A deep space experiment on NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is the first time a message has been sent to Earth from beyond the moon via a laser. This is an achievement that could change the way spacecraft communicate.
In the farthest demonstration of this type of optical communications to date, Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) will send near-infrared lasers encoded with test data approximately 40 times farther away, approximately 16 million kilometers (10 million miles). It was irradiated from From the Earth to the Hale Telescope at California Institute of Technology’s Palomar Observatory in California, farther than the Moon.
DSOC is a two-year technology demonstration aboard Psyche as it heads toward its primary target, the asteroid Psyche. According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which manages both missions, the incredibly precise maneuvers saw laser transceivers lock onto JPL’s powerful uplink laser beacon at Table Mountain Observatory. The demonstration achieved “first light” on November 14th. This allowed DSOC’s transceiver to direct his downlink laser to the Caltech observatory 130 kilometers (100 miles) away.
“Achieving First Light is one of many important DSOC milestones to be achieved in the coming months, and will enable high-speed transmission of scientific information, high-definition images, and streaming video to support humanity’s next great leap forward. “We’re paving the way for data communications to Mars,” said Trudy Cortez, director of technology demonstrations at NASA Headquarters. statement.
Optical communication is used to send messages from earth orbit This is the farthest distance ever achieved by a laser beam. In a laser beam, the beams of photons have the same wavelength and travel in the same direction. Laser communications transmits large amounts of data at unprecedented speeds by packing data into the vibrations of these light waves and encoding optical signals that can carry the message to a receiver via an infrared (invisible to humans) beam. data can be sent.
DSOC’s gold-capped flight laser transceiver can be seen on Psyche as it was installed at NASA’s AstroTech Space Operations Facility in December 2022.
Image credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky
NASA typically uses radio waves to communicate with missions farther than the moon, and electromagnetic waves are used to transmit data, but the advantage of laser beams is that they can pack more data into denser radio waves. is. According to NASA, the DSOC technology demonstration aims to demonstrate transmission speeds 10 to 100 times faster than today’s top wireless communications systems.
The ability to transmit more data will allow future missions to carry much higher-resolution scientific instruments, allowing for faster speeds on potential deep space missions, such as video livestreams from the surface of Mars. Communication is now possible.
“Optical communications will be a boon for scientists and researchers who are always seeking more from their space missions, and will enable human deep space exploration,” said NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation Program’s Advanced Communications and Navigation Technologies Division. said Dr. Jason Mitchell, Director of . . “More data means more discoveries.”
However, there are some challenges you should test first. The further the reach of optical communications, the more difficult it becomes because directing the laser beam requires pinpoint precision. Additionally, the photon signal becomes weaker and takes longer to reach its destination, ultimately causing communication delays.
In the Nov. 14 test, it took a photon about 50 seconds to reach Earth from Psyche. The return trip takes approximately 20 minutes before Psyche reaches its farthest distance. This is long enough for both Earth and spacecraft to move, so both lasers must adjust to this change in position.
So far, the record-breaking technology demonstration has been a huge success. “[The] “This test was the first to fully incorporate ground assets and flight transceivers, and required the DSOC and Psyche operations teams to work together,” said Meera Srinivasan, DSOC operations lead at JPL. Masu. “This is a formidable challenge, and there is still much work to do, but we were able to transmit, receive and decode some data, albeit briefly.”
Or as Abi Biswas, JPL’s DSOC project engineer, puts it:[We] It was possible to exchange “bits of light” with deep space. ” Swapping bits of light to and from deep space could transform the future of how space exploration communicates.