In 2006 a pulse of this type of beam sent a message a record 15 million miles to the MESSENGER spacecraft
This is like trying to aim 
the beam of a very strong laser pointer, akin to the type used in a... [DOC] [TLE] Messenger: New Views of Mercury - Space.com [PAR] May 9, 2016 ... NASA's Messenger mission has spent several years mapping Mercury, ... then 
aimed for Venus and did two flybys on Oct. 24, 2006, and June 5, 2007.