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"Nils Thune"

The magnetic accelerator cannon, also referred to as a mass accelerator cannon or MAC, is a type of starship-mounted weapon system employed by humanity, primarily the spacecraft of the United Nations Space Command. MACs are coilguns used in military applications, though similar technology can be used in civilian mass drivers for industrial use.

Overview
MACs are fitted as a standard armament on most UNSC Navy vessels, ranging from small s to s and even carriers or refit civilian ships such as the. With a handful of exceptions, MACs are typically spinally-mounted, meaning that the entire ship is built around the gun, with the cannon running a significant portion of the length of the ship's stern. However, the technology is not exclusively used in spinally-mounted MAC guns, with naval autocannons (themselves sometimes referred to as "MiniMACs") and even ground-based weapons such as the M68 Gauss cannon and M99 Stanchion operating on the same principle.

Operation
MACs operate on the basis of a coilgun. When firing, a series of stacked asynchronous linear induction motors are sequentially activated, propelling a projectile with vast amounts of kinetic energy. The construction of the weapon takes the form of a series of coiled conducting wires (or solenoids). When a solenoid is activated, the projectile is attracted to the coil. As the projectile reaches the coil, a second coil is activated, attracting the projectile further down the barrel of the gun. This process is repeated as the projectile travels the length of the gun, with each successive solenoid accelerating the projectile to higher and higher velocities. As such, the longer a MAC's length is, the faster the muzzle velocity of the fired projectile.

This process differs from that of a railgun - a similar weapon system which feeds electrical current through a projectile to accelerate it along two conducting rails.

To fire a MAC, UNSC ships must draw power from the fusion reactor into a series of capacitors, storing the generated energy for firing. As such, charging the MAC draws power away from other sub-systems such as engines. As such, a MAC can be pre-charged and fired when ready, though at the cost of power to the aforementioned systems. Without the charge being maintained, the charge level does deteriorate. However, MACs can be fired at lower charge levels than 100% though likely to lesser maximum velocity. Likewise, firing the weapon at lower charge rates would also allow the weapon to fire more often, if needed.

Ammunition
MACs are capable of firing a wide array of munitions, depending on bore and model. Some MAC rounds are extremely dense and constructed of ferric tungsten, noted by Captain Wallace of the frigate as a "heavy round". In the case of the MACs fitted onto the refit-colony ship, the rounds fired from its MACs are "ultra-light" or consist of depleted uranium slugs. Other munitions that can be fired from MACs include semi-autonomous drone missiles and for the larger 27 metre guns of, even include cargo pods and small spacecraft. A special kind of MAC round fired by the refit- was composed of a ferrous core and an outer layer of tungsten carbide, which allows the round to splinter on impact with an enemy vessel similarly to the shredder rounds fired by an assault rifle.

Due to this variation, the masses, velocities and sizes of MAC projectiles can very, ranging from 10 metre-long, 160 ton models fired by frigates and cruisers, to 600 ton depleted uranium models fired by s up to 3,000 ton projectiles accelerated to "point four-tenths" of the speed of light by the orbital defense platforms above Reach. The MACs of are additionally capable of firing various "sub-caliber" munitions for its massive twenty-seven metre bore, alongside some of the special types mentioned prior.

Usage
"MAC rounds? In atmosphere?"

- Jorge-052 exclaiming his alarm at the intent to fire the MAC of during the Fall of Reach.

Types of MAC
MACs are primarily divided into two distinct classifications; light MACs and heavy MACs (also referred to as Light Coil and Heavy Coil). Overall MAC generations are denoted as Marks, with specific models given a unique identifying code. Heavy MACs appear to be typically fitted on mainline fighting vessels such as those of the and, while light MACs are predominantly fitted on lighter warships such as the Charon and Stalwart frigate classes, ships not intended as line warships such as the Epoch class carrier or ships historically considered under-gunned as capital ships, such as the.

Some of the largest MAC types, such as those found on select orbital defense platforms and large warships, are referred to as "Super MACs".

Mark II
The Mark II MAC is a light coil system, with its variants found on the Charon and Stalwart frigate classifications, alongside the Epoch-class carrier and refit Halcyon-class cruiser.
 * Mark II, Light Coil - 56A2D4/MAC - Employed on the  and post-refit Halcyon-class cruiser . On the Stalwart-class frigate, the gun is stored in the lower boom of the ship while the gun's pulsed power-storage and fire-control systems are stored in the upper hull. In the case of the refit Pillar of Autumn, the 56A2D4 runs two-thirds the length of the ship and employed special magnetic field recyclers along its length, that when combined with booster capacitors allowed the gun to fire three times in rapid succession.
 * Mark II, Light Coil - 52A6F9/MAC - Employed on the, this system is a rapid-fire variant of the 52A6D4 model. On an Epoch, this weapon is intended as a defensive weapon though it was sometimes employed to add to coordinated volleys of fire.
 * Mark II, Light Coil - 83B6R3/MAC - Employed on the.

Mark IV
The Mark IV MAC is installed on the.
 * Mark IV, Heavy Coil - 94B1E6/MAC - The 94B1E6 heavy MAC has twelve massive capacitor banks, allowing the Strident class firepower comparable to destroyers and light cruisers. This gun's limitation comes in the limited ammo supply carried aboard the ship.

Mark V
The Mark V MAC is part of the "Super MAC" classification of MAC. This MAC is the central armament of the orbital defense guns stationed over Reach in 2552 and the over Earth. The Mark V Superheavy MACs found over Reach were capable of accelerating a 3,000 ton projectile to "point four-tenths" of lightspeed.
 * Mark V, 14D4AA1 MAC - Employed on the Moncton orbital defense platform, such as Cairo Station. This gun can accelerate multi-ton rounds to "several kilometres per second".

Mark IX
The Mark IX is a heavy MAC fitted on the.
 * Mark IX, Heavy Coil - 45J3D3/MAC - fitted onto the Autumn-class cruiser.

Series 8
The Series 8 MACs are fitted onto the - nameplay the lead ship of the class. Series 8s were intended for inclusion on the, though the weapons were since installed on Infinity as an upgrade package.
 * CR-03 Series 8 MAC - Initial model also known as the CR03S8 MAC. Fielded on, these guns have a twenty-seven metre bore.
 * CR-03B Series 8 MAC - Refit package model integrated late in 2558, though originally intended for the Eternity.