The Soviets exploded their first nuclear weapon in 1949.
China revealed plans for its own stealth bomber last year.
But there are still some weapons the rest of the world doesn't have.
Some of these weapons have been around for several years but were recently modified,
and some are still in production.
-------------------- XM25 Individual Airburst Weapon System (IAWS)
Dubbed "The Punisher" by American forces in Afghanistan, the XM25 accurately shoots a
next-generation, 25mm, grenade up to 500 meters.
But, the distance isn't what impressed soldiers involved in the live trial of the weapon — it
was the grenade programming.
A targets distance is transmitted by a rangefinder in the XM25 to the grenade in the firing chamber.
When the grenade leaves the barrel it is spiraling, like a football, and measures the distance
it's traveled by the number of spirals it completes.
The detonation can be manually programmed within 10 meters to hit enemy in bunkers or
behind barriers.
A platoon leader commented in an Army Times article: "Engagements that typically take
15 to 20 minutes were over in a matter of minutes.”
Release date: 2014 --------------------
MAARS Robot (Modular Advanced Armed Robotic System)
The MAARS Robot is a modified remote control, bomb disposal robot.
Customizable to various needs, the MAARS can be configured with either an MB240 machine
gun and 40mm grenade launcher, or a loudspeaker and eye dazzling laser, or bean bag guns,
smoke, and pepper spray.
To date, no shots have been fired in combat by a remote device like the MAARS.
Release date: 2009 --------------------
The Taser Shockwave
The Taser model will electrocute a crowd of people at the touch of a button.
Creating an "area of denial" the Taser can be stacked up and strung together almost indefinitely.
It will also mount to any vehicle.
The Shockwave has an effective distance of 25 feet.
Release date: 2008 --------------------
MQ9 Reaper Drone
The Reaper has been around for over 10 years, but was used largely for intelligence and
reconnaissance until recently.
Today, squadrons of F-16's are being transitioned into fully unmanned drone fleets.
The Reaper is the largest of the UAV's in the U.S. arsenal with a wingspan of 84 feet,
a takeoff weight of 7,000 pounds, a payload capacity of 3,000 pounds and a flight time
of 36 hours.
The drone climbs up to 52,000 feet, and reads a license plate from over two miles away.
Capable of carrying 500 pound bombs, air-to-ground, and air-to-air missiles the UAV fleet is poised
to perform the lion's share of American air support.
Release date: 2001 --------------------
ADAPTIV Invisibility cloak makes tanks disappear
Developed and patented in Sweden.
ADAPTIV functions over infra-red and other electronic frequencies.
While it can blend the coated vehicle into the background, making it seem to be invisible,
it can also shape the returning signal to appear like something else.
A tank, for example, can be made to look like a car.
These pictures show both the combat vehicle disappearing and reshaping itself into the
outline of an automobile.
Release date: 2013