Turns out the Chinese are zapping surface targets with lasers. This *seems* to be a benign scientific technique, checking atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide and pollution and whatnot… but this is the Chinese Communist Party we’re talking about, so…
Ominous Green Lasers Shot Over Hawaii Didn’t Come From NASA Satellite After All
This sort of thing would be weird as hell to see out in the wild. I’m not sure if this is naked-eye visible, however, or if it took sensitive cameras to pick this up.
One response to “Chinese Space Lasers”
I’m sure if the chinese wanted accurate surface level pollution data for scientific purposes, we would happily provide it.
this is likely for mapping purposes. exact maps of the surface are gold for people programming things like cruise missiles. for low observability you want to just barely clear things like ridgelines. knowing exactly how high that ridge is within a few centimeters is important.