Re: laser sight?

On Sun, 9 Nov 2008 11:52:00 -0800 (PST), TONY S <kclo42112@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

I guess there are no laws in China
about the wattage one green lasers .I did see that the 10mw + ones are
only allowed for police and military in the US.

The laws in the U.S. generally don't restrict laser power. They do,
however, control how lasers are labeled. Most of these inexpensive green
lasers are labeled as Class IIIa, which means their output power can't
exceed 5mW. Higher powered lasers are required to have certain
additional safety features, such as mechanical shutters and key operated
switches. You are not restricted from purchasing or using much higher
power lasers, as long as they were manufactured and labeled according to
these legal requirements.

In the U.S., most laws involving lasers are designed to manage usage.
For instance, lasers used in public places may be controlled, and lasers
aimed at the sky fall under some FAA rules.

While you may technically violate an FAA or local ordinance by shining a
20mW laser at the sky, you are unlikely to ever experience an actual
legal problem. You'd probably have to actually hit a low flying
airplane, which is difficult. I'd be more concerned about the
possibility of eye damage. Although still not real easy, it would be
perfectly possible for somebody at your scope to get a direct hit to the
eye from the beam. A 20mW laser is bright enough that damage can occur
faster than the blink reflex protects the eye.
_________________________________________________

Chris L Peterson
Cloudbait Observatory
http://www.cloudbait.com
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Rabbits and Lasers
    ... I've heard of people pointing lasers at airplanes and getting arrested. ... Any intently concentrated light in those wavelengths aimed directly into the eye is going to affect the eye more than any other wavelength, which is why the warnings came out with green lasers, not the red ones. ... I've experimented with how bright the reflections from 5 mWatt green lasers can get, and how much they can spread, off of various colored and textured walls and glass, and how it affects the eyes, and there is a danger factor of temporarily blinding someone if they're dark adapted to some degree. ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: Flash Blinded By Green Laser
    ... >green laser pointer but I have a unique opinion of green lasers because I ... "Pollution" is something we live with. ... More than one study has clearly demonstrated that casual exposure to visible ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: OT: New gun sight design
    ... more apparent (eye is more sensitive to green). ... If you want to check out the wild side, ... At work I program 4kW LASERS. ...
    (rec.crafts.metalworking)
  • Re: Being born in the summer increases your chance of being short sighted
    ... "It is not a myth at all that people who wear pop-bottle glasses are ... main research subject is lasers and their application for curing eye ... "I am studying the effects of lasers on eyes: ... eye diseases such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration - ...
    (uk.philosophy.humanism)
  • Re: Unauthorized Laser Illumination Event
    ... green lasers, though, are they? ... They are still not the most collimated beams around, ... nuisance to vision than a damage hazard. ... there are still more powerful lasers available. ...
    (rec.aviation.piloting)