Communication Antennas Made From Water

The US Navy R&D lab, SPAWAR, has developed a new technology that could use seawater as communications equipment. The SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific is using the magnetic induction properties of the sodium chloride in sea water to build temporary communication antennas that could replace the large and heavy antenna arrays that occupy significant space on naval warships. The new system created by the Navy consists primarily of a water pump and an electromagnetic ring which creates a magnetic field through which the pump shoots a stream of seawater. This stream, when controlled, can transmit and receive signals on various frequencies.

Apart from potentially replacing antenna arrays on warships, these saltwater antennas can also be used as communication systems on land and offshore oil rigs.

Watch a video about this technology below:

SPAWAR

[via Popsci]