Underwater Laser Pointer

[javelindan]

Well, I received an interesting Xmas gift from my brother-in-law who knows I enjoyed diving: an underwater laser pointer. It's the size of a small dive light, runs on 4 AA batteries, has a lanyard, and is rated to be waterproof to 180ft...

SO, I'm looking for some perspective on when/where I might find practical use for my new toy! I don't like to carry more than I have to when diving and when I want to point something out to a dive buddy, a finger or my normal dive light usually does the trick for me...

Thanks in advance for your input!

[tcjtn0]

I dove this summer with someone that had a U/W laser pointer. It was really neat to watch them point at objects with it (etc). It was really easy to tell what they were trying to draw attention to. After the dive , I wished I had one to play with! :'(

Jean

[LKunze]

The most practical use would obviously be for signaling. Again, most divers just use hand signals or their dive lights for that. I guess if the pointer is bright enough though, it might be of use to you for signaling when a dive light isn't necessary like on sunny days with good viz on shallower dives.

[waterpanda]

underwater laser tag??? just a thought!

[javelindan]

I poked around on the web and found some info on laser pointers. They are used to point at objects underwater and are promoted as being more effective (focused beam, doesn't disperse) and "safer for the environment." I doubt the safer for the environment claim since this and all other laser pointers I've seen (common for business presentations) have very clear warnings to avoid shining the beam in a person's eyes since quick and permanent damage to a person's retina could result. This being the case, people need to be careful in terms of how they would use a laser pointer for signaling other divers. From an environmental perspective, as sensitive as human eyes are, I know there are lots of plants and animals which are more sensitive to light than we are so there may be some concerns about using them underwater. I'll do some homework on this point and will update this post with any additional info I can find.