GRI heads consortium for two-year laser drilling study; 100x today's ROPs feasible, says proponents. (Gas Research Institute, rollover protective structures)

Keep in mind every outer space movie you ever saw, and remember President Ronald Reagan's "StarWars defense initiative, because new studies by Gas Research Institute and others may set the stage for producers to be drilling wells with laser rays.

Lasers (Light Amplification By Stimulated Emission of Radiation) are any of several devices that convert incident electromagnetic radiation of mixed frequencies to one or more discrete frequency of highly amplified and coherent visible radiation. Lasers have been developed for any number of practical applications, including precision cutting, such as in certain surgical and metallurgical practices, as well as communications and defense.

But GRI and an industry/academia consortium have …