what is it about a laser pointer being able to be seen from far away but not the same with a high powered flashlight?
In: Engineering
Photons/light waves coming out of a flashlight spread out in all directions from the bulb, causing them to get fainter the further away you get from the bulb. Reflective housings can help some, but its still going to spread out.
Laser light is formed differently, so its photons/light waves all travel practically parallel to each other, meaning it can still be detected much further away. The waves haven’t spread out nearly as much.
In both cases, some amount of light will hit a distant target as long as nothing is in the way.
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