nasa-completes-laser-communications-demo,-sets-new-world-records

NASA Completes Laser Communications Demo, Sets New World Records

NASA has concluded the TeraByte InfraRed Delivery demonstration setting new world records for the fastest satellite downlink from space.

The agency said Wednesday the TBIRD, onboard the Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator-3 spacecraft, used laser communications instead of radio frequency communication systems in transmitting data from space to Earth resulting in record-setting benchmarks.

The project sought to determine the potential of laser communications, which utilize infrared light, in data transmission. Within the two years of the mission, there was a significant increase in data sent through a single communications link.

In 2023, the TBIRD managed to transmit 4.8 terabytes of error-free data at a rate of 200 gigabits per second, eclipsing the old record of 100 Gbps set in June 2022.

The PTD-3 was launched in May 2022 and, once it reached low-Earth orbit, the TBIRD started sending laser communications signals to an optical ground station in Table Mountain, California.

In addition, the mission set the record for the highest accuracy by a NASA CubeSat in “body pointing” without relying on any moving parts or propulsion systems. The PTD-3/TBIRD system also proved its small, lightweight, cost-effective and power-efficient design was suitable for such space missions.

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