They are millions of miles away from Earth, so astronauts clearly miss their furry (or feathery) companions. In a recent demonstration of some seriously advanced space tech, NASA beamed over 500 photos and videos of beloved pets to the International Space Station (ISS) and back – all thanks to a cutting-edge laser communications system.
But this wasn’t just a heartwarming gesture for astronauts like Randy Bresnik, Christina Koch, and Kjell Lindgren. This playful exchange also served a crucial purpose. The transmissions were a test run for NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program, showcasing the potential of laser communications technology.
“The pet imagery campaign has been rewarding on multiple fronts,” said Kevin Coggins, a program manager at NASA “Not only have they demonstrated how these technologies can play an essential role in enabling NASA’s future science and exploration missions, it also provided a fun opportunity for the teams to “picture” their pets assisting with this innovative demonstration.”
So, how exactly did these pet pics travel the cosmic distance? Here’s the breakdown:
The journey began with digital images on a computer at a mission control center in New Mexico. The data then took a detour to special optical ground stations in California and Hawaii. Scientists used lasers to convert the data into infrared light signals, beaming them upwards. The light signals zipped up to NASA’s Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD) satellite, orbiting Earth at a staggering 22,000 miles. LCRD then acted as a space relay station, forwarding the data to a device called ILLUMA-T, which is mounted on the exterior of the ISS.
Traditionally, NASA has relied on radio waves to communicate with spacecraft. While both radio and infrared signals travel at the speed of light, lasers offer a significant advantage: they can transmit much more data in a single go. This makes them ideal for sending large scientific datasets back to Earth.
I just love how they used pet photos to test the technology. I guess we all miss our pets when we’re away from home – no matter how far. But in essence, this playful pet picture exchange served as a giant leap forward for future space communications. It paves the way for faster, more efficient data transfer, ensuring smoother operations and richer scientific discoveries on missions to come.
[via Digital Camera World; lead image created using Midjourney]
