The beam characteristics and operating parameters of a high-power Nd/sup 3 +/: glass laser at Sandia Laboratories were defined. The temporal and spatial nature of the laser pulse was examined at a variety of different pulse lengths, including 50 psec, 100 psec, 200 psec, and 10 nsec, with total laser power up to 40 GW. The determination of optimal operational parameters was essential for the interpretation of laser-matter interaction experiments being done at Sandia Laboratories.