Michele Malkin is reporting on a story out of Cleveland of someone using a laser to track a commercial airliner. In September she covered a story of a Delta pilot who was possibly injured by a laser that penetrated the cockpit. She included this statement from the Federation of American Scientists

Anti-personnel laser weapons are inexpensive, sold openly by the Third World, have line-of-sight aiming, and are capable of producing catastrophic results if used against aircrews and sensors in flight (especially during takeoffs and landings). Commercially available laser weapons include the ZM-87, developed by the Chinese and first displayed at the International Defense Exhibition in 1995. In addition, the Russians sell a truck-mounted high-energy laser. And the University of Tasmania in Hobart sells a CO2 laser system for controlling forest undergrowth. The system is used to ignite logging debris from distances of 100 to 1,500 meters. The laser, costing $86,500, is mounted on a gun turret carried in a 2-ton truck and is simple to operate. Similar systems are available commercially throughout the world.

When I read this post I remembered something I saw at The Nap Room.

LaserShoppe.com is selling a 100mW handheld laser for $699. Their description of the product: (emphasis original)

We are offering this laser for sale to responsible adults only.  This laser is not a toy.  This is not a modified laser pointer, or any kind of scam like you may have seen on eBay.  This is a legitimate high-power laser instrument.  It will cast a dot on the clouds and burn a hole through a plastic cup from across the room.  It is guaranteed to be above 100mW in output power, but that is a very conservative power rating.  In actuality, these lasers usually have an output between 150mW and 200mW.  I have one here the measures 191mW!  Compare this to the 3 to 5mW of a good quality regular green laser pointer, and you get an idea how powerful this laser really is.  This laser is not legal to use in public, and while we are not asking for any proof that the buyer is qualified to own this device, we trust that it will be used in a responsible fashion.  This is a Class IIIb laser device. 

This laser takes 2 “C” size batteries.  This is a Diode Pumped Solid State laser operating at a wavelength of 532nm.  The housing is constructed of very thick aluminum with heatsink cooling fins in the front.  It has a very solid feel in your hand.  The power switch is a “click-on” type, so it can be locked in the “on” position.  The whole BEAM is CLEARLY visible (not just the dot at the end of the beam like with weaker lasers).  Since the beam is visible in the air for as far as you can see, it makes for a great way to point out objects in the night sky to other observers, and it will be visible to people for miles around.  You will not see a laser like this anywhere else, at any price.  You may see people selling modified laser pointers on eBay or elsewhere on the Internet.  This laser is in a whole different class.  You cannot even begin to compare this laser to a “laser pointer.”  In fact, this laser makes a terrible pointer, because the dot is so bright it's painful to look at.  If you tried to use it as a pointer to give a presentation, the people watching the presentation would be looking away due to the intense light, and there would be burn marks all over the things you were trying to point out!  This laser carries a six-month warranty. 

A word of caution - This laser can be DANGEROUS. Please NEVER point this laser at a person, a vehicle, an animal, an aircraft, or operate it in an environment where the reflected beam can hit your face. Like all high-power lasers, if the beam from this laser hits your eyes, it can cause blindness.  This laser must be treated like a loaded gun at all times.

It's comforting to know that this device is essentially being offered to anyone with $699 of available credit on their VISA card with the trust that is will be used in a responsible fashion. I'll try to remember that sense of trust the next time I climb onto an airplane.

Posted by: Stephen Macklin at 05:56 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment