Laser Powers Lockheed Martin's Stalker Drone For 48 Hours

garymortimer writes "Lockheed Martin (LMT) and LaserMotive, Inc., recently demonstrated the capabilities of an innovative laser power system to extend the Stalker Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) flight time to more than 48 hours. This increase in flight duration represents an improvement of 2,400 percent. Stalker is a small, silent UAS used by Special Operations Forces since 2006 to perform intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions."

Comments

It was a test indoors, so what?

[Anonymous Coward]

From the article, "At the conclusion of the flight test, held in a wind tunnel,"

So they've pointed a laser at a photocell indoors, this is so far from doing it over hostile territory as to be laughable.

Power it from above

[Gothmolly]

You can power them from satellites rather than ground based - you'll escape all the dust and much of the atmospheric crap, and your power will be free from the sun. Park a satellite over the Middle East and you have LOS everywhere.