A method and apparatus for obtaining information about an environment having objects located around a vehicle. The laser detection and ranging system comprises a fan beam generation unit, a streak unit, a telescope, a switch, and a detector unit. The fan beam generation unit transmits a fan beam. The streak unit streaks a received beam generated in response to the fan beam to form a streaked beam. The telescope propagates the fan beam to a portion of the environment around the vehicle. The switch directs the fan beam generated by the fan beam generation unit through the telescope along an azimuth onto the environment around the vehicle and directing a response signal to the fan beam to the streak unit. The detector unit detects the streaked beam and generating range and angle data to generate an image of the environment.