Antenna for Deep Space, the new thing from NASA

This antenna has been equipped with an optical terminal, achieving an unprecedented feat: receiving both radio frequency signals and lasers from deep space simultaneously. This advance represents a critical evolution for communications in space missions, promising an era where data transfer will be exponentially faster and more efficient.

The hybrid antenna, capable of capturing signals radio frequency and optics, has tracked and decoded the descending laser of the Deep Space Optical Communication (DSOC) aboard the mission Psyche from NASA. This dual capability is a testament to NASA’s ingenuity and vision, as it demonstrates that the Deep Space Network’s gigantic satellite dishes, traditionally dedicated to radio wave communication, can be adapted for optical or wireless communication. laser.

The importance of this innovation lies in its potential to revolutionize the way we communicate with spacecraft. By enabling transmissions that pack more data, optical communication will enable new space exploration capabilities, while supporting the Deep Space Network in the face of growing demand on the network. In practical terms, by the end of 2023, the hybrid antenna transmitted data from 30 million km away at a speed of 15.63 megabits per second, about 40 times faster than radio frequency communications at that distance. This efficiency in data transmission is crucial for future missions, including the ambitious goal of sending humans to Mars.

The Deep Space Station 13 It has become a live laboratory for testing concepts that could scale to more powerful versions in the future. Equipped with a system of seven segmented hexagonal mirrors, the antenna collects laser photons and precisely directs them through optical fiber to a cryogenically cooled semiconductor single-photon detector. This technology is a testament to the advancement in engineering and materials science and a sign of how NASA continues to lead in technological innovation for space exploration.

This transition to optical communications represents a vital infrastructure solution to address the growing demand for high-speed data transmissions in space. By retrofitting existing radio frequency antennas with optical terminals and building purpose-built hybrid antennas, the current lack of dedicated optical terrestrial infrastructure could be overcome. This would not only maximize the efficiency of the Deep Space Network but it would also transform our “communication highways” into true “highways”, optimizing time, money and resources.

DSOC is the latest in a series of optical communications demonstrations funded by NASA’s Technology Demonstration Missions (TDM) program and the agency’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program.

In Mediaboooster, we have covered numerous technological innovations that have made a difference in the world of technology and space exploration. This latest NASA feat is a reminder that the limit of what is possible remains.