A mysterious, bulging turret fitted on the bow of a Chinese navy ship has provoked speculation that Beijing is testing a hypersonic “rail gun”, in what would be the first time such a weapon has been trialled at sea.
Photos taken in a Chinese shipyard of what military experts say appears to be the new weapon come as Beijing pours money into high-tech arms aimed at changing the maritime balance of power with the US.
Rail guns rely on electromagnetic pulses to fire projectiles further and faster than conventional guns, targeting enemy ships, aircraft and missiles from up to 100 nautical miles (185km) away. However, they require massive amounts of electric power to function, one of the reasons they have remained mainly on the drawing board.
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