Future Communications

NASA's technology demonstration of laser communication from deep space, flying as a rider on the Psyche spacecraft. It transmitted data over tens of millions of kilometres at rates far beyond radio, proving optical links for future missions.

A NASA optical-communication relay in geostationary orbit that demonstrates two-way laser links between ground stations and spacecraft, a stepping stone toward operational optical relays in the Near Space Network.

Instead of one large dish, many smaller antennas whose signals are combined electronically to act as a single larger aperture. Arraying is a future direction for the Deep Space Network, offering flexible, scalable collecting area.

A miniaturised, ultra-stable atomic clock small enough to fly on a spacecraft. By putting precise timekeeping onboard, it enables one-way radiometric navigation — the spacecraft can determine its own position without the round-trip to a ground clock — a technology demonstrated in Earth orbit.

Laser communication encodes data on an infrared beam instead of radio waves. Its far shorter wavelength packs data into a tighter beam, promising data rates 10–100× higher than radio — the frontier of deep-space communication, demonstrated by DSOC on the Psyche spacecraft.