Lasers and laser-accelerated plasma can make spacecraft travel to the Moon, and even outside our solar system.

"Graphic depiction of Pellet-Beam Propulsion for Breakthrough Space Exploration. (Artur Davoyan/University of California)" (Shooting Tiny, High Speed Bullets at a Spacecraft Could Speed Up Travel to The Stars)

Nasa plans to use the laser beam to transport spacecraft to the orbital trajectory and even to the Moon. Using a laser as a booster can make a cheap way to transport spacecraft from the Earth to the moon station and back.  Maybe, someday in the future, this system transports the spacecraft to other solar systems.

The idea is that the laser beam creates the plasma or heat air under the craft. When the craft rises to the orbiter. A laser that orbits Earth will start to push the spacecraft to the Moon. Then, the spacecraft can land by using regular rocket engines. 

Another laser system that shoots the spacecraft back to Earth can locate on Moon. 

The laser beam can vaporize hydrogen or water that is in the rocket's fuel tank and make it travel to Earth. In some simplified models the parabolic mirrors that are vaporizing propellant can use to send spacecraft back to Earth from the Moon. 

But the laser-accelerated ion bullets can use to send spacecraft even out from the solar system. The idea is that the high-power laser ray can push ions and electrons in one direction. The idea is that accelerator sends a cloud of electrons and protons to the spacecraft. The electrons and protons have different polarities. And that thing keeps the high-speed plasma bullet in form. 

The plasma bullets can also use to turn the incoming asteroid out from the Earth. NASA plans to use the 10 MW spaceborne lasers in that system.  There is the possibility that this kind of laser-accelerated ion system can use antimatter plasma. The idea is that the antiprotons- and positrons are created by using a thin gold layer or magnetic field that turns their spin to the opposite. Then those antimatter particles can shoot against incoming asteroids. 

And the same systems that are pushing spacecraft to the moon and other places in the solar system can use to turn asteroids. The same system can also use to destroy satellites and ballistic missiles. But in that case, the antimatter is a little bit too powerful a tool. 

https://www.sciencealert.com/shooting-tiny-high-speed-bullets-at-a-spacecraft-could-speed-up-travel-to-the-stars

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