I imagine a large part of anything like this would be adaptive optics, needing to deform the mirror so the wave front on passing through the atmosphere can resolve to a tight enough focus on the target.

So just like making Astronomy pictures sharper, but the other way around.

Alas this is about the only chance I get to use my laser postgrad knowledge.

There was a thought to use lasers to power a moon base, when the dark side of The Moon is facing Earth, possible, a handy excuse I’d guess for building an energy weapon.

Wonder what a laser tracking 1kg slug of lead or iron dropped from orbit would be like...you know...idle curiosity.

It is not 1kg but 2kg, and it is not iron but tungsten.

Which was, essentially, the Soviets response to Reagan's star wars programme: you deploy your satellites with lasers into the orbit, we deploy our satellites loaded with 2kg tungsten rods to perforate every single line of your defence.

Unlike the Galra Empire that had Zaiforge cannons, humans have no protection against kinetic projectiles…

Probably like a meteor, mostly burning up in the atmosphere

There you go killing my buzz with inconvenient facts. :-)