free space optical communication
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NASA’s New ‘Hybrid Antenna’ Boosts Links to Deep Space
NASA outfitted its aging communications network with a hybrid antenna that allowed it to receive both radio frequency and laser signals for the first time, helping the space agency keep up with its increasing number of missions traveling through deep space. Deep Space Station 13, an experimental 112-foot-long (34-meters) radio-frequency-optical-hybrid antenna, tracked and decoded a…
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NASA Hopes Its Tissue Box-Sized Satellite Can Set a New Laser Speed Record
A tiny gold-coated satellite lifted off from Earth on Wednesday with a rather large goal in mind for NASA: beam down data at the fastest rate ever achieved by space lasers.