NASA successfully sends and receives data encoded with lasers from 218 million miles away
NASA is actively working to ensure humans land on Mars and return to the Moon. When we do, there will be a need for faster and better means of sending large volumes of data to and from Earth. This is what DSOC is focused on.
The technology demonstration transmits data via lasers. It launched in October 2023 aboard the Psyche spacecraft. DSOC consists of a flight laser transceiver, which is mounted on the Psyche spacecraft. It also consists of two ground stations.
One station sends a laser beacon to Psyche from Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Table Mountain Facility. This laser beacon helps Psyche’s transceiver aim its downlink laser accurately. The other station is a 200-inch Hale Telescope at Caltech’s Palomar Observatory in San Diego County. This telescope receives the faint laser signal coming from Psyche and decodes it into useful data.
DSOC has completed several passes. One month after its launch, it sent data encoded in lasers from nearly 10 million miles away. In December 2023, it made history when it sent an ultra-high-definition video to Earth from over 19 million miles away at 267 megabits per second.
A year later, it superseded optical communications records when it sent data from 307 million miles away. This distance is farther than the average distance between Earth and Mars.
DSOC recently completed its 65th and final pass. It transmitted a laser signal to Psyche and received the return signal from 218 million miles away. DSOC is laying the groundwork for future deep space missions that will take scientists to the Moon and Mars by enabling faster and higher-quality communications.
