NASA tests laser communication in space, signal received from a distance of 16 million kilometers

NASA specialists are approaching the use of laser communication in deep space. Now they have managed to successfully conduct a corresponding experiment, reports The Verge.

Space agency experts conducted the test using the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) system. As part of the test, they transmitted encoded data to Earth by directing a beam at a wavelength in the near-infrared range.

The data was sent from the Psyche spacecraft, which was recently launched to study a metal-rich asteroid. The transmission took place over a distance of 16 million kilometers. This is about 40 times further than the distance from Earth to the Moon.

The DSOC experiment aims to demonstrate a communication transmission rate that is 10-100 times higher than existing communication systems on spacecraft.

Earlier it was reported about the launch of the Psyche mission to study asteroid 16 Psyche. The spacecraft should reach it in July 2029. It will explore the object for about two years. During this time, it will take photographs and collect data that will allow for a better understanding of the asteroid’s composition.