• Laser type : chemical laser similar to ABL (except it uses deuterium-fluoride instead of oxygen-iodine). SBL is more efficient than the ground based version because the rapid adiabatic expansion take place into the vacuum of space. (This mechanism is very similar to naturally occurring astrophysical plasma recombination lasers in quasars)
• Laser fuel : NF₃ and D₂ with He
• Laser fuel capacity : 200 to 500 seconds total lasing time
• Wavelength : 2.7 mm
• Laser power : 5-10 MW
• Orbit height : 800-1,300 km
• Orbit inclination : 40°
• Coverage per satellite : about a tenth of the earth's surface
• Range : 4,000 km (up to 12,000 km)
• Spot size : 0.3 to 1.0 meter at focus
• Atmopheric penetration: down to 3,000 meters (limited by IR absorption of H₂O vapor)
• Shot duration : 10 seconds
• Time to switch between targets : 1 second
• Satellite weight : 35,000 kg, (three times the weight of the Hubble Space Telescope)
• Configuration or deployment scheme
  • 20 satellite configuration (ideal)
  • 10 satellites and an equal number of orbiting mirrors that would bounce laser beams to their targets
  • Two ground-based lasers and array of orbiting mirrors 30 meters in diameter (difficult to fit into launch vehicles).
• Mirror
  • Uses a modified mirror developed by NASA for its Next Generation Space Telescope.
  • The 8 meter mirror is segmented so that it can be folded inside a launch vehicle and unfurled in orbit like flower petals.
  • The bigger the mirror, the less lasing power required, and the less laser fuel required.
  • The highly reflective mirror coating eliminates the need for a heavy coolant system. (un-cooled optics)
• Flight prototype: Space Based Laser Readiness Demonstrator (SBLRD) a half-scale SBL
  • Cost: $1.5 billion
  • Schedule: by 2010
  • Weight: 17,500 kg
  • Length: 20.12 m
  • Diameter: 4.57 m
  • Mirror Diameter: 4.0 m

• Alpha prototype: stacked cylindrical rings of nozzles used for reactant mixing, higher laser power is achieved by stacking more rings. from FAS. Demonstrated megawatt class power levels in 1991.
• Large Advanced Mirror Program (LAMP). lightweight, segmented 4 m diameter mirror 17 mm thick bonded to actuators mounted on graphite epoxy (1989). from FAS The Large Optical Segment (LOS) program has since produced a 10 meter class mirror segment, the dimensions required for an effective SBL.
• Beam Control- Large Optics Demonstration Experiment (LODE) and Alpha-LAMP Integration program (ALI)
  • 1987 : Successful demonstration of low power beam control
  • 1996 : ALI test
  • 1997 : laser successfully fired for 0.5 seconds, as part of TRW managed Alpha Laser Optimization (ALO)
• Acquisition, Tracking, Pointing (ATP)
  • 1985 : Talon Gold successfully operated sub-scale versions of separate pointing and tracking apertures, illuminator, inertial reference gyro system, fire control mode logic, sensors and trackers.
  • 1991 : Space-borne Relay Mirror Experiment (RME), relayed low-power laser beam from ground to orbit and back down successfully.
  • 1993 : Rapid Retargeting and Precision Pointing program (R²P²)
  • 1995 : Space Pointing Integrated Controls Experiment (SPICE)
  • 1998 : High Altitude Balloon Experiment (HABE) (Phillips-Laboratory) demonstrate key ATP-Fire Control (FC) against ballistic missiles.
• SBL Diagram from FAS
• SBL firing on missile from FAS
• Black and white image of SBL from FAS
• SBL firing on missile - notice the vacuum exhaust ports from FAS (see larger image)
• Version of SBL which looks like HST from FAS (see larger image)
• Version of SBL with external laser fuel tanks from FAS (see larger image)
• SBL with highly mobile beam director from FAS (see larger image)
• SBL Project HomePage : HTTP Error 403, 403.6 Forbidden: IP address rejected. This error is caused when the server has a list of IP addresses that are not allowed to access the site, and the IP address you are using is in this list.
• Plot of number of lasers versus missile hardness for 10 kJ cm² missiles, curve for 60 and 90 seconds from Missile defense in modern war by Gregory H. Canavan (equations in Appendix B are very instructive)
• A BMDO project (Ballistic Missile Defense Organization)
• Based on the Zenith Star SDI program cancelled in 1993 the so-called "Star Lite" project hopes to build a 17,500-kg laser weapon that can be launched into space atop a Titan IV rocket.
• Half-size mirror ground based demonstrator for Lockheed Martin's Large Advanced Mirror Program (LAMP) from Jane's Defence Weekly `TRW: heading up the space race'.
• Diagram of laser and mirror/beam control assembly. A large mirror expands the beam to overcome significant degradation by diffraction over the very long optical path to the missile. The optical assembly also tracks the missile and directs the beam to focus on a single point. from How the Space based laser works, Popular Science
• illustration of several SBL lasers firing at a missile from Return to Star Wars, by Frank Vizard, Popular Science
• Interactive CD-ROM of SBL !
• FAS site
• 1996 SBL Press Release)
• 125$ million contract awarded to Team SBL IFX Joint Venture
• Space based laser integrated flight experiment (SBL IFX), Feb 1999

Message #9
From: campbell@ufomind.com (Glenn Campbell, Las Vegas)
Subject: TRW Tests Laser; Rockwell Contract [Press Releases]
Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 17:40:57 -0800

[Two press releases regarding Star Wars-type stuff
from http://www.prnewswire.com via cloudrider@aol.com]

ALPHA LASER COMPLETES HIGH-ENERGY LASING TEST... "STAR WARS"

The test strengthens the nation's technological foundation for a future Space-Based Laser (SBL) missile defense system.

The 5-second, full duration test -- the 12th test since Alpha was first fired in 1989 -- was performed on Sept. 18 at TRW's Capistrano Test Site near San Clemente, Calif. It marks the first time that the Alpha laser has been fired since Department of Defense (DoD) funding cuts put the laser in a "preservation" or storage mode more than two years ago.

In addition to extending TRW's record of high energy laser successes, the Alpha test lays groundwork for the next phase of the Alpha LAMP Integration (ALI) program, an SBL technology development effort run by the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO). That next phase, currently scheduled for spring 1997, will integrate and test the high-power technologies, including Alpha, which comprise the prototype SBL system.

"We are extremely pleased with the results of the recent Alpha laser test," said Joanne Maguire, vice president and general manager of TRW's Space & Technology Division, a leading developer of laser-based defense systems. "The fact that we could fire it successfully on the first try after a 25-month testing hiatus speaks strongly to the quality of the original laser design. We believe that data from this test will prove invaluable to BMDO and Lockheed Martin, the ALI prime contractor, as they define and optimize the test plan for the ALI program."

Alpha is a high-energy, space-compatible, hydrogen fluoride laser that TRW developed for the DoD beginning in the early 1980s. In the 11 previous Alpha tests at Capistrano, TRW has demonstrated the feasibility of using space-based chemical lasers to defend against ballistic missile attacks. The most recent test was completed under TRW's current $30 million Alpha Laser Optimization (ALO) contract with BMDO.

The ALI program will bring together three major SBL high-power subsystems to assess their performance as an integrated unit: the TRW-developed Alpha chemical laser; a four-meter diameter Large Advanced Mirror Program (LAMP) beam projection telescope developed by Litton Itek (recently acquired by Hughes Danbury Optical Systems); and the Large Optics Demonstration Experiment (LODE) beam control system developed by Lockheed Martin. Together, these elements will demonstrate the generation, stabilization and projection of a high-power laser beam in a simulated space environment at TRW's Capistrano test facility.

According to Pat Pomphrey, TRW's ALO program manager, the Alpha laser has undergone routine preservation procedures for the past two years as part of the BMDO-sponsored ALO program. These procedures, which included cycling of the laser's valves, pumps, and electronic systems, have kept the laser at an operating level that enabled a straightforward "reactivation." The reactivation process began early in spring 1996 when increased laser testing funds became available.

"Thanks to BMDO's preservation program and TRW's thorough understanding of laser test processes, we were successful in testing Alpha precisely on schedule," said Pomphrey.

TRW Space & Electronics Group (S&EG), an operating unit of Cleveland, Ohio-based TRW Inc., has been engaged in the research and development of lasers since 1961. Today, the group designs and develops a variety of high-energy chemical lasers for space, ground, and airborne applications, including hydrogen fluoride (HF), deuterium fluoride (DF), and chemical oxygen iodine (COIL) lasers. The group also produces solid-state lasers for military and industrial applications.

TRW Inc., provides advanced technology products and services for the automotive and space and defense markets worldwide. Its 1995 sales totaled approximately $10 billion.

CONTACT: TRW - A. Brooks McKinney, 310/814-8177