NASA’s CASALS lidar prototype steers laser pulses by changing their wavelength, allowing it to measure a continuous strip of terrain without scanning mirrors. An October 21, 2026 technology update describes the optical design, airborne results, and planned improvements before development of a space-ready version.
This story is only covered by news sources that have yet to be evaluated by the independent media monitoring agencies we use to assess the quality and reliability of news outlets on our platform. Learn more here.