NASA breaks record by receiving a video 31 million kilometers from Earth

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) broke a record with the transmission of a video from space. This milestone was achieved as part of the project that the entity is carrying out with the Psyche space probe.

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In December 2023, The system managed to broadcast a 15-second clip at more than 31 million kilometersabout 80 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon. What makes this event interesting is not only the path it traveled, but also the time it took to be received, since it took 101 seconds to reach the planet.

The subject of the video is a cat named Taters, who belongs to an employee at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). In the test footage, he can be seen on a blue couch chasing a laser pointer.

The space agency has noted that receiving this signal is not just about the first demonstration of optical communications beyond the already proven system between Earth and the Moon, but also represents a crucial advance for the future of exploration, as it allows the transmission of high-resolution data over millions of kilometres.

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Pam Melroy, deputy administrator of the agency, highlighted that this milestone reflects the agency’s commitment to the development of new technologies for improve data transmission in future missions.

The agency mentions that the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) project, which is being developed and tested, uses laser technology to transmit data from space. In this regard, it is noted that the Psyche test set a new standard in interplanetary telecommunications.

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