Bootstrap beacon creation for overcoming the effects of beacon anisoplanatism in a laser beam projection system

We address the problem of using adaptive optics to deliver power from an airborne laser platform to a ground target through atmospheric turbulence under conditions of strong scintillation and anisoplanatism. We explore three options for creating a beacon for use in adaptive optics beam control: scattering laser energy from the target, using a single uncompensated Rayleigh beacon, and using a series of compensated Rayleigh beacons. We demonstrate that using a series of compensated Rayleigh beacons distributed along the path provides the best beam compensation. © 2008 Optical Society of America