying Coming Advancements In Military Technology

Anyone peering into a disused F15 hangar at the Cold War-era Soesterberg airbase in The Netherlands might have spotted this bizarre black structure and imagined that it was some kind of secret, high-tech aircraft project. They would have been half correct. The angular behemoth, with its wing-like appendages, is an imposing sight upon the airstrip as it rolls slowly out of Shelter 610.

But look a little closer. It’s crawling so excruciatingly slowly for a reason. It’s not an aircraft at all – it’s moving on military treads. Secret Operation 610 is both a sculpture and a functional research station for aerospace engineering students at Technical University Delft who are developing ‘no noise, no carbon, just fly’ technologies .

Created by Rietveld Landscape, Secret Operation 610 deliberately mimics the look of science fiction aircraft. The point, essentially, is for it to look a bit scary. “The object revives the mysterious atmosphere of the Cold War and its accompanying terrifying weaponry,” say the designers.

The old runway serves as an ideal test site for state of the art aviation experiments, so this mobile research shelter enables students to become immersed in the atmosphere of the airbase as it rolls around. “The unconventional combination of nature and Cold War history offers an exciting environment for the development of knowledge about nature, technology and aviation.”

Decorating military planes with nose art has been a largely American tradition since WWI. During WWII and the Korean War, nose art surged in popularity with controversial images of cheesecake pinups reminiscent of Vargas girls, ferocious animals or scenes representing memories from home or the tour of duty.

The Girls of WWII

(images via: arizona.edu, styrheim)

Artists often mimicked Vargas-style pinup art on the military aircraft they decorated. Sometimes the nose art was fashioned or named after a pilot’s sweetheart back home, but fantasy girls were far more popular.

The B-17 Flying Fortress Sally B. doubled as “Memphis Belle” in the 1991 film by the same name. To save money during the production of the film, one side of the plane remained Sally B., while the other side was dolled up as Memphis Belle for the movie.

Unique Names and Fierce Nose Art Designs

(images via: arizona.edu, swittersb, suduko, fsu.edu)

Although the B-17 is the plane most people think of as the standard WWII bomber, there were actually more B-24s in service. The B-24 had a long range and carried more bombers, but was much less attractive than the B-17. Million Dollar Baby’s name referred to the fact that during the war, the U.S. government paid $1 million for each B-29. Many of the B-29s were decorated with nose art in a variation of the Million Dollar Baby theme. Other bombers had nose art meant to look intimidating to enemies or names and mascots with sentimental value to the crew.

Recovered WWII Nose Art

(images via: swittersb)

Military aircraft nose art is part of American history and is valuable for collectors. Much of it was lost during WWII and the Korean War. For instance, the image of “Miss Please” shown above with the girls of WWII is the only existing photograph of the artwork. This B24 aircraft was shot down over Yugoslavia on October 14, 1944.

Military Aircraft Nose Art Lives On

(images via: century-of-flight, stoutguy, taphilo)

The nose artwork was sometimes bartered and traded for, as there was no budget for decorating the planes during the wars. The nose artwork on Joltin’ Josie was said to have been painted for a 5th of liquor. Although the most notable nose art was displayed on military planes during WWII and the Korean War, the tradition is still alive today, although with far more politically correct themes. Those who are fortunate enough own pieces of original WWII-era nose art work to preserve this bit of Americana and the history behind it.