From: lwcamp@gmail.com   
      
   On Tuesday, February 13, 2018 at 10:45:56 PM UTC-8, melvin...@gmail.com wrote:   
   > So, lasers would be super awesome in space. Assuming you are close enough to   
   a target that there isn't a delay in what you are seeing, laser would be near   
   impossible to dodge. Given enough power and/or time they can chew there way   
   through anything(   
   right?). They don't require heavy ammo that a ship would have to lug around.   
   So, is there any way to justify the use of projectile weaponry such as   
   railguns, and gunyguns (You know traditional explosive propelled firearms) in   
   space warfare?   
      
   Laser beams spread due to a phenomenon called diffraction   
   http://panoptesv.com/SciFi/LaserDeathRay/Diffraction.html   
   This limits the range at which they can deliver dangerous intensities to a   
   target.     
      
   A guided projectile can attack at a much longer range.  The main use of lasers   
   might be to disable incoming projectiles fired by distant spacecraft, and the   
   attacker will attempt to launch enough projectiles that the laser can't kill   
   them all in the time    
   they are within the engagement envelope, so that some get through and damage   
   the target.   
      
   Luke   
      
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