"Ed Price" wrote

"Richard Clark" wrote in message
...
On 07 Jan 2005 16:46:54 -0600, Allen Windhorn
wrote:
My speculation about selection
paths of ionization by RF excitation was just groping toward one way
to create those channels, and HAARP naturally came to mind.
A long time ago, there was some (theoretical at least) effort to see
whether UV lasers could be used to create an ionized channel over a
long distance.

Hi Guys,

One has to wonder about the consequence of double jeopardy standing
beneath that antenna (HAARP experiment) or holding the laser.

Think insurance covers this?

Supply shop foreman (perplexed):
"Another laser? What happened to the last one?"

Tech (smoke curling up from clothes):
"ummmm, burned out real quick-like. Could you hurry? They say
more rain is on the way!"

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC


Well, I could easily imagine a laser protected within a large conductive
lightning rod. All you need is a 1/" hole in an otherwise well-shielded
structure. Maybe a bit larger to allow for pointing, or you could put some
optics safely outside the rod.

Regarding the RF excitation, I assumed that a single-point source would be
dumb, because the best ionization path would be right back to YOU. But an
array of exciters, electronically steered to create a sufficient power
density at a focal point, is a lot smarter.

Again, I don't know if the technique would work, but an electronically
steered (more like focusing) array would be one way to do it.

One poster said that the ionized channel might blow away in the wind.
Maybe
a quick system could "paint" an ionization channel fast enough. Maybe a
system could detect and take advantage of leaders, to create a shorter
path.

Ed
wb6wsn

Hi Ed, using high powered lasers to "paint" a thunderstorm cloud has been
done, and whether reliably or not, was able to trigger lightning. It hasn't
translated into practical protection schemes yet, but that could simply be
economics. As a means of triggering lightning to a safe point away from
vulnerable assets, it still leaves the possibility that some storms are so
powerful that nothing short of an extensive, multi-point array of lasers
could ever offer protection at an individual point. It is generally so much
less expensive to employ catenary wires overhead, build faraday-cages
around, and position air terminals in appropriate areas than the costs of
such a laser system. There would also be a new class of airspace required
for operation of such lasers. Something like a "no-fly zone" in fact! ;-)

73,
Jack Painter
Virginia Beach, Virginia