NASA will host a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 20, to discuss the agency’s first test of high-bandwidth optical communications beyond the Moon. The Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) technology demonstration is launching aboard the Psyche spacecraft Thursday, Oct. 5.
Audio of the call will stream live on NASA’s.
The following participants will discuss the goals of this demonstration and benefits of high-data-rate laser
The Deep Space Optical Communications experiment is a pioneering technology demonstration that will take laser communications to the next frontier: deep space. The transceiver will launch aboard the Psyche spacecraft , NASA’s first mission to the metal-rich asteroid Psyche. The experiment will test high-bandwidth optical communications to Earth during the first two years of the spacecraft’s journey to the main asteroid belt. While the transceiver is hosted by Psyche, the tech demo will not relay Psyche mission data.
Laser communications can empower missions with data rates at least 10 to 100 times higher than current radio telecommunications systems of comparable size and power, enabling higher-resolution images, larger volumes of science data, and even streaming video to be transmitted to Earth. Ultimately, the experiment may pave the way for broadband
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202’358 -2546
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov
