weapons, nonlethal

Weapons designed to disable enemy troops or weaponry without fatalities.

The US nonlethal weapons programme is highly secretive but research in 1994 was believed to include low frequency noise to disorient troops, a highly adhesive foam to impede both machinery and people, and lasers to cause temporary blindness; production of these laser weapons was stopped in the USA in 1995, and the United Nations stated it was considering a ban on all such weapons.

The taser, a nonlethal stun weapon, is available commercially in the USA. It fires two darts connected to a wire that delivers a voltage sufficiently great to cause muscles to spasm, thereby temporarily disabling the target.

In autumn 2001, the US Air Force successfully trialled Active Denial Technology (ADT) on human volunteers. ADT heats the skin to levels that are unbearable and yet comparatively slow to burn (four-minute exposure before burning) by utilising microwave radiation that penetrates the skin only. It could be used for crowd dispersal, though there were concerns it could cause eye damage.