Dazzler (weapon)
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A '''dazzler''' is a type of a [[directed-energy weapon]] employing intense visible light, usually generated by a [[laser]] ('''laser dazzler'''). It is a [[non-lethal force|non-lethal]] [[weapon]] intended to cause temporary [[blindness]] or disorientation. The first reported use of laser dazzlers in [[combat]] was by the [[UK|British]], during the [[Falklands War]] of 1982, when they were fitted to various [[Royal Navy]] warships in order to hinder low-level [[Argentina|Argentinian]] air attacks. [http://www.ciaonet.org/olj/sa/sa_feb01ghc01.html][http://www.abc.net.au/rn/science/buzz/stories/s773141.htm] Blinding weapons are banned by 1995 [[United Nations]] [[Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons]]. Dazzlers are not intended to cause permanent blindness, therefore are thought to be able to skirt this regulation.
Narrowband [[optical filter]]s tuned to the frequency of the laser used may provide a good defense against laser dazzlers. On the other hand, the dazzlers may employ lasers using more than one [[wavelength]], or [[tunable laser]]s with wider range of output. [[Photochromic]] materials capable of becoming opaque under high light energy densities may provide protection as well. [[Non-linear optics]] techniques are being investigated as well; eg. vanadium-doped [[zinc telluride]] (ZnTe:V) can be used to construct [[electro-optic power limiter]]s capable of selectively blocking the intense dazzler beam without affecting the weaker light from the observed scene.
Optionally they can operate in infrared when their targets are electronic sensors. Most of the contemporary systems are man-portable, and operate in either red (a [[semiconductor laser]]) or green (a [[DPSS laser]]) part of the spectrum.
Some [[searchlight]]s are bright enough to cause permanent or temporary blindness and have been used to dazzle the crews of bombers during [[World War II]]. [[Pistol|Handgun]] mounted lights may also be used to temporarily blind an opponent and are sometimes marketed for that purpose. In both cases the primary purpose is to illuminate the target and their use to disorient is secondary.
==Makes==
[[LE Systems]], under the sponsorship of [[DARPA]], developed a dazzler based on a [[DPSS laser]], with green light output at 532 nm, essentially a souped-up version of the green [[laser pointer]]s. The advantage of 532 nm wavelength lies in its ability to interact with human eye in both daylight and reduced light conditions.
[[http://www.bemeyers.com/ B.E Meyers]] is a world wide supplier, manufacturer, and systems integrator of electro-optical and other related products used for industrial, law enforcement and defense applications. Three separate products, the GLARE MOUT, the GBDIIIC and the GLARE-LRP, have been developed by B.E. Meyers to provide a non-lethal deterrent weapon which temporarily interferes with a suspect's vision without causing any ocular damage.
While the GLARE MOUTs effective range is 150m-2km for short range use, the GBDIIIC and the GLARE-LRP will take care of long range needs with an effective range of 300m-4km
[[Image:GLARE MOUT- D532P-M 1 001.jpg|thumb|right|200px|B.E. Meyers GLARE MOUT]]
Reports confirm that the GLARE has saved numerous lives of both soldiers and non-combatants in Iraq and Afghanistan by communicating a universal warning, requiring individuals to stop and establish their intent. The GLARE is compact, light weight, ultra rugged, waterproof up to 20 meters, weapons integratable, and can be used hand-held. With thousands of GLAREs in service, there have been no reports of failures to date. It is the smallest and most versatile green laser dazzler in existence, and is the only dazzler approved for use by all branches of the Armed Services, leaving the GLARE as the single most important Escalation of Force (EOF) tool.
The [[Saber 203]] dazzler or "Saber 203 Grenade Shell Laser Intruder Countermeasure System", uses a 250 mW red [[laser diode]], mounted in a hard plastic capsule in the shape of a standard [[40 mm grenade]], suitable to being loaded into a [[M203]] [[grenade launcher]]. It has an effective range of 300 meters. It is controlled via a box snapped under the launcher, and in emergency it can be quickly ejected and replaced with a grenade. It is similar to the [[LANL]]-developed optical munition, [[Project Perseus]]. Saber 203 dazzlers were used in [[Somalia]] in 1995 during the [[Operation United Shield]]. According to the Air Force, the system is also usable for law enforcement purposes.
