Called the Optical Payload for Lasercomm Science (OPALS), the new communication system will be launched to the ISS aboard a Falcon9 rocket as part of a routine cargo resupply mission. Built around a closed loop control system and a two-axis gimbal, OPALS is also armed with a camera, a laser and a lens collimator system. Once aboard the station OPALS will be installed and begin conducting a series of communication tests with an Earth-based telescope.
"Optical communications has the potential to be a game-changer," said OPALS Mission Manager Matt Abrahamson. "Right now, many of our deep space missions communicate at 200 to 400 kilobits per second."
“It's like upgrading from dial-up to DSL," says Bogdan Oaida, the OPALS project’s systems engineer. "Our ability to generate data has greatly outpaced our ability to downlink it. Imagine trying to download a movie at home over dial-up. It's essentially the same problem in space, whether we're talking about low-Earth orbit or deep space."
Throughout its trials the OPALS system will be used to study pointing, acquisition, tracking and the characteristics of optical laser behavior as it interacts with Earth’s atmosphere. If successful, OPALS could represent a major milestone in space communications, opening up a frontier for richer data acquisition and scientific discovery.
Image Courtesy of NASA JPL