Does Laser Tag Hurt Your Eyes

However although the game is called laser tag actually most game zones don t use any kind of lasers at all.

Does laser tag hurt your eyes. Eye damage from a pocket laser is unlikely but could be possible under certain conditions. The greater a laser pointer s output power the more likely it will cause serious eye injuries burn skin and temporarily or permanently impair the vision of pilots drivers or bystanders that much is clear. It is about the same power. Laser pointers are classified as either type ii or type iiia these laser pointers can have up to five milliwatts of power.

5 mw is brighter than the sun. If you are looking for a simple answer i apologize in advance. Damage can include but is not limited to flash blindness that can last for minutes partial vision loss that can last for months permanent damage to the retina and loss of life if the police officer who you are pointing the laser at thinks that she he is being targeted and decides to shoot you in self defense. But judging the safety of that laser pointer in your desk drawer or in your kid s hand isn t simple.

The quick answer is about 5 milliwatts in a 3 millimeter diameter beam for wavelengths from 1 4 microns to about 0 2 microns. The eye damage that a jetblue pilot suffered after two green laser beams were reportedly shined into a new york bound airplane flying at 5 000 feet this week happens because the lens of the eye. The boy shined the laser in his eye and suffered permanent moderate vision loss. That s enough power to cause permanent eye damage and it could take just a few seconds to severely hurt your eyes at least theoretically.

Red laser pointers that are properly labeled in the 3 5 mw range have not caused eye damage no. Laser tag doesn t usually use lasers it uses transmitters leds on the target s body and the rifle is a sensor with a focussing lens and a very narrow field of view that can detect this transmitter only when it s pointing straight at it. The main safety concern when it comes to playing laser tag is the risk of eye damage that could be caused by the laser beam shot from the gun. Vision can deteriorate slowly and therefore may go unnoticed for days and even weeks.

Ultimately the damage could be permanent.