Think back to playing GoldenEye 007 on Nintendo
64. What a great game right? In each mission you start out with Bond’s
iconic Walther PPK with a silencer on it. The silencer suppresses the sound of the gun
so that you can remain in stealth mode. You can shoot enemies who have no idea where
you are because your gun is practically silent. The only sound the silenced Walther PPK makes
is a slight thwip. Unfortunately, real life is not like video
games. Silencers in the real world are slightly louder
than James Bond’s gun in the movies and video games. Let’s imagine a scenario that requires stealth
and precision. It is a highly sensitive mission to eliminate
a terrorist cell. A special forces squad is sent into an enemy
base to eliminate a key target. The squad needs to infiltrate the base and
deal with the threat as quietly as possible. Silence is key. The squad wants to reduce the risk of the
terrorists calling for reinforcements. The only way to do this is using silenced
weapons. The special forces team enters the enemy base
using night vision goggles to make their way in the dark. Their pistols and rifles are equipped with
silencers. As they eliminate each enemy the sound of
their weapons is so quiet that it sounds like a gentle breeze. Enemies who are in the next building cannot
hear the soldiers coming until it is too late. An enemy transport truck full of troops appears
on the horizon. It must be stopped. Luckily a second squad with a .50 caliber
heavy machine gun is mounted on the roof of a nearby building. They open up and unleash a barrage of bullets
on the enemy truck. Usually the heavy machine gun would create
enough sound to wake the dead, but this gun has been equipped with a silencer. The enemies in the transport are mowed down
and will cause no problems to the mission. The reduction of sound from the silencer ensures
that the enemies in the base have no idea that their comrades have been taken out. Then suddenly an enemy tank starts heading
towards the base the special forces squad is located in. Luckily the military planned for this. On a hill overlooking the area sits an artillery
cannon. It is equipped with a newly invented artillery
silencer. The cannon fires its explosive shells at the
tank. It is a direct hit. The tank explodes in flames and enemy soldiers
rush towards the tank and away from the special forces squad in the base. The enemy can’t figure out where the artillery
is located because the silencer has reduced the sound and muzzle flash of the cannon. The enemy is neutralized. The mission is a success. The soldiers head back to base. There were no casualties because of the stealthiness
of the mission. The target was eliminated and no enemy reinforcements
were called. Silencers ensured the mission was carried
out smoothly. They allowed the soldiers to work without
the enemy knowing that they were even there. Is this scenario possible? Could all of the weapons in this mission be
equipped with silencers? The answer is yes. Let’s explore how the military is using
silencers and how they work. There are numerous different manufacturers
of silencers, but all follow the same principle. A silencer must contain and slowly release
the gas and pressure of a fired bullet. Before we can discuss how the silencer itself
actually works, we need to talk about science. Stay with us, this will be relatively painless. The reason that a gun makes such a loud noise
when fired is because of the releasing of high pressure gas that has built up behind
a bullet. This gas is released from the narrow barrel
of the gun into the wide open air in an instant. Think of it like a bottle of champagne. The bottle is pressurized and the cork is
keeping all of the pressure in the bottle. When the cork is pulled off, the air pressure
inside the bottle is instantly released creating ripples in the air, which we hear as a “pop.” The same thing happens when a bullet leaves
the barrel of a gun. In order to shoot a bullet, a huge amount
of force is needed. This force is generated by the ignition of
gunpowder which causes an enormous pressure build up behind the bullet. To release the pressure the bullet is propelled
out of the gun. A gun uses around 3,000 pounds per square
inch of pressure to shoot a bullet. All of the pressure is released into the air
after the bullet is ejected from the barrel causing waves that we hear as sound to shoot
out in all directions. At the most basic level the silencer takes
all of the pressure behind the bullet and allows it to expand in a contained environment. If the pressure is allowed to expand, but
kept within the silencer, then the sound waves that would be created are also contained. Alright the science part is over, let’s
talk about the different components of a silencer. A silencer is typically screwed onto the barrel
of a gun and has a relatively large volume compared to the barrel. It is usually around 20 or 30 times larger
than the barrel of the gun itself. This allows the pressurized gas behind the
bullet to expand, but does not allow it to propagate away from the gun in the form of
sound waves. The pressure is still there and does get released,
but it is only about 60 psi after passing through the silencer. This creates a much quieter gun shot because
less intense sound waves are created. There is still a sound from the smaller pressure
being released, but it is nowhere near as loud as a gun without a silencer. It would be impossible to silence a gun completely
because the silencer would have to be massive. For this to happen the silencer would have
to be large enough to allow the gas to be depressurized completely before entering the
air. It would be like having a silencer the size
of a refrigerator on the end of your gun. The laws of physics will never allow a gun
to be completely silent because of the sonic boom from the bullet. Since a bullet moves faster than the speed
of sound it creates a sonic boom. It is the same principle as when fighter jets
break the sound barrier. This means that because of the laws of physics,
a sonic boom will occur once the bullet passes Mach 1. There is no way to stop the sonic boom of
a bullet unless you can break the laws of physics. We do not recommend doing this, as it could
create a singularity and destroy the planet. Silencers are made of strong metal that can
withstand high pressures and heat. The silencer works in two steps. When the gun is fired the bullet passes through
the barrel and silencer. In step one the silencer captures the gas
from the explosion of gunpowder and displaces the gas into the larger volume of the silencer. This reduces pressure. The silencer then restricts the flow of the
gas out of the muzzle, so the pressurized gas is released slowly and with minimal noise. Silencers work great for pistols, like James
Bond’s Walther PPK, and rifles. But what about heavy machine guns? The Navy is currently looking into silencers
for their M2A1 heavy machine gun. The M2 line of guns, also known as “Ma Deuce,”
have been used in various stages of combat since the 1930’s. They are used as an aerial support weapon
on aircrafts, defense guns on naval vessels, and mounted heavy machine guns for infantry. Needless to say the M2A1 is a versatile and
powerful weapon. If the M2A1 could be silenced it could be
used for a variety of new missions. Since it fires .50 caliber rounds the gun
makes a lot of noise. The large bullets require huge amounts of
pressure to be fired. The more pressure, the louder the sound waves
are that leave the barrel. The military wants a silencer that can lower
the decibel level and muzzle flash of the M2A1. However, they have made it clear that the
silencer can not reduce the cyclic rate of the gun, which is around 450 to 600 rounds
per minute. As of right now the military is prototyping
different silencers to equip on their heavy machine guns, but they have not chosen one
as of yet. One of the silencers that the military has
been testing is created by Delta P Design. They made a .50 caliber silencer using a 3D
printing method. This could be beneficial for the military,
because if a base needs more silencers all they need to do is print them using a 3D printer. Printing the silencers rather than putting
in an order and waiting for them to be shipped halfway around the world would be much more
efficient. This seems futuristic, but we have the technology
to do it right now. The Marines have been interested in using
more silencers in past years. As the technology has become better and more
cost effective it is being considered for missions. In 2017 a squad of marines made history by
being the first company to be equipped entirely with silenced small arms and machine guns. The U.S. Army has also been experimenting
with silencers, except theirs are much larger. They have been prototyping silencers for both
their 105 mm and 120 mm artillery guns. The artillery itself is tested around the
Chesapeake Bay. Nearby communities have been negatively affected
by the loud noises these artillery guns make when fired. So the Army decided to incorporate silencers
into its artillery testing for two reasons. The first reason is to reduce the noise of
the cannons to provide a tactical advantage. The second reason is to reduce the noise of
the cannons to cause less disruptions for the Chesapeake Bay residents. The silencers are gigantic (use photo: https://i.insider.com/595278dad084cc78008b5c0a?width=700&format=jpeg&auto=webp
Credit: Business Insider). They are lifted into position using steel
scaffolding and tilted to the correct elevation. The silencer itself is made out of reinforced
steel to withstand the incredible pressure and superheated gasses released by the cannon. It does not actually attach to the barrel
like with a pistol, because during recoil it could harm the turret. This could have disastrous consequences, such
as the shell impacting the side of the barrel and exploding before it is ejected. There have been leaked documents showing military
interest in a silencer patent for tanks. This silencer would attach to the muzzle of
the tank, so the vehicle could stay mobile. The holes on both artillery and tank suppressors
must be kept as small as possible to reduce the decibel level of the shot. The total cost of the current artillery silencer
is around $100,000. The military sees this high cost as acceptable,
since the artillery silencer reduces the noise of a fired shell by as much as 20 decibels. This is the difference between a running blender
and listening to your television at a normal volume. Silencers are used by the military to suppress
the sound waves of bullets when fired. This can be vital to maintain stealth during
a mission. Silencers also keep tactical positions of
soldiers and artillery hidden by reducing muzzle flash. Although silencers aren’t as quiet as video
games make them out to be, they do reduce the sound of weapons a significant amount. There is no way to stop a bullet from creating
a sonic boom, so when firing a gun there will always be some noise. The containment and slow release of pressurized
gas is the way that silencers take the deafening roar of a gun and make it only slightly louder
than James Bond’s Walther PPK in the movies. If you want to know more about military technology
watch our video US Military's Most Powerful Cannon – Electromagnetic Railgun. Or if you are into the stealth aspect of the
military watch Next Generation Stealth Bomber: B-21 Raider (What Do We Know About It?). Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t
forget to like, share, and subscribe. See you next time!
