World's most powerful supergun 'can obliterate targets from 100 miles'

The "supergun" can destroy a target from 100 miles away using a bullet that fires at five times the speed of sound.

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The shot fired at the Naval Surface Warfare Centre in Dahigren, Virginia generated 33 megajoules of force out of the barrel.

This is the highest amount ever measured for muzzle energy - the kinetic energy of a bullet as it is expelled from a firearm - and more than three times that previously recorded in January 2008.

The makers claim the electromagnetic railgun fires a 20lb bullet with pinpoint accuracy.

Electrical energy generates the force with which the bullet is fired. At speeds approaching Mach 8 the bullet does not explode on impact but obliterates the target through sheer power.

Military chiefs hope that it will allow warfare to be conducted at greater distances.

Rear Adm. Nevin Carr, chief of naval research, said:"The 33-megajoule shot means the Navy can fire projectiles at least 110 nautical miles, placing sailors and marines at a safe standoff distance and out of harm's way and the high velocities achievable are tactically relevant for air and missile defense.

"This demonstration moves us one day closer to getting this advanced capability to sea."