Shining a laser at a stop sign

[WhyHaveALife]

Has anyone ever done this on accident or intentionally? I've done it with a 5mW green on accident and it was still hella bright. If you haven't or you don't know the effects, I did it

Yeah yeah I know I shouldn't have been pointing it at the road really but I could see cars coming etc.

Just another thing to be cautious of.

 

[Tech_Junkie]

You're lucky you had goggles on.

Those signs, along with most safety stickers, reflect light back to the source. So you could easily get a face full of what you are shooting.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

Most road signs are retroreflectors. The goal being that the light from car headlights bounces right back to the driver so the driver can see.

Unfortunately this also means that if you point a laser at a sign, you run a high risk of having it come right back at you.

As you learned... NEVER pointer a laser at traffic signs.

If someone wants to see this effect safely though, grab a good flashlight and go for a walk. Shine it at a sign, and notice how much brighter it appears.

Google prisms, and retrorelfector for more info... actually interesting reading... well some of it anyway :tinfoil:

 

[Cyparagon]

The reflection is relatively diffuse. The power density is low enough that aside from flash-blinding, it's harmless.

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

The reflection is relatively diffuse. The power density is low enough that aside from flash-blinding, it's harmless.

Relatively yes, but it's still not something to do with a 1W+ laser at a close distance.

 

[WhyHaveALife]

Relatively yes, but it's still not something to do with a 1W+ laser at a close distance.

Yeah and I was doing that with a 1.6W 445nm... wasn't going to take any chances.