Scientists from the United States and Germany have developed a solution to enable data transmission between satellites through laser technology. This breakthrough will create an internet network in space that operates more efficiently and reliably than current systems.
Satellites are spacecraft that orbit the Earth or other planets for various purposes, including weather forecasting, communication, navigation, and scientific research. The traditional communication method for satellites is through radio waves, which has its limitations due to the risk of signal interference, energy requirements, and frequency restrictions.
Lasers, on the other hand, emit light of the same color and direction, allowing for faster and more efficient data transmission compared to radio waves. Additionally, lasers are more challenging to intercept or counterfeit. However, establishing a laser connection between satellites at a distance of thousands of kilometers while accounting for movement and atmospheric distortion is no easy feat.
To solve this problem, scientists from the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Max Planck’s Applied Physics Institute in Germany (mpq) created a system comprised of two lasers on each satellite: one for data transfer and the other for aiming rays. The first laser sends a powerful pulse of light where information is recorded, while the second laser sends a weak light signal to determine the position and direction of the satellites. Satellites exchange these signals and adjust their lasers to align with each other.
The system also employs specialized algorithms to correct the distortion of laser rays caused by atmospheric conditions. Scientists tested their system on a computer and demonstrated that it could achieve high beam aiming accuracy and data transfer speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second.
The scientists believe that this system could be used to create a global internet network through satellites, connecting different regions of the Earth and enabling communication with deep space devices. Such a network could improve the efficiency and safety of communication in various fields, including science, education, medicine, military affairs, and entertainment.