Comments | crashska: High powered lasers, oh boy!

crashska

High powered lasers, oh boy!

Jun 14, 2010 14:08

As a pilot, this scares the crap out of me. Wicked Lasers has built a laser 'pointer' that features a 1-watt diode from an LCD projector. To put this in perspective, that crappy laser pointer on a keychain is usually less than 1 milliwatt. This is about 1000 times as powerful.

Most people know it's illegal to illuminate aircraft. Being hit by ( Read more... )

Comments 6

terrycloth June 14 2010, 21:39:27 UTC

*boggles at the safety warnings*

Apparently you're not supposed to look at even the diffuse reflected light from this laser with the safety goggles on. Without the goggles, it can cause instant blindness.

I'm pretty sure this thing *is* a weapon. O.O One banned by the geneva convention, IIRC.

Set Phasers to...? kliefox June 14 2010, 22:19:41 UTC

Whoa, that seems way the hell overboard to just a laser "pointer." XP

Yes, I definitely see potential for non-lethal weapon applications
for this doo-dad.

crashska June 14 2010, 22:32:47 UTC

Yeah, coherent light is dangerous stuff. I'm not sure if it would qualify as a weapon under the GC- out of curiosity I'm going to check, but it's certainly not being built as a weapon, but the potential to weaponize it is there.

Then again as John Redcorn points out, "that's true of almost any tool."

I don't think the Geneva Convention does not addresses specific weapon systems, but there is a UN convention that does- the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (with Protocols I, II and III). Protocol IV deals with blinding laser weapons. I haven't read the full protocol, but from the specific language used on the page, I would assume it does NOT deal with laser weapons whose primary or secondary purpose is other than causing blindness or eye damage.

stokerbramwell June 15 2010, 03:52:54 UTC

Why would ANYONE need a laser pointer that powerful??

I hope the FAA is aware of this thing by now.

High powered lasers, oh boy! sheepdog July 1 2010, 20:11:46 UTC

I got strafed late one night heading down the frontage road to the Gear Jammer in Yakima.
All the cracks in my windshield lit up red and I couldn't see for a couple seconds. Fortunatly I was going slow enough to stop, in sight of a cop trying to hide his radar gun from my view.
I should have filed a compliant, but I was so tired all I did was rub my eyes and give him the finger as I took off again.