SUMMARYWe develop an adaptive power control algorithm to facilitate satellite to ground laser communication through turbulence fading channels. Adaptive control is a powerful tool that improves energetic gain of the satellite laser. We use discrete laser transmitter intensity levels in our control algorithm. A novel recursive technique defines optimal laser transmitting intensity levels so that the laser-transmitted power is adapted according to instant changes of the signal-to-noise ratio caused by channel fading. The algorithm's performance is first investigated in a general form suitable for any channel fading statistics. Then it is specified for a typical lognormal fading channel. The results indicate an improvement of up to 10 dB in energetic gain.