The Drive have published a fascinating interview with a former US Air Force Research Laboratory engineer who has developed and is selling an electromagnetic rifle.

Gauss rifles had previously been the domain of science fiction and this GR-1 Anvil is advertised as the world's first handheld one.

It's not quite as impressive as a working phaser or lightsaber but it is remarkable to see this weapon cross the fictional divide.

And in ways not typically seen in fiction. While this weapon is capable of causing injury or death, it can also be fired at lower settings and law enforcement agencies have expressed interest in that non-lethal capacity.

So potentially these could offer something like a phaser's dual lethal and non-lethal functionality.

That could be world-changing.

They should work in space and in theory the technology could be adapted to work better underwater than conventional guns.

The Department of Defense?

He says that there have been conversations which he can't go into but also:

If they’ve got a method of energy storage that’s not commercially available then absolutely they could make a field-ready system. Absolutely.

Very interesting.

[ Main Image: GR-1 Anvil Gauss Rifle. Credit: ArcFlash Labs. ]

References

ArcFlash Labs. GR-1 "Anvil". (viewed February 19, 2022)

Forgotten Weapons (February 12, 2022). ArcFlash Labs' GR-1 Anvil Portable Gauss Rifle. YouTube.

Tingley, Brett (February 17, 2022). $3,375 Electromagnetic Gun Declared "A Serious Weapon" During Expert Range Report (Updated). The Drive.

Tingley, Brett (February 17, 2022). Inventor Of The $3,375 Electromagnetic Rifle Tells Us All About His Creation. The Drive.

Wikipedia. Coilgun. (viewed February 19, 2022)