Editing Laser designator (section)

{{Short description|Invisible light source to identify a target}}
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[[Image:Laser designator- SOF in Afghanistan.jpg|thumb|Portable unit directing bombing in Afghanistan, 2001]]
[[Image:DHY 307 laser target designator P1220819.jpg|thumb|CILAS DHY 307]] 
[[Image:NAVFLIR DAMOCLES P1220870.jpg|thumb|A [[Thales Group|Thales]] [[Damocles (targeting pod)|Damocles]] target designation pod combined with a [[Forward looking infrared|NAVFLIR]] imager]]
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A '''laser designator''' is a [[laser]] light source which is used to [[Targeting (warfare)|designate a target]]. Laser designators provide targeting for [[laser-guided bomb]]s, [[missiles]], or precision [[artillery]] munitions, such as the [[Paveway]] series of bombs, [[AGM-114 Hellfire]], or the [[M712 Copperhead]] round, respectively.

When a target is marked by a designator, the beam is invisible and does not shine continuously. Instead, a series of coded laser pulses, also called PRF codes ([[pulse repetition frequency]]), are fired at the target. These signals bounce off the target into the sky, where they are detected by the seeker on the laser-guided munition, which steers itself towards the centre of the reflected signal.<ref name="usmc fire support coordination">{{cite web |author1=U.S. Marine Corps |title=MCTP 3-10F Fire Support Coordination in the Ground Combat Element |url=https://www.marines.mil/portals/1/Publications/MCTP%203-10F.pdf?ver=2019-03-28-083848-523 |website=Marines.mil |access-date=16 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220716202303/https://www.marines.mil/portals/1/Publications/MCTP%203-10F.pdf?ver=2019-03-28-083848-523 |archive-date=16 July 2022 |pages=Appendix K |date=4 April 2018}}</ref> Unless the people being targeted possess laser detection equipment or can hear aircraft overhead, it is extremely difficult for them to determine whether they are being marked. Laser designators work best in clear atmospheric conditions. Cloud cover, rain or smoke can make reliable designation of targets difficult or impossible unless a simulation is accessible through available ground data.