Terran Orbital Aids Successful Demonstration of Record-Breaking 1.4 Terabyte Single-Pass Optical Downlink for NASA’s Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator 3 Satellite
December 05 2022 - 6:00AM
Business Wire
Terran Orbital Corporation (NYSE: LLAP), a global leader in
satellite-based solutions primarily serving the aerospace and
defense industries, today announced its contribution to the
successful demonstration of a record-breaking 1.4-terabytes of data
delivered from space to ground by an optical downlink in a single
pass.
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221205005115/en/
The technology inherent in PTD-3 could
open doors to large-volume data communications and data
accessibility for advanced space exploration— delivering multiple
terabytes of data per day to a single ground station (Image Credit:
Terran Orbital Corporation)
The demonstration connected the TeraByte InfraRed Delivery
(TBIRD) laser communications payload aboard NASA’s Pathfinder
Technology Demonstrator 3 Satellite (PTD-3) to the ground,
transmitting 1.4 TB of test data in a single ground station pass
lasting less than 5 minutes. TBIRD is a NASA Space Communications
and Navigation payload developed by the MIT Lincoln Laboratory.
NASA’s Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator (PTD) mission series
tests the operation of a variety of novel satellite technologies to
provide significant enhancement to the performance of versatile
spacecraft. Terran Orbital designed, built, integrated, and
operated the spacecraft for the first PTD satellite, PTD-1, to
demonstrate a propulsion system with a water-based propellant
generated via water electrolysis. PTD-3 is also a Terran
Orbital-developed satellite with added components to support the
TBIRD payload. This optical communication technology demonstration
aims to advance the state of the art for high-speed,
direct-to-Earth transmission of data from low Earth-orbiting
satellites to ground stations, targeting downlink at the
unprecedented rate of 200 gigabits per second. Fast, error-free
transfer of extremely high volumes of data may transform the
operations and missions of scientific, commercial, and defense
satellites.
“Terran Orbital is thrilled to have contributed to the
successful 1.4 terabyte space-to-ground optical link for PTD-3,”
said Terran Orbital Co-Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive
Officer Marc Bell. “The flight qualification and demonstration of
the groundbreaking technologies making the link possible will
benefit future government and commercial missions. Terran Orbital
is grateful for NASA and MIT Lincoln Laboratory’s partnership in
the PTD-3 mission. We look forward to completing the next
record-breaking space-to-ground optical link – at 200 gigabits per
second – in the near future.”
About Terran Orbital
Terran Orbital is a leading manufacturer of satellite products
primarily serving the aerospace and defense industries. Terran
Orbital provides end-to-end satellite solutions by combining
satellite design, production, launch planning, mission operations,
and on-orbit support to meet the needs of the most demanding
military, civil, and commercial customers. Learn more at
www.terranorbital.com.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221205005115/en/
Virginia Norder pr@terranorbital.com 949-508-6404
Terran Orbital (NYSE:LLAP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jun 2024 to Jul 2024
Terran Orbital (NYSE:LLAP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jul 2023 to Jul 2024