The US Navy has opened a new laboratory at Point Mugu in California to test its state-of-the-art laser weapons.
Valued at $23 million, the Directed Energy Systems Integration Laboratory is a three-story facility built on 18,500 square feet along the Point Mugu Sea Range, which has 36,000 square miles of controlled air and sea space.
According to the US Navy, the facility will help the service keep abreast of the latest technological advancements, expanding the country’s testing capabilities.
The multimillion-dollar facility will allow the installation of directed energy systems on the roof and inside the building for trials and operational assessment.
“We’ve been looking forward to getting this out here,” Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) commanding officer Capt. Andrew Hoffman said in a press release. “It gives us the ability to test in the environment that we’re going to deploy in, making sure these weapons are going to be out there and sustainable for the future.”
NSWC acting technical director Michael Ladner stated his belief that the new facility will provide the fleet with capabilities that “cannot be overstated,” explaining that the laboratory will provide the navy with a great leap forward in facilitating maintenance and operations on directed energy systems.
