Green lasers and airplanes???

[glen]

Every now and then you hear a story about airplanes being targeted by green lasers.

Ok, does that mean Al-Qaeda is using a laser targeting system to lock onto an airplane for the purpose of destroying it with an anti-aircraft missile?

Is it a mad scientist in Canada, with laser so powerful, that the beam itself is going to melt the plane?

Or, does it mean some 10 year old kid and his best friend just walked outside with their Dad?s laser pointer, and tried to shine it on an airplane?

If it is the first 2, or something similar, that is news. If it is a couple of kids with a laser pointer, wtf??? Why is that news? Isn?t it a bit misleading for the press to report it, technically accurately, but implying something much more sinister?

 

[moshquerade]

And don't forget about sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads.

 

[Safeway]

They could blind the pilots with their wicked lasers.

 

[glen]

So, do you all thik it is just soem kids with laser pointers, or is it real news?

 

[dullard]

Every time I've seen news on it, the news clearly said it was some kid or his dad having fun. It is news because it can blind a pilot and kill 100+ people for this 'innocent' fun. Think if it as a Public Service Announcement (PSA).

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: glen
So, do you all thik it is just soem kids with laser pointers, or is it real news?

It's an overreaction to non-news. Is it theoretically possible to blind a pilot doing this...yeah, probably. Is anyone out there actively trying to do it....I seriously, seriously doubt it.

 

[elektrolokomotive]

Originally posted by: moshquerade
And don't forget about sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads.

Sorry... couldn't get sharks. Will sea bass do?

 

[Rubycon]

It's people being stupid with laser pointers, that is all.

Text

 

[gwrober]

Originally posted by: moshquerade
And don't forget about sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads.

Genius! ROFL

 

[glen]

If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

It appears that you know nothing about high powered lasers.

 

[Kadarin]

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

The green lasers are not "laser pointers".

 

[glen]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

It appears that you know nothing about high powered lasers.

Well, go ahead and tell me.
Do they magically get moer powerful the further away, or the more glass you go through?

 

[GasX]

I bet it is real east to target the windshield on a plane 35000ft up in the sky going 500+mph...

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

It appears that you know nothing about high powered lasers.

The lasers used in these cases were class IIIa (< 5mW) CW output.

It would take a class IV (>499 mW) of considerable power in the 10W range with OUTSTANDING optical characteristics (< 0.5 mR divergence) to put enough light in the eye at great distance (10km) to do lasting damage. What even a pointer CAN do is flashblind which is a major distraction as the pilot's night vision is severely hampered.

Even in the case with the class IV laser, it would take a tracking device to maintain pointing stability. The people pointing planes can do it at night because the beam even on a pointer is very visible and it's possible to flash it by windows of aircraft. From far away it the flash would be like getting a 10mcd green LED in your eyes.

From 5 feet away, the beam on most pointers is going to be less than the iris opening but the eyes reflex can blink in time so that damaging exposure does not occur. Increasing the power beyond 5mW increases the danger significantly. At 100 mw, a direct hit so close will cause eye damage - the most common is spotting. Imagine taking a sharpie and making a dot the size of a penny on your monitor and having that in your vision - permanently. Not fun. Lasers are not toys.

There is no evidence that lasers of class IIIb or higher powers were used in these incidents. Either way it's foolish.

 

[yuppiejr]

http://www.equipped.org/lasers_airliners.htm

 

[Spoooon]

Originally posted by: Mwilding
I bet it is real east to target the windshield on a plane 35000ft up in the sky going 500+mph...

The guy in the linked article aimed his laser at a plane as it was landing.

edit: Argh, I think I mixed up articles. Regardless, I think the greater danger lies in scenarios like that, where the pilot doesn't have much time for distractions.

 

[glen]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

It appears that you know nothing about high powered lasers.

It appears that I never mentioned them.
It appears, you know nothing about the thread.
The lasers in question, are, it appears, not the least bit harmful.

 

[Safeway]

Originally posted by: Spoooon

Originally posted by: Mwilding
I bet it is real east to target the windshield on a plane 35000ft up in the sky going 500+mph...

The guy in the linked article aimed his laser at a plane as it was landing.

edit: Argh, I think I mixed up articles. Regardless, I think the greater danger lies in scenarios like that, where the pilot doesn't have much time for distractions.

While landing?! No good, man.

 

[sdifox]

Far more likely to get stinger to take out the airliner than blinding the pilot with a frigging linear device like a laser. We don't have any access to actuators accurate enough to hit a pilot's eye while the pilot is flying the jetliner. Even during landing, since they circle til final approach and final approach is usually angled slightly upwards, ie the nose is kept up.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: glen
So, do you all thik it is just soem kids with laser pointers, or is it real news?

Green lasers are a lot more powerful than the red laser pointers kids usually play with.

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: glen
So, do you all thik it is just soem kids with laser pointers, or is it real news?

Green lasers are a lot more powerful than the red laser pointers kids usually play with.

That's a myth. Both are commonly equal in power up to the FDA/CDRH limit of 4.99 mW. The green DPSS pointers are 532nm which the human eye is far more sensitive to. It makes them appear much brighter, however the optical power remains the same.

Some of the cheap "flea market" specials (670nm red with nothing more than a battery, switch, resistor, laser diode and asphere collimator) measure in excess of 5 mW. Some can be "modded" to put out 10mW+ (usually short lived!) by adding another LR44 "button" cell in the bottom. Even at 10 mW, 670 nm looks far dimmer than 1mW 532.

 

[SoulAssassin]

I still want a damn phased-plasma rifle in the forty watt range.

 

[KLin]

Originally posted by: glen

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: glen
If you can't blind someone at 5 feet with a laser pointer, how the heck is it going to hurt an airplane pilot a mile away, through the thick glass on the air plane?

It appears that you know nothing about high powered lasers.

It appears that I never mentioned them.
It appears, you know nothing about the thread.
The lasers in question, are, it appears, not the least bit harmful.

Why did you respond to him in 2 different posts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_pointer#Hazards

 

[glen]

Originally posted by: KLin

Why did you respond to him in 2 different posts?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_pointer#Hazards

Huh?