Curved Laser Beams Could Help Tame Lightning

Urchin writes "Laser beams just gained a new property — they can curve through space. That's what happens when ultrashort laser pulses pass through a phase pattern mask and a lens, which together shift the most intense region of the beam from the center to the right-hand side. The asymmetry in the pulse causes it to drift progressively further to the right along an arc as it travels. The laser beam is so intense that it ionizes the air it passes through to create a curved plasma channel. Those kinds of channels can be up to 100 meters long — direct them at thunderclouds and they could first trigger lightning to spark and then act as a convenient but short-lived lightning rod to guide it safely to the ground, according to some researchers."

Filament propagation.

[Tenebrousedge]

So, this is a neat twist on an older idea [wikipedia.org].

I can't really imagine a practical use for this (a lightning rod seems like a much cheaper solution) but it's pretty nifty science.

It ain't a lightening rod

[SmallFurryCreature]

The lightening rod is just for silly editors. If the idea works, it is a thundercloud discharger, grounding it. The idea being that it would stop strikes where you don't want them.

A lightening rod works after the fact and only on a very small area.

Say a thundercloud approaches, you can A: have lots of very tall spikes penetrate it so it discharges. B: create a grounding effect with some kind of plasma arc or C: put lightening rods all along the storms path hoping that the thunder will hit the rod, not something else.

So no, lightening rods are not an alternative in the same way that crash barriers are not an alternative to safe driving or safety belts.

Taser

[Woek]

Could this also be used to initiate a set of conducting paths for tasers? That would increase their range quite a bit...

Triggering lightning

[modrzej]

From the coverage in cited New Scientist article, it isn't clear that curved laser beams have any advantage in triggering lightning over straight beams. As it is said, it would be fun to see that curved lightning. Sounds rather like pure fun, no big scientific breakthrough, as it comes to atmosphere control.

Re:I assume...

[jandoedel]

i guess he was thinking about conservation of energy and momentum? shooting something with momentum (yes, light has momentum) should make it go in a straight line, not a curved one, unless other forces are also involved, like in refraction by the atmosphere for example. In space, no atmosphere, so maybe no curved lasers?

Re:Filament propagation.

[Anonymous Coward]

None of those things, save an over the horizon weapon, benefit significantly from the nature of this specific implementation. The laser in this example is not somehow so efficient as to make all the ideas you mentioned more possible.

Re:...so frankenstein 2.0 will finally have ...

[jank1887]

I would like to point out that the original 'Frankenstein' novel by Mary Shelley makes no statement connecting a lightning strike with animation of Dr. Frankenstein's golem. There is reference to a lightning striking a tree during his youth, and his amazement at natures power, but that is all.

Re:Curved sharks?

[Hojima]

I don't really care about Austin powers. I surprised no on brought up the prospect of dressing up like an undead mage and calling lightning around you when there's a storm. How cool would that be? Now to make Molotov Cocktails that explode like arcane magic.

Re:It are a lightening rod

[Doc Ruby]

Would shooting a 3100 meter grounded cable into a lightning cloud actually discharge it into the ground?

If so, why indeed are we messing with these lasers at all? Why don't we tap lightning clouds reliably for power that way?