File:Starfire Optical Range - sodium laser.jpg

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Original caption: “This sodium laser—being fired from the Starfire Optical Range on Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico—is used with deformable optics to help eliminate atmospheric distortions when gathering images of objects in space.”

Though the caption states that this is a "sodium laser", this is actually misleading as the Starfire Optical Range LIDAR laser seen here is actually two solid state IR lasers, 1.064 and 1.319 microns, that are frequency summed in LBO within a doubly resonant cavity. The orange beam is observed due to the intense laser light scattering off particles in the air. In general, laser light travelling through a vacuum can not be seen unless aimed directly towards the observer.

Licensing

Source: Directed Energy Directorate, US Air Force

This image or file is a work of a U.S. Air Force Airman or employee, taken or made as part of that person's official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image or file is in the public domain.

File usage

The following pages on Schools Wikipedia link to this image (list may be incomplete):

Metadata

This file contains additional information, probably added from the digital camera or scanner used to create or digitize it. If the file has been modified from its original state, some details may not fully reflect the modified file.

Camera manufacturer	NIKON CORPORATION
Camera model	NIKON D70
Exposure time	30/1 sec (30)
F-number	f/4.5
ISO speed rating	320
Date and time of data generation	12:19, 27 October 2004
Lens focal length	50 mm
Orientation	Normal
Horizontal resolution	240 dpi
Vertical resolution	240 dpi
Software used	Adobe Photoshop CS Macintosh
File change date and time	10:37, 28 October 2004
Exposure Program	Manual
APEX aperture	4.33985
Exposure bias	1.67
Maximum land aperture	4.3 APEX (f/4.44)
Metering mode	Pattern
Flash	Flash did not fire
Colour space	sRGB
Focal length in 35 mm film	75 mm

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