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ArcticMyst Security by Avery

Help - I need distance

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Hi All,

I hope I'm not stepping on any toes by posting this here - I'm new.
My title says it all: I need help, I need distance :)
I'm seeking a laser that goes a great distance - i.e. outside the Earth's atmosphere. Is this possible?
[EDIT: What I actually mean here is a laser that can be seen from outside the Earth's atmosphere, so that one could almost determine it's origin. For example, can a laser be seen from the ISS]
Is there a relatively cheap way I can achieve this without risking €600 (which I don't have) on a dodgy website, or do I have to make this myself?
In your reply, please mention details like mw, laser colour etc and any links etc would be great.
Thanks very much indeed if you can help me.

Best of luck,
Patrick :thinking:
 
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Hello Patrick,

You should first make a thread to introduce yourself in the "Welcome" section linked below. Welcome - Laser Pointer Forums - Discuss Laser Pointers

Regarding your question. All lasers beam, regardless of color will travel to infinity and past the Earth's atmosphere. Being able to see the beam that far is a different story. You won't be seeing a lasers beam into the sky during the day, so I would recommend a 1W 520 diode and build yourself your own laser. This wavelength is closer to the 507 peak nighttime vision then the 532's, and is cheaper then a 532 at similar powers. :)

https://sites.google.com/site/dtrlpf/home/diodes/1w-nugm01t-520nm-laser-diode

Or if you rather buy from a trusted seller, click below with no building involved.
http://jetlasers.org/pl-e-pro/13-pl-e-pro-520nm-diode-green-laser.html#/1-finish-black/34-power_levels-1w/53-switch_type-pl_e_mechanical/52-10x_beam_expander-no/90-ac_adapter-no/50-battery-no/49-goggles-no


-Alex
 
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As Alex has already explained, all laser light, or any light for that matter, continues on forever unless it meets a particle or larger matter to stop it or reflect or refract it. That doesn't mean that it can be seen at great distances as even low diverging laser light does diverge and at a point is no longer visible even at power levels far past anything we have available to us. What I think you are looking for doesn't exist at any price and is just fantasy. High power lasers used to bounce off the moon to measure it's distance down to fractions of a meter only are able to capture a single photon or two having made a round trip of less than 500,000 miles. So, even 6,000 pounds wouldn't get you what you are looking for.
 
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Hello Patrick,

You should first make a thread to introduce yourself in the "Welcome" section linked below. Welcome - Laser Pointer Forums - Discuss Laser Pointers

Regarding your question. All lasers beam, regardless of color will travel to infinity and past the Earth's atmosphere. Being able to see the beam that far is a different story. You won't be seeing a lasers beam into the sky during the day, so I would recommend a 1W 520 diode and build yourself your own laser. This wavelength is closer to the 507 peak nighttime vision then the 532's, and is cheaper then a 532 at similar powers. :)

https://sites.google.com/site/dtrlpf/home/diodes/1w-nugm01t-520nm-laser-diode

Or if you rather buy from a trusted seller, click below with no building involved.
520nm green laser pointer, 520nm 700mW 1000mW green lasers, 700mW 1w green laser diode 520nm JETLASERS


-Alex

Hi Alex,

Thank you so much for clarifying the forum etiquette and explaining what the options are re lasers. I did know that light goes to infinity but I ws wondering rather, as you mentioned, if the laser could be seen from space :)
I think I'd like to make my own because it's a very interesting topic. I seek distance, not burning, lol.
I'll introduce myself formally in a moment but unsure about how much I should say. I'll be open with you here and hope it doesn't go viral, lol. My interest is a laser that could be seen from space by anything that's out there, thus directing them to me. I know it sounds crazy but I have had many sightings and they're getting madder so I want to get to the bottom of this, so to speak. Should I be seeking power, instead of distance for this purpose? I'm interested in the CE-5 Protocols but I'm more of a lone wolf - people and their egos collide, usually in a negative way.
I am sane :)

Cheers again Alex.

Patrick
p.s. Check out the laser I bought, below. Do you think it would suit my purposes?

10 miles Green + Star Cap 5MW 532NM Laser Pointer Pen Lazer Light Beam Zoom Burn | eBay
 

Benm

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I'm not really sure what you want to do here.

If i just grab any laser here and point it at the sky the beam will bascially go on for eternity unless it hits something it its way. I could point at a star 100 lightyears away and in 100 years the light will get there. Due to divergence it will certainly not be visible to the human eye, but chances are at least one photon from my simple laser will impact a planet around that star.

I have no idea what you're going for there, but there have been some practical tests: If you aim a 1 watt laser at the ISS they can see it up there quite easily if you aim well and the know roughly where to look. To repeat this feat on the moon or mars would be a lot more difficult, but probably not impossbile to pull off.
 
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As Alex has already explained, all laser light, or any light for that matter, continues on forever unless it meets a particle or larger matter to stop it or reflect or refract it. That doesn't mean that it can be seen at great distances as even low diverging laser light does diverge and at a point is no longer visible even at power levels far past anything we have available to us. What I think you are looking for doesn't exist at any price and is just fantasy. High power lasers used to bounce off the moon to measure it's distance down to fractions of a meter only are able to capture a single photon or two having made a round trip of less than 500,000 miles. So, even 6,000 pounds wouldn't get you what you are looking for.

Hi :)
I know about infinite light etc, as I said to Alex there :)
Well explained on diverging laser light.
So, it's fantasy :(
Or a worthy project lol. Something for the future ...
6,000 pounds! Haven't seen one of those in a while :)
 
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I'm not really sure what you want to do here.

If i just grab any laser here and point it at the sky the beam will bascially go on for eternity unless it hits something it its way. I could point at a star 100 lightyears away and in 100 years the light will get there. Due to divergence it will certainly not be visible to the human eye, but chances are at least one photon from my simple laser will impact a planet around that star.

I have no idea what you're going for there, but there have been some practical tests: If you aim a 1 watt laser at the ISS they can see it up there quite easily if you aim well and the know roughly where to look. To repeat this feat on the moon or mars would be a lot more difficult, but probably not impossbile to pull off.

I must clear up that thing about the distance lol. See my replies and my edited questions, soon.
But you say it could be seen from the ISS - that's enough and suits my purpose.
 
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I must clear up that thing about the distance lol. See my replies and my edited questions, soon.
But you say it could be seen from the ISS - that's enough and suits my purpose.

Really, the best option you are going to have is to get a DPSS 532 then. It won't be as bright as a 520 at night, but the divergence of a 532 will more then make up for it on distance vs the 520. Jetlasers, which I linked above, also has a line of 532 lasers. Their strongest option, the 800mW one, would probably suit your needs. It'll be bright to you on the ground, but unless people from space know where to look(as mentioned by Benm) then it'll appear almost invisible 100's of miles up above! :)

PL-E Pro 532nm Green Lasers

-Alex
 
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Really, the best option you are going to have is to get a DPSS 532 then. It won't be as bright as a 520 at night, but the divergence of a 532 will more then make up for it on distance vs the 520. Jetlasers, which I linked above, also has a line of 532 lasers. Their strongest option, the 800mW one, would probably suit your needs. It'll be bright to you on the ground, but unless people from space know where to look(as mentioned by Benm) then it'll appear almost invisible 100's of miles up above! :)

PL-E Pro 532nm Green Lasers

-Alex
Thanks Alex, and everyone else, for your help. It certainly all is food for thought.
Right now, I'm about to go out to view the Perseid meteor shower. It peaks tonight, just after midnight, so it's either last orders or an night-time sky-show :)
I sent you a pm to ask if I should delete this thread because my phrasing was confusing. What do you think?
:)
 
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Thanks Alex, and everyone else, for your help. It certainly all is food for thought.
Right now, I'm about to go out to view the Perseid meteor shower. It peaks tonight, just after midnight, so it's either last orders or an night-time sky-show :)
I sent you a pm to ask if I should delete this thread because my phrasing was confusing. What do you think?
:)

Sounds fun! :beer: I replied. No reason to delete this thread. You are simply trying to get a laser to signal the ISS or other "space aliens" correct? :evil:

Also, please do make sure to get proper safety goggles. Whilst you may only be using this for sky pointing, one hit and no more vision for you at those powers!

-Alex
 
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Sounds fun! :beer: I replied. No reason to delete this thread. You are simply trying to get a laser to signal the ISS or other "space aliens" correct? :evil:

Also, please do make sure to get proper safety goggles. Whilst you may only be using this for sky pointing, one hit and no more vision for you at those powers!

-Alex
Yup - it's for the guys in the skies.
Waiting for the goggles in the post and only using the laser outside so I'll be kitted out soon.
Does the laser I got seem like a good one to you? It promises 10 mile visibility. It is VERY bright. I was so happy with it that I ordered another because I always get a backup and they might get banned some day ...
 
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Yup - it's for the guys in the skies.
Waiting for the goggles in the post and only using the laser outside so I'll be kitted out soon.
Does the laser I got seem like a good one to you? It promises 10 mile visibility. It is VERY bright. I was so happy with it that I ordered another because I always get a backup and they might get banned some day ...

Those eBay 532's aren't very good to be honest. At least the majority of them. Take a look at the white search bar towards the bottom of the page and type eBay 532. You'll get tons of threads on how they are as overall lasers.

-Alex
 
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Those eBay 532's aren't very good to be honest. At least the majority of them. Take a look at the white search bar towards the bottom of the page and type eBay 532. You'll get tons of threads on how they are as overall lasers.

-Alex

Cheers Alex,
Will do :)
 

Encap

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Yup - it's for the guys in the skies.
Waiting for the goggles in the post and only using the laser outside so I'll be kitted out soon.
Does the laser I got seem like a good one to you? It promises 10 mile visibility. It is VERY bright. I was so happy with it that I ordered another because I always get a backup and they might get banned some day ...


As Alex has mentioned several times---have a look at JetLasers for a professional grade high quality laser see: http://jetlasers.org/38-green-lasers

What you want to do has already been done--see: US: Amateur astronomers illuminate International Space Station with spotlights and 1-watt laser | Laser Pointer Safety - Statistics, laws, and general laser pointer news
 
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