China tested a handheld submarine detector. It tracked a subway train underground

AI Summary

Chinese scientists developed a handheld quantum magnetometer designed to detect submarines and demonstrated it by tracking a subway train underground. The device is compact and energy efficient, representing a notable advancement in magnetic sensing technology.

Chinese researchers have showed a handheld quantum magnetometer built for hunting submarines in a striking real-world test: it tracked a subway train rumbling beneath a city street. The device, developed by Peng Xinhua and colleagues at the University of Science and Technology of China, is described in a study published on September 14 in Acta Physica Sinica. Though it is scarcely larger than a pencil and draws only 5 watts of power, it can isolate the magnetic disturbance caused by a moving...