NASA has successfully beamed messages via laser from a staggering distance of almost 16 million kilometres or 10 million miles, marking a crucial advancement in deep space communication technology.
The distance covered is approximately 40 times farther than the Moon’s distance from Earth, and this achievement, known as ‘first light,’ demonstrates the first-ever optical communications link established across such an extensive space.
This milestone is part of NASA’s Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment, aiming to revolutionise communication across vast cosmic distances.
Traditional radio waves have limitations, and the utilisation of higher frequencies of light, particularly near-infrared, presents an opportunity to significantly enhance data speed and bandwidth.
The successful test opens avenues for future communication capable of transmitting high-definition video messages to and from distant celestial bodies, reducing delays in data transmission.