The JD-3 laser dazzler is mounted on the Chinese [[Type 99#Type 98|Type 98]] [[main battle tank]]. It is coupled with a laser radiation detector, and automatically aims for the enemy's illuminating [[laser designator]], attempting to overwhelm its optical systems or blind the operator. The '''ZM-87''' Portable Laser Disturber is a Chinese [[electro-optic countermeasure]] laser device. It can blind enemy troops at up to 2 to 3 km range and temporarily blind them at up to 10 km range. See [[ZM-87]] or [http://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/eo/eo12338.htm this link] for more information.
[[Image:PHASR Rifle.jpg|thumb|right|200px|PHaSR - A United States Dazzler style weapon.]]The PHaSR or [[Personnel Halting and Stimulation Response rifle]] was developed by the U.S. Department of Defense:
The [[Outfit DEC]] or [[Laser Dazzle Sight]] (LDS) is a British ship-based laser, used since the 1980s. The [[veiling-glare laser]] works on [[ultraviolet]] and is designed to dazzle by causing [[fluorescence]] in the lens of the [[eye]]. There are other such laser weapon systems in development. See:-
*http://www.hrw.org/reports/1995/Us2.htm
*http://www.testdept.org.uk/PPP-9.html
*http://www.aeronautics.ru/nws001/abl/abl011.htm
*http://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/eo/eo12338.htm
==Use in Iraq==
At the end of Operation Desert Storm, F-15E crews observing the Iraqi military's massacre of Kurdish civilians at [[Chamchamal]] were forbidden from firing on the attackers, but instead used their lasers as a dazzler weapon. This ultimately proved ineffective in crashing any attack helicopters.<ref>Davies 2005, Chapter Two - Desert Shield and Desert Storm, pp. 30-31.</ref>
On [[18 May]], [[2006]], the [[U.S. military]] announced it would issue dazzling lasers designed to be attached to M-4 rifles to troops in [[Iraq]]. This weapon is intended to provide a non-lethal way to stop drivers who fail to stop at checkpoints manned by American soldiers. However, this proposal has attracted criticism from human rights groups who say even these weapons can cause permanent damage [http://www.registerguard.com/news/2006/05/18/a2.nat.laser.0518.p1.php?section=nation_world].
==See also==
* [[Flashbang]]
* Torch/[[Flashlight]] (sometimes used as an improvised weapon in a similar manner to a dazzler)
* [[Terra-3]]: alleged use of a Soviet dazzler against a [[Space Shuttle]] in 1984
==Sources==
* Lisa A. Small, Blinding Laser Weapons: It is Time for the International Community to Take Off Its Blinders, online [http://www.icltd.org/laser_weapons.htm ICLTD INC.]
* Human Rights Watch Arms Project [http://www.hrw.org/reports/1995/Us2.htm U.S.Blinding Laser Weapons]
* Bill Hillaby, Directed Energy Weapons Development and Potential, [http://www.aeronautics.ru/nws001/abl/abl011.htm aeronautics.ru]
* http://www.forecastinternational.com/archive/eo/eo12338.htm
* Louise Doswald-Beck, 30.06.1996, New Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons, International Review of the Red Cross Nr. 312, S.272–299, online [http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/57JN4Y International Review of the Red Cross]
* Burrus M. Carnahan, Marjorie Robertson, The American Journal of International Law, The Protocol on „Blinding Laser Weapons“: A New Direction for International Humanitarian Law, Vol. 90, Nr. 3 (Juli 1996), Pages 484–490.
* Bradford Non-Lethal Weapons Research Project, December 2006 OCCASIONAL PAPER, No.1:The Early History of "Non-Lethal" Weapons, online [http://www.brad.ac.uk/acad/nlw/research_reports/docs/BNLWRP_OP1_Dec06.pdf University of Bradford] (PDF)
[[Category:Military lasers]]
[[Category:Less-lethal weapons]]
[[Category:Directed-energy weapons]]
[[de:Blendwaffe]]
[[no:Blindende laser]]