Smoke-Like 'Invisibility Cloak' Underway for US Troops to Replace the Controversial White Phosphorus

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced that they are working on a smoke-like shield that acts like an "invisibility cloak" for US troops on the battlefield.

This invisibility cloak will make the troops invisible to enemies and allow them to see their surroundings. This invention aims to replace the controversial white phosphorus currently in use to create a smoke screen. Although it effectively obscures the enemies from spotting the soldiers, it causes severe burns when it comes in contact with the skin.

(Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images)
A U.S. Army infantry soldier runs through a cloud of smoke during media training at the U.S. Army Infantry Center on December 17, 2002, in Fort Benning, Georgia.

Coded Visibility from DARPA

The Coded Visibility (CV) program started in July 2022 and is set to last 54 months to make the invisibility cloak. For now, it is still in its early stages, but DARPA said that it could consist of liquid aerosol spray or engineered material. They added that the obscurant would be deployed in specific ways, allowing only one-way vision through the smoke.

The agency has selected several universities in the country to research, develop, and test obscurants that will meet its criteria. Some of the proposed obscurants are composed of multiple particulates made up of tailored properties and tunable particles and demonstrate passive asymmetric and asymmetric vision in the lab, pilot, and field tests.

These scientific teams will develop new obscurants and simulation tools that use plumes and assess the performance of sensors. CV program manager Rohith Chandrasekar from DARPA's Defense Sciences Office said in the press release that the teams aim to develop new types of non-hazardous obscurant that allow US and allied troops to see the enemy through the plume in one direction while the enemy is unable to see through it.

Passive asymmetry would require more materials to make to allow for one-way vision. But they are also exploring active asymmetry that only requires a single obscurant material that can be tuned in real-time.

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CVs Could Be Better Than White Phosphorus

MailOnline reported that the US military uses white phosphorus to create a smoke screen. However, this harmful chemical can cause severe burns when it comes in contact with the skin, lasting up to eight hours. Unfortunately, many civilians get caught up in these wars and become victims.

The chemical was suspected to be used in 2019 in Syria, in which horrifying footage of the mayhem showed severely burned children. One of the footage was taken when Turkey bombed the Kurds. Even though they are banned from using the chemical, British chemical weapons expert Hamish de-Bretton said that the injuries look consistent with white phosphorus.

The photo features a 12-year-old boy brought to a hospital in Tal Tamr whose skin appeared to have melted. He was given a dose of morphine when the medics arrived. Reports said that he spent 12 hours in agony before receiving treatment.

DARPA hopes that the new obscurant will effectively acct as an invisibility cloak and be safe to not only those who will come into contact with it but also those who might inhale it. Due to the hazardous nature of the current obscurant use in the military, the US troops would have to use respirators on the field.