Realistic Sniper and the Sniper's Future

http://www.cracked.com/article_20052_5-weapon-myths-you-probably-believe-thanks-to-movies.html

I've read an article from cracked.com and from this I've realized that sniping involves a lot of math. If there are any of you that know much more about snipers, I'd love you to pitch in some of your observations about them.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2540879/US-Military-testing-smart-rifle-automatically-aim-turn-ANYONE-sharp-shooter.html

However, there is new technology today that allows even beginners to shoot a sniper rifle accurately because it has an in-built computer that takes into effect the many circumstances that affect the bullet's trajectory. (It costs a hefty fee of 27,000 dollars though.) If this technology continues to proliferate, I just wonder how this'll change the future of snipers everywhere.

https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SniperDuel

From glossing over this article, I'm fantasizing about a potential sniper duel between characters now...

edited 5th Dec '15 7:34:56 PM by Victor_Skye

I can't offer a whole lot of personal insight into the art of the sniper, since I'm not a sniper. But I am a gunsmith, I've helped build a few sniper rifles, and received feedback from the people who used them.

Yes, long-range sharpshooting does require some complex math, but it's "fuzzy math." That is, the sniper could use a rangefinder to measure distance to the target, an anemometer to gauge wind speed and direction, etc. But reading instruments and doing calculations takes too long in the field, and it distracts the sniper from his primary objective. By the time he's crunched all the numbers and come up with an answer, his target has moved and the opportunity is gone.

Instead, they use a method called SWAG: Scientific Wild-Ass Guess. They learn to judge the external factors like range and wind instinctively, put it all together in their heads without too much cogitation, and adjust their aim according to what "feels right." Or else, they do most of the measurements and math beforehand, when they first set up in their perch/nest/whatchamacallit — but only if they have time, and know where the target is likely to appear.

That fancy "smart rifle" might help a little bit by doing the calculations faster and more accurately, but it's not the "instant sniper" gadget that it's touted to be. A sniper has to do more than just point the gun. He has to somehow make his squishy human body into a stable shooting platform, control his breathing, and control his trigger squeeze so that his sights stay aligned and the gun goes off between his heartbeats.

One thing a sniper absolutely must have is keen eyesight. Like fighter pilots and race car drivers, they have to be able to see things in sharp focus a long way out ahead of them. 20/20 uncorrected is the rock-bottom minimum acceptable. A good scope helps, but it can't find and identify a target for you; that's where "situational awareness" comes in.

Another thing is mindset. Snipers are generally not aggressive by nature, nor are they the cold-blooded killers that some fiction portrays them as. Instead, they tend to adopt a sort of Zen-like mentality. They're very patient and deliberate, and when they're lining up a shot, nothing else exists but their eye and the target. No moralizing, no distractions, nothing but an abstract challenge to one's skill.

If there are any real-life snipers out there, and anything I've said is obviously wrong, please feel free to correct me.

edited 6th Dec '15 6:56:14 PM by pwiegle