On October 17, Japan’s military announced it had successfully test-fired a railgun on board a ship. The test was conducted by the Acquisition Technology and Logistics Agency, Japan’s rough DARPA analog, and it was carried out in conjunction with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The railgun is framed specifically as a protective measure: by firing high-speed bullets, the railgun is designed to stop incoming attacks through the air or on the sea.
The Ministry of Defense intends to steadily work towards the early practical use of railguns in order to accelerate the strengthening of Japan’s defense capabilities.” For the test-firing, the railgun was mounted on the JS Asuka, an Asuka-class research ship that has been a testbed for missile and sensor technologies in the past. Janes reports that crucial details of the weapon, like muzzle velocity and projectile weight, are being kept confidential.