67-Kilowatt Laser Unveiled

s31523 writes "Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California has announced they have working in the lab a Solid State Heat Capacity Laser that averages 67 kW. It is being developed for the military. The chief scientist Dr. Yamamoto is quoted: 'I know of no other solid state laser that has achieved 67 kW of average output power.' Although many lasers have peaked at higher capacities, getting the average sustained power to remain high is the tricky part. The article says that hitting the 100-kW level, at which point it would become interesting as a battlefield weapon, could be less than a year away."

Obligatory

[Sneakernets]

Cue the frickin' lasers jokes in 3...2...1...

Eleven

[Anonymous Coward]

But my laser goes all the way up to 11 ...

don't tag this 'SHARKS'

[Vicsun]

tag it ohgodsomeonewilltagthissharks instead and show some originality

Not Car Wars level yet

[ArmorFiend]

Yawn...somebody wake me when they can make it 500 pounds, 2 spaces, $8000, and it can cut through an engine block in 1/10th of a second.

-Uncle Albert

Re:Obligatory

[servoled]

Two frickin' lasers walked into a bar... the third one ducked.

official name...

[Dahamma]

...will be the "Yamamoto Cannon".

(damn, why couldn't he have been Dr. Yamato)

Rumsfeld Already Wants One

[SRA8]

Let me guess -- the Pentagon now has everything it needs to proceed with the Death Star?

Not good enough

[volpe]

I want five megawatts by mid-May.

Still too big

[Alwin Henseler]

Okay, I'll bite...

Near the end of the article: 'mobile laser concept'.
That thing needs a whaleshark to mount it on!

--
Still prefer the double-barreled shotgun, or the Bio-Force Gun [wikipedia.org] (BFG) myself...

Re:So will this give me bionic eyesight

[Kjella]

You know, I think you should try it. I hear you can get a scientific award for experiments like that, though I hear it's named after someone who is controversial in US schools.

67kW?

[Cynical_Dude]

67 kW? Thats nice. Another 933 kW and we can mount it on my Cobra Mark III.

Re:May cause som collateral damage

[Wicko]

That would be one hell of a light show.

Tough decision...

[crankyspice]

Do I make a Real Genius joke, or a StarCraft joke?

Re:Not good enough

[Todamont]

It needs to be an excimer, excited in the frozen state and coupled to the ground state, duh. Also, we're gonna need a big spinning mirror. Also a lot of popcorn.

MAH LAZER

[Anonymous Coward]

IMMA CHARGIN IT

So close

[Stephen Tennant]

Soon, America will wield the power to project an annoying red dot into any room in North Korea or Iran, disturbing and agitating ANY and ALL cats, and, if the resident is so foolish as to investigate... his very eyes may be irritated, and possibly damaged, after prolonged exposure!

WARNING

[istartedi]

Do not stare into laser with remaining co-worker.

Re:Not good enough

[PopeZaphod]

There are a lot of decaffeinated brands out there that are just as tasty as the real thing.

Re:MAH LAZER

[Neitokun]

Fool. You forgot to shoop da woop first.

Worse

[LordEd]

The RIAA is terrified that it will be used to burn DVDs at a range of 500 meters. Drive-by piracy is here: hide your children, lock your doors, hire your lawyers!

Re:Obligatory

[Stormwatch]

That Yamamoto guy is trying to take credit for others' work. The "laser" is actually Alan Parsons' project!

Re:Rumsfeld Already Wants One

[aristotle-dude]

Everything is proceeding just as I've foreseen. - The Emperor

Re:Obligatory

[nacturation]

A priest, a rabbi, and a horse walk into a bar. The bartender says "What is this, a joke?"
 

Here, kitty, kitty....

[surfcow]

Look at the dot! Chase the dot! Chase the ...

Uh-oh.

Prism Tanks anyone?

[Afecks]

First thing that popped into my head was the sound of a Prism Tank blast followed by AAAHHHHH!

Re:Not good enough

[volpe]

I want five megawatts. By mid-may.

Re:two things

[Linker3000]

1) You could deliver your PowerPoint presentation in Paris from your office in San Francisco via videophone and STILL point out the interesting bits to the audience.

2) Later that night you could pick out a cinema in Paris and really piss off the audience by squiggling on the screen.

 

Re:two things

[king-manic]

Yes it all varies with the color of the light.

Alright, the good guys gets the red ones and the bad guys can use the green ones. That way we know when we got killed by friendly or unfriendly fire.

Re:Rumsfeld Already Wants One

[jemecki]

FYI, Rumsfeld is out. Robert Gates is the secretary of defense.

Re:May cause som collateral damage

[Khashishi]

When the head is vaporized by a 67 kW laser, it's a safe assumption that there will be some retinal damage. I think cataracts are the least of your worries.

Re:Worse

[failedlogic]

Your fine will depend on the car you drive. If you have a 4-door you're only charged $1000 per song. If its a Ferrari, its $2,000 a song.

Fast CD-R Drives Make For Twice the Piracy: http://slashdot.org/articles/02/12/15/1759227.shtm l?tid=141 [slashdot.org]

Re:fp?

[Sanat]

my opinion that Slashdot wasn't always this mundane.

Well... yes it has always been... Just quit coming home drunk!

American Citizens Still Lack Health Care.

[Anonymous Coward]

But Americans can pop Jiffy-Pop popcorn from outerspace!!1! kewl!

The United States: We p0wn The Planet.