Comments on: Scientist brings laser engines into realm of possibility

By: Brian Wang

Brian Wang — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 22:13:55 +0000

We will not know how well we can maintain beam quality until we try to do it. (Other than computer simulations and calculations based on experiments, known physics where we can put calculated bounds on what to expect)

Since laser light is bouncing around a hundred or hundred thousand times then each 0.01% to 1% tweaks will start making huge differences.

BEA institute is already getting 3000 reflections, although that is in a lab setting.

By: Paul Raven

Paul Raven — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 10:26:34 +0000

This is why I have such a passive editing style – our readers are some of the best fact-checkers around!

By: Jeremy Eades

Jeremy Eades — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 07:37:51 +0000

Woops, looks like sail technology and ground-based lasers Shoulda clicked through the links first.

By: Jeremy Eades

Jeremy Eades — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 07:34:17 +0000

Thank you for the input, Mr. Wang. I can see how a lack of accuracy would create some problems, especially when talking about such vast distances.

If you read this, I’m curious as to whether this propulsion would be placed on the spacecraft, or would it be ground-based where the spacecraft would have a kind of target for the laser to hit?

By: Paul Raven

Paul Raven — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 18:01:30 +0000

Thanks, Brian! Anyone reading Futurismic should probably be reading Brian’s blog too, because he really knows the detailed ins and outs of the technologies we talk about here.