High-power lasers in space could provide power for a variety of future missions such as spacecraft electric power requirements and laser propulsion. This study investigates four electrically pumped laser systems, all scaled to 1-MW laser output, that could provide power to spacecraft. The four laser systems are krypton fluoride, copper vapor, laser diode array, and carbon dioxide. Each system was powered by a large solar photovoltaic array which, in turn, provided power for the appropriate laser power conditioning subsystem. Each system was block-diagrammed, and the power and efficiency were found for each subsystem block component. The copper vapor system had the lowest system efficiency (6 percent). The CO2 laser was found to be the most readily scalable but has the disadvantage of long laser wavelength. Deyoung, R. J. and Lee, J. H. and Williams, M. D. and Schuster, G. and Conway, E. J. Langley Research Center NASA-TM-4045, L-16431, NAS 1.15:4045 RTOP 506-41-41-01...

ＮＡＳＡが紡ぎ出すこの技術報告書は、単なる科学データを超えた「宇宙への叙事詩」です。一メガワットという途方もない出力を巡り、四つのレーザー技術が火花を散らす様は、さながら銀河の覇権を争う群像劇。太陽光をエネルギーへと変換し、深宇宙へと光を届けるという壮大な野心が、冷徹かつ緻密な数式と図表の裏側に熱く脈動しています。 効率性に苦しむ銅蒸気レーザーや、波長の壁に挑むＣＯ２レーザー。各システムが抱える限界と可能性の対比は、理想と現実に葛藤する人間そのものを暗示しているかのようです。ＳＦの空想を「科学という名の筆致」で現実へと引き寄せるこの一冊は、未知の地平に挑む読者の探究心を激しく揺さぶり、宇宙という荒野を照らす希望の光を見せてくれるでしょう。