NASA's tech sends laser signal to Mars' farthest distance from Earth

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An illustration of NASA's Psyche spacecraft. /CFP

NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) technology demonstration set a new record for laser communications by transmitting a laser signal to the Psyche spacecraft, said NASA on Thursday.

NASA's Psyche spacecraft, launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in October last year, is the first-ever U.S. mission to study a metal-rich asteroid in the far reaches of the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Almost a year since launch, the DSOC experiment sent a laser signal from Earth to the Psyche spacecraft about 460 million kilometers away, equivalent to the distance between Earth and Mars at their most distant point, according to NASA.

Soon after reaching that milestone on July 29, the technology demonstration concluded the first phase of its operations since launching aboard Psyche.

The milestone is proof that humans could one day relay data to and from Mars using lasers, said NASA.

By transporting data at rates up to 100 times higher than radio frequencies, lasers can enable the transmission of complex scientific information as well as high-definition imagery and video, which are needed to support humanity's next giant leap when astronauts travel to Mars and beyond, said NASA.

Psyche spacecraft remains healthy and stable, using ion propulsion to accelerate toward a metal-rich asteroid in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, according to NASA.

(With input from Xinhua)