Monday, January 09, 2006

You're I.T.! (as in "Interstellar Tag")

Via MSNBC.com...
Deep-space ‘laser tag’ sets a record Mercury probe involved in longest-range laser communications By Ker Than Updated: 2:32 p.m. ET Jan. 5, 2006
Artist's impression of MESSENGER in orbit around Mercury. Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/CIW Photo Source: Space.com | Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/CIW
In a cosmic version of laser tag, NASA’s Messenger spacecraft and an Earth-based observatory successfully exchanged laser pulses with each other while millions of miles apart. The feat sets a new record for laser transmission in space, a process which may one day be used to communicate across interplanetary distances and provide scientists with a powerful tool to measure the movement of planets and test fundamental principles in physics...
That would make one heckuva laser pointer. [Full Article] [Messenger Info]* *The spacecraft, not a web app.

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