How NASA's new laser communications mission will work in space - Space.com

A "data hunger" in space is driving the launch of a new laser communications mission, a NASA official told Space.com.

The Laser Communications Relay Demonstration will launch on the United States Space Force Space Test Program 3 (STP-3) mission no earlier than Dec.

"This will be our first foray into understanding, what does it mean to use lasers to communicate and really connect directly to Earth and space users?" Jason Mitchell, Director of SCaN Advanced Communications & Navigation Technology Division at NASA, told Space.com in a recent video interview.

LCRD will operate from geosynchronous orbit at 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) to test out laser communications for at least two years.

Making sure the mission outlasted the stresses of launch and space radiation for years, instead of a few weeks of months, was top of mind during the design process, Mitchell said.

And really, it's just been making sure that we can get all that technology packaged in a way that will survive in space.

The Artemis 2 crewed moon-orbiting mission for 2024, is expected to test an Orion spacecraft optical communications system to send ultra-high-definition video feedback to Earth!

Also, the first year of the Psyche mission (targeting a metal asteroid of the same name) will include a test of the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) payload, which will help investigators learn how to precisely direct laser communications from deep space.

Besides the need for speed, NASA says the switch to laser will solve another growing space problem: frequency overcrowding.

Elizabeth's on-site reporting includes two human spaceflight launches from Kazakhstan, and embedded reporting from a simulated Mars mission in Utah.

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