Lasers are a cool solution. I wonder if it's possible to reduce scattering using a fore-shot before the main pulse, surely the fore-shot would mostly clear a co

Lasers are a cool solution. I wonder if it's possible to reduce scattering using a fore-shot before the main pulse, surely the fore-shot would mostly clear a column through the atmosphere by the heating of any particles in the path of the laser. I don't really know the physics of it but it seems like something like that would work. Would be cool if we get to the point where we can ionise a very narrow column of air and then use it to deliver an electrical arc as directed artificial lightning! A la Loki's LIP-C: "Brian Gragg kicked his chair away and stood up from the gaming workstation. As the blinded strike team members writhed on the floor, crying out, Gragg moved calmly toward the burly team leader who had shouted at him. Gragg aimed a silver-capped index finger at the man—a lens at its very tip. Black fiber optic and electrical cables ran down the back of Gragg’s hand like veins, disappearing beneath his shirt. “The name is Loki, asshole.” A ruler-straight bolt of electricity cracked like a bullwhip from his fingertip into the man’s body armor, followed by a flickering series of bolts in quick succession—three a second. The team leader’s muscles jerked with each thunderclap. The smell of ozone filled the air." (Daniel Suarez)