NIST YouTube Channel Features Ultraprecise Measurement with Lasers

The latest addition to the growing selection of videos on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) YouTube Channel (www.youtube.com/usnistgov) is a look at the agency's new super-accurate method of measurement--using lasers to quickly pinpoint the absolute distance between multiple objects to within a few nanometers, even when the objects are tens of kilometers or more apart. Incorporating novel precision laser systems called frequency combs, NIST's LIDAR (light detection and ranging) system could prove to be useful in formation flying of satellites.

For more information on the LIDAR system, see “NIST’s LIDAR May Offer Peerless Precision in Remote Measurements,” (NIST Tech Beat, June 2, 2009).