The powerful Chinese megawatt laser ‘small enough for a satellite’
- Chinese team says its 1.5kg pulse device is possible because of breakthroughs allowing critical components in solid state lasers to be much smaller
- A laser scientist with the Chinese Academy of Sciences says the device is not a weapon – but a larger version in future could be
A Chinese team said it had developed a small but powerful laser device that could be used on a satellite, but would only be deployed for non-destructive purposes.
The device could be used in a wide range of applications, including identifying a target, tracking, imaging and high-speed communication, said project lead scientist Liu Chong, of the college of optical science and engineering at Zhejiang University, in a paper published in the domestic peer-reviewed journal Aerospace Shanghai last month.
The device can generate a powerful 1 megawatt laser light and can fire 100 shots per second for nearly half an hour without overheating in a space environment, according to its developers.
The pulse laser device – which is about the size of a 500ml (16.7 fluid ounce) can – could fit in a small satellite and weighs less than 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds), including the power source.
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