The typical red laser pointer is about 5 milliwatts, and a good one has a tight enough beam to actually hit the Moon—though it'd be spread out over a large fraction of the surface when it got there. The atmosphere would distort the beam a bit, and absorb some of it, but most of the light would make it.
Can a 5mW laser reach the moon?
How far can 5mW laser go?
The diagram below shows the hazard distances for a 5 milliwatt “U.S. legal” green laser pointer with a 1 milliradian beam divergence: It is a potential eye hazard from the pointer to about 52 feet. It is a temporary flashblindness hazard from the pointer, out to about 260 feet.
Can a laser point to the moon?
Yes. More than half of the laser power coming from a laser pointer will make it to the surface of the moon.
Is 5mW laser powerful?
So the advantage of the 5mW version is: its beam is stronger than the 1mW version's. It could be used in the light pollution area. The advantage of the 1mW is: it is more power-effective than the 5mW version. So it could be used for a longer time than the 5mW version.
How long would it take a laser to reach the moon?
Originally Answered: How long does it take for a laser to reach the moon if a laser was pointed at the moon? Well, let's see: The Moon is about 238,000 from the Earth and the speed of light is about 186,000 miles/second. So 238/186 = about 1.3 seconds (one way).
What does 532 nm mean on a laser?
second harmonics 532 nm wavelength or a green laser of the MatchBox™ series. 532 nm represents second harmonics of fundamental 1064 nm radiation, emitted by Neodymium doped lasing material. Many of those applications require laser source having good beam quality and and high power stability. …
Can a 5mW laser damage your eye?
They won't burn you. They won't cause permanent eye damage. … Of course, in a real-world incident, laser light entering the eye would likely last for less than one second, as people naturally look away from bright things and close their eyes, so there is no real danger of direct damage.
Can a blue laser reach the moon?
Originally Answered: Can a laser light hit moon from earth and will I see a laser dot that hits a moon ? No it will not because the light will be mitigated and the beam will diverge.
Are high powered lasers illegal?
In the U.S., it is legal under federal law to own a laser of any power. But often people talk about “illegal laser pointers”. This is somewhat confusing shorthand meaning that the manufacturer or seller illegally called a laser above 5 milliwatts a “pointer”, or illegally promoted it for pointing purposes.