When NASA scientists wanted to measure the distance from Earth to the moon for the first time, they shone a high-powered laser off of a reflecting disk placed on the moon by the astronauts during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission. The laser they used — from its position on earth — was co-designed by Theodore (Ted) Maiman, inventor of the first laser in 1960 and a former adjunct professor in SFU’s School of Engineering Science.

As scientists and citizens commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing this year, the impact of the laser’s invention knows no bounds.