Re: pocket lasers for star pointing?

Green laser pointers can cause eye damage as pointed out above.
However, it is unlikely to do so because when the eye sees the light,
there is a tendency to immediately look away. As the Mayo Clinic
study of 2005 stated:

"This is a potential hazard to people's eyes, but rarely is it going
to be a practical hazard because the aversion reflex we have naturally
will cause a person to blink or turn away from a laser light."

See the complete Mayo news release:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2005-rst/2800.html

I would like to have anyone point out to me the harm an "astronomical"
GLP has done to the eyes of a person who was NOT involved in an
experiment. I know several people have been arrested for shining GLPs
at planes when they are landing but I am sure that no permanent damage
was caused to any crew member or passenger.

I use GLPs for educational purposes and as a finder (to supplement my
standard finder) on my dobsonian.

Under near perfect sky conditions try pointing out the Andromeda
galaxy with your finger to a school kid and the kid will learn
nothing. But use a GLP, especially one mounted on a stable telescope
pointed at the galaxy, and there is a good chance that the student
will see this smudge of light without benefit of the telescope.

.

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