Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Laser Guided Hunting

Flight path of the .50cal with an LED attached to it.
Imagine sitting in the woods and seeing a deer off in the distance, you carefully aim your rifle making sure there is a solid backstop behind the deer, adjust for the wind and distance, then slowly squeeze the trigger.  That's just part of the process that takes place, sometimes there's more and sometimes less.  What if all you had to do was point and shoot?  Well soon that might be a reality.  Sandia Labs is currently exploring and testing a laser guided .50 caliber bullet.  This new form of technology has created quite a ruckus in the hunting community.  Law enforcement, military and recreational shooters are all potential customers for this new ammunition.  I expect this laser guided .50cal to receive the same attention as hand grenades or trip guns; not for the hunter only for the military, as they should be.  Hunting any animal with a laser guided anything is highly unethical. 


Hunting and technology has been a problem for a while.  I've heard of archers argue there's no challenge in rifles, mule deer hunters thinking white tail deer hunters are pansies, iron sight hunters argue against scope hunting...the list could go on and on.  The fact is that every step of increased technology we put into hunting, the farther away we take ourselves from the roots of hunting.  For a lot of people hunting is about human tradition, the preservation of distinct identities, and an experience that can bind all humans.  While hunting with a rifle isn't exactly the most traditional form of hunting, laser guided hunting is just ridiculous.  A line must be drawn somewhere on how far to take hunting, it will always come down to the individual.
.50 cal on the far left (.50cal ammo is illegal in California, thanks Schwarzenegger) 
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2 comments:

  1. Johnny5April 5, 2012 at 9:21 PM

    I see what your saying in that guns make it easier to "kill" prey but to a novice, there is nothing easy about just simply pointing and shooting. Wind is a factor, the pressure on the trigger matters and bullet drop has to be considered so I'd argue that shooting is just as difficult as archery because of how many different variables can be put into play.

    Ps. I like the bullet pic gives people a chance to know what these things really look like

    jon

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  2. SalemApril 21, 2012 at 11:17 PM

    Do you think that when guns came to the scene people said the same thing you are saying about lasers: this is ridiculous, it takes us away from the roots of hunting?

    Is it really far fetched to imagine lasers as one day being part of hunting? After all, hunting seems to just be getting easier and easier, from Neanderthal stone tools to archery to guns... clearly, as the precision of hunting improved, a great deal of the challenge got lost each time... right?

    Maybe you should have a post on or include in this one, your thoughts or speculations in the hunting community regarding the general future of hunting? Lasers and what else? Will at some point hunting be allowed with only animals bred for the purpose? Will genetic manipulations play a role in creative a challenge to the sport of hunting? .... I don't know... what are your thoughts?

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