Slashdot Mirror
Laser System to be Tested in Boulder, CO
luv_jeeps writes "Ball Aerospace is going to test fire a laser beam on Sunday night, as part of the CALIPSO project. If you live in the Colorado/Wyoming area, chances are good that you could see it. The article, a little light on details, says that the beam could be as big around as a basketball hoop."
The one that begins with the letter L is real.
The other is from a fiction TV show.
So this must be pure science fiction? And this research is also fiction, then? If not, then laser energy can superheat air and cause sound problems. Why would it be so ridiculous for me to think a laser the size of a basketball hoop might not have the same effect? (Of course, if I had RTFA more carefully, I might have seen the energy reference -- you're right, it's small-scale.)
Why does air have to be turned into "superhot plasma" to make a sonic boom? A supersonic jet doesn't superheat air, per se, it displaces it. A nighthawk doesn't superheat the air, but produces a sonic boom with its tailfeathers.
And since when did anyone say anything about outer space? The event is happening in Colorado. (Not far from outer space, actually, but...)
And you don't have to be a jerk about how incredibly knowledgeable you are -- we get it without the barbs.