5 ms·
Once a line of sight is established from the DE platform to the warhead, it is impossible to outrun this “speed of light interceptor.” No high G maneuver will w
by cperciva 3y ago
Once a line of sight is established from the DE platform to the warhead, it is impossible to outrun this “speed of light interceptor.” No high G maneuver will work.
The speed of light isn't infinite. Between a satellite seeing the latest maneuver, sending data to a ground station, and a laser burst reaching its target, you've got at least 20 ms and quite likely as much as 100 ms. For a 1 G maneuver that's still going to get you within 10 cm of your target, which is just fine; but a 10 G maneuver could make you miss entirely.
A larger advantage of lasers is probably the opportunity for multiple shots: If you miss with a kinetic interceptor, it's too late to launch another, but if your laser misses you'll know in a matter of seconds and you can try again as soon as your capacitors are recharged.
- gilbetron 3y agoHow do you know you're being shot at to know you should move out of the way?
- cperciva 3y agoYou probably know when in the flight you should expect to be a target based on the locations of laser batteries -- given atmospheric absorption and dispersion they're going to have limited range. Worst case, make your entire flight path unpredictable.
- personjerry 3y agoHeat sensor I would guess