New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
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New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
1–10 of 103 posts
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#2Sadly, the first applications of this will most likely be military.
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#3An ultra sensitive motion sensor. Intriguing.
Could one derive the Earth's rotation? The motion of the solar system?
By watching vibrations could it be a microphone?
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#4An ultra sensitive motion sensor. Intriguing. Could one derive the Earth's rotation? The motion of the solar system? By watching vibrations could it be a microphone?
You don't need anything nearly so fancy for a laser microphone.
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#5Sadly, the first applications of this will most likely be military.
This will absolutely go in missiles to handle GPS jamming and submarines where satellite signals are unavailable, yes.
It'll be nice if they can get it small enough for a phone, though.
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#6Sadly, the first applications of this will most likely be military.
That’s literally what’s funding this research
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#7Sadly, the first applications of this will most likely be military.
More specifically, nuclear arms, where the budget is "there is no budget." Just the inertial guidance system of a 90's-era ICBM cost over six figures per missile. The ability to precisely place a missile without any external navigation (except for stars.)
Once it gets cheap enough, it'll probably go into cruise missiles; it could eliminate or reduce the need for terrain contour matching, which requires radar transmission.
I'm not 100% certain but I believe when MEMS accelerometers first came out, the better ones were subject to arms controls because of fears they could be used in missiles.
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#8Sadly, the first applications of this will most likely be military.
This will absolutely go in missiles to handle GPS jamming and submarines where satellite signals are unavailable, yes. It'll be nice if they can get it small enough for a phone, though.
I would assume that the refrigerator sized ones are definitely already in submarines.
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#9An ultra sensitive motion sensor. Intriguing. Could one derive the Earth's rotation? The motion of the solar system? By watching vibrations could it be a microphone?
No because velocity only makes sense as relative to something else. There’s no ‘fixed points’ in the universe
This device will track acceleration rather than velocity
Re: New laser could cram GPS alternative into a shoebox
#10An ultra sensitive motion sensor. Intriguing. Could one derive the Earth's rotation? The motion of the solar system? By watching vibrations could it be a microphone?
For the first two questions I wouldn't think so because it detects acceleration. But I also only have a high school level of physics knowledge so maybe I'm wrong.