On December 7, 2021, NASA launched its new Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Key Points

• LCRD is the first-ever laser communications system of NASA.
• It will help NASA in test optical communication in space.
• Presently, most of the NASA spacecraft use radio frequency communications to send data.
• But the Optical communications will help in increasing the bandwidth by 10 to 100 times as compared to radio frequency systems.
• LCRD will also demonstrate all of the advantages of using laser systems.
• With this capability, laser communications can be implemented on more missions in a bid to standardise way to send and receive data.

• LCRD comprises of two optical terminals:

1. One of the terminals is used to receive data from a user spacecraft.
2. While, the other terminal is used to transmit data to ground stations.

• LCRD also has modems, which will translate digital data into laser signals.
• These signals will then be transmitted through encoded beams of light.
• These capabilities of LCRD make it NASA’s first two-way, end-to-end optical relay.